Tag Archives: Greek mythology

Chaos, Harmony and the Birth of Alphabet

Posted on January 24, 2016 by Symbol Reader

One of the most beautiful Greek myths, which fascinated Carl Gustav Jung because of its alchemical underpinnings, is the story of Cadmus and Harmony. It is beautifully retold in The Marriage of Cadmus and Harmony by Roberto Calasso, who begins … Continue reading →

Posted in Cadmus, Uncategorized | Tagged alchemy, alphabet, Cadmus, Carl Gustav Jung, Dionysos, Greek myth, Greek mythology, harmony, Mercurius, Phoenicians, Roberto Calasso, snake, Thebes, trickster, Typhon | 11 Comments

Jung on Alchemy (5): Hermes, the Arcane Interpreter of All

Posted on November 22, 2015 by Symbol Reader

“Mercurius is an adumbration of the primordial light-bringer, who is never himself the light, but…who brings the light of nature, the light of the moon and the stars which fades before the new morning light.” C.G. Jung, Alchemical Studies, par. … Continue reading →

Posted in Alchemy, Hermes, Uncategorized | Tagged alchemy, archetypes, Blavatsky, goddess, Greek myth, Greek mythology, hermaphrodite, Hermes, Hermes Trismegistus, hermeticism, Maia, maya, number four, psychopomp, symbols | 9 Comments

Ariadne Awakens

Posted on November 1, 2015 by Symbol Reader

“Enter the turret of your love, and lie close in the arms of the sea; let in new suns that beat and echo in the mind like sounds risen from sunken cities lost to fear; let in the light that … Continue reading →

Posted in Ariadne | Tagged Ancient Greece, archetypes, Ariadne, art, bull, C.G. Jung, Corona Borealis, depth psychology, Dionysos, Dionysus, Greek myth, Greek mythology, Libera, Minotaur, myth, Naxos, Picasso, Seven Sermons of the Dead, Statue of Liberty, symbolism, symbols, Theseus | 8 Comments

Asclepius: Earth-Walking Healer, Son of Apollo

Posted on October 9, 2015 by Symbol Reader

“Coronis was pregnant by Apollo when she found herself attracted to a stranger. He came from Arcadia, and his name was Ischys. A white crow watched over her. Apollo had told the bird to guard the woman he loved, ‘so … Continue reading →

Posted in Asclepius | Tagged adyton, Apollo, Asclepius, Asklepios, C.G. Jung, cock, Coronis, death, Demeter, depth psychology, dog, dream, Dreaming, Eleusis, Epidaurus, Greek myth, Greek mythology, healing, Hermes, incubation, medicine, Medusa, Ophiuchus, rebirth, rite, Ritual, rod of Asclepius, serpent, snake, symbolism, symbols | 20 Comments

Apollo and the Pythia: the Oracle of Delphi

Posted on September 6, 2015 by Symbol Reader

1.“I count the grains of sand on the beach and measure the sea; I understand the speech of the dumb and hear the voiceless.” The Pythia “Tell the king, the fair-wrought house has fallen. No shelter has Apollo, nor sacred … Continue reading →

Posted in Apollo, The Oracle of Delphi | Tagged Ancient Greece, Apollo, archetypes, Clea, Delphi, Dionysos, Dionysus, divination, ethylene, Greek myth, Greek mythology, Jelle Zeilinga de Boer, omphalos, oracle of Delphi, Plutarch, pneuma, prophecy, Pythia, Socrates, subterranean gas, symbols, vapors, William Broad | 16 Comments

To Apollo: The Averter of Evil, the Bringer of Harmony (part 1)

Posted on August 23, 2015 by Symbol Reader

1.“I am the eye with which the Universe Beholds itself, and knows it is divine; All harmony of instrument or verse, All prophecy, all medicine, is mine, All light of art or nature; – to my song Victory and praise … Continue reading →

Posted in Apollo | Tagged Ancient Greece, Apollo, archetypes, art, bow, civilization, Daphne, Delos, depth psychology, Greek myth, Greek mythology, Homeric hymn to Apollo, Leto, lyre, muses, music, nymphs, paean, possession, sun god, symbolism, symbols, the Self, Zeus | 21 Comments

On the Birth of Aphrodite

Posted on July 19, 2015 by Symbol Reader

If our exact time of place and birth is like a lodestar to interpreting our qualities and our destiny, it must make a lot of sense to look closely at the birth of Venus and relate what we find to … Continue reading →

Posted in Aphrodite/Venus | Tagged Ananke, Aphrodite, apple, archetypes, beauty, birth of Venus, blood, castration, Furies, Gaia, goddess, Greek myth, Greek mythology, harmony, Kronos, love, Ouranos, red, Rilke, rose, sexuality, symbolism, symbols, Titans, Uranus, Venus | 17 Comments

Vesta: Devoted Guardian of the Sacred Flame

Posted on March 29, 2015 by Symbol Reader

I.“The chaos of the ancients; the Zoroastrian sacred fire, …; the Hermes-fire; …the lightning of Cybele; the burning torch of Apollo; the flame on the altar of Pan; the inextinguishable fire in the temple on the Acropolis, and in that … Continue reading →

Posted in Hestia, Vesta | Tagged Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome, archetypes, earth, flame, goddess, Greek mythology, hearth, Hestia, priestess, Roman mythology, sacred fire, symbolism, symbols, Vesta, Vestal virgin | 39 Comments

Two Different Kinds of Soul

Posted on March 16, 2015 by Symbol Reader

I. “The dual fate of Heracles after death, dwelling simultaneously on high with the gods and below in Hades, reflects the Greek notion that we have two different kinds of soul. Thymos is warm, emotional and red-blooded; while psyche is … Continue reading →

Posted in Psyche | Tagged Ancient Greece, archetypes, death, depth psychology, Dionysus, Greek myth, Greek mythology, Hades, life, Pluto, psukhe, psyche, reality, Soul, symbols, thumos | 13 Comments

Nemesis: the Restorer of Cosmic Order

Posted on March 2, 2015 by Symbol Reader

I. ”Nemesis, winged tilter of scales and lives, Justice-spawned Goddess with steel-blue eyes! Thou bridlest vain men who roil in vain Against Thy harsh adamantine rein. Great hater of hubris and megalomania, Obliterator of black resentment, By Thy trackless, churning, … Continue reading →