Tag Archives: symbolism

Like the Rainbow on the Waterfall: the Mystical Aura of Consumption

Posted on March 29, 2016 by Symbol Reader

While the fourteenth century was ravaged by the Black Death, the nineteenth century belonged to tuberculosis, or the White Death, a disease much more insidious and widespread. John Keats died of it at the age of twenty-six, and so did … Continue reading →

Posted in Tuberculosis | Tagged art, consumption, Davos, death, disease, Edgar AllanPoe, Hans Castorp, illness, John Keats, life, literature, Magic Mountain, myth, Romanticism, sanatorium, symbolism, TB, Thomas Mann, Tuberculosis, White Death | 6 Comments

The Black Madonna of the Darker than Dark Forest

Posted on February 28, 2016 by Symbol Reader

The place closest to my heart in the whole of Switzerland is the Monastery of Einsiedeln. “Einsiedeln” is a German word for “hermitage.” Surrounded by a dark, mysterious forest, situated near a scenic lake, adjacent to glorious mountain peaks, the … Continue reading →

Posted in Black Madonna | Tagged alchemy, Black Madonna, Dark goddess, Einsiedeln, Mary, nigredo, ravens, Saint Meinrad, symbolism, symbols | 22 Comments

Shakespeare and Goethe on Love: from Despair to Hope

Posted on February 14, 2016 by Symbol Reader

“She had a wildness in her eyes and into it I plunged.” Goethe, “Sorrows of Young Werther” In January 1778 Christel von Lassberg drowned herself in the river Ilm, the reason most probably being unrequited love. A copy of Goethe’s … Continue reading →

Posted in love, Uncategorized | Tagged bear, freezing, Goethe, hibernation, literature, love, passion, rebirth, regeneration, Romanticism, Shakespeare, spring, suffering, symbolism, symbols, trauma, Werther, Werther effect, winter, Winter's Tale | 10 Comments

Black Holes: A Silent, Secret Essence

Posted on January 30, 2016 by Symbol Reader

I.“He had begun by speaking of mines and metals, of gold and diamonds and all precious elements buried deep in the earth, but now, without my knowing how, he had ranged out into the depths of space, and was … Continue reading →

Posted in Black Holes, Uncategorized | Tagged archetypes, Big Bang, black hole, Edgar Allan Poe, emptiness, Eureka, form, gravity, heart sutra, mysticism, science, singularity, spirituality, symbolism, symbols, universe | 19 Comments

David Bowie’s Blackstar

Posted on January 16, 2016 by Symbol Reader

The video to David Bowie’s “Blackstar” overpowered me immediately when it was released on 19 November last year. It is a visual poem and a symbolic feast. Despite the iconic yellow smiley face flashed at the viewer at the very … Continue reading →

Posted in David Bowie, Uncategorized | Tagged alchemy, archetypes, Blackstar, Chaos, David Bowie, death, nigredo, suffering, symbolism, symbols, video | 16 Comments

The Blessings of Darkness and Light: Tribute to Khalil Gibran

Posted on January 8, 2016 by Symbol Reader

I.“Now I know that I am the sphere, and all life in rhythmic fragments moves within me.” “The reality of the other person is not in what he reveals to you, but in what he cannot reveal to you.” “Love … Continue reading →

Posted in Khalil Gibran, Uncategorized | Tagged "The Prophet", Almustafa, archetypes, Khalil Gibran, love, Mary Haskell, mysticism, pain, religion, spirituality, suffering, symbolism, symbols, the union of opposites | 20 Comments

Last Worshippers of Artemis: Cats Walking the Ruins of Ephesus

Posted on November 28, 2015 by Symbol Reader

“But the wildest of all the wild animals was the Cat. He walked by himself, and all places were alike to him.” “…when the moon gets up and night comes, he is the Cat that walks by himself, and all … Continue reading →

Posted in Cats, Ephesus, Uncategorized | Tagged ancient Egypt, Ancient Greece, Bast, Bastet, cats, Ephesus, Seven Wonders of the World, symbolism, witch-hunt, witches | 15 Comments

“From love’s first fever to her plague” by Dylan Thomas: A Study of Consciousness

Posted on November 10, 2015 by Symbol Reader

“From love’s first fever to her plague, from the soft second And to the hollow minute of the womb, From the unfolding to the scissored caul, The time for breast and the green apron age When no mouth stirred about … Continue reading →

Posted in Poetry | Tagged adolescence, archetypes, awareness, “From love's first fever to her plague”, childhood, consciousess, Dylan Thomas, growth, manna, maturity, Moon, poem, poetry, sun, symbolism, symbols | Leave a comment

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 | 12 Comments

The Magnificent Imperia of Constance

Posted on October 18, 2015 by Symbol Reader

She is splendid, imposing, imperial. 9 metres high, she slowly revolves round her axis, revealing all the facets of her provocative ensemble. In her left palm sits a naked minuscule pope, in her right – a minuscule naked emperor; both … Continue reading →