I did not reduce them [dreams] to personal factors, as Freud does…. I compared them with the symbols from mythology and the history of religion, in order to discover the meaning they were trying to express. Saturn Devouring His Son Francisco Goya 1819–1823. Oil mural transferred to canvas 143cm x 81cm. Museo del Prado, Madrid…
Nothing has a stronger influence psychologically on their environment and especially on their children than the unlived life of the parent. Carl Jung Jupiter Musée du Louvre ceiling fresco Jupiter et Semele Gustave Moreau 1894-95 Oil on canvas (83.8 in × 46.5 in) Musée National Gustave-Moreau (Moreau Museum), Paris From Encyclopedia Mythica [This was the…
Jung and Hercules When a Jungian hears about tasks that some mythical or fairy-book character has to do, they get pretty excited. There must be some good psychological reasons for these tasks– some analogies, metaphors, similes and parallels to examine. Amplification is the name of the game. So what is the deal with…
Heracles & Cerberus (Caeretan is the black-figure) Hydria C6th B.C., Musée du Louvre KERBEROS (or Cerberus) was the gigantic hound which guarded the gates of Haides. He was posted to prevent ghosts of the dead from leaving the underworld. Kerberos was described as a three-headed dog with a serpent’s tail, a mane of snakes, and…
Charon carries souls across the River Styx Alexander Dmitrievich Litovchenko 1861 Russian Museum, St. Petersburg From the Encyclopedia Brittanica: Charon, in Greek mythology, the son of Erebus and Nyx (Night), whose duty it was to ferry over the Rivers Styx and Acheron those souls of the deceased who had received the rites of burial. In…
Crossing the River Styx Joachim Patinir 1521 Transitions as Liminal and Archetypal Situations From a lecture delivered by Jean Shinoda Bolen, M.D. at the Mythic Journeys Conference June 2004, Atlanta, Georgia The fourth step is the first time that Psyche will end up accomplishing the task herself. As her very last task, Aphrodite commands that…
The River Styx Luca Giordano 1684-1686. Fresco in the Palazzo Medici-Riccardi From: The Golden Asse by Lucius Apuleius Adlington’s translation, 1566 THE FIFTH BOOKE THE TWENTY-SECOND CHAPTER The most pleasant and delectable tale of the marriage of Cupid and Psyches … Then Venus spake unto Psyches againe saying: Seest thou the toppe of yonder great…
Psyche’s Second Task Romano Guilio 1526-28 Fresco Sala di Psyche, Palazzo del Tè, Mantua From: The Golden Asse by Lucius Apuleius Adlington’s translation, 1566 THE FIFTH BOOKE THE TWENTY-SECOND CHAPTER The most pleasant and delectable tale of the marriage of Cupid and Psyches When night was passed Venus called Psyches, and said, Seest thou yonder…
Psyche at the Throne of Venus Jungian analysts