The black sun, an ages-old image of the darkness in individual lives and in life itself, has not been treated hospitably in the modern world. Modern psychology has seen darkness primarily as a negative force, something to move through and beyond, but it actually has an intrinsic importance to the human psyche. In this book, Jungian analyst Stanton Marlan reexamines the paradoxical image of the black sun and the meaning of darkness in Western culture. In the image of the black sun, Marlan finds the hint of a darkness that shines. He draws upon his clinical experiences and on a wide range of literature and art to explore the influence of light and shadow on the fundamental structures of modern thought as well as the contemporary practice of analysis. An important contribution to the understanding of alchemical psychology, this book draws on a postmodern sensibility to offer insight into modernity, the act of imagination, and the work of analysis in understanding depression, trauma, and transformation of the soul.