Delve into the Unconscious

 

Maturity

“Maturity implies that the different parts of the psyche are recognized as such and brought into the proper relation to one another…This makes it possible to keep the influence and incursions of the unconscious entirely separated from those that have already been clarified by consciousness—the two will no longer be confused.”

Jolande Jacobi (Complex, Archetype, Symbol in the Psychology of Carl Gustav Jung, p. 17)

          Theologian and Jungian Analyst, John Sanford wrote in The Kingdom Within (p.20), “The unconscious is not only the basement of our minds into which we place the discarded material of our own lives; it is also the ocean out of which our conscious lives have sprung, and over which the ships of our souls sail their course through life.” The psyche is usually depicted as an iceberg with just the tip visible above the waves. That tip represents what we are conscious of in a given moment. Beneath the waves, the personal unconscious contains all that we have stashed away in our personal lives—trauma, yes, but also, things that did not rise to the level of importance to keep them currently in consciousness. These things may exist as memories easily called up—like my first grad teacher, Mrs. Wesley—or my house in Chattanooga where we lived until I was nine. Others, especially pre-verbal occurances, may not be recalled, but only experienced as emotions. 

        Beneath that level, there are inherited cultural norms which are implicitly taught and different from culture to culture. In my culture, for instance, girls didn’t talk back, didn’t use profanity and tried their very best to look and act like standard girls. My unconscious cultural traits are different from someone who is African American, or Scandinavian, or Chinese. We know them without being taught explicitly.

And beneath both of those layers is the collective unconscious, which Jung said, “contains the whole spiritual heritage of mankind’s evolution, born anew in the brain structure of every individual.” (Collected Works, 8:par:342) This is where the archetypes reside. They are symbols for energies shared across cultures that Jung called,“fundamental elements of the conscious mind, hidden in the depths of the psyche…They are systems of readiness for action, and at the same time images and emotions. They are inherited with the brain structure—indeed they are its psychic aspect.” (Jung, Collected Works: 10:118)

          The archetypes are universal symbols—some of them are Orphan, Shadow, Anima, Animus, Mother, Father, Child, Hero, Magician, but there are many more. We aren’t aware of when an archetype has been activated, but we usually experience it as “not me.” The hero archetype for instance is activated when someone runs to pull a person from a wrecked car—they aren’t thinking, “It’s time for me to be a hero!” They just go do it. Later, when people are hanging the hero label on them, they typically say, “I didn’t really think about it.” Or when someone becomes so angry that they begin spewing poisonous words, their entire countenance may change; suddenly they embody the witch or the monster. We all have a “Mr. Hyde” within us. Again, we don’t recognize it—it seems foreign. We think, “What just came over me?” That question, in fact, is a clue that an archetype has been activated.

          We can never know all that resides in our unconscious mind, but it’s a good idea to know some of it. We can learn that by being conscious of patterns of behavior on our part. For instance, what sort of person really punches your buttons? (Shadow) How does your behavior change in the company of someone you find attractive? (Anima/Animus) What happens when something unexpected comes out of your mouth and you realize you just sounded like your mother, or father? Are you someone who likes to “save people” (Hero) or watch them squirm (Witch)? If we can become aware (conscious) of what tips the scales for us, what trips us up and takes us out of balance, we move a little closer to maturity no matter what age. Becoming self-aware is the way “the ships of our souls sail their course through life.” I hope you have smooth sailing today.

                                                  In the Spirit,

                                                  Jane