Tag Archives: Soul

The Symbolism of the Heron

Posted on November 8, 2025 by Symbol Reader

Ever since I watched The Boy and the Heron by Hayao Miyazaki – twice, drawn back by the questions it left me with – I’ve been captivated by the symbolism of these enigmatic birds. Herons appear frequently in Japanese art, … Continue reading →

Posted in Heron | Tagged Athena, augury, Bagalamukhi, Bennu, Birds, consciousness, Egypt, Gimbutas, goddess, Greece, Heron, Iliad, Japan, magic, Mahavidyas, Mary Oliver, Miyazaki, mythology, Odysseus, omens, ornis, phoenix, Shakti, shapeshifter, Soul, symbolism, symbols, trickster, unconscious, Yeats | 6 Comments

The Rose as a Symbol

Posted on April 13, 2025 by Symbol Reader

Rose,the unfading rose beyond my verse—rose that’s full and fragrant,rose of the black garden in the deep of night,rose of any garden and any night,rose that’s born again by the art of alchemyout of tenuous ash,rose of the Persians and … Continue reading →

Posted in The Rose | Tagged albedo, alchemy, Aphrodite, archetypes, art, astrology, Briar Rose, C.G. Jung, Dante, death, depth psychology, Dionysos, Eros, etymology, goddess, love, Mary, Mystical Rose, pain, Paradiso, Rilke, Rosalia, rose, rose window, rubedo, Sleeping Beauty, Soul, suffering, symbolism, symbols, thorns, transition, Venus, Virgin Mary, wine, Yeats | 10 Comments

Mythical Lisbon

Posted on February 28, 2025 by Symbol Reader

This year, I traveled to Portugal for the first time, and throughout my journey, I felt as though I was encountering something deeply mysterious. The country struck me as a land of silence and secrecy, and I became captivated by … Continue reading →

Posted in Lisbon | Tagged Alfama, archetypes, azulejos, Baixa, Baixa Pombalina, Belem, caduceus, cities, Critias, fado, hermeticism, initation well, Jeronimos, Knights Templar, light, Lima de Freitas, Lisbon, Lusitiania, Masonry, Odysseus, Odyssey, Ophiussa, pavement, Plato, Portugal, Quinta de Regaleira, ravens, saint Vincent, saudade, serpents, Sintra, Soul, symbolism, symbols | 8 Comments

Symbolism of Mermaids: The Beauty and Danger of Unconscious Depths

Posted on October 31, 2024 by Symbol Reader

“Her hair was as a wet fleece of gold, and each separate hair as a thread of fine gold in a cup of glass. Her body was as white ivory, and her tail was of silver and pearl. Silver and … Continue reading →

Posted in Mermaids | Tagged alchemy, anima, archetypes, art, Atargatis, C.G. Jung, church, Clarissa Pinkola Estes, consciousness, depth psychology, enlightenment, Eros, fantasy, gender fluidity, goddess, hybrid, incarnation, liminal, Little Mermaid, Melusine, mermaid, Mermaids, merpeople, merperson, monster, morality, mythology, Odysseus, Odyssey, passion, Picasso, Pisces, psyche, queer, seduction, selkie, sexuality, sirens, Soul, Starbucks, symbolism, symbols, the unconscious, Typhon, Warsaw, Wild Woman | 9 Comments

The War in the Psyche

Posted on August 1, 2024 by Symbol Reader

You might recall that in the film The Pianist, Władysław Szpilman is depicted hiding in the ruins of apartments, witnessing both the Ghetto Uprising in 1943 and the Warsaw Uprising in 1944. Today marks the 80th anniversary of the latter. … Continue reading →

Posted in Psyche, War | Tagged archetypes, C.G. Jung, conflict, depth psychology, harmony, history, literature, opposites, Paul Lynch, Poland, Prophet Song, psyche, Soul, symbolism, symbols, Szpilman, The Pianist, War, Warsaw, Warsaw Uprising | 2 Comments

The Mind at Odds with Itself: On the Difference Between the Left and the Right Hemispheres of the Brain

Posted on June 16, 2024 by Symbol Reader

In Chinese mythology, the universe begins as a formless chaos or an egg. Inside this chaos is Pangu, a giant who eventually breaks out of the egg. As he emerges, he separates the chaos into yin and yang, which represent … Continue reading →

Posted in Brain Hemispheres | Tagged algorithm, archetypes, attention, body, brain, C.G. Jung, consciousness, depth psychology, embodiment, Hans Dumb, hemispheres, Iain McGilchrist, left brain, life, mental-health, neuroscience, philosophy, Power, psychology, right brain, schizophrenia, Soul, symbolism, symbols, The Master and His Emissary, the Other, the unconscious, yin and yang | 22 Comments

The Symbolism of the Dragon

Posted on March 10, 2024 by Symbol Reader

“Dragons are subterranean, winged, smoke- and fire-breathing creatures, hybrid go-betweens in a magical bond between heaven and the underworld, where they guard secret treasures and reign over fires and concealed palaces.” A description found on Dragon Path on Mount Pilatus … Continue reading →

Posted in Dragons | Tagged Agathis Daimon, alchemy, archetypes, Bilbo, C.G. Jung, Cadmus, Campbell, China, depth psychology, dragon, Dragons, drakaina, drakon, drakontes, etymology, fantasy, Gaia, goddess, gold, golden apples, Greek myth, guardian, Hermes, hero, Hesperides, James Hillman, Krakow, Ladon, Mercurius, Mysterium Coniunctionis, mythology, Nagas, Pilatus, ring, river, shadow, Shesha, Smaug, Soul, Stilbon, symbolism, symbols, The Red Book, treasure, Typhon, uoroboros, Vishnu, water, Yggdrasil | 12 Comments

Sedna

Posted on January 6, 2024 by Symbol Reader

The Inuit peoples have a profound connection to the Arctic as their ancestral homeland. Across the Arctic, one deity stands out as an all-powerful goddess of the sea and the underworld. Her name is Sedna. The name itself is an … Continue reading →

Posted in Sedna, Sedna | Tagged Adlivun, archetypes, art, Bitternis, christianization, creation myth, Demeter, dismemberment, goddess, handicapped, Inuit myth, Joanna Bator, limbless, mutilation, mythology, Sedna, shaman, Soul, symbolism, symbols, trauma, Underworld, violence | 2 Comments

Montserrat and Its Holy Grail

Posted on November 23, 2023 by Symbol Reader

Throughout the world, sacred sites intricately weave together historical facts and legendary tales, rendering the task of distinguishing between the two an impossible challenge. Located approximately fifty kilometers from Barcelona, the Montserrat Monastery derives its name from the mountain upon … Continue reading →

Posted in Black Madonna | Tagged archetypes, Barcelona, black, Black Madonna, Cybele, dark, darkness, Great Goddess, Holy Grail, Montserrat, Moreneta, mountain, prophecy, samadhi, Soul, Spain, symbolism, symbols | 2 Comments

The Symbolic Power of Mushrooms

Posted on August 6, 2023 by Symbol Reader

The Symbolic Power of Mushrooms In the collective consciousness since the recent pandemic, two symbols of self-destruction have emerged, both connected to mushrooms. In the HBO series “The Last of Us,” mind-manipulating mushrooms known as ophiocordyceps possess the minds of … Continue reading →