Jung and Psychology of Religion

Psychology as a knowledge has a direct relationship with religion.Therefore, there are different theories and approaches in psychology tostudy religion and its impact on the human psyche. Carl Gustav Jung(1875-1961) Swiss psychologist and founder of Analytical psychologyis one of the psychologists; who has done extensive research in thefield of religion. With his proposed theory of 'CollectiveUnconsciousness' he considered the origin of religion far beyond thenon-cognitive reasons such as trauma, fear, and poverty. He tried tojustify human tendencies toward religion through novel ways. Thepurpose of this article is to review of Jung's consideration on religionand the religious thought on a descriptive – analytical procedures .Inthis regard; first of all, Jung analytical psychology is introduced briefly,then analytical psychology thoughts on issues such as religiondefinition, religion origin, religiosity consequences and perceives ofGod is considered. The review will continue and criticize each concept.Despite Jung's psychology and positivist view of religion has beensubjected to intense criticism but additionally, these studies andcriticism shows that: He has a positive view about religion and he wasalways considered as one of the defenders of it.