Rating: 
Summary: An update on Jungian concepts
Review: _The Archaic Revival_ is most memorable for its section on UFO's, and the psychological implications of the alien-abduction phenomenon. This is not to say that Mckenna is obsessed with aliens or that he believes these abductions really are happening. His beliefs are essentially an update on Carl Jung's idea that UFO encounters are a generic form of "psychic phenomenon". That is, they are a type of hallucination originating from the individual's inborn archetypal unconscious. The alien abduction is merely a form of personality complex dissociation - a result of a split-personality or a full-blown psychotic episode. However, both Mckenna and Jung are in agreement that this type of encounter does not necessarily mean the victim is crazy. It is simply a revelation or vision of the "archetype", and this is not necessarily good or bad. It is merely a strange but undeniable psychic phenomenon.The _Archaic Revival_ also contains other interesting essays, often emphasizing the concept that language is the basis of all consciousness and reality. Mckenna has many insightful theories on the nature of langauage, consciousness, subjectivity, solipsism, and the self as center of the universe. I highly recommend this book to all readers.
| 
