Collective Unconscious or Morphic Fields? Two Ways of Understanding Human Connectedness

by Martha | Jul 11, 2026 | Essays on Living, Existential Personalistic Anthropology, Family, Family Constellations, The wisdom of the body, Whole-Person Counseling and LifeArt Consulting

This article grew out of some reflections I shared in my essay When Ideas Appear at the Same Time in Different Places. It began as an AI-generated research summary, which I have reviewed, corrected, and edited. I am sharing it as a concise introduction to two fascinating theories rather than as original scholarship.

Understanding Jung’s Collective Unconscious

Carl Jung’s concept of the collective unconscious represents a significant aspect of his analytical psychology. Unlike the personal unconscious, which is unique to each individual and formed through personal experiences, the collective unconscious refers to a deeper level of the unconscious mind that is shared by all members of a species. It contains universal symbols and archetypes, which Jung described as inherited structures intrinsic to humanity, transcending cultural and individual differences.

These archetypes include motifs such as the Hero, the Mother, and the Shadow, which reflect the shared experiences and emotions present in human societies.

The implications of the collective unconscious extend beyond the individual psyche; they manifest in collective behaviors, beliefs, and the shared mythologies that form the cultural bedrock of societies across the globe.

Jung posited that this metamorphic field is responsible for the connections between people throughout the world, fostering understanding and cooperation, as these archetypes resonate with the shared human experience. The concept suggests that individuals are influenced by these deep-rooted symbols, shaping their emotions and behaviors in ways that can often be unconscious.

This idea aligns with a phenomenological approach, as it emphasizes the importance of subjective experience and shared human structures in understanding psychological phenomena. By recognizing these universal aspects of our consciousness, we can begin to appreciate the fractals of ideas and behaviors that connect us as a species.

Jung’s theory serves as a foundation for understanding how cultural narratives are formed and maintained over time, allowing us to analyze the ways in which we are linked through our shared unconscious heritage. In essence, the collective unconscious provides a framework for exploring the underlying patterns that influence both individual and societal dynamics.

Rupert Sheldrake’s Morphic Fields: An Overview

Rupert Sheldrake’s theory of morphic fields presents a revolutionary perspective on how nature and behavior are influenced by fields that store collective memories of species. According to Sheldrake, these morphic fields exist in a realm akin to the collective unconscious described by Carl Jung, as both suggest that there is a shared reservoir of knowledge that influences behavior across species.

However, Sheldrake diverges from Jung by introducing the concept of morphic resonance, which posits that these fields are not static but dynamic, capable of evolving over time as they encapsulate the experiences and behaviors of individual creatures within a species. This idea has significant implications, especially in understanding how patterns of behavior can repeat across generations without direct genetic influence.

The concept of morphic fields extends beyond mere behavioral patterns to suggest that they also play a crucial role in evolution. Sheldrake proposes that these fields help facilitate the development of new traits and behaviors through the collective experiences of past generations.

This challenges traditional views of evolutionary biology, where changes are primarily attributed to genetic mutations and natural selection. Instead, Sheldrake argues for a phenomenological approach, emphasizing the intricate web of connections between people throughout the world and species as they draw upon historical memories preserved in morphic fields.

Moreover, Sheldrake’s theory resonates with the notion of fractals of ideas and behaviors, highlighting how specific patterns repeat across different scales and contexts. Sheldrake’s morphic fields also provide a framework for understanding family constellations, as they suggest that behaviors and experiences may reverberate through familial lines, influenced by shared history.

Ultimately, Sheldrake’s morphic fields challenge established scientific paradigms, inviting researchers to explore the interconnectedness of all life forms and the ways in which knowledge and behavior are transmitted through these profound collective dimensions.

Comparative Analysis: Synergies and Divergences

The theories of Jung’s collective unconscious and Sheldrake’s morphic fields offer intriguing perspectives on the shared experiences and memories that permeate human consciousness and, arguably, other forms of life as well. At the core of Jung’s collective unconscious lies the assertion that there exists a repository of archetypal images and narratives that shapes human behavior across cultures and generations. This idea emphasizes a shared mental landscape that connects individuals through time and space. It is this collective repository that informs dreams, myths, and even instincts, creating a common thread among people worldwide.

On the other hand, Sheldrake’s morphic fields propose that patterns of behavior, knowledge, and memory are transmitted not through the conventional biological processes but rather through these fields which enable a form of memory that transcends individuals. In this view, learning and habits are not solely the results of direct experience but are influenced by these higher-order patterns. Thus, the morphic field serves as a connecting framework through which behavioral patterns emerge and evolve, akin to the fractals of ideas and behaviors that manifest across various species.

Despite these similarities, the two theories diverge significantly in their acceptance within the scientific community. Jung’s collective unconscious has encountered its share of skepticism and has often remained within the realm of psychology and philosophy, whereas Sheldrake’s morphic fields are viewed with even more caution, often critiqued for their lack of empirical support.

Furthermore, the metaphysical implications of these theories lead to different interpretations regarding the nature of memory and consciousness. While Jung’s unraveling of the unconscious emphasizes psychological integration, Sheldrake’s approach hints at a more interconnected universe, underscoring the phenomenological approach in understanding the connections between people throughout the world. The analysis of these theories reveals a complex landscape of consciousness that invites further exploration and discussion.

The Relevance of Jung and Sheldrake in Today’s Context

Jung’s idea posits that beneath the individualized consciousness exists a shared reservoir of experiences, memories, and archetypes common to all humanity.

This collective unconscious serves as a framework through which we can discuss the connections between people throughout the world, helping to explain shared symbols in art, myth, and religious practices.

As mental health practitioners increasingly adopt a phenomenological approach, they draw upon Jung’s ideas to better understand their clients within the broader context of societal influences and historical narratives.

Moreover, the relevance of Rupert Sheldrake’s concept of morphic fields resonates in the fields of biology and psychology. Sheldrake proposes that these fields govern the patterns and tendencies of behavior and development, influencing how organisms interact within their environments.

The concept of a metamorphic field extends beyond biology, suggesting that learning and behaviors are not merely learned individually but are shared among populations, echoing Jung’s collective unconscious.

By exploring metamorphic fields and family constellations, practitioners can address familial patterns and behaviors that transcend individual experiences, bringing to light their roots in collective memory.

As we navigate an increasingly complex world characterized by rapid technological advancement and global interconnectedness, Jung and Sheldrake’s theories provide essential perspectives on understanding consciousness, community, and individual identity.

Their ideas invite us to consider the fractals of ideas and behaviors that shape our experiences, hinting at a collective tapestry of human existence woven through shared memories and social interaction. The implications of these theories encourage a reflection on how we relate to one another, further enriching our comprehension of humanity in the modern age.

When Ideas Appear at the Same Time in Different Places

by Martha Bache-Wiig | Jun 1, 2025 | Psychology, Cosmoartistic Anthropology, Essays on Living, Existential Personalistic Anthropology, The wisdom of the body

Over the past week I have had a truly interesting experience that has caused me to wonder a lot about what the collective unconscious is, how it relates to morphic fields, and how both of them become observable in daily life.

During a session with a client, I found myself compelled to combine two techniques that I am specialized in – Family Constellations and Inner Child/Inner Family work. It was an intuition I had in the moment, where it seemed that the best way to help my client really feel what was going on in the issue they had presented was to help them see, contemporaneously, both the larger picture of the situation with the help of Family Constellations, and the internal aspects of those wounded parts that were connected to their early childhood experiences.

It was a powerful experience both for me, and my client, and I found myself pondering this in the days to come, feeling that I had reached a new level of understanding in my own personal journey and in how I can best help those that come to me for help in navigating the complexities of healing our woundedness, stepping into feeling more empowered in how we can create a truly fulifilling life, and in simply being human.

I then participated in a Family Constellations workshop, where there were also several other participants who are therapists of varying sorts. I found myself almost gasp out loud when first one, then another, and then a third shared about how they have recently been integrating Inner Child and Internal Family Systems work with Family Constellations!

What I found unusual was not so much that other people are finding this kind of integration useful, both for themselves and for their clients; that seems a rather natural progression of things, as the two approaches truly do complement each other in a variety of ways that I won’t go into here.

What surprised me was the fact that in terms of timing it all seemed to be happening in a rather contemporaneous way, in many of us, but scattered all throughout the globe.

I was very touched by this and I kind of tucked it away in my mind, to ponder over during the days and weeks to come, as I would begin to explore my own way of integrating things.

Then, that same evening, I received a newsletter from yet another Family Constellations practitioner, who lives in yet another far-flung country, announcing how she is also integrating Family Constellations work with Inner Child work!!

Now what seemed to be possibly a mere coincidence truly began to ring of something “spooky at a distance” happening.

I know that most physicists would cringe at my applying that expression, which refers to particles being entangled at a subatomic, or quantum, level, to connections between human minds and cultural trends. I am certainly not a physicist, and so although I have read numerous books on these topics and have been studying how they can correlate with human experience for years, I most certainly do not consider myself an expert on any of it.

But after over 35 years of focused and intentional personal exploration of how our various lenses for interpretation of reality – science, philosophy, art and religion – intertwine and interact with each other, while being distinct, I can’t help but wonder if these experiences aren’t examples of how we experience this dimension of reality.

We are rightly skeptical about drawing correlations when we are dealing with subjective, or personal, experience, and our scientific method has most certainly helped humanity become more capable of drawing objective conclusions about reality, which have allowed us to advance in ways we could have never imagined.

But subjective experience is also a fundamental aspect of our existence, and many thinkers, even within more purely scientific realms, are becoming more courageous about affirming the importance of recognizing how objective and subjective reality are deeply intertwined, and how they then express into human culture through new ideas and practices, which advance our understanding of ourselves and our world, and how we can live better within it.

I have also noticed a kind of synchronicity in how Antonio Mercurio, the founder of the therapeutic and anthropological approach that he began developing in the 1970s and that I specialized in Italy in the 1990s and early 2000s, began first sharing his ideas when working with others around the same time as Bert Hellinger, who was in Germany.

While their general ideas and approaches have many differences, there are also some fundamental similarities in how they saw the challenges that face people who are struggling with a variety of mental and emotional issues.

Their common experiences of having begun both as priests within the Catholic church, who then left the church to found their own schools of thought and practice with a phenomenological approach at their foundation, seems serendipitous, or, in the words of Carl Jung, synchronous.

There are many, many examples of this throughout history, way before there was the internet and our now instantaneous ability to access information of any type. I am sure you have noticed such coincidences within your own life as well.

I invite you to reflect on this and, if you have an example to share, please do so in the comments. It seems important to be able to notice how we are connected with each other in these mysterious, yet profound, ways.

As we become able to observe them with greater consciousness and appreciation, we can strengthen our positive, creative, life-enhancing bonds with others, wherever we may be.

If you’re interested in learning more about Jung’s Collective Unconscious and Rupert Sheldrake’s Morphic Fields, I’ve written a companion article comparing these two fascinating ideas:

Collective Unconscious or Morphic Fields? Two Ways of Understanding Human Connectedness

Click here or on the title above to check it out.

Only Love can Placate our Deepest Needs

by Martha Bache-Wiig | Oct 10, 2014 | Whole-Person Counseling and LifeArt Consulting, Essays on Living, Love, Services, The wisdom of the body

Changing our Definition of Love – First of All Towards Ourselves

(This is the first part in a series on Love)

I find myself pondering, often, over the plight of us human beings who are so desperately searching for that “something” that will fill us up and make us feel, finally, whole and “at home”.

It is a problem that has been with us for millennia, as the various myths and religions tell us throughout the world. The search for wholeness, for a feeling of being connected and safe, and the need to know that our lives and our struggles have purpose and meaning is one of the deepest within the human psyche. The interesting thing is that it is actually a sign that we have reached an important phase in our evolution: we are now aware that we are individuals, and that on some levels we are separate; we are “different” and differentiated from those around us, and our connection to the underlying source of life is something that is no longer an unquestioned given. We must consciously cultivate our awareness of the Self on this new level of being, and integrate our acknowledgement that we are a part of it along with our growing awareness of ourselves.

Over the last few decades there has been a huge development in our ability to take care of this need, at least on certain levels. The expansion of new approaches to spirituality, along with huge strides made in science and technology, have given us all kinds of information, techniques and tools that can help us gain greater understanding of who we are and what we are here to do. Today in the wealthy Western countries, where for many basic survival needs are for the most part met, we have at our disposal a myriad of different ways to develop ourselves and reach greater levels of understanding of why we function – or don’t function – in certain ways, and how we can push ever forward into higher levels of expression on every plane – mental, emotional, physical and existential/spiritual. The technological revolution we are in the midst of has made so much information available that anything we need to know is quite literally at our fingertips, and we can connect with others all over the world, quickly and relatively effortlessly. What an exciting time!

However, as we all know, all this information and “how-to” does not automatically solve the deeper issues that affect each one of us and that in reality drive our consciousness and our lives – the things of the heart and soul. We can try to fix and piece together our feelings of discomfort and disconnectedness, our pain and our confusion, but often we only touch on the very surface of things, finding solutions that are not lasting. It seems to be quite telling that in the country I am from and again live in, the USA, despite our enormous wealth and access to these ideas and technologies, people struggle greatly with feeling good about themselves and their lives.

When we talk of “a change of heart” in some ways this is literally what we must strive for. Often our wounds and fears are deposited deep within us, and their origins stem from our earliest days in existence. The rejections and painful situations we experienced then can leave an imprint that today we know is actually biochemical, creating a sort of “set-point” that we tend to go back to, in a completely unconscious manner, no matter how well things are going in our lives.

Perhaps the great task and opportunity now arising for those of us who have attained a level of basic survival that consents us to address these deeper issues, is to learn a whole new definition of love.

To be able to create a new definition of love and wellbeing in our lives, we must become ready and willing to go back and look at some of the old wounds we are still carrying with us, and free up the energy that is frozen there. If we don’t, the old patterns can easily surge up when we are least expecting it, dragging us back into our old habits of thinking, feeling and acting, even when we don’t want to. Although we might not be one bit happy about it, the tendency will always be to go back to our “set point” that was determined in our early lives, often as far back as when we were still in the womb.

The only thing that can help us shift those old patterns and set-points and create new lives for ourselves and others, is awareness accompanied with forgiveness and love. When we gain a loving awareness of our patterns and how they came to be, we can begin to forgive those who helped create them, and move on to a deeper level of freedom in ourselves and in our lives.

But what is love? The love we are talking about here is not the romantic love or the sexual attraction that we tend to associate with this word (although those are expressions of the attractive power of love, too, and are doorways to being able to build love in an intimate relationship). Love is, in essence, an energy – it underlies everything in life, holding it all together, and nudging us onward, towards ever fuller expression. Rather than being a mere feeling, love is action. Love supports and enhances the expression of life, in oneself and in others. As Erich Fromm first put forth in his classic “The Art of Loving”, love is an Art; it is an ability that we must learn, just as we learn to paint, or to play the piano, or even understand mathematics. It takes lots of practice, and we all make mistakes along the way; mistakes that, as we learn by correcting them, help us become masters in the Art of Loving.

If we have not received much “true” love in our families of origin, however, it can be very difficult to know exactly what it is, and how to love and care for ourselves, or receive it or give it in our adult relationships. Love is often confused with excessive dependency, possessiveness and control over others; it is often colored by one’s own unmet childhood needs for attention and nurturing, along with the human tendency to confuse the kind of pleasure derived from dominating and gaining power over another with the pleasure of true connectedness.

Even though today the more evolved idea of a type of love that can include giving another the freedom to truly express and develop who they are is widely acknowledged as being an ideal to strive towards (so-called “unconditional love”), many of us fall far short of being able to express it – first of all towards ourselves!

So what is the solution?

The first step is to realize that we probably don’t know what “true” love is, and become willing to learn a new definition of it. The first love relationship we must examine as adults is the one with ourselves, because if we do not love ourselves, we cannot take good care of ourselves and have a life that is fulfilling, nor can we truly love anyone else with a love that nurtures and supports growth.

For example, when we are struggling with things in our lives, whether it be in our relationships, with our health, finances, work – everything and anything – we can often hear a voice below all the confusion, nudging us to get in touch with a certain person, or to begin doing a certain activity, and we intuitively know that this would be good for us, and would help us. This is the voice of love within us …. but it is up to us to take action to follow-up on it.

In fact, the first step in building a new definition of love always involves taking action of some sort. A gesture of love towards ourselves can be different for each of us, but some might be:

looking up resources on the internet;
taking the time to cook a healthy meal;
spending time outdoors doing activities we love to do;
reaching out to someone we know might have some ideas for us;
taking a nap;
facing up to an addiction and asking for help;
journaling or doing art;
contacting a professional and undertaking a journey of self-discovery and growth;
taking a walk (alone or with a friend);
taking a bath……

There are many ways we can say “I love you” to ourselves; what is important is that we begin to get some practice!

It is also important to keep in mind that one of our fundamental tasks in life is to learn to become connected in healthy ways, first of all in our inner relationship with our Higher Self (that some call God, or Spirit, or the Soul etc.), and then with others. We can practice connecting with ourselves by learning to connect to other human beings, and by helping each other grow and heal (although we must be careful so that this outer connection does not completely absorb us, and overshadow our inner one). Rather than remaining in our isolation and in the prideful self-reliance, which only perpetuate those old models of relationship that are the cause of much of the suffering and violence in the world, we can begin to open to new definitions of love, through practicing even the simplest of actions. (Doing the active meditation I created and have posted here on my website as a gift can be a great way to shake up your energies a bit and show yourself some love!)

As we do so, we can discover a whole new life, and realize that we truly do have the power to change the world, beginning within our own hearts. As we begin to learn how to choose love for ourselves, by shifting sometimes even the tiniest thoughts and actions, we not only learn how to create love for our own lives, but we can become truly effective in how we share it with others.

Bottom line, we must step out of a passive stance with regards to love, and realize that we can become active Creators of love, from wherever we are at in this particular moment. Even the simplest of actions can create a quantum of love.

Becoming active Creators is the first step in putting a stop to being victims of our painful pasts and even of our painful present. By choosing love and beauty, even in the smallest ways, we become Artists of our lives, capable of transforming even the most painful experiences into sources of energy and growth for ourselves and others.

My hope is that those of you who read me can be inspired to take action today, in even the smallest way, to show yourself you truly care about yourself, and that you are ready to stop waiting for love to come from ourside, and realize that the first step must come from inside, from your own decision to love yourself, and to begin to take some action to show it.

Whatever your gesture might be, no matter how big or small, if you do it with the intention to learn to love yourself, you will see that it is not only possible, but that the ripple effects will touch all those around you.

As Antonio Mercurio says in his Cosmoartistic Pact for Beauty:

“Today is a new day and I choose love and I choose beauty.

Love that is a fusion of truth, freedom and the love force.

Beauty that is a synthesis of opposites and a fusion of pain, wisdom and art”.

My hope is that you will be as inspired by these words as I have been throughout the years, and join me today in focusing on just even one little action we can take to bring greater love and beauty into our own lives, and therefore into the lives of those of others, and into life itself.

Thanks for sharing the journey!

(This is the first part in a series on Love)

Martha S Bache-Wiig LLC

Life as a Gift and a Work of Art