The name of each myth also defined the laws that govern the universe. For example, the myth of Anahita symbolized fertility, healing, and wisdom in Iran, or the myth of Zeus symbolized power in ancient Greece. Socrates also believed that disrespecting the gods led to their vengeance and created problems for humans.
For instance, you might ignore Zeus, the god of power and foresight, and as a result, you only focus on what’s immediately in front of you. Forty years later, you look back and think, “Oh no, my life is wasted!” You were so focused on studying and working that you never created a source of income or investment for your old age. This is a form of disrespect to the god Zeus. Meanwhile, you may have dedicated your life to honoring the god Apollo, meaning your life followed a rhythm and order, with higher education and a good job.
Robert A. Johnson, a psychoanalyst in the school of Carl Gustav Jung, says: “Today we are dealing with the signs of psychological distress. We don’t know Zeus, but we have a headache. We don’t know Dionysus (the god of pleasure), so instead, we get drunk and indulge in excess.”
These myths and legendary stories are embedded in our psyche from an ancient, timeless history and unconsciously govern our lives.
According to Jung’s perspective, self-awareness, which seems to be a necessary condition for humanity, is only the tip of the iceberg. Beneath awareness, there exists a much larger realm that contains forgotten or repressed personal memories, emotions, and behaviors, which Jung and Freud refer to as the personal unconscious. Below the personal unconscious lies the vast ocean of the collective unconscious, an immense and ancient sea filled with all the images and behaviors that have been repeated throughout history. This history does not only include humans; it also encompasses life itself. As Jung says: “The deeper you go into the psyche, the wider the terrain becomes.”
Jung recognized the repetitive and universal nature of characters and events in human life. He concluded that historical myths present in different cultures symbolically transmit inner experiences to future generations, and these stories, often found in the art and literature of various parts of the world, shape the structure of our lives. In all these stories, there are a few core archetypes.
We are a collection of archetypes, a set of different personality patterns.
When we become parents,
When we become spouses,
When we love,
When we are in key jobs,
When we are sensitive and easily hurt,
When we must endure the death of a loved one,
When we love,
When we hate,
And so on.
In each of these states, we rely more on one of our archetypal personalities than the others.
What’s important is recognizing these archetypes and creating balance in the human psyche.
By understanding these ancient patterns, you gain a better understanding of the logic and philosophy of your own life. Archetypes represent the most important needs and desires of a person’s life. Recognizing them acquaints you with your hidden talents, shows you the core reasons and values of your life, and helps you relate to and understand others better.
Through testing the archetypes, you can identify your dominant and repressed archetypes within your psyche, uncover the root causes of your problems and those of the people around you, and then, through practice and self-control, balance your dominant archetypes and strengthen your repressed ones to achieve balance in all aspects of your life.
