REVIEWS
Carolyn Baker reveals how we need to take responsibility for our disavowed personal shadows. Reclaiming our personal shadow projections is vital for countering the devastating impacts of the collective shadow. Baker invites us to dig deep and access the rich seam of “Dark Gold” that could inspire our collective transformative potential. This important book is a guide for deep healing in terms of how we treat ourselves, one another, as well as other species and the natural world”.
—Dr Mick Collins. Lecturer. Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences. University of East Anglia. Author of The Unselfish Spirit: Human Evolution in a Time of Global Crisis.
C. G. Jung wrote, “The future of mankind very much depends upon the recognition of the shadow.” In her new book Dark Gold: The Human Shadow and the Alchemy of Global Crisis, Carolyn Baker masterfully sheds light on the darkness of both the personal and collective aspects of the human shadow that, I imagine, would truly give Jung hope for the future of humanity. To my mind, there is no more important work that any of us could do at the present moment in our history.
—Paul Levy, author of Dispelling Wetiko: Breaking the Curse of Evil
Carolyn Baker has done it again; she has taken a familiar topic and opened it with startling revelations. Her book is filled with wisdom, shining a light on the many ways the Shadow manifests in our culture. From war and racism, consumerism and New Age spirituality, Carolyn sees through our collective postures of superiority and invites us to do the hard work of redemption. At this critical time in our history, we urgently need her insights and guidance on how we may indeed, uncover the Dark Gold that awaits us.
—Francis Weller, author of The Wild Edge of Sorrow: Rituals of Renewal and the Sacred Work of Grief
Once again Carolyn Baker invites us into a journey of self-reflection in the context of industrial civilization's collapse. But this time she plunges us even more deeply — into the personal and collective shadow, where we hide what we don't want to notice or admit to as individuals, groups and nations. She shows that whether it's "othering" those not like us, or feeling entitled to privilege, the personal shadow writ large results in global war, injustice, and the current extinction of many species, including perhaps our own. She not only provides exercises for healing, she models some. I was especially touched by her befriending a homeless man in her community. When she describes a day standing in his shoes begging at an intersection — she vulnerably shares the myriad voices and emotions churning inside her. Don't miss it.
—Janaia Donaldson, Producer of Peak Moment Television
DARK GOLD: THE HUMAN SHADOW AND THE GLOBAL CRISIS
Dark Gold: The Human Shadow And The Global Crisis endeavors to educate, challenge, and most importantly inspire the reader to engage with the shadow as a necessary first step in both individual and collective healing. It emphasizes and elaborates on the abundant emotional and spiritual treasures that invariably issue from shadow exploration and transformation. Dark Gold challenges us to become courageous enough to be accountable and compassionate enough to love ourselves and the earth community fiercely, even when we feel it will make no difference.
THE AUTHOR
Carolyn Baker, Ph.D. is the author of Love In The Age Of Ecological Apocalypse: The Relationships We Need To Thrive and Collapsing Consciously: Transformative Truths For Turbulent Times. In 2014 with Guy McPherson, she co-authored Extinction Dialogs: How To Live With Death In Mind. She lives and writes in Boulder, Colorado and manages her website www.carolynbaker.net. A former psychotherapist and professor of psychology and history, Carolyn offers life coaching for people who want to live more resiliently in the present as they prepare for the future. Her radio show, the Lifeboat Hour, airs on Progressive Radio Network every week.
