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.
Carl JungRead
A creative person has little power over his own life. He is not free. He is captive and driven by his daimon.
Interpretation
What this quote means
A creative individual often feels compelled by an inner drive that limits their autonomy.
Carl Jung suggests that creativity is not solely a choice but rather a descent into a powerful drive or instinct, referred to as 'daimon.' This indicates that a creative person's life is heavily influenced by their creative urges and inspirations, which can make them feel less in control of their own destiny.
Themes
CreativityInner DriveDaimonFreedomLife Control
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about artistic challenges, one might say, 'As Carl Jung noted, a creative person has little power over his own life.'
More from Carl Jung
All quotes →The majority of my patients consisted not of believers but of those who had lost their faith.
Carl JungRead
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.
Carl JungRead
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.
Carl JungRead
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.
Carl JungRead
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.
Carl JungRead
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