Contents

1. Introduction
2. Why mythology and the archetypes they depict matter
3. Matter over mind
4. The future of symbols – an impending crisis?

Introduction

The art of story-telling is as ancient as humanity itself. There isn’t a single culture on earth that doesn’t have their own folklore. These stories of old depict brave heroes, mighty warriors, and lofty kings that sacrificed themselves for the good of the tribe and humanity at large.

These stories were originally passed down orally, from father to son and mother to daughter, and thus likely experienced a great deal of variation between them. But, with the advent of writing systems, these myths and legends were captured in more static editions and thus becoming more resistant to change. Whereas oral mythology was fluid and dynamic, written mythology was more static and resolute. With time, the more resilient mythology and customs of a population became ingrained at a cultural scale and ultimately served as a tool to provide context to the lives of the people that partook in it.

The mythology of a given culture plays a significant role in the world-view of the culture. After all, myths are colourful perspectives of the world relayed in a story format. They represent tried-and-tested methods that convey moral lessons to the listener. As such, most myths are concerned with the fundamental aspects of life: life and death, love and hate, war and peace, man and woman; and span across numerous disciplines.

Alongside their instructive qualities, mythology is a great dispenser of meaning. To partake in a given mythology is to partake in the collective mind of a culture; it is to experience life as they do, and to appreciate the world through their eyes. Therefore, to understand it and to appreciate the lessons that it conveys, is to absorb the potential of the psychological elements that myths provide. In other words, through our immersion and appreciation of mythology do we gain context and meaning in our lives.

Moreover, through the understanding of the myths that our forefathers have lived, can we relate to them, and find context for our otherwise contextless life (at least in the temporal sense). After all, no human being on earth is truly independent. We all owe our lives to other people.

Carl Jung, a 20^th century depth-psychologist, recognised the potential meaning-dispensing qualities of mythology. He discovered in these myths recurring psychic symbols that elucidate a well-characterised psychological anatomy, present in the psyche of each and every individual. Jung termed these archetypes, for they represent the primordial psychological structures through which we make sense of the world.

For example, many myths are centred on the ‘hero archetype’, which represents a particular archetypal character with particular traits (e.g. courage, bravery, and a thirst for life). In context, the hero’s fate represents a specific ordeal which more or less follows the same principles across the many different versions of this archetypal story. This is also known as the ‘hero’s journey’, and represents a major theme in mythology and even modern storytelling. Some historical and modern examples include:

• The Epic of Gilgamesh
• The Twelve Labours of Hercules
• Harry Potter
• The Lion King
• The Lord of the Rings

Why mythology and the archetypes they depict matter

As mentioned previously, mythology is an important cultural tool that serves to provide the necessary context to our lives. Without context, without a before or after, our lives represent stasis. The fundamental principles of life encompass dynamism and adaptability. As such, all organisms experience birth and death and all organisms within a given species adapt to unique environmental pressures in order to thrive.

A key component of human psychological well-being is the ability to fit our personal narratives into the wider context of the world – and every culture on earth has attempted to do this in their own way.

Though human technological development has done much good in terms of improving human quality of life as well as increasing the rates of productivity, it has also taken away from our lives in several ways.

With the advent of mass production and the resultant economic growth, societies experienced a shift in values. This shift, which came about with the Age of Enlightenment of the late 17^th century, catalysed the already emergent erosion of the mythology and symbolism of the old status quo.

With the onset of the age of industry, the old myths rapidly lost their hold on the collective psyche and the congruence of the collective narrative was adversely affected. Since the mythology of old was also tied to specific rituals, these too started to lose their meaning and purpose in the emerging society, becoming vestiges of a forgotten era.

This is what Nietzsche referred to when he proclaimed: ‘God is dead’ – the moral and psychological foundations of the collective psyche that have cultivated and hitherto maintained Western societies have been undermined by the inclination towards secularism. What were previously meaning-providing symbols are now dead effigies; outwardly whole but inwardly collapsed.

Lost rituals

Outside of civilisation, many tribal and indigenous cultures still practice a number of specific rituals that cater to specific life events. These were practiced during significant milestones in a person’s life. Some of these rituals include:

• Birthing rituals
• Coming of age rituals
• Marriage rituals
• Death rituals

Though we still practice these rituals within society to some extent. In general, their impact and effect has grown weaker with the prioritisation of other values in our lives. It appears that the rituals never entirely disappear but rather transmute to fit the modern climate. However, it’s useful to question whether transmuted rituals still fulfil their purpose.

For instance, compared to their tribal counterparts, modern coming-of-age rituals are lacking in modern societies. In a tribal setting, the youth undergoing this ritual is put through a significant ordeal to prove himself to himself as well as his tribe, with the added mandate to understand his place in his society and the wider world. As such, in some Native American cultures, boys entering puberty are set to undertake what is called a ‘vision quest’, in which they are sent out into the wilderness by themselves to meditate upon their direction and path in life.

In contrast, the modern equivalent of the coming of age ritual is transitioning into a form of higher education (e.g. university), which poses its challenges but doesn’t do much in terms of explaining a young person’s place in their society, let alone in the wider context of the world.

This may be a contributing factor to the prevalent confusion that many young people (and adults alike) feel regarding their path and purpose in life. This is not surprising considering that individualism (with its extensive freedom) is so greatly emphasised in modern society.

There is no doubt that this much freedom (and consequently, choice) combined with a lack of concrete guidance – at least in terms of individual and/or psychological development – will take its toll on the young mind.

So, while young people are encouraged to consider their educational choices and their career path, they are left deficient in terms of guidance regarding other very important matters, including their psychological development.

Considering that a lack of purpose and confusion is detrimental to our overall progress in life, (including our progression within society), it’s best to clear them up. In a previous post, I highlighted the importance of the organising idea, which is an overarching goal in life that can help harmonise our actions in life for a greater peace of mind (read here).

Matter over mind?

Developed societies are founded on economic prosperity. An economist might argue that the more wealth a nation has, the happier its people are, and this is certainly true until a certain extent – after all, it’s difficult being happy when you are starving.

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs posits the premise that individuals are driven by the satisfaction of certain needs which are sequential in nature. The pyramid above highlights at the bottom rungs fundamental needs which are physical in nature (e.g. food and shelter), followed by higher-order needs which are emotional and psychological in nature. Upon the satisfaction of lower needs, the individual seeks to fulfil higher needs.

In developed nations, where the lower needs are readily fulfilled, the higher needs are of immediate concern. It’s for this reason that the prevalence of meaninglessness and the need for meaning is particularly palpable in the modern Western world. Likewise it’s for this reason that the significance of mythology and the meaning-providing symbols that it encompasses is of great importance in our society.

In bygone times, when societies actively embodied religious and mystical doctrines and ideologies, cultures were in possession of stable and sufficient psychic repositories and thus psychic and spiritual needs were more readily fulfilled. In contrast, in today’s developed societies, most of which are secular-leaning, the same driving forces that promote psychic and spiritual well-being are less prevalent. Instead, a great focus is placed on the economic prosperity of a nation, and its citizens are instilled with values that likewise promote this aim.

Hence, we find ourselves amidst a culture embodying consumerist materialism values. It’s only a matter of time before these values percolate into our unconscious minds (if not already done so). The sets of values that promote societal prosperity and individual psychological growth, stand in contrast to each other, even if they are not entirely mutually exclusive.

Being aware of the dialectical nature of both elements: material wealth and psychological growth, will certainly play a significant role in the attainment of both.

The future of symbols – an impending crisis?

If secularism in combination with materialism originally started the erosion of meaning-providing symbols, it is likely that this trend will continue well into the future. Societies are ever-growing in their promotion of the materialist consumerism ideology and people are more likely to eschew conventional religions.

With conventional religions going out of fashion and a lack of appropriate spiritual substitutes, where will people derive their psychic and spiritual sustenance from? Perhaps this same lack might explain the resurgence of several ‘alternative’ spiritual doctrines, including wicca, paganism, and new age spirituality. This is not to mention the numerous quasi-spiritual movements that have become more common in recent times, nor the numerous ‘fandoms’ that overcrowd the internet and that garner devout cult followings.

The phenomenon highlighted above is touched upon in Ego and Archetype by Edward F. Edinger. Here, he highlights a number of ways that individuals deal with a breakdown of the symbolism that maintains the collective psyche. Edinger, too, attributes this collapse to the no longer adequate collective psychic repository which was previously provided by communal religions. As such, what we previously deemed holy is now but a heap of broken images.

Where previously communal religions were able to stably maintain the collective psychic energy of communities, individuals in the modern world have to contend with the shattered pieces of what were once potent symbolic repositories. These same psychic vessels of meaning are now vestiges of their former self and give rise a host of unstable (and unsustainable) psychic conditions experienced collectively by communities and the world at large.

The breakdown of symbolic repositories incites the influx of previously projected psychic energy back into an individual’s psyche, and has nowhere to go. This abundance of a potent, unconscious mental force has significant implications in people’s daily lives, and many of us are totally unaware of the hidden patterns that we fall into as a result of this ravaging psychic force.

Those devastated by the breakdown of symbolic repositories are likely to experience the following psychic states more commonly, if not more intensely. These mental states normally represent essential stages of psychological growth, but can pose problematic if they remain static and unresolved:

1. Ego alienation – a state of mind characterised by a significant loss of meaning or purpose in one’s life due to the severance of the connection between the ego and the Self (akin to the connection between the I and the universe).
2. Ego inflation –a state of mind characterised by an unhealthy identification of the ego with the Self, which exalts the status of ego to a god-like entity. The ego is placed on a pedestal and seeks to derive meaning from itself as it has assumed divine qualities.
3. Idolisation –a state of mind that redirects psychic energy into repositories that are not fit for purpose, such as non-archetypal repositories of symbols (e.g. fantasy worlds, fandoms, tv shows, or even books). However, anything can be idolised, and idolisers can project this unconscious psychic energy onto a vast array of things (e.g. fetishes are a common example).
4. Individuation –  characterised by the assimilation of the superfluous psychic energy into the appropriate channels (and archetypes) through a long process of calibration and psychological growth. The end goal is to equilibrate the relationship between the ego and the Self with the aim to restore the ego-Self axis. This is the most favourable of all outcomes and is characterised by a symbolic life, albeit at an individual level rather than at a communal one.

Religions of the future: hyper-real religions

It’s important to highlight that psychic energy (or libido as it’s called in psychoanalytic theory) is a constitutive force, and that the subsequent psychic landscape it generates is due to the unique individual makeup of each individual. As such, each individual, impelled by this force, experiences meaning in different and unique ways.

It’s been about a decade since the sociologist Adam Possamai highlighted in his Handbook of Hyper-real Religions a phenomenon that is becoming increasingly more common in modern society. Possamai posits that people nowadays are increasingly turning to consumer-based religions which are at least partly founded on popular culture.

Possamai defines hyper-real religions as:

‘’A hyper-real religion is a simulacrum of a religion created out of, or in symbiosis with, commodified popular culture which provides inspiration at a metaphorical level and/or is a source of beliefs in everyday life.’’

As such, hyper-real religions rely on elements from conventional religions (archetypal, unchanging elements) blended together with elements from popular culture (contingent elements). Considering that many people are disillusioned with conventional religions nowadays and therefore are less likely to borrow imagery from these sources (though the numerous references are innate in our modern cultures and language and cannot be avoided). Instead, people conscious and/or unconsciously absorb and assimilate ideas from popular culture to paint a world-view that provides them with a sense of meaning and allows them to navigate the world more readily.

What’s interesting and also worrying about hyper-real religions is that they’re subjective (i.e. catered to the individual) blends of archetypal elements and varying pop culture symbols. In contrast, organised religions are communal religions, and the symbolic repositories that people project their psychic energy into are much more stable as they reinforced by the collective psyche (indeed, there is power in numbers).

In contrast, hyper-real religions are belief systems that tailor to the individual rather than a community and as a result are unstable and much more prone to collapse. Unlike the symbols of conventional religions, the symbols of hyper-real religions are ad-hoc and haven’t stood the test of time in regards to their suitability to serve as repositories of powerful psychic energy.

We draw a significant degree of our subjective meaning from the symbols that inhabit the world, especially if we feel a certain reverence for the symbols in question, as is normally the case with holy and or divine symbolisms. Therefore, the process of deriving meaning from ad-hoc symbols that are prone to change, and therefore prone to lose their relation or meaning to us, is one that should be treated with the greatest degree of caution, lest we lose our minds.

A crisis of meaning

Historically, the vast number of human cultures have thrived on encompassing ideologies and communal narratives to furnish life with meaning. In times of strife have ideologies been especially potent; and a tragic account of the significance of meaning in times strife can be found in Victor Frankl’s Man’s Search for Meaning.

Fast forward to the post-modern age, society has been marked with an overarching theme (thanks, existentialists!): life is inherently meaningless; we are responsible for creating our own individual meaning.

However, in order to sustain a meaningful life, (communal) symbols are needed that resist change and that accurately portray or represent the many mysteries of life. The mythologies of yore, despite their age, still hold relevance today precisely because they articulate the fundamental struggles of the human condition so intricately.

In contrast, the stories told in the ‘age of the self’ cater to but one person: the individual. As such, the singular narrative that is perpetuated rings hollow compared to the collective narrative that underpins the mythologies of times past. Nevertheless, there is yet hope – not all succumb to primordial psychic forces which sway us so savagely and which are the result of the hollow and broken symbols of the collective psyche. Indeed, some individuals are able to pick up the pieces and assimilate them on their journey towards individuation, though they are few and far between.

Symbol-providing mythology, then, must serve as a vast repertoire of life experiences from which wisdom and peace of mind can be garnered. Encompassing mythology that fulfils this purpose is usually developed through traditional storytelling that has come to be over the course of many generations and through many iterations; its scope represents a vast range of life experience as derived from the collective psyche of a people.

Look back or look ahead?

As people of the 21^st century we exist at the interface of history and the future, truly. The ideologies and ways of the past still linger in our minds – at moments of perfect tranquillity, they leave behind  bittersweet emotions. Likewise, we are faced with the future: late-stage capitalism and technocracies, the algorithm-lead life, and God-forbid, the metaverse.

The predicament of the modern individual is as follows: He is in possession of great materialistic and informational wealth; benefiting and suffering from the freedoms of modern existential individualism. And yet, he perceives viscerally the inherent disconnect and emptiness of
modern life – it gnaws at him and rouses him in his sleep. Whereas the ancients were known to be possessed by spirits, modern man is possessed by a lack of spirit.

***

Ever since the dawn of humankind, we have asked ourselves: ‘’Where will I get my daily bread?’’, in the 21^st century, we now find ourselves asking: ‘’Where will I find my meaning?’’.

Indeed, going forward, where will we find our meaning?