"It is the way of dreams to give us more than we ask…They not only allowed us an insight into the causes of the neurosis but afforded a prognosis as well. What is more, they showed us at what point the treatment should begin. (C.G. Jung, Modern Man in Search of a Soul)"

It is the simplicity of the dream, communicating to us in a language derived from the natural world that moves us so deeply. In the dream, patterns of life, of growth, and of endings are revealed though a rich tapestry of collective images and language. So too, the dream allows us to see that something in our life – perhaps a relationship, a job, or an attitude – is outdated, and that the Self, the Soul is in need of renewal.

C.G. Jung was once asked why the dream speaks through symbols and not in the language of everyday life. To this question Jung responded by saying that such a direct communication would fall on deaf ears, and that the Self speaks through an iconographic, pictorial voice of the ages, the language of the “Antique Soul.” So too he reminds us that from time eternal, humanity has been moved by images, by sounds, parables, and symbols.

Just as dreams provide a deeply meaningful perspective about the dreamer’s life, this 8-week seminar builds on these insights while looking to the dream as offering an objective perspective on the treatment process. We will see how our client’s dreams allow us to understand the nature, trajectory, and meaning of the treatment, and our place within the client’s personal and archetypal drama. Through illustrations of both clients’ and analysts’ dreams which occur from the beginning of treatment and throughout the analysis, we will come to an even greater appreciation of the dream’s capacity to provide an accurate commentary and needed corrective to the therapeutic process.



Each class will address an important aspect of dream work and will include the following themes:

• Jung’s perspective on the dream
• The difference between interpretation and translation of a dream
• Understanding the role of the initial dream in the assessment of clients’ psychological needs and constellated archetypal dynamics
• Recognizing the objective, non-transferential nature of dream material
• Learning to recognize the symbolic, derivative representation of the analyst in dreams
• Working with dream images, Associations, Explanation, Amplification
• The relationship and difference between personal and archetypal meaning of dream symbols

This 8-week seminar will include 6 weekly lectures from Dr. Michael Conforti, Founder and Director of The Assisi Institute: The International Center for the Study of Archetypal Pattern Analysis. Weaving together the foundational ideas of Jung, Yoram Kauffman’s analytic work with the Objective Psyche, the insights of Dr. Robert Langs on unconscious communication, with his own interdisciplinary theory of initial conditions, Dr. Conforti presents a penetrating and in-depth approach to working with the objective content of dreams in clinical practice. 

The seminar also includes 2 workshops with Assisi Institute faculty member, Bonnie Pfeiffer, who co-teaches the 3-year Dream Patterning Certificate Program with Dr. Conforti. In these workshops, participants will have the opportunity to practice the skills learned during the lectures as they work with the content of dreams taken from Professor Pfeiffer’s practice as a Senior Voice Dialogue teacher and Dream Analyst. 


Supplemental Readings:

Conforti, M. (2008). Threshold Experiences: The Archetype of Beginnings. Fisher King Press.
Jung, C.G. (1933). Modern Man in Search of a Soul. Harcourt Press.
Kauffman, Y. (2009). The Way of the Image. NY: Zahay Books.

Who Should Attend:
This seminar is designed for clinical professionals from multiple disciplines including psychiatrists, analysts, psychologists, and other professionals working clinically with dream content. 

Program Instructors:

Bonnie Pfeiffer has a Master of Arts Degree in Education, with a specialization in Archetypal Pattern Analysis and The Psychology of Selves. She was a senior Son-Rise Family Program Teacher and Option Process Mentor/Counselor at the Option Institute & Autism Treatment Center of America. She has worked with families and individuals from all over the world, trained and supervised staff in training, and served on the Board of Directors. Bonnie is a Senior Voice Dialogue Teacher and Facilitator, and an Archetypal Pattern Analyst. Since 1993 she has worked in a private practice specializing in archetypal pattern analysis and dream work with clients from all walks of life. Along with Dr. Conforti, Professor Pfeiffer teaches in the Beginning, Advanced, and Masters level Dream Patterning Certificate Program at the Assisi Institute.

---

Dr. Michael Conforti is a Jungian analyst and the Founder and Director of the Assisi Institute. He is a faculty member at the C.G. Jung Institute of Boston, the C.G. Jung Foundation of New York, and for many years served as a Senior Associate faculty member in the Doctoral and Master's Programs in Clinical Psychology at Antioch New England. A pioneer in the field of matter-psyche studies, Dr. Conforti is actively investigating the workings of archetypal fields and the relationship between Jungian psychology and the New Sciences.
 
He has presented his work to a wide range of national and international audiences, including the C.G. Jung Institute - Zurich and Jungian organizations in Australia, Canada, Colombia, Denmark, Ecuador, Israel, Italy, Romania, Russia, South Africa, the Ukraine and Venezuela.
 
He is the author of Threshold Experiences: The Archetype of Beginnings (2007) and Field, Form and Fate: Patterns in Mind, Nature and Psyche (2002). His articles have appeared in Psychological Perspectives, The San Francisco Jung Institute Library Journal, Roundtable Press, World Futures: The Journal of General Evolution, and Spring Journal. His books have been translated into Italian, Russian, and Spanish. 

Dr. Conforti maintains a private practice in Mystic, CT and consults with individuals and corporations around the world.  He provides his insights as a sought-after consultant to businesses, government institutions, and the film industry. He has served as script consultant on the films Pride and Glory and Elvis Anabelle and is currently working on a script for a new TV series. He has also been asked to consult on the application of field theory to the understanding and resolution of international border disputes. He was selected by The Club of Budapest and the University of Potsdam to be part of a 20 member international team of physicists, biologists, and dynamical systems theorists to examine the role and influence of informational fields. He is a recipient of the Vision Award presented by the Association for the Advancement of Psychoanalysis.

---

Register Here