ABSTRACT
In the depth of the understanding lies the adult replacement child’s hope for connecting with the groundswell of new life. An early experience of loss can cause suffering, prompt existential questions and lead to important insights and an experience of transformation. Growing consciousness, aided by a dialogue with the unconscious, can lead to acceptance and compassion and the fulfilment of the personality’s potential. Recognizing archetypal powers of death and life and embracing emergent images of true self allows for a psychological rebirth. Like Goethe and Jung and other famous replacement children, people like you and me can die and become: die to the false role of replacing and become true being, again. From deep self-alienation to -discovery: an adult replacement child can rediscover the essence of being and reconnect self with its soul, unifying what was initially an unconscious double nature. From a Buddhist perspective, it is the gift of consciousness; replacement child Thich Nhat Hanh taught: “there is no death – no fear.” Understanding the existential challenge faced by a replacement child, allows for glimpses into the life-giving force of the self. Looking death squarely in the eye and saying “Yes to Life” can lead to a vision of the “central fire” like in Jung’s Window of Eternity. An adult replacement child may be privileged to seek and come to experience wholeness.
