Drinking the Dragon: Stories of the Dark Night of Soul with

Dr. Patricia Ariadne interviewed "everyday" people who have undergone profound periods of depression and despair triggered by many of the crises common to human life:  death of loved ones, divorce, illness, aging.  However, some of the crises she is encountering in her practice have been created by recent economic conditions, such as loss of home or a job.  Her contention is that this process is a essentially a spiritual process. If navigated correctly, it can bring about a  reorientation, a recognition of what is really important in life.  People can begin to re-prioritize what they give their time and attention to, as the things they thought they could depend on have failed them.  Trying to escape this meeting of the self through drugs, alcohol, sex, frantic activity, overwork, etc., does not work, because the void they have been trying to fill is a God-shaped hole. Dr. Ariadne's thesis is that through many of the difficulties we are currently facing, we are being forced to mature spiritually--this means learning more about ourselves, reconnecting to Spirit or Source, and giving back to our communities.