Symbolism of the Mask
I. “The sight of the masked figure, as a purely aesthetic experience, carries us beyond ‘ordinary life’ into a world where something other than daylight reigns; it carries us back to the world of the...
View ArticleThe Black Madonna of Dublin
Whitefriar Street Church in Dublin does not look grand from the outside. It is easy to walk past without noticing it. Inside, however, it houses a real treasure: a life-size oak figure of the Black...
View ArticleThe Symbolism of the Heron
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...
View ArticleThe Reality of Radical Evil
“The sight of evil kindles evil in the soul—there is no getting away from this fact. The victim is not the only sufferer; everybody in the vicinity of the crime, including the murderer, suffers with...
View ArticleThe Rose as a Symbol
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...
View ArticleMythical Lisbon
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,...
View ArticleKafka’s Book of Images – Part 2
SATURN’S SHADOW Reiner Stach published the second volume of Kafka’s biography in 2013 under the title Kafka: The Decisive Years. The volume covers the years 1910 (Kafka’s 27th birthday) till 1915. This...
View ArticleHouse as a Symbol
Snails and hermit crabs both carry their homes, but in distinctly different ways. A snail’s shell grows with it, a steadfast and secure refuge crafted by nature. In contrast, the hermit crab embodies...
View ArticleSymbolism of Mermaids: The Beauty and Danger of Unconscious Depths
“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 →
View ArticleKafka’s Book of Images – Part 1
Each volume of Reiner Stach’s Kafka biography is a gem in its own right. The Early Years, which, due to legal issues, was published last in the trilogy, offers a treasure trove of insights into Kafka’s...
View ArticleThe War in the Psyche
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...
View ArticleThe Mind at Odds with Itself: On the Difference Between the Left and the...
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...
View ArticleThe Symbolism of the Dragon
“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...
View ArticleThe Sibyls
“But she stood … black like an ancient citadel … as the words, which unrestrained now multiplied in her against her will, screamed and flew around her in incessant circles, while those that had...
View ArticleSedna
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...
View ArticleAntoni Gaudí and His Sagrada Família
Before the 30-year-old Antoni Gaudí designed the Nativity Facade of the Sagrada Família, he underwent a strict twenty-day fast that left him emaciated. The full name of the Basilica is the Expiatory...
View ArticleMontserrat and Its Holy Grail
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...
View ArticleHekate: World Soul, Cosmic Bridge and a Liminal Goddess
“Ever since the ‘Timaeus’ it has been repeatedly stated that the soul is a sphere. As the anima mundi, the soul revolves with the world wheel, whose hub is the Pole. … The anima mundi is really the...
View ArticleThe Veil of Isis and the Black Madonna: the Mysteries of Nature
I. “The mother is the first world of the child and the last world of the adult. We are all wrapped as her children in the mantle of this great Isis.” Collected Works of C.G. Jung, Volume 9 (Part 1): …...
View ArticleThe Symbolic Power of Mushrooms
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,”...
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