Ecstasy: Understanding the Psychology of Joy

We need some relief from all that strength; to be for a moment in that timeless, spaceless, primal place which has no responsibility, which isn’t going anywhere. We need to stand outside ourselves and experience the flow of life, the Dionysian energy.

We can touch Dionysus and learn to express that archetypal joy through three psychological disciplines: active imagination, dreamwork, and ritual.

Because you can swing from branch to branch as easily as that monkey. You can jump from tree to tree and branch to branch. You can climb as quickly as you can to the top, and scamper down again without falling. You cannot get hurt. Just enjoy yourself. Be filled with joy; there is no room for fear. You can do anything, but you must first believe th

Have respect and courtesy for others and for yourself.

to eat, where to go, how to support our families, who to vote for.

When we lost the concept of touch as a way to contact the god, we became ashamed of our natural urges and guilty even for our fantasies.

Affirm your personal responsibility for the Dionysian quality. Dionysian ecstasy is yours to channel, to humanize. Use it to produce positive, enlivening energy.

If you invest the gift with your love, then in giving this symbol you will have ritually expressed your love. You would be surprised at how much lighter you can feel after even such a small ceremony!

We hear the word in Christmas carols—“Joy to the World!” We read it in books—The Joy of Cooking, The Joy of Sex. But what does it really mean?