The saying “This land is me” reflects the idea of continuance between humans and nature which is the core of the dreamtime mythology of the Australian Aborigines. This embedded ecological awareness of origin-in-the-sentient-land (earth as mother) and the connection to other life forms as sentient beings and kin is a custodial ethic - a template for how to live in accord with nature based on reverence, responsibility, reciprocity and respect.
 
Dreamtime is a sacred 'once upon a time', when all life began and is often referred to as the 'time before time'. Ancestral beings ‘born out of their own Eternity’ emerged from the earth and created everything that is.  These ancestors were human, animals, landforms, elements and organisms.  The Australian Aborigines speak of jiva or guruwari, a seed power lodged in earth, containing the memory of its origin and which is a vibrational residue, or symbolic footprint, of all original beings who actioned the creation of our world. The shape and energy of a place, its mountains, rivers, and forests, echo the events that created it and are referred to as the "Dreaming" of a place, which is sacred. Dreamtime is seen as a ‘beginning that never ended’ and takes place on a continuum of past, present and future. During expanded states of consciousness one may become attuned to the inner dreaming of the Earth.
 
Mary Graham (1999, p. 105) identified two basic precepts central to this worldview which, at its heart, is an ethic of how to be in the world. Firstly, the land is the law and, secondly, you are not alone in the world because you are connected to others, including the land. The land is ‘The Teacher’, teaching humans’ relatedness and caring for something beyond ourselves. The fundamental reciprocity between people and land means there is mutual support for the healthy functioning of each other.  In this sacred web of connections each person has numerous relationships with other beings: human, ancestral, mythical, and land-based. In this system’s view of consciousness a person’s sense of self is contextualized within the larger ecological whole which consist of the many voices and collective wisdom of different beings.
 
“The land is a sacred entity, not property or real estate; it is the great mother of all humanity. The Dreaming is a combination of meaning (about life and all reality), and an action guide to living. The two most important kinds of relationship in life are, firstly, those between land and people and, secondly, those amongst people themselves, the second being always contingent upon the first. The land, and how we treat it, is what determines our human-ness. Because land is sacred and must be looked after, the relation between people and land becomes the template for society and social relations. Therefore all meaning comes from land.” (Graham, 1999, p.106)
 
Source: Sepie, A.J. More than Stories, More than Myths: Animal/Human/Nature(s) in Traditional Ecological Worldviews. Humanities 2017, 6, 78.
Art credit:        Chern’ee Sutton      https://www.cherneesutton.com.au/
 
A social media post I wrote for @jungsouthernafrica
 
#jung #carljung #jungpsychology #jungianpsychology #depthpsychology #analyticalpsychology #unconscious #consciousness #innergrowth #archetypes #individuation
#ecopscyhology #ecological #nature #earth #archetypalmother #motherearth #gaia #dreamtime #dreaming #ancestors #aboriginal #weboflife #sacredearth
 #capetown #capetownsouthafrica #capetownlocal #capetownlife #capetownliving

Known as “the remover of obstacles” the Hindu god Ganesha is highly recognizable with his elephant head and human body.  As an image of the divine child, Ganesha embodies the promise for enlightenment, self-realization and spiritual wholeness through the integration of opposites. Ganesha represents the unification of cosmic forces: god and goddess, eternal and temporal, infinite and finite, spirit and body, conscious and unconscious.

Ganesha is the child of the god Shiva and the goddess Parvati (a manifestation of Shakti, the eternal partner of Shiva). In some myths Ganesha was born with an elephant head. In others his mother created him from clay (representing earth and the physical plane) to protect her while Shiva was off on his many wanderings. Others have it that Ganesha was created from the dirt from Parvati’s body. Upon Shiva’s return, not knowing each other, Ganesha barred his way and his father beheaded him. After Parvati was heart-broken and enraged, Shiva restored Ganesha’s head using the first thing he could find - an elephant!
​
Ganesha is associated with intelligence and wisdom and, especially, his ability to overcome all obstacles. As “remover of obstacles” on our life path, he is revered as the god of beginnings, new projects and learning. He is also the patron of students, writers, travelers, commerce, arts and science. On his shadow side, he is known for his greediness in devouring more than he can digest as manifested by his fondness for sweet foods and his large belly.
 
Ganesha’s elephant head symbolizes wholeness as represented by the Atman (the True Self or immortal soul) or Jung’s archetype of the Self, which is the source of wisdom. This state of wholeness is beyond the grasp of our limited consciousness and we can only aspire to an approximate state of wholeness in our journey of individuation. “Wholeness is never comprised within the compass of the conscious mind-it includes the indefinite and indefinable extent of the unconscious as well. Wholeness, empirically speaking, is therefore of immeasurable extent, older and younger than consciousness and enfolding it in time and space.” (Jung, CW 9i)

Image source: http://www.clearandconnect.com

A post I wrote for @jungsouthernafrica 

#jungsouthernafrica #jung #carljung #jungpsychology #jungianpsychology #depthpsychology #analyticalpsychology #unconscious #consciousness #innergrowth #archetypes #individuation #childarchetype #child #innerchild #divinechild #Ganesha #removerofobstacles #wholeness

The love story of Eros and Psyche could be interpreted as a reflection of the troubles in a maturing relationship. It symbolizes the difficulties of developing consciousness in the process of integrating the feminine and masculine.  Psyche means butterfly and refers to soul, life, and breath, while Eros (also known as Cupid) refers to love, desire and sexual passion. Their union is the deep transformation of soul-making, representing wholeness.  When we fall in love, we project the image of the archetype of the Beloved (whose divine image is imprinted in our souls), not realizing the Beloved dwells within our own psyches.

In this Greek myth, the winged god Eros, the son of Aphrodite, marries the beautiful mortal woman, Psyche.  Aphrodite ordered him to shoot Psyche with his arrows so that she would suffer ‘being in love with an undesirable man’ - to punish her for her much-admired beauty.  Nobody was allowed to be more beautiful than Aphrodite!  But Aphrodite’s plans went awry when Eros ignored her wishes. This important choice denotes a son separating from his mother with whom he was enmeshed – a mother complex – and initiating a relationship with his own inner feminine or Anima, represented by Psyche.

During the initial stages of their marriage, Eros forbade Psyche to look at him. Erich Neumann (1956) sees this as the couple being in an unconscious relationship, not really seeing each other. We tend to project our own inner polar opposite onto our partners who consequently fail to live up to our expectations! Psyche stole a look at Eros while he slept and realized whom she married… a god, not a monster as she initially feared. She then accidently pricked herself on his arrows making her fall in love with him, while also spilling oil on him and waking him. These events led to their distressing separation and an eventual reunion between the lovers, denoting a shift from attraction (based on projection) to a genuine love. Neumann states: "… there appears a new love principle, in which the encounter between feminine and masculine is revealed as the basis of individuation" (Amor and Psyche, 1956, p. 90).
 
The story of Eros and Psyche also represents an awakening to our divine Self and inner power. Psyche’s arduous heroine’s journey (including to the underworld) can be seen as the mythical portrait of the difficult process of individuation – an internal development process which transformed Psyche as she earned her own wings -  initiating a new relationship with her inner masculine (or Animus).  According to Jean Shinoda-Bolin, "… Psyche's story is about the growth of the soul that began with her decision to face the truth, and led her to being on her own, challenged to complete tasks that were initially beyond her ability to perform. In the myth, her unseen bridegroom would come to her in the dark of the night and be gone by morning. Metaphorically, she was in an unconscious relationship.”

This is a rich myth with complex symbolic meanings. If you would like to read more, see the 3-part exploration at https://symbolreader.net/2013/11/05/eros-and-psyche-1/

Image credit: blackeri1

A social media post I wrote for @jungsouthernafrica

#jung #carljung #jungpsychology #jungianpsychology #depthpsychology #analyticalpsychology #unconscious #consciousness #innergrowth #archetypes  #individuation #myth #mythology #gods #goddesses #alchemicalmarriage #unionmasculinefeminine #masculine #feminine #anima #animus #eros #psyche #love #capetown #capetownsouthafrica #capetownlocal #capetownlife #capetownliving
 

Deep authentic human connection (including the inner relationship) is represented, not by the “love-struck” Romeo and Juliet, but rather by the primordial lovers symbolized in the cosmic dance of Shiva (divine masculine principle) and Shakti (divine feminine principle) from Hinduism. “Their love for each other is legendary, and their union brings peace, understanding, and exquisite bliss. It generates the full spectrum of existence, the ten thousand levels of manifestation” (Archita, 2017).  

In Tantric cosmology, the divine couple symbolizes the primal forces of existence/being. They are the two manifestations of the divine Consciousness of Brahman (Cosmic Self). “There is no Shiva without Shakti, or Shakti without Shiva. The two […] in themselves are One” (Subramanian, 1998). Their union is an alchemical marriage between chaos and order. Shiva represents consciousness, while Shakti represents life energy. 

At the dawn of creation duality came into existence together with a longing and compulsion to unite these polarities.  Creation only springs forth from the unification of energy and consciousness. Energy and consciousness in isolation are barren. Until energy is impregnated   with consciousness it is a “blind” force (chaos).  Consciousness furnishes energy with purpose and form. This interconnectedness is depicted in Adi Shankara’s renowned hymn, Saundaryalahari (c. 800 CE): “If Shiva is united with Shakti, he is able to create. If he is not, he is incapable even of stirring” and his power remains dormant.
 
Clarissa Pinkola Estés (1992) wrote “… without Shakti, the personified feminine life force, Shiva, who encompasses the masculine ability to act, becomes a corpse. She is the life energy that animates the male principle, and the male principle in turn animates action in the world.” (p.309)  Shiva symbolizes the image of Ultimate Reality – “The unchanging, unlimited and unswayable Observer”.  Shakti is “She who cannot be contained” - untamed and limitless. She embodies vitality, movement and change. Shakti, as the motivating force behind the material universe, symbolizes the dynamic participatory act of creation.

Read more about their love story as a journey to wholeness http://archita1992.blogspot.com/2017/02/invitation-to-attend-wholeness-of-this.html
 
Image credit: www.templepurohit.com

A social media post I wrote for @jungsouthernafrica

#jungsouthernafrica #jung #carljung #jungpsychology #jungianpsychology #depthps ychology #analyticalpsychology #unconscious #consciousness #innergrowth #archetypes  #individuation #myth #mythology #alchemy #gods #goddesses #alchemicalmarriage #hieragamos #mysteriumconiunctionis   #unionmasculinefeminine #masculine #feminine #Shakti #Shiva #capetown #capetownsouthafrica #capetownlocal #capetownlife #capetownliving
 

​As one of the most complex and powerful goddesses of Ancient Egypt, Hathor (originally “Hwt-Her”) represents the divine feminine principle in synergy with the masculine. According to The Dictionary of Nature Myths:                “… Egyptian goddess Hathor has been labeled a sky goddess, a moon goddess, a sun goddess, a goddess of agriculture, a goddess of moisture, and a universal Mother Goddess and creator of the universe.… She personified the female principle—primitive, fruitful, creative, and nourishing. Hathor was a fertility goddess and, in that sense, also a goddess of love, much like Isis, the Greek Aphrodite, the Babylonian Ishtar, and the Sumerian Inanna…” (89)
​
Hathor (who later merged with Isis) is often depicted as a beautiful woman wearing a red solar disk between a pair of cow's horns. She was known as “the Great One of Many Names” and she was pivotal in every area of life and death in ancient Egypt. Her many names included Golden One (as daughter of Ra), Mistress of Life (an embodiment of beauty, music, dance, celebration, drunkenness, joy, love, romance, passion, perfume and gratitude), Mother of Mothers (representing fertility, childbirth, mothers, children and women’s health) , Mistress of Heaven (as the celestial nurse whose milk is life-giving), Lady of the Stars (linked to Sirius), Lady of the Necropolis (as gatekeeper of the underworld & helping the dead be reborn).
 
Geraldine Pinch (2004) writes “This complex deity could function as the mother, consort, and daughter of the creator god.” (137) Pinch notes that the union of Hathor and her creator-father "could be thought of… as a merging of the creator with his own active power" (138), signifying the importance of balance between the feminine and the masculine in maintaining order and harmony.
 
In her benevolent aspect Hathor is the personification of love, but in her destructive alter ego, she switches into the leonine goddess, Sekhmet, whose name means “She who is Powerful”. In the guise of Sekhmet, Hathor was regarded as “The Eye of Ra”, the feminine aspect of creation that often brought destruction to humankind, ultimately to transform its relationship with the divine.

Image credit: Ptahmassu Nofra-Uaa.

A social media post I wrote for @jungsouthernafrica 
 
#jungsouthernafrica #jung #carljung #jungpsychology #jungianpsychology #depthpsychology #analyticalpsychology #unconscious #consciousness #innergrowth #archetypes #archetypalpatterns
#alchemicalmarriage #hieragamos #mysteriumconiunctionis   #unionmasculinefeminine #masculine #feminine #divinefeminineprinciple #myths #mythology #gods #goddesses #Egyptiangoddess #Hathor  #Sekhmet #Eyeofra #ra #ancientegypt #capetown #capetownsouthafrica #capetownlocal #capetownlife #capetownliving

The birth of our world was a definitive new beginning. Creation myths encompass ideas as to how the Universe came into being as well as the role of humans in this drama. Stefan Stenudd writes “Creation myths are at the very core of any culture’s definition of itself and its view on its role in the world... The myth fixes his destiny and in what way he will find meaning in his existence.”  Creation myths are both a reflection of the culture that gave rise to them, but also a vessel of possible perspectives within that specific worldview.  They explain and guide the manner in which humans relate to the world around them, particularly Nature, but also how they regard themselves in the relationship with their God/gods - including human potential, rights and obligations. Read more at https://www.creationmyths.org/
 
In Memories, Dreams, Reflections (1962, 247-253), Jung described his conversation with Ochwiay Biano, a Native American of New Mexico. He realized that Ochwiay Biano gained meaning as well as a sense of belonging because he knew his proper “place in the great process of being” (Sabini 2001, 49) by seeing himself as a son of the Sun. This is an apt example of how mythology can reflect basic human needs.
 
Although there are similarities between creation myths across the world, there are also particular differences.  These include, for instance, whether there was an act of creation by a Divinity or Divinities or whether creation emerged from something such a cosmic egg, seed or the element of water.  This is often steeped in paradox as is demonstrated in the following verse from the Rig Veda 10:129:
 
“Who knows from whence this great creation sprang?
He from whom all this great creation came.
Whether his will created or was mute,
The Most High seer that is in highest heaven,
He knows it - or perchance even He knows not.”
 
What life are you creating? What is your Personal mythology or narrative for making sense and meaning of the world?
 
Image credit: Fiat (Latin for "Let there be"), the word by which God creates. This is a symbolic depiciton of how God's spirit in the form of a dove creates light. Illustration from Utriusque Cosmi Historia, by Robert Fludd, 1617.

A social media post I wrote for @jungsoutherafrica
 
#jung #carljung #jungpsychology #jungianpsychology #depthpsychology #analyticalpsychology #consciousness #newbeginnings #change #transformation #storytelling #storyoftheweek #storytuesday #myths #mythology #archetypes #creationmyths #personalmythology #meaning #paradox #capetown #capetownsouthafrica #capetownlocal #capetownlife #capetownliving