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.
Somewhere there was once a Flower, a Stone, a Crystal, a Queen, a King, a Palace, a Lover and his Beloved, and this was long ago, on an Island somewhere in the ocean 5,000 years ago. . . . Such is Love, the Mystic Flower of the Soul. This is the Center, the Self.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote illustrates love as a profound, mystical force connecting souls throughout time and space.
Carl Jung portrays love as a timeless and mystical essence that transcends the physical world, symbolized by natural and royal imagery. By referencing various elements such as a flower, stone, and palace, he suggests that love is an intrinsic part of the human experience, rooted deeply in the psyche and giving life a sense of meaning and connection. This encapsulation of love as 'the Mystic Flower of the Soul' emphasizes its importance as a central aspect of our existence.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be shared in a wedding speech to emphasize the depth and timelessness of love.
More from Carl Jung
All quotes →The 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.
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Within my heart is lurking suspicion, and base fear, and shame and hate; but above all, tyrannous love sits throned, crowned with her graces, silent and in tears.
I love how much love there is in the world of young adult and children's literature.