8.0 Conclusion

      A reliable assessment by an individual of the cultural heritage of his bloodline cannot be obtained by a purely analytical, intellectual manipulation of the facts of history, comparative religion, comparative mythology, archaeology, and other social sciences. A thorough integration of the conscious ego with the ancient archetypal constructs of the collective unconscious is the only mechanism by which this assessment can be made with a high degree of confidence. Firsthand experience obtained in such activities as participating in archaeological digs, and eyeball contact with the actual structures and relics of ancient civilizations is very helpful. It is absolutely necessary, however, for the individual to participate in numerous experiental encounters with the mythological figures who are the true, viable elements of these civilizations.

      The following quotation from "The Supreme Identity (An Essay On Oriental Metaphysics And The Christian Religion)" by Alan Watts very aptly expresses this idea:

"The story of lost and found, of death and resurrection, of self-forgetting and self-discovery, is perhaps the most common theme of mythological and religious symbolism. In one way or another the story of the Fall and the Redemption, the parable of the Prodigal Son, the symbols of the Zodiac, the mystery of Voluntary Sacrifice, and the innumerable myths of exile and return, tell of that primal and cosmological game of hide-and-seek whereby the finite universe is created. For this theme is the basic principle of all story, all adventure, all love, all meaning, because every aspect of life is an image in miniature of the central drama underlying the whole -- the self-abondonment and the self-realization of the ultimate and infinite Reality in the finite order. For this reason Coomaraswamy has said that 'myth embodies the nearest approach to absolute truth that can be stated in words'."*

      A properly guided course of involvement with the concepts of such men of knowledge as Carl Jung, Aleister Crowley, Joseph Campbell, E. A. Wallis Budge, Robert Graves, and James G. Frazer can lead to a mature integration of the individual self with the collective Self, and thus permit an individual to attain to a comprehensive understanding of the historical evolutionary forces which have shaped his character. Such an individual would be very well qualified to produce an impressive account of the virtues and the dangers of "exploring the river of the soul".

      I am very well qualified and highly motivated to undertake the job of conducting the research and generating the documentation required to bring a vivid and vibrant account of an encounter with the Gods to the attention of the public.

*"Hinduism and Buddhism" (New York, 1943), p. 33 - Coomaraswamy