Therefore, often the best healing of life and body is serious, positive attention to the needs of your soul.

The therapist is seeing the situation differently, and that itself may be helpful. When therapist and client are not in the same narrative, there is space for change.

Our therapy took the form of the alchemical solutio, the breaking up of a tightly wrapped image of a life into its parts. Getting cracks in her story was a partial solution, at least, of her problem.

The root problem in society is an astounding degree of unconsciousness in dealings among people. Many act and speak from their deep needs, long- standing neurotic patterns and fears—with little or no awareness. You see this in shouting matches in which people hear nothing of what the other has to say. A community thrives on a spirit of cooperation and empathy, but often what you see is pure narcissism, self-interest, and gross immaturity.

It also helps to have a big vision of your work. You can raise humanity up to a new level of ethical sensitivity. You can help people become more self-contained and purposeful. You can assist people so that they won’t be acting out so much in their everyday lives. You can find the roots of rage and anger and ease jealousies. You could find ways to make your understandings more public and therefore socially therapeutic. You could see yourself, without egotism, as a therapist for the world.