ABSTRACT
Sometimes people identify their ego with one aspect of their personality. In some cases, this can lead to a trance-like state of contemplation. Malcolm’s breakdown illustrates the distinction Bion makes between a healthy mystical episode and a more psychotic one. In psychosis, Bion says, the meaning of certain actions and events becomes “a private communication made by God. The far end of the continuum of identification with the saviour complex is often seen in Christian culture as an identification with Jesus. Malcolm became possessed by his saviour complex, and was having psychotic delusions that it was up to him to defeat the Devil and save the world. In our patients, such pathology is likely to manifest in an overwhelming need to control their situations and other people in their lives. The myth of the hero is very attractive, very useful, and very dangerous. It can lead us to ambitions, hopes, and challenges, for ourselves and in altruism also for others.
