Archetypal Alchemy

Carl Jung’s recognition of the value of encountering unconscious archetypical aspects of Self through active imagination leads to his understanding that this is a process leading to the “integration” of archetypal energies within the overall, individual identity of one’s Self. James Hillman further recognized that there is value in experiencing the dynamic vitality of usually submerged unconscious archetypal persona aspects, not necessarily to ‘raise them to conscious’ habitation but to explore the dynamics of their own field of influence within the Depth levels of Self.

Each archetypical mode or energy complex within our overall human consciousness formation has Its own nature and can be a staunch Ally in Its most positive (Strength, to me) mode— or an impediment if repressed or in Shadow. To me, as with Jung, Hillman, and Jean Houston, the forming of an Archetype Council— what I like to call your Ensemble Cast of Mystic Archetype Characters— is an important process that facilitates the integration and mobilization of your dynamic archetypal energies in the most positive way. I think in terms of Archetype Pairings and Archetype Constellations within your Total Self System.

Allying with your Warrior nature can be a good opportunity to forge an Archetypal Constellation in working toward a specific life goal or addressing a situation in your life that seems to call for your Warrior— at least in one aspect— to step forward. By Itself in full force, Warrior can lead the charge, when needed, to bring about a major shift in a situation. But Warrior also combines well with any of the other 11 universal archetypes (and/or their sub-modal, individualized forms), especially when you desire to establish a more tempered, balanced approach to a situation.

Combining archetypal modes or ‘guises’ normally happens unconsciously, but as an “alchemical” practice, the individual can choose consciously to enlist and combine specific archetypal elements in order to facilitate a specific objective. By the way, if this is not done, and as Joseph Campbell has reminded us, in some situations you might feel ‘dissociated’ or ‘split’: one part of you thinking or acting in one manner, another feeling or speaking from a very different ‘location’ within your Self. This is represented by the classic “angel on one shoulder, devil on the other” motif.

One technique I offer to you for forging an archetypal Constellation to explore how best to approach a specific goal or deal with a difficult situation, is what I’ll call the Roundtable Room technique (based on the symbol of King Arthur’s Roundtable):

1. FRAME a question or a situation;
2. State your goal in relation to this situation or decision;
3. On the picture below, circle those persona archetype characters you feel might be helpful to enlist to help you realize your goal or arrive at your decision:

 

4. Enter into an Active Imagination (imaginative contemplation) session and Descend to the Roundtable Room where these selected Archetype characters have been assembled. Now invite each of these Archetypical personas to offer how they can help your overall Self with the situation or decision. Have an open conversation with these parts of your Self, seeking their input and asking to draw upon each of their Strengths in a team-based, collaborative manner.

5. Emerge from your Active Imagination contemplation and write down all that transpired (you can also journal this conversation as it occurs if that works better for you).

Below are some spaces where you may print this post and  record which archetype modes you have invited to help you work with the situation you have focused on with your active imagination.

 

SITUATION:

Ensemble Cast Allies/Strengths to Draw Upon:

Warrior  /  (e.g. resolve)

___________________________

___________________________

___________________________

___________________________

___________________________

 

So, choose a situation for which your inner Warrior would be one ‘part’ of your Self that it feels appropriate for you to recruit in the Roundtable Room. What does your Warrior want for you and of you in the situation? How can he/she help you to deal with the situation and achieve your goal? What other parts of your Self have something to add to this? What Strengths can these Archetype Allies each contribute to help you implement this plan and manifest your goal?

images from pixabay.com

I welcome your comments and stories!

 

How to Calm the Shadow Warrior

All persona archetype energies or unconscious character forms may express in either what I would call Strength (positive attributes) or Shadow (negative attributes) modalities. A jilted romantic partner might dwell for a time (sometimes a long time!) in a Shadow Lover domain of unconscious feelings or beliefs, or the Shadow Idealist might express itself strongly when one’s ambitions feel shattered. The Shadow Warrior is a ‘side’ of a person that might become enraged at not accomplishing a desired goal or might become incorrigibly stubborn to the point of obstinacy, refusing any offer of aid as a symbolic gesture of defiance.

       

The next and final March-Warrior post which I will publish next Tuesday will explore the notion of Alchemical Pairings and Constellations of Archetypes in the pursuit of attaining a greater INTEGRATION of archetypal influences within one’s Total Self System. Integration, which can be thought of as forming a Council of Archetype Allies (Jean Houston also looks at this aspect), can bring about a much more balanced approach to everyday life events and to situationally important moments than relying primarily on one or another archetypal identity ‘shard,’ especially if that locked-in aspect of self presents in a Shadow mode.

images from pixabay.com

When you feel “caught” in a personality mode that you know is  “not fully who you are” or that “comes out” only in certain situations such as an argument with your spouse or family members, this is a good sign that you may be  allowing one archetypal sub-identity to govern that situation, for good or for ill.

So stay tuned! But meanwhile, if you feel a particular force of stubbornness or obstinate defiance running through you, you might look at the chart above and consider (or journal a dialogue with) what any other of these Twelve Primordial Archetype modes—as cast members of your own archetypal Assembly—might say to you at this time. What might your Nourisher offer to help dislodge you from an overly aggressive stance? What valuable advice might your Descender (familiar with dark spaces) or your Mystic (able to find meaning and lessons in any life situation) offer to you at this time?

I welcome your insights and stories!

(And thanks to Kery who offered a good interpretation of my Jaguar dream: the bike wheel spinning clockwise indicates forward motion, and the Jaguar (as Anima) suggests the importance of bringing my Feminine Energy along on this transition.)

Jaguar Dream

 

Sunday morning I had an interesting dream that I feel relates to the Warrior archetype concept that we are focusing on this month. In my dream I am preparing to take a big journey, to embark upon a transition/ turning point or a move. I have a pet Jaguar, young, all black (sleek, beautiful!), that I load into a large pet carrier in the rear of my car to bring with me on the journey.  There is a bicycle in the pet carrier, too, with a rear wheel that spins while I drive, so the Jaguar does not have a lot of free space in there. That’s mainly the dream, except that throughout the night I woke several times realizing I had made part of the dream journey, then went back, and gradually as I was waking I thought I wasn’t tending to the needs of my Jaguar in the rear of the car. In the dreaming itself this did not seem to be an issue, but it was to my waking awareness.

It feels to me that the Jaguar is my Warrior Archetype Ally, in the form of an animus/anima figure. (In my archetypal ensemble cast, I tend to have both masculine and feminine ‘anima’ images; maybe because I am rather androgynous myself.)

(Combine these to see more like my ‘real’ road companion, my pet Shorkie, Sophie)

The spinning bicycle wheel (while I am in motion, driving through the ‘move’) that occupies the same space frame as the Jaguar is a compelling dream image. I guess that may be my Mind, spinning rapidly as I negotiate my way through this upcoming big transition.  But my Warrior-Jaguar instinct or intuition is also important for me to rely upon, and to properly care for and attend to.  I need the Strength of my Warrior-Jaguar Ally to help me negotiate when I reach my interim destination. (This may be the book deal I anticipate or a choice I may confront about that since the proposal began circulating yesterday.)

 

It is interesting to be writing this blog during this time as well; sharing about the unfolding process and how archetypal psychology influences my own journey.

Have you had a dream image that may represent your own WARRIOR Archetype Ally? What form does it take? What message does it have for you regarding your life situations?

images from pixabay.com

I invite and welcome any story you may wish to share about YOUR Warrior Ally.

A Victory Cry

Last time I invited you to compose a Fight Call as a positive affirmation from your internal Warrior  Ally. The other side of the Fight Call or War Song is the VICTORY CRY. And because my own Fight Call (“Remember to Surrender / Always Give UP!”) seems to have worked fortunately for me this past week, I am ready to declare a Victory Cry:

Yes, Gratitude is my Victory Cry; after long patience and persistence, finally my book project (proposal) will begin to be circulated this coming week. I am deeply grateful to my agent for this, and to Spirit for bringing this about. It is a significant step in a long process of unfolding, so I am grateful for the unfolding of PROCESS for its own sake.

What is YOUR Victory Cry? You may print this out and write in the space below:

_____________________________________________________________

Here are some more examples:

Ah-iyaiya-iyaiYA! (Tarzan’s call)

We did it! Yay!

Onward!

images from pixabay.com

Your Fight Cheer

This message came through for me last night from my own Warrior archetype Ally: Compose a Fight Cheer to help you as a positive affirmation of determination and persistence to achieve a valued goal.

Here are some fight cheers I found online (Cheers and Chants):

Let me hear you yell GO! -GO!- (pause) Let me hear you yell FIGHT! -FIGHT!-(pause) Let me hear you yell WIN! -WIN!- (pause) Let me hear you yell GO FIGHT WIN!!!! -GO FIGHT WIN!!!!-

All the fans in the stands, yell GO! -GO!-, All the fans in the stands, yell FIGHT! -FIGHT!-, All the fans in the stands, yell WIN! -WIN!- All the fans in the stands, yell GO FIGHT WIN! -GO FIGHTWIN!!!!-

The Power, the might, can you believe the hype. Let’s go Tigers let’s fight, the Tigers will rock you tonight, yeah!

We are the Bears and we can’t be beat. We’re gonna knock you you right off your feet.

We can, we can, know we can, we can, we can we must, we can, we can!

Control is the key, to take that victory!

My own Warrior chant is actually a bit at odds with the norm. What came through from my own Warrior is:

Remember to Surrender;

Always Give UP!

How is this a Warrior cry, you might well ask? It reminds me to RELEASE my goal “upwards,” to Spirit, then trust and be patient, attentive to the Way it opens; then to ACT in keeping with the path revealed.

What is YOUR Fight Cheer, your Battle Cry, your Affirmation for Success? Write out one that you repeat many times, or several. Place it somewhere you will see it through the day or where you most need to be reminded of your Goal. Do a cheerleader’s routine with your Cheer, if you like!

Go, Go, You CAN and Will Succeed!

Reach Your Target, Achieve your Highest Dream!

images from pixabay.com

What Do You Stand For?

When does your Warrior archetype show up for you in your life?  Is this a primary archetype for you, or situational? Remembering that all persona archetype characters have potentially both positive (Strength) and “negative” (Shadow) modes–and masculine and/or feminine forms, too–could you look back over your Life Story to trace times or situations when you have relied on the Warrior to help you move forward, or perhaps also when your Warrior nature may have embroiled you or held you back?

Let’s focus of the Strengrth mode of the Warrior. This is a facet of your Self that will step forward and stand up for a worthy cause that is dear to your Heart.

So, what do you STAND FOR with your Warrior spirit? What is worth claiming, worth defending or striving for?  I invite your Warrior nature to step forward and communicate. What do you stand for, Warrior?

I welcome the reader to go within by active imagination, and/or to journal from your Warrior’s perspective. As a sample, I feel my Warrior ready to declare some of what I stand for and have stood up for in my life.

I STAND FOR:

We (Self & Warrior) have always stood up in this lifetime for FREEDOM: Freedom of thought, choice, and action. For a long time as an adult this has meant standing up for “diversity,” defined in terms of minorities or underrepresented peoples. We pursued this with our degree in Anthropology–specializing in Native American studies, global gender studies, and the inviolability of indigenous peoples’ rights, cultures, choices, languages. More recently, however, this CAUSE has shifted its focus. Now, we stand up to proclaim:

“ALL LIVES MATTER!”

free images from pixabay.com

Spirit and Soul matter, along with all positive, freedom-granting, life affirming beliefs and spiritual practices.

“All lives matter,” as a new banner credo for my integrated Self, comes from a recent Mystic realization that: “All are cut from the same cloth.” This brings unconditional love.

I/we still care about diversity; variation is the palette of Divine love and reflects or may be a measure of the health and well being of the Cosmos Itself. But the divisions people devise to divide are, ultmately, illusory. Experience differentiates by community or culture, class, subculture, ethnicity, race, or religion; whatever. But underlying all that beautiful spectrum of diversity:

ALL ARE CUT FROM THE SAME CLOTH.

I oppose, then, only divisiveness or threats to the full expression of life affirming freedom.

What do You Stand For, Now?

I Will Fight No More Forever

One of the great Warriors of all times was Chief Joseph of the Nez Perce. Here is what Historyplace.com (http://www.historyplace.com/speeches/joseph.htm) documents about Chief Joseph:

Chief Joseph

Chief Joseph of the Nez Perce (1840?-1904) was known to his people as “Thunder Traveling to the Loftier Mountain Heights.” He led his people in an attempt to resist the takeover of their lands in the Oregon Territory by white settlers. In 1877, the Nez Perce were ordered to move to a reservation in Idaho. Chief Joseph agreed at first. But after members of his tribe killed a group of settlers, he tried to flee to Canada with his followers, traveling over 1500 miles through Oregon, Washington, Idaho, and Montana. Along the way they fought several battles with the pursuing U.S. Army. Chief Joseph spoke these words when they finally surrendered on October 5th, 1877:

Tell General Howard I know his heart. What he told me before, I have it in my heart. I am tired of fighting. Our Chiefs are killed; Looking Glass is dead, Ta Hool Hool Shute is dead. The old men are all dead. It is the young men who say yes or no. He who led on the young men is dead. It is cold, and we have no blankets; the little children are freezing to death. My people, some of them, have run away to the hills, and have no blankets, no food. No one knows where they are – perhaps freezing to death. I want to have time to look for my children, and see how many of them I can find. Maybe I shall find them among the dead. Hear me, my Chiefs! I am tired; my heart is sick and sad. From where the sun now stands I will fight no more forever.

 

******   ******

A WARRIOR fights for his/her people, to preserve life and liberty or to restore wellness and a positive direction into a brighter future for those the Warrior serves. Chief Joseph, in seeking “to fight no more forever,” makes this statement bravely, declaring that once the battles of warfare have ended, there is yet a battle of peace and prosperity to be won.

There is a time for the WARRIOR to fight and there is a time to put down arms to ensure greater survival for that which remains after the ashes of warfare have subsided.

It takes great Wisdom to know what the Moment requires and to act accordingly; to surrender to the Great Spirit the passions of war; to, like Iroquois Native Americans, Bury the Hatchet under the Tree of Peace.

images are from pixabay.com

Enter the Month of the Warrior

April is associated with the Archetype of the WARRIOR. Like all archetypes, the Warrior has many sides, many facets, Strengths, and Shadow forms, masculine and feminine.

For myself, today, my Warrior is in hiding with my Descender due to some trust issues. So the most I can evoke to at least begin the Month of the Warrior is this cryptic poem from Yeats. Given the current state of political pundits and wannabe presidential candidates pontificating in sometimes demogogical fury, I find these are not true Warriors, not authentic leaders (at least on the Republican side right now in America). So, back to Yeats for today:

On Being Asked For a War Poem

(William Butler Yeats)

I think it better that in times like these

A poet’s mouth be silent, for in truth

We have no gift to set a statesman right;

He has had enough of meddling who can please

A young girl in the indolence of her youth,

Or an old man upon a winter’s night.

Joan of Arc

When I think of archetypal female Elder Leader figures, Joan of Arc comes quickly to mind. She exhibited strengths of a Mystic and a Warrior, and as a Leader, Jeanne d’Arc led an army to victory at Orleans in defense of her beloved France. This brave young woman listened to her own inner voices, whether from her unconscious archetypal assembly and/or spiritual agencies supporting her mission.

I acted in a play while in college in the the role of a schizophrenic woman who believed she was Joan of Arc. For the part, I read all I could find about St. Joan so by the time the play was performed I really did identify strongly with La Pucelle.  The night before the first performance of this play, Chamber Music, a well-known author focussing on women’s psychology gave a talk on my college campus and she mentioned Joan of Arc as a primary example of the highest qualities of a heroic figure. She ended her lecture after mentioning Joan, saying, “having spoken of Joan of Arc, I cannot say anything more.”

I felt the weight of the world land on my shoulders then, and I promptly went to my dormitory to re-read the entirety of George Bernard Shaw’s play, Saint Joan, that night.

The Good Joan

by Lizette Woodworth Reese

Along the thousand roads of France,
Now there, now here, swift as a glance,
A cloud, a mist blown down the sky,
Good Joan of Arc goes riding by.In Domremy at candlelight,
The orchards blowing rose and white
About the shadowy houses lie;
And Joan of Arc goes riding by.On Avignon there falls a hush,
Brief as the singing of a thrush
Across old gardens April-high;
And Joan of Arc goes riding by.The women bring the apples in,
Round Arles when the long gusts begin,
Then sit them down to sob and cry;
And Joan of Arc goes riding by.Dim fall the hoofs down old Calais;
In Tours a flash of silver-gray,
Like flaw of rain in a clear sky;
And Joan of Arc goes riding by.Who saith that ancient France shall fail,
A rotting leaf driv’n down the gale?
Then her sons know not how to die;
Then good God dwells no more on high!

Tours, Arles, and Domremy reply!
For Joan of Arc goes riding by.

Could there have been a “better ending” for Joan of Arc, who died by being burned at the stake in 1431 at the age of 19? We know of the tragic betrayal and of her torturous death for having held to her truth and fought for her people. She was declared a heretic for not denying that she heard the archangel Michael and other spiritual agencies directing her campaign. Women were not expected to have a direct communication with God or angels then, let alone to set out to lead an army to victory. St. Joan could have recanted; she might have escaped, but history records how she chose not to betray her spiritual agencies just to save her physical form.

I can hardly abide the more recent biographical films about Jeanne (though from a modern context they are well acted); it is Ingrid Bergman’s 1948 film depiction of St. Joan, based on Shaw’s play, that feels to me to be the best or better ‘rendering’ of this true tale of valor and faith that has become culturally iconic and archetypally embedded in human consciousness.

I cannot conceive of a better ending than what St. Joan chose by her own nature and conscience to endure for the sake of her faith and her relationship with Divinity Itself.

The best account of Joan’s passing to my sensibility is Leonard Cohen’s song of tribute, https://www.youtube.com/embed/gtwUyDPXROQ?rel=0“>Joan of Arc, as sung by Jennifer Warnes. Click on this link or select:   to see this excellent YouTube performance.

images gratefully from pixabay.com

Those attending Joan’s heroic passing witnessed a White Dove flying to the heavens as her bodily form crumbled to dust. Watch this video (above link) and read about St. Joan to contemplate your own archetypal Elder Leader (combined with Warrior and Mystic) potentials!

Bury the Hatchet

As a final post about the Warrior archetype in relation to the life metaphor Life is an Ensemble Cast of Archetype Characters, it seems fitting to recall the story of Deganawida, the Peacemaker who along with Hiawatha established the great League of the Iroquois that served as a model of peaceful governance for the Articles of Confederation that presaged the US constitution.

The phrase “bury the hatchet” derives from an Iroquois ceremony whereby the Six Nations peoples literally buried their hatchets of warfare under the soil while planting a Great White Pine tree so as the tree grew they would be covered by its expansive branches spreading across the four directions.  Thus a warring, feuding peoples were united for peace and prosperity that lasted many generations. Warriors became peacemakers amongst their own peoples.

The Iroquois League came about after many years of intertribal blood feuding amongst Iroquois speaking Native Americans at a time that predated the settling of White peoples in northeastern North America. As one version of this legendary story describes, Hiawatha was an Onandaga warrior whose wife and two daughters were murdered by a chief of his own village. Hiawatha wandered bereft in the woods in a state of desolation and grief; some say he feared he would become a cannibal, so great was his despair.

In the woods, some say while in a canoe on a lake, Hiawatha looked into the water and saw a godlike figure, Deganawida, looking back at him. (Another version says Deganawida was a man with a speech impediment that Hiawatha encountered while in the woods.) In any event, Deganawida shared the Condolence Ritual with Hiawatha to help him deal with his grief and to bring back to the Peoples to help them to allay their own grief. He also described how the tribes could unite to form a great League, with lifelong, wise delegates or sachems to be installed or deposed by the women of these matrilineal tribes. Deganawida also inspired the ritual for burying the hatchet, a symbolic putting aside of warfare for the sake of coming together as one Peoples, uniting in strength against their common enemies and fostering internal peace.

This great League forged peace among the Six Nations of Iroquois that joined it; this peace lasted for many generations and still embues these Nations with deep principles of peace and democracy.

It has been said that the ceremonial act of burying the hatchet by the Iroquois peoples is one of the greatest examples of peacemaking in all of human history.

It took a Warrior who allied with and became himself a peacemaker to put aside warlike habits and attitudes in order to embrace unity, peace and the greater Good. If only West and East could BURY THE HATCHET today. At very least, you and I can do so. We can bury the hatchets brandished by any of our own feuding sub-selves, or within our outer community of fellowship. It takes only a CHOICE for the Warrior within you and me to stand up for Life and Peace, not Death or War.

Who Has Your Back?

I live with a wonderful family consisting of Sophie (a Shorkie), Loki (pure white, gold eyes), Emily (petite, orange-white, sensitive) and myself. We, like any family, comprise an archetypal grouping.

Loki sleeps by my head in case I roll onto my back and sleep apnea kicks in; I once woke at 3 AM to Loki snatching lightly at the tip of my nose, waking me from what felt like a near death experience inwardly.  Suddenly my dream had shifted to an empty, chaotic void; I was still conscious and moving in a positive direction but all sense of timespace had vanished and I dimly yet dispassionately knew this might be death; until, Loki brought me back!

Emily comforts me when I am feeling Down. Like my former harlequin calico cat of 20 years, named Ariel, Emily nudges at my blanket for me to form a cave and then she snuggles in beside me. This first happened the night I had returned from a two week trip to Ireland. Ever since, it has been our bonding time, and she always seems to know just when we both need to cuddle.

And then there’s Sophia. Sophie literally has my back. Late at night when all are settled in for the night and then again in the morning before I can crawl out of bed for another round at life, Sophie jumps up onto the mattress and curls up intently to press her own back lightly against mine. During the night, my little Shorkie girl is also a competent watch dog; she lets me know of any odd noises outside the house. To honor her loving service I will sometimes get up to patrol the house thoroughly, defensive tool and phone in hand, prepared to defend the family too if ever needed.

So these are my home family ‘outer’ cast of archetypal allies.  We have each other’s backs, looking out for one another and relying upon one another harmoniously.

Who has your back? We have been exploring this month how a Warrior archetype Ally serves to rally the troops of character types in an ensemble archetype cast, like Dorothy with her archetype Ally cast in the Wizard of Oz. What happens in our unconscious ‘land of Us’ (as used in a recent Jean Houston book) is often mirrored in our outer lives as well. Is there a time or a kind of situation in your life that calls your Inner Warrior forth to stand up for your interests and protect you from harm?

Tell yourself (and us, as you please!) a story of a time in your life when you–as your archetypal Warrior Ally part of Self–stood up for yourself or blazed a pathway to achieve something magnificent in your life or for someone else. Or perhaps there was a time when someone in your outercast of Allies stood up for and protected you?

I welcome your insights and stories!

The Peaceful Warrior

I want to talk about Peaceful Warriors since I am writing about the Warrior archetype this month. The WARRIOR archetype appears to be so out of balance in so many parts of the world and in so many people these days that I want to emphasize that any archetypal part-of-Self acting ‘alone’ is liable to be out of harmony with the Whole; meaning both the whole of the Total Self System of a person’s archetypal cast, and the Whole of humanity and Life itself.

Dan Millman popularized the phrase “the Peaceful Warrior” in his best-selling book of that title.  He speaks of a spiritual warrior, a Mystic + Warrior archetype pairing, at least.  I find it pertinent that Millman’s experience was that of an Olympic oriented athlete; he was a gymnast in training when he met his spiritual guide whom he names Socrates in his book. Socrates taught Dan to develop a neutral overview perspective on any situation so as not to be attached to the outcomes or to the results of any action or occurrence. As a warrior-athlete—a highly trained and focused gymnastics competitor—Millman’s goal was to be and to perform at the highest level he could. He competed with himself to achieve highly, even after experiencing a crushing motorcycle accident by which he broke both of his legs not long before a qualifying gymnastics tournament.

So, what is a Peaceful Warrior? Is it an oxymoron? I don’t believe so. It is someone with positive, life affirming goals, a dedication to achieve those, and a balanced attitude about results. Strive to find that CENTER within your Self, and compete from that Center. To do so, you will find yourself manifesting not only a Warrior’s energy, but also that of the Nourisher, the generous Golden Child, the Idealist and/or Artist, and possibly also, the Mystic.

I invite your insights and I would love to post relevant guest blogs!

Rally Your Troops

The Warrior archetype pairs naturally with the notion of life as an “ensemble cast of mythic characters”.  We are all inherently multiple so it is helpful to get to know your own archetypal cast and to enlist their support as Allies. What better archetypal part-of-Self to help enlist and combine the strengths of your multiple sub-selves than your Warrior?

Is there a situation in your life that could benefit from stepping up to assert your goals or needs? An example would be strengthening your resolve to go ask your boss for a raise or a well deserved promotion. How would your Warrior set that up, while collaborating with other aspects of yourself as well?

You could start by staging an Archetype Ally Conference. Call on various of your ensemble cast—or all—to discuss the situation and arrive at a balanced plan of action.

Possible allies: Elder Leader, Lover, Nourisher, Artist, Idealist, Golden Child, Descender, Teacher, Communicator, Mystic, Healer, with Warrior as the Ally in charge. You could imagine yourself sitting around a conference table with some constellation of these archetype allies attending. Which would you include to help you move a step forward with an important goal or need. What plan might emerge by convening this assembly?

I invite you to actively imagine and to journal about your plan of action as tempered by the combination of these perspectives. You can practice your plan by inwardly imagining carrying through with your strategy. This may help you to fine tune the plan. Then,…ACT!

I welcome your insights and stories.

Conversation with a Warrior—In You!

Here are some questions I invite you to answer AS your Warrior within. To do this, it may help to sit in a quiet space and sink into a reverie. Imagine a space where you can converse with that part of yourself you can call a Warrior. This is a champion, a protector, or a pathfinder sort of persona.  You might wish to copy and print out the following prompts as an opener to your “archetype dialogue”. Your Warrior is an Ally, so this is an opportunity to connect with this positive potential.

Hello, Warrior, how are you doing?

W:

 

How do you like to be called?

W:

 

What concerns have you had lately?

W:

 

What do you find to be a worthy cause?

W:

 

How do you prefer to fight for a cause?

W:

 

What do you defend against or protect us from in our life?

W:

 

What was one time when you were most active in our life? What happened and what did you do?

W:

 

When can I call upon you and how would you like me to do that?

W:

 

How can you help to achieve our Life Dream?

W:

 

How can I help you?

W:

 

What do you need from me?

W:

 

Please let me know when I can help you!

Light Warrior or Shadow Avenger?

 

From out of the murky depths of history, humanity has always had Warriors to protect their peoples and to forge new territories as Pathfinders.

In its most positive mode, the Warrior serves a worthy cause with nobility, at least according to their own peoples’ values. The Medieval knight errants upheld a code of honor. They wielded power from their skill at warfare, but their steel was tempered by acts of chivalry.

Dark warriors also emerge, too often perhaps, fueling fires of hatred and leaving destruction and grief in their wake.

But the Light Warriors, e.g. the Jedi knights of fantasy lore whose wisdom even more than their light sabers “bring balance to the Force” are those upon whom the folk can rely to safeguard a delicate  peace and to protect and preserve the common good.

Warriors will always be needed in this dualistic universe we call home, where light and darkness, good and evil (though so variously defined) pair off and polarize according to faith, tradition, or karma.

The Light Warrior, I would say, is more of a protector than an avenger. His or her goals are not selfish nor fanatical but rather aim to serve the greater whole. That is why so many epic tales of myth and legend depict the heroic adventures of protagonists who must save the entire world or all of humanity against cataclysmic forces or demonic, inhumane foes who wish to conquer and destroy for the sake of their own narrow beliefs or rapacious hunger for power and control.

The Light Warrior forces seek to build or to restore order, peace, and balance.

The movie Avatar presents an excellent example of both positive and Shadow-mode Warrior types. The greedy administrators of the earth invasion force, with their mercenary army, aim to rape the planet of Pandora of her mineral resources at the expense of the noble Na’vis culture and peoples. The Na’vis’s themselves along with the hybrid avatars and allies seek rather to preserve Pandora and its peoples and natural resources from the ravaging plunder of the cruel and selfish invaders.

So what about you? When it comes to your own inner Warrior archetypal modes of consciousness, are you more often a Light Warrior or a Shadow avenger or conqueror? Perhaps we first all need to recognize these polarized tendencies in ourselves if we are to seek to bring balance to not only our own personalities but to the world at large. How? By pausing before passing judgement on others’ beliefs and actions, including your own. My own spiritual orientation (Eckankar) includes a suggestion shared by many of positive spiritual focus today:

Ask yourself always, “Is it Kind? Is it Necessary? Is it True?” before acting, speaking, or thinking ill of any other or of yourself.  This can serve to balance the Warrior within.

I welcome your comments and stories!

Your Warrior

Warrior

Sign: Aries

Element: Fire

Process Stage: Origination

Archetypal Traits:

In Strength:  protective, courageous, brave, champion of a cause, defender, good strategist, able to rally forces

In Shadow:  aggressive, warlike, argumentative, overly competitive

Feminine: e.g.  woman warrior, soldier

Masculine: e.g. soldier, fighter

 

What kind of a Warrior are you? Are you highly competitive in a sport or in gaming activities? Is this a strongly developed, champion sort of role in your life?

Or are you a wounded warrior? Do you sometimes avoid conflict but secretly harbor resentments against those you wish you felt powerful enough to confront?

How do you approach your goals? Are you strategic and proactive, blazing a path to glory? Or would you rather not have goals, preferring to let life happen?

How can you strengthen your Warrior nature, if you feel that might be helpful? Well, what would your Warrior tell you?

“Never turn back; never surrender!”

Reflect on your own Warrior traits; we all have them. When is your Warrior your strong Ally? How can you enlist his or her aid to help you forge forward with your most worthy cause and goals? Also though, do you need to temper your warrior nature when it emerges? Could it be helpful to balance this energy with some of your softer archetypal energies, too? Next week we will look more at how you can establish “archeme constellations” or “clusters” to proceed in a more balanced, holistic manner in all of your life pursuits.

I invite your personal insights and reflections.