Tag Archives: Yeats

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

From Lascaux Cave Paintings to Greta Thunberg

Posted on December 15, 2019 by Symbol Reader

It fascinates me when similar ideas come to me simultaneously from completely different directions. The first revelation was a must-read article in The Guardian on how the cave paintings of Lascaux remind us that “in our self-obsessed age, the anonymous, … Continue reading →