References to the clown can be traced throughout ancient cultures and indigenous tribes. The ancestors of the Clown are the Fool and the Jester. The Trickster form takes on duel energies of silliness and seriousness, play and work, and also creating and destroying. We talk with our guest Michael Bala about his article in the Jung Journal: Culture and Psyche titled The Clown: An Archetypal Self Journey. Michael is a certified Jungian Analyst and in the article, he discusses the historic psychological necessity of clowns and laughter and how it has been woven into popular culture. We also look at the fear of clowns and the shadow side of the archetype. Michael describes the transforming process of becoming psychologically whole by embracing the clown archetype. Here is recent article Creepy Clown Trespasses At Chicago Cemetery, In Dead Of Night
Guest – Michael Bala, a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and earned a BA in Humanities from the New School University in New York and a Masters in Counseling Psychology with a specialization in Depth Psychology from Pacifica Graduate Institute near Santa Barbara.