The library has digitized Mythological Studies professor Dr. Christine Downing's lecture Approaches to the Study of Myth from five analog cassettes into eight freely available MP3 files. The lecture includes a general overview of the study of myth and several historical views on how myths were made and what their functions were thought to be. Individual topics discussed included Claude Levi-Strauss, James George Frazer, Jane Ellen Harrison, animism, mythology, and ritual.

A tribute to my mentor Dr. Louise Cowan. A guest post by Dr. Dennis Patrick Slattery.

A mentor is a complex hybrid human being; she (and I will use that pronoun because I am speaking in my case of a woman), is an amalgam of a parent, a teacher, a companion and a guide. Choosing our parents or our children allows either of us little choice; but with a mentor and student there is a choice on both sides.

Faithful to its intention to tend anima mundi, the soul in and of the world, Pacifica Graduate Institute resolves to use its own educational resources to support the shift in paradigm and in human consciousness that can lead to and support actions to protect the planet’s climate and all species and habitats dependent on it.

A guest post by Dr. Susan Rowland, Chair of Pacifica's M.A. Engaged Humanities and the Creative Life Program.

Dear Everyone,
Ten years ago when Al Quaeda bombed London, the Mayor of Paris said: “today we are all Londoners.” The following day, the Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, said “We are all Londoners” in Trafalgar Square packed with all of London’s multicultural communities. As a Londoner, then a resident, always by birth, no one speech or event did more to lessen the sense of trauma I felt.

How do we make decisions regarding the recent attacks in Paris, Beirut, Somalia, and last April's incident at Kenya's Garissa University College? On NPR a few days ago, news commentator Robert Siegel talked about how calm United States President Barack Obama was being because the president did not want to make decisions based on emotional responses.

Some groups are calling for more bombings targeted at these individuals behind the recent terrorists attacks, but should our response to violence be more violence? I emailed Mary Watkins, a professor of depth psychology here at Pacifica to get her thoughts. She responded with this: 

A guest post by Willow Young, M.A., L.M.F.T., Chair of Pacifica's M.A. Counseling Psychology Program

For the November, 2015 Public Program Coming Home to the Body: The Legacy of Marion Woodman, a conference co-sponsored with the Marion Woodman Foundation, Pacifica welcomed a group of scholars and practitioners who honor the connection between the body and psyche. Attendees had the opportunity to participate in lectures, movement workshops, and connect with like-minded individuals who hold sacred the dynamic interplay between body, soul, and mind. One of the scholars and speakers from the weekend was Dr. Tina Stromsted, who is involved in many organizations working to bring this work out to the wider community. The following is the introduction speech from Dr. Rae Johnson, Chair of Pacifica's Somatic Studies Specialization, welcoming Dr. Tina Stromsted to the stage for her plenary session Stars Beneath the Sea: The Gifts of Marion Woodman.

Notes on a Depth Discussion between Susan Rowland and Bonnie Bright

If you are an avid reader, the mystery genre is likely a familiar presence in the pleasures of your pastime. Those who love detective fiction really love it, as author and scholar Susan Rowland insists to me in a recent interview, and there is a strong ritual element in the reading and writing of mysteries. There are certain consistencies in every story that one may begin to expect; and yet they continue to enthrall us even as they unfold. Mystery novels hold a place for ritual in our culture, and a sense of wanting to repeat something we already know about, things we expect each time we pick one up.

A guest post by Aaron Mason; M.A. in Engaged Humanities and the Creative Life Program Alumnus; 2015

A guest post by Dr. Jennifer Leigh Selig. Dr. Selig was recently featured in the New York Times article Financial Advice for Women, From Women. Dr. Selig provided the research and methodology to produce the new archetypal indicator according to how we manage our money.

What does a geeky academic do on her three month sabbatical? More geeky academic things, it seems! At least, this is what happened to me on my sabbatical this summer, which landed me square on the front page of the New York Times Business section on Saturday, November 7th.