The Grail Legend

by Marie-Louise von Franz, Emma Jung, Marie-Louise Jung, Emma and von Franz

Book Overview

The Holy Grail and its quest is a legend that has had a powerful impact on our civilization and culture. The Grail itself is an ancient Celtic symbol of plenty as well as a Christian symbol of... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 093843408X
• ISBN13: 9780938434085
• Release Date: January 1986
• Publisher: Sigo Press
• Length: 452 Pages
• Weight: 1.95 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Very Deep Analysis of a Very Deep Matter +++

I found "The Grail Legend" by Emma Jung [and M. L. von Franz] to be very thoughtful and detailed. Likely, the Holy Grail was a main concern for most of Emma Jung's life. One can readily see why Carl Jung viewed that subject matter as his "wife's turf". "Animus and Anima", also by Emma Jung, is an excellent little summary of Jungian Psychology with a focus on Animus and Anima. In contrast, "The Grail Legend" is so deep and detailed, that I found myself having to review several Jungian works to "keep up". Namely, "Animus and Anima", "The Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious" and "Aion". The last two works being by Carl Jung. Very interesting and even inspiring for those interested in Jung, Grail, Merlin, Arthur, Celtic and Celtic Christian subjects from before the "Dark Ages" until the "Present".

Extremely thorough and inclusive approach to the Grail legen

Emma Jung and Marie-Louise von Franz have produced a very comprehensive analysis of the legend of the Holy Grail legend. Jung spent over 20 years collecting the background information. Von Franz spent 15 years pulling together the final manuscript which was published after Emma Jung's death. The book explores the historic origin of the legend in both Welsh/Celtic and Christian legend. The legend appears to integrate 3 influences: the legends of the early Welsh/Celtic people who were driven into the hills by the Saxon invaders, the Christian legend of the grail and the stone covering the grave of Christ, and the major shift in Western consciousness regarding the role of women around the reign of Henry II and Eleanor of Acquitaine. The story is about the heroic actions and adventures of the fool knight, Perceval, that are needed to heal the wounded Fisher King and revive his famine plagued kingdom. Much of the book explores all the images and multiple variations around this myth. The legend would imply that in all men a wounded Self(Fisher King) limits and shuts off the powers and creativity of the archetypes and other unconscious forces. The healed Fisher King is a strong Self, the king of the unconscious, who can navigate and attract unconscious forces and influences. The beautiful woman, the Anima, acts as a messenger between the ego consciousness and the unconscious. The Grail is the site where the opposites are united, the personality becomes whole,the internal struggles against opposing forces within the self stops, and thus the healing of the King (Self) is at hand. Each of the psychological constructs: ego, consciousness, unconscious, archtype, shadow, anima, animus, Self, etc. are shown in the characters and various props/objects within the legend. Students of the legends of King Arthur and the Round Table will find this to be a very scholarly study of the particular tale of Perceval and his search of the Holy Grail. The Round Table is connected to the two preceeding tables - the table where Christ held the Last Supper with his disciples and the table that becomes the Altar for the Holy Communion. Students of pre-Saxon Britian will find this work to identify multiple primitive Celtic and Welsh myths and legends. Students of Jung will find this legend actually is able to encompass almost all the major constructs of Jungian theory into one comprehensive legend. Jung identifies the Self as the part of the personality through whom God speaks. This makes sense if we see the Self as the king of the unconscious, a land of symbol and archetype. If the Self is wounded, the land of archetype and symbol is barren and thus the voice of God is not heard. But when the Self is healed, God is able to speak through the language of image, myth, archetype, and symbol. The heroic knight is able to heal the wounded King by asking whom the Grail serves. The Grail is the site where opposing forces are united and integrated and thus tension and internal

You won't find a more complete reference on The Grail myth

I've used this book countless times for research, pondering and contemplation and teaching. I come back to it often, because some of the references are so obscure that it took years to run into the situation that related back to the story. But it's all good. Carl Jung specifically steered clear of the Grail Myth because it was understood that it was Emma's territory. By reading it you can tell that it's a lifetime collection. If you are looking for Cliff notes on the grail story, this is not your book. If you are looking for an in depth source for pursuing the meaning(s) behind the Grail then it's a must have.

A Journey to the Inner Grail

Robert Johnson said it best, "We each have but to walk down the path and turn left to find the Grail Castle. It's simply being conscious enough to know when the time has come to enter the Grail Castle." I love the story of Perceival so very much. Not only because it mimics so much of my own personal spiritual quest but also because of the hope it gives Western man. We have only to ask the question to heal the Fisher King, not know the answer. The question, "Whom does the grail serve?" is enough.

The Inner Grail Quest

Emma Jung, Carl Jung's wife, made a lifelong study of the Grail Legend, preparing for this book. After her death in 1955, her project was completed by Marie-Louise von Franz, the most pre-eminent of Carl Jung's disciples and one of the most respected expositors of Jungian psychology. This book, a Jungian analysis of the Grail Legend, is regarded as a masterpiece. What is the Grail Legend about? In a word: meaning. It is how the Fool, Perceval, finds the Holy Grail and thus rescues the suffering Fisher King from his non-life in the Wasteland. This book explains how that story, with its triumphant conclusion, can take place in each one of us. For anyone fascinated by the Grail and curious about its relevance to life today, there simply is no better book than Jung & Franz's study.