Large collection of letters and photographs from the psychoanalyst Carl Gustav Jung – letters sent by Jung to the psychoanalyst Dr. Rivkah Schärf Kluger, most handwritten and hand signed by him (German); photographs of Jung at his home in Küsnacht on the outskirts of Zurich, and more. Switzerland, [ca. 1940-60].
The collection includes:
• 62 letters bearing Carl Gustav Jung's signature (German). Most are handwritten, on official stationery, and the remainder typewritten. Most are in their original envelopes. The letters were sent from 1940 to 1960 to Jung's student and close friend, the psychoanalyst Dr. Rivkah Schärf Kluger. To the best of our knowledge, these letters have never been printed or published.
The letters deal with a wide range of personal and professional subjects, and contain some intriguing references to Jung's theories. In his letters, Jung relates to various ideas and concepts connected to his own theories of analytical psychology; he consults with Dr. Schärf Kluger regarding the publication of his studies and works, provides her with guidance in editing and copy-editing her own research, tells her about the state of his own health, about his vacations and future plans, gives her all manner of advice, and more. In some of his letters, Jung psychoanalyzes Schärf Kluger's dreams – which she had told him about in her letters to him – by deciphering, interpreting, and clarifying them.
In one letter, dated April 3, 1946, Jung analyzes a particular dream Schärf Kluger had told him about, which appeared connected to the relationship between the two: "You stay too long – Hidden behind this is a desire to be part of my family. But I lead you out, – that is, out of the realm of ‘being a daughter' […] The card points to the pious Jew who has to teach you obedience. The apparatus that lengthens my nose is suggestive of the intention, that is, the distant goal one reaches when one pursues that nose. The small wriggling fish behind all this is the Christian symbol […] This is the part or the ‘self, ' the ‘atman' (from Old High German = breath, Holy Spirit) that a person internalizes, aspires to bring closer, that which enables one to breathe (‘Spiritus Vitae, ' [the ‘spirit of life']), in other words, that which enables life. Life is sacrifice, that is, any form of fulfillment is sacrifice, because completion is both a beginning and an ending… the ‘self' lives only insofar as we live our lives according to reality. Through illusions we distort reality and attempt to avoid it."
In another letter, dated November 11, 1944, Jung writes to Schärf Kluger as follows: "It seems to me every time something is constellated in your unconscious, threatening dreams are aroused, because you usually react to your unconscious as if it were something pathological. This is a form of overreaction, and is far too pronounced, and is apparently related to the fact that you dropped abruptly, shall we say, from the Middle Ages into the Modern Era – actually to the pinnacle of modernity." In yet another letter, dated August 30, 1943, Jung confides to her that "it so happened that you once suddenly appeared in one of my dreams, but I can't remember the context."
In some of the letters, Jung appears to be intrigued by the Hebrew language and Jewish texts. In one of them, dated May 24, 1944, he thanks Schärf Kluger for sending him a particular kabbalistic composition, and writes as follows: "This [the composition] strongly reinforces my own feelings and experiences. I was very impressed by it. In the darkest hours of my illness, every night I found myself in something of a ‘pomegranate orchard.' [In all likelihood, the composition in question is the book by Rabbi Moses ben Jacob Cordovero titled ‘Pardes Rimonim' = ‘Pomegranate Orchard.'] In another letter, he thanks Schärf Kluger for providing him with an interpretation of the Hebrew word "rikmah" (= embroidery, tapestry, [biological] tissue).
• 41 photographs, including photos of Carl Gustav Jung at home in Küsnacht, on the outskirts of Zurich. Some of the photos show him in his study room, or working in the yard outside his house, or with members of his family, colleagues, and acquaintances, and more. Two of the photographs (portrait photographs of Jung) were taken by Margarita Fellerer, one of them is signed by Jung.
Size and condition vary.
Carl Gustav Jung (1875-1961), Swiss physician and psychiatrist, one of the founding fathers of modern psychology; the father of analytical psychology, sometimes referred to as Jungian Psychology, and the theorist who gave rise to the concept of "collective unconscious." Jung was one of the most prominent of Sigmund Freud's students; Freud regarded him for a while as his natural successor, and even made certain he would be appointed President of his newly founded International Psychoanalytical Association. In 1912, Jung published a treatise, based on the results of his research, entitled "Psychology of the Unconscious, " in which he took issue with some of Freud's fundamental theoretical premises. This publication led to an ultimately irreconcilable personal and professional rift between the two. The main bone of contention between Freud and Jung involved their respective views regarding the unconscious; while Freud concentrated on illicit urges and repressed personal memories, Jung chose to focus on patterns of collective thought. In Jung's view, the appearance of recurring symbols and images in divergent cultures points to the existence of a pervasive collective unconscious wherein experiences are passed on from one generation to the next, originating with the dawn of humanity. In his opinion, this collective unconscious, consisting of symbols and images that exist cross-culturally among virtually all human societies – what Jung termed "archetypes" – exerts a profound influence on human personality. The impact of Jung's approach extended far beyond the field of psychology, into such areas as philosophy and religion, behavioral sciences, literature, art, and more.
The Swiss psychoanalyst Dr. Rivkah Schärf Kluger (1907-1987), was one of Carl Gustav Jung's most outstanding disciples. Born in Bern, Switzerland, she was the firstborn daughter of Sara Ettel Wiesel and Meschulem Leib Schärf, a Jewish couple of Hasidic origin who immigrated to Switzerland from Bukovina (today part of Romania; then a region of the Austro-Hungarian Empire). When she was four years old, her family moved from Bern to Zurich. Her academic training began at the University of Zurich, where she first studied philosophy and psychology, and then moved on to Semitic languages and religious history. She took a thorough interest in the field of Jewish mysticism and kabbalah. Her first encounter with Jung came when she was still a young student; she read his writings, attended his lectures, and kept detailed notes on the content of his lessons. Some of these notes have been recently published. In 1936, she began working alongside Jung as a psychoanalyst, and subsequently started teaching students of her own at the C.G. Jung Institute in Zurich. In 1946, she earned her doctorate. Her doctoral thesis dealt with the image of Satan in the Old Testament. Jung, who was immensely impressed with her work, had the thesis published as an appendix to his own book, "Symbolik des Geistes." Jung and Schärf Kluger developed a deep and durable, longstanding personal friendship. They would meet from time to time, and exchanged many letters over a prolonged period of correspondence. In 1955, Schärf Kluger moved to the United States along with her husband, Yehezkel Kluger. The two settled in Los Angeles, where Schärf Kluger lectured at the C.G. Jung Institute of Los Angeles. In 1969, the couple immigrated to Israel, settling in Haifa, where Schärf Kluger continued both teaching and practicing psychoanalysis.
Enclosed:
• Letters sent to Rivkah Schärf Kluger following the death of her mother in early February, 1950, including a handwritten, hand-signed letter from Emma Jung, wife of Carl Jung; a handwritten, hand-signed letter from the psychologist Toni Wolff (1888-1953), sometimes referred to as Jung's "second wife"; a letter of condolence signed by Jung's daughter Agathe and her husband Kurt Niehus; a letter (written on a postcard) from "M.J." – probably Jung's daughter, Marianne Jung; and more.
• Two lengthy letters written by Rivkah Schärf Kluger to Carl Jung: one from May 28, 1956, and the other from January 25, 1961. Another one of her handwritten letters is enclosed with one of Jung's letters, dated April 13, 1942.
• A letter signed by Aniela Jaffé, Carl Jung's secretary, and dated May 26, 1961. This letter, addressed to both Rivkah Schärf Kluger and her husband Yehezkel just a few days prior to Carl Jung's passing, gives a highly detailed account of Jung's failing health. In the letter, Aniela Jaffé requests that the couple treat the matter as strictly confidential.
• 13 handwritten or typewritten letters from the German-Jewish psychiatrist James Kirsch (1901-1989), chairman and founder of the C.G. Jung Institute of Los Angeles, dated 1951-54. Addressed to Yehezkel Kluger. English.
• 8 handwritten or typewritten letters from Prof. Heinrich Zangger (1874-1957), chairman of the University of Zurich's Instituts für Rechtsmedizin (Institute of Forensic Medicine). Addressed to Rivkah Schärf Kluger. German.
Reference:
Nomi Kluger-Nash, "Rivkah Schärf Kluger: A Life Fuelled with Intensity of Spirit and Rare Depth of Soul, " [Appendix I] in Carl Gustav Jung, "The Solar Myths and Opicinus de Canistris: Notes of the Seminar given at Eranos in 1943," Daimon (publisher), Switzerland, 2015.