Home > JOURNALSANDNEWSLETTERS > INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF TRANSPERSONAL STUDIES > Vol. 35 (2016) > Iss. 2
DOI
10.24972/ijts.2016.35.2.61
Abstract
Although Jung made a connection between his concept of the archetype and mankind’s evolutionary history throughout his career, he remained notoriously tight-lipped about his own specific views on evolutionary theory. In the final years of his life, however, he finally went more into detail about this important topic, putting forward a most thought-provoking idea: the notion that synchronicity, or meaningful coincidences, had a role to play in the way evolution took shape. As I will argue in this paper, Jung’s comments on this topic present clear evidence that he did not think primarily along Darwinian lines, as has recently been claimed; rather, I will argue that he adopted what Wolfgang Pauli referred to as a third position—one that goes beyond both Darwinism and Lamarckism. This third position is strongly informed by the notion that evolutionary changes are not random but meaningful, and that synchronicity has a role to play in the way evolution takes shape. This suggests that Jung is not so much a kindred spirit to Neo-Darwinian evolutionary psychologists, but a thinker who is much closer in his intuitions and affinities to several evolutionary thinkers who have been influential in the field of transpersonal psychology, most notably Ken Wilber.
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Recommended Citation
Rensma, R. (2016). Meaningful mutations: Reflections on the synchronicity of evolution. International Journal of Transpersonal Studies, 35 (2). https://doi.org/10.24972/ijts.2016.35.2.61