The Mutation of European Consciousness and Spirituality: From the Mythical to the Modern

Since the early 1970s, Willy Obrist has been working on the neglected theory of C.G. Jung’s depth psychology, incorporating it into modern knowledge about living organisms, and reflecting on the consequences of Jung’s discovery for our world view and religion. What is new about the present study is that Obrist approaches the religious metamorphosis from the perspective of the evolution of consciousness itself.

The result of his exploration made the author realize that the development of European consciousness was not just an accidental historical process but a true evolutionary step: a "mega mutation" of consciousness. In this process, the basic parameter of the mythical understanding of our world was overcome and replaced by a completely new world view which – after the discovery of the unconscious by Freud and Jung – was founded on scientific results empirically proved. This enables humanity to transcend the dilemma between knowledge and faith and to find a new understanding of "matter and mind" that is adequate to today’s knowledge of nature. From this point of view, a radically new access to spirituality and ethics becomes possible.