Grounded in the natural philosophy of the Middle Ages, alchemy formed a bridge: on the one hand into the past, to Gnosticism, and on the other into the future, to the modern psychology of the unconscious.
The brighter the light, the darker the shadow.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote suggests that with greater prominence or success, there will be an equal contrast of negativity or challenges.
Carl Jung's quote, 'The brighter the light, the darker the shadow', highlights the duality of existence where great achievements or positivity bring with them the inevitable presence of challenges or negativity. It serves as a reminder that life is characterized by contrasts, and one cannot exist without the other; thus, understanding and accepting this duality can lead to a deeper appreciation of both the light and the darkness in life.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a motivational speech to encourage people facing difficulties after achieving success.
More from Carl Jung
All quotes βThe majority of my patients consisted not of believers but of those who had lost their faith.
Complexes are psychic contents which are outside the control of the conscious mind. They have been split off from consciousness and lead a separate existence in the unconscious, being at all times ready to hinder or to reinforce the conscious intentions.
We are in a far better position to observe instincts in animals or in primitives than in ourselves. This is due to the fact that we have grown accustomed to scrutinizing our own actions and to seeking rational explanations for them.
From the viewpoint of analytic psychology, the theatre, aside from any aesthetic value, may be considered as an institution for the treatment of the mass complex.
I have treated many hundreds of patients. Among those in the second half of life - that is to say, over 35 - there has not been one whose problem in the last resort was not that of finding a religious outlook on life.
Similar quotes
Perhaps there should be a box on the census form that says, 'I'm a criminal.' Everyone who has ever committed a crime would be required to check it. If everyone were forced to acknowledge their own criminality, maybe we, as a nation, would second-guess our apparent zeal for denying full citizenship to those branded felons.
Character - Some day, you will be wrestling with the great temptation, or trembling under the great sorrow of your life. But the real struggle is here, now, in these quiet weeks. Now it is being decided whether, in the day of your supreme sorrow or temptation, you shall miserably fail or gloriously conquer. Character cannot be made except by a steady, long-continued process.
Spirituality is rebellion; religiousness is orthodoxy. Spirituality is individuality; religiousness is just remaining part of the crowd psychology. Religiousness keeps you a sheep, and spirituality is a lion's roar.
Each human being is bred with a unique set of potentials that yearn to be fulfilled as surely as the acorn yearns to become the oak within it.
To become the enemy, see yourself as the enemy of the enemy
A person who has been punished is not thereby simply less inclined to behave in a given way; at best, he learns how to avoid punishment.