​A few days ago while walking my dog in my neighbourhood, I spotted a Sunbird in a tree. The Sunbird’s beautiful iridescence colours with its metallic sheen always bring a smile to my face. Over lockdown a Sunbird, being attracted to colourful flowers, regularly visited the bright orange Strelitzia flowers in our garden.
 
As if in a dream, the Sunbird suddenly flew from the branch and fluttered around in front of me in a beautiful dance, hovering like a hummingbird, flapping its wings quickly and lightly. The Afrikaans word ‘vrolik’ came to mind, which translates to a lively, bubbly, carefree, light-hearted, high-spirited cheerfulness and merriment.
 
Sunbirds are Africa’s equivalent of the Hummingbird. There is a close resemblance in size, dazzling colours, dynamic activity and both feed primarily on nectar. They are however not related. Sunbirds are songbirds, while Hummingbirds are akin to swifts. Sunbirds are Passeriformes from the Old World. The two species are separated by the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans and millions of years!  Their similarities are a product of convergent evolution. Sunbirds and Hummingbirds are ecological equivalents and occupy similar niches in different ecosystems.
 
The Hummingbird as a spirit animal symbolizes an optimistic outlook, enjoyment of life, lightness of being, tireless joy and playfulness, as well as adaptability and resilience. It seems the Sunbird carries the same meaning, reminding us to play, find joy in what we do, while being present to ourselves and in our lives. According to Ted Andrews the Hummingbird teaches one “to find the miracle of joyful living from your own life circumstances” (p. 159). My witnessing the dance of the Sunbird right before me felt like a joyous miracle.
 
Bird medicine is about living in the moment, moving with breath and flying into the flow of life. “Their consciousness is in their own life process, from moment to moment”. (p. 74). Birds teach that complete and regular elimination is essential to maintain the necessary lightness for flight. This reminds me of the basic premise of mindfulness meditation, not to let thoughts and feelings get stuck in you, but letting them go!
 
What do you need to get rid off to lighten your journey in life?
 
Image Credit:

1. Southern Double-collared Sunbird (Cinnyris chalybeus) www.robertodemicheli.com
2. Sunbird
3. Hummingbird
4. Strelitzia flower – Birds of Paradise

 
Sources:

1. Animal Speak, Ted Andrews, 1993.
2. https://blog.londolozi.com/2020/04/27/sunbirds-africas-hummingbirds

 
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“Every animal is a gateway to the phenomenal world of the human spirit” (1).  According to James Hillman animal presences may depict the state of our soul. He is adamant that animal images are not merely representations of instincts and our ‘lower nature’, but that they are alive in the human psyche as patterns and therefore, essential intelligences in the Soul’s menagerie. Hillman writes that “An animal (hayyah) says the Zohar is ‘the highest grade of angel.’”, which is why Hillman prefers to think of animals in dreams “as Gods, as divine, intelligent, autochthonous powers demanding respect.” (2)
 
Known for his work in saving the white Rhino, Ian Player described his animal encounters as follows: “Their presence activated archetypal forces within the psyche, and at times I felt I was moving in another dimension” (3). He recognized animals as brothers and companions, not subordinates, having learnt that “If you live well with the animal world, then you live well within yourself” (3).
 
Ted Andrews wrote that the animal world has much to teach us – the true majesty of life, as well as the untapped potential and power in the human psyche. The hidden secrets of Nature can be revealed through a study of all animal kingdoms, their ways of adaptation, how they use their natural abilities to their advantage (the lesson of unlocking potential), the interconnected relationship between predator and prey (the lesson of life, death and rebirth) and the intricate web of Life (the lesson of responsible relationships). According to Andrews, “The animal becomes a symbol of a specific force of the invisible, spiritual realm manifesting in our own life” (1) and when we pay attention to it, we honor the essence behind it. When we are attuned to the archetypal energy of a visiting animal, we may receive guidance and understand our own lives more clearly.
 
According to Hillman interpretation (of a specific meaning) reduces the animal image and we may miss the message it brings. He places importance on the “psychological and imaginative work of animating the image” (2), bringing it closer through visualization, giving oneself over to the animal presence and Soul.  
 
Written for @jungsouthernafrica
 
References:

1. Ted Andrews (1993) Animal Speak - The Spiritual & Magical Powers of Creatures Great and Small, p. x & p. 2
2. James Hillman (2008) Volume 9: Animal Presences, p 163 & 80
3. Ian Player (1997) Zululand Wilderness: Shadow and Soul, p. 65 & 185.

 
Image Credit: Animals paintings by Collin Bogle & Peter Stewart
 
 #jung #carljung #jungpsychology #jungianpsychology #depthpsychology #analyticalpsychology #consciousness #unconscious #archetypes #shadow #symbolism #animals #animalpresences #animalsymbolism #animalmeaning #animaldreams #jameshillman #tedandrews #Ianplayer #soul #humanspirit #nature #capetown #capetownliving #capetownlife #southernafrica

​Last week a beautiful luminous blue dragonfly few into my therapy room, hovered and flew right out again. It was a moment of awe. In the eight years that I have been occupying this space, it has never happened before. With no body of water in the immediate vicinity the visitation was even more special since Dragonflies stay close to rivers or dams.
 
The synchronicity of the sighting is crucial since I will be moving my practise to another space at the end of February. Thus, it is a time of great change for me. Dragonflies are associated with change and transformation bornfrom mental and emotional maturity and the understanding of the deeper meaning of life.  In early life, they live as a nymphs within water for almost two years, before they mature and transform into a colorful flying insects, known for their fast flight and dazzling aerial movement. They represent the ‘Power of Light’, illuminating how light can be directed and moved. Besides flying forward, up, down and sideways, dragonflies can even fly backwards. They are able to fly with one wing (if they have to) and change direction in an instant, demonstrating an incredible agility. .
 
Dragonflies have been around for over a 180 million years which speaks of adaptability and incredible survival. Ted Andrews links them to the dragons of myth. They represent ancient archetypal forces. As cold-blooded creatures they need the warmth and the light of the Sun, making summer the season when they are at the height of their power. They are seen as divine promptings to shine your own light and to use imagination to create the wonder of a colorful new vision. Dragonflies inhabit the two realms of water and air. They symbolize the expressions of both emotional and mental life, integrating these polarities to allow new perspectives to emerge.
 
Structures in their shell scatter and refract the light, in similar fashion to rainbows, making them look iridescent blue and green. This ability to reflect and refract light and color is associated with magic and mysticism. “The bright colours take time to develop, reflecting the idea that with maturity our own true colours come forth” (1).
 
Dragonflies captured my imagination during my summer holiday over December/January during which I had two short visits which involved swimming in mountain rivers in the Western Cape Region of South Africa.  The first visit was to a little town called Barrydale where I swam in the mountain pools of Tradouw Pass. The second visit was a stay in a stone cottage on the banks of the Breede River at the foot of the Bainskloof mountains, taking dips in the shallow river. On both occasions there were literally 100’s of colorful Dragonflies swirling though the air – an awesome sight - signifying for me the magic and mystery of the ‘Universal Life Force’ as represented in Nature.
 
Source:            Animal Speak, Ted Andrews, 1993, p. 175
Image Credit: Image by komkrich Srigoson from Pixabay
 
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​“God is some kind of lost continent in the human mind” (Terence McKenna). Edward F. Edinger wrote “For modern man, a conscious encounter with the autonomous archetypal psyche is equivalent to the discovery of God. After such an experience he is no longer alone in his psyche and his whole world view is altered.” (1)
 
Jung’s archetype of the Self is the central archetype in our psyche, the ‘imago Dei’ and source of life energy. Jung said “It might equally be called ‘the God within us.’ The beginnings of our whole psychic life seem to be inextricably rooted in this point, and all our highest and ultimate purposes seem to be striving toward it.” (2) As a transpersonal power and eternal dimension of the psyche, it transcends the ego.  According to Jung “The ego stands to the Self as the moved to the mover.” (3)
 
The Self is an archetype of wholeness, referring both to the origin and entirety of our being. Jung said “The Self is not only the center, but also the whole circumference which embraces both conscious and unconscious; it is the center of this totality, just as the ego is the center of consciousness” (4). The Self is the regulating center of the psyche, a structuring or ordering principle which integrates other internal archetypal structures. It holds the tension between opposites such as masculine and feminine rather than their merging into undifferentiated oneness.
 
The archetype of the Self is depicted by certain typical symbolic images such as mandalas, the philosophers’ stone (also called the transcended or philosophical tree of life), the world tree or cosmic tree, as well as circles paired with a representation of quaternary such as a square or cross. According to Marie-Louise von Franz the Self may be symbolized as an animal, representing our instinctive psyche embedded in nature, especially in dreams (4). Within dreams or experiences of altered consciousness, the archetype of the Self may be experienced in the numinous images of Jesus Christ, Buddha, the Dalai Lama or divinities and gods from various religions and mythology. The archetype of the Self may be what some spiritual teachings refer to as our higher or true self.
 
Edinger emphasizes “The connection between ego and Self is vitally important to psychic health. It gives foundation, structure and security to the ego and also provides energy, interest, meaning and purpose.  When the connection is broken the result is emptiness, despair, meaninglessness and the extreme cases psychosis or suicide” and further “A symptom of damage to this axis is lack of self-acceptance. The individual feels he is not worthy to exist or be himself.” (1)
​
Denise Grobbelaar, (Instagram @denisedreamshaman), author of this post, will be presenting at Jung Southern Africa’s Mantis lecture series, taking place on-line from the 2-4 October 2020. She will examine Nature as a dynamic extension of Jung’s Archetype of the Self as embodied in the image of the White Lion. This presentation is based on her paper published in the 2020 Spring issue of the Jung Journal “The White Lion as Symbol of the Archetype of the Self and the Cannibalization of the Self in Canned Hunting”.  Book your space: https://jungsouthernafrica.co.za/events/
 
Sources:

1. Edinger, Edward, F. (1972) Ego & Archetype: Individuation and the religious function of the psyche, (p. 104, p. 43, p. 40)
2. CW 7, ¶399
3. CW 11, ¶391
4. CW 12, ¶44
5. Jung and Von Franz 1964, p. 220

 
Image credits:

1. Carl Jung, Image from the Red Book
2. Philosopher’s Stone,  Atalanta Fugiens,  Michael Maier, 1617
3. White Lion, Global White Lion Protection Trust

 
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Butterflies taste flowers by walking on them.  They have taste receptacles on their feet. This reminds me of the teachings of Thich Nhat Hanh “Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet.” Butterflies seem to be dancing on flowers, as they joyously flit from one to the other. They awaken a sense of joy, lightness, pleasure and beauty, reminding us to not take everything so seriously. They call upon us to invite playfulness. Butterflies are a compelling reminder that, while life is a powerful dance between the great forces of Shakti and Shiva, it is also sensual, pleasurable, joyful and playful.
 
Butterflies breathe through tiny pores called spiracles. Most insects breathe through such openings in the body. This can really teach us about deep cellular breathing to connect us to the world around us, allowing us to truly live an embodied life. As international breath work teacher, Dan Brule said in a workshop in Cape Town a few years ago “We are all breathing the same breath… called life”.  
 
Butterflies are associated with the process of transformation, metamorphosis and shape shifting. We know that change is inevitable in life.  Change ensures growth and maturation. Everything in life must go through stages of development. Butterflies begin as eggs. The fertilized eggs hatch into caterpillars which eventually spin cocoons around themselves, setting the stage for the chrysalis process. A mummy-like pupa forms inside the cocoon and dissolves into a liquid mush. This intense change can be equated to the alchemical stage of Solutio, - or in humans, the dark night of the Soul. In this a reorganization of the caterpillar’s cells occurs even though everything seems lifeless. Then from the cocoon the final expression of life emerges. Even as the butterfly appears we are reminded that everything has a purpose. In the process of struggling to leave its cocoon, the butterfly’s wings are strengthened. A butterfly would not be able to fly - and will die - if it were prematurely pulled from its cocoon. Give yourself time. Be patient. Even as the butterfly whispers of your hidden potentials, the old have to be shed before we can embrace the new.
 
Butterflies have long been associated with a deep and powerful representation of the soul and spiritual transformation. Their blue color is often thought to symbolize healing.
 
The inspiration from this post came from a hypnogogic moment between sleep and wakefulness, one night a few months ago during Covid19 lockdown. The amazingly clear image of a luminous blue butterfly appeared in my mind’s eye and I literally gasped in awe and admiration at its beauty. I have since identified it as a Morpho butterfly. ‘Morpho’ means change, modification, transformation… talk about hitting you over the head with the symbolism of TRANSFORMATION!
 
(from Wikipedia) “Morpho butterflies are colored in metallic, shimmering shades of blues and greens. These colors are not a result of pigmentation, but are an example of iridescence through structural coloration. Specifically, the microscopic scales covering the morpho's wings reflect incident light repeatedly at successive layers, leading to interference effects that depend on both wavelength and angle of incidence/observance.”
 
 “There’s an old saying that there is nothing in a caterpillar that knows it’s going to be a Butterfly. Nonetheless, the transformation from caterpillar to winged wonder happens quite naturally.” – Read more https://whatismyspiritanimal.com/spirit-totem-power-animal-meanings/insects/butterfly-symbolism-meaning/
 
Source:            Animal Speak, Ted Andrews, 1993, p.331-332, 39-340
Image Credit: https://webcomicms.net/
 
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