A GALLERY of ARCHETYPES
The archetypes listed here in boldface type are just a few of the many ancient patterns that exist in human consciousness. Many additional archetypes that are closely related are mentioned in parentheses, such as Hermit (found under Mystic), Therapist (under Healer), or Pirate (under Rebel). Please read through the entire list, looking at all the archetypes in parentheses, before assuming that the one you're looking for isn't here. Naturally, it's impossible to list all the hundreds of archetypes that exist, but these are some of the most common.
Remember that all archetypes are essentially neutral and manifest in both light and shadow attributes. Accordingly, I have tried to include both sets of attributes for each listing, along with cues to help you determine whether a given archetype may be part of your lifelong support team of twelve. To help you further, I've listed some examples of each archetype as embodied in popular film, fiction, drama, and the world's religions and mythologies. In evaluating whether an archetype is part of your intimate group, pay special attention to whether you can perceive a pattern of influence throughout your history, rather than only isolated or recent incidents. Never evaluate your connection to an archetype only by obvious markers. You have to stretch your imagination and burrow into yourself to discover your life patterns, lessons, and gifts. This inner knowledge does not surface easily.
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The Wounded Child archetype holds the memories of the abuse, neglect, and other traumas that we have endured during childhood. This may be the pattern people relate to the most, particularly since it has become the focus of therapy and accepted as a major culprit in the analysis of adult suffering. Choosing the Wounded Child suggests that you credit the painful and abusive experiences of your childhood with having a substantial influence on your adult life. Many people blame their Wounded Child, for instance, for all their subsequent dysfunctional relationships.
The painful experiences of the Wounded Child archetype often awaken a deep sense of compassion and a desire to find a path of service aimed at helping other Wounded Children. From a spiritual perspective, a wounded childhood cracks open the learning path of forgiveness. The shadow aspect may manifest as an abiding sense of self-pity, a tendency to blame your parents for your current shortcomings and to resist moving on through forgiveness.
Films: Diana Scarwid in Mommie Dearest; Dean Stockwell in The Secret Garden; Linda Blair in The Exorcist; Natalie Wood in The Miracle on 34th Street; Leonardo di Caprio in This Boy's Life; Jon Voight in Midnight Cowboy.
Fiction: Native Son by Richard Wright; Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens.
Religion/Myth: The Amazons (warrior women of Greek myth who, as children, had their right breast removed to facilitate the use of bow and arrow, their chief weapon)
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Clown (Court Jester, Fool, Dummling)
The Clown archetype is associated with three major characteristics: making people laugh, making them cry, and wearing a mask that covers one's own real emotions. The Clown is generally male, with few women playing the role either in literature or the theater. This may well be explained by the social attitude that associates weakness and loss of control with a man who expresses emotions. Therefore, the man has to wear a mask, which often portrays a crying face. The Clown reflects the emotions of the crowd, making an audience laugh by satirizing something they can relate to collectively or by acting out social absurdities. In general, the messages communicated through a Clown's humor are deeply serious and often critical of the hypocrisy in an individual or in some area of society. Because of the mask he wears, the Clown is allowed--indeed, expected--to cross the boundaries of social acceptance, representing what people would like to do or say themselves.
The Court Jester or Fool is the manifestation of the Clown in a royal setting. Since no one can possibly take a fool seriously at the physical level, he is allowed entry into the most powerful of circles. While entertaining the king with outrageous behavior, the Fool is actually communicating messages that the king trusts. Political satirists often have dominant Court Jester archetypes, revealing the motivations of the highest officials in the nation in a manner that is generally granted freedom from the legal retribution that might be leveled against an ordinary citizen making the same comments.
Related to the Fool is the Dummling, the fairy tale character who, although often simple-minded, acts with a good heart and is usually rewarded for it. Modern film characters such as Forrest Gump and Nurse Betty embody this aspect of the archetype, which does not so much impart wisdom as foster living with kindness and simplicity.
The shadow aspect of the Clown or Fool manifests as cruel personal mockery or betrayal, specifically the breaking of confidences gained through knowledge from the inner circle.
In reviewing your relationship to this archetype, consider your use of humor in association with power. Since everyone is prone to jesting, you are looking for a connection to a pattern of behavior that is fundamental to your personal protection and survival. In distinguishing Clown from Fool, note that the Fool is connected to arenas of power, while the Clown does his best work as an Everyman, like Ralph Kramden on "The Honeymooners." Reflect on whether "clowning" around is an essential channel for expressing your emotions over and above simple play. Ask yourself if, like the Fool, you carry truth into closed circles or closed minds.
Films: Danny Kaye in The Court Jester; Buster Keaton in The Navigator, Sherlock Jr., The General; Charlie Chaplin in The Circus, The Gold Rush; Giulletta Masina in La Strada; Barbra Steisand in What's Up, Doc?; Rene Zellweger in Nurse Betty; Woody Allen in Zelig.
Drama: He Who Gets Slapped by Maxim Gorky.
Opera: I Pagliacci, by Leoncavallo.
Literature: Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes; Gimpel the Fool by Isaac Bashevis Singer; Holy Fools and Mad Hatters by Edward Hays; The Autobiography of Henry VIII with notes by his Fool, Will Somers by Margaret George.
Religion/Myth: Mullah Nasruddin, a.k.a. Hoja Nasredin (Sufi figure in Egypt, Iran, and Turkey, half saint and half fool, who acts like a ninny to teach wisdom); Sir Dagonet (the fool of King Arthur who was knighted as a joke, but who also performed bravely in tournaments); Heyoka (in Lakota Sioux lore, someone who does things backwards to teach people not to take themselves too seriously); Coyote (in Native American lore.
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Companion (Friend, Sidekick, Right Arm, Consort)
The Sidekick's qualities of loyalty, tenacity, and unselfishness are the positive aspects of this archetype. A Sidekick/Companion provides a service, symbolically speaking, to a personality that often has a stronger nature or a role in life that carries more authority. Secretaries and personal assistants are examples of Right Arms, taking care of the day-to-day details of life. You might have an inner Companion that takes care of the details and allows another archetype to focus on work central to your mission. Companions are associated with providing emotional rather than sexual support. Platonic or friendship bonds are more in keeping with that particular archetype.
Betrayal is a common example of the shadow side of the Companion, which damages the soul.
Films: Eve Arden in Mildred Pierce, The Lady Takes a Sailor, The Kid from Brooklyn; Frank Sinatra and Montgomery Clift in From Here to Eternity; Susan Sarandon and Geena Davis in Thelma and Louise.
Television: My Friend Flicka; Lassie;
Fiction: The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (Dr. Watson) by Arthur Conan Doyle.
Drama: Iago in Othello by Shakespeare (shadow).
Religion/Myth: Damon and Pythias (in Christian lore, two young men whose loyalty to each other won their freedom after Pythias was condemned to death); Enkidu (companion created by the gods for Gilgamesh, a natural man who proved a perfect match for the godlike hero king); Eris (Greek goddess of strife and constant companion of the war god, Ares); Apis (holy bull was worshipped in ancient Egypt as the companion of the creator god Ptah); Nike (Greek victory goddess and companion of Athena, goddess of wisdom and war).
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The Damsel in Distress may be the oldest female archetype in all of popular literature and the movies. She is always beautiful, vulnerable, and in need of rescue, specifically by a Knight and, once rescued, she is taken care of in lavish style. When disappointed, a Damsel must go through a process of empowerment and learn to take care of herself in the world. The shadow side of this archetype mistakenly teaches old patricarchal views that women are weak and teaches them to be helpless and in need of protection. It leads a woman to expect to have someone else who will fight her battles for her while she remains devoted and physically attractive and concealed in the castle. Many women still expect to marry a man who will give them a castle and take of them. And some men are raised to expect to do this (see Prince and Knight).
The Damsel's fear of going it alone is holds the Damsel/Knight relationship together. It also often shatters the relationship when the Prince or Knight grows older and expects to have a perennially young, attractive Princess at his beck and call. The Princess inevitably grows older even if she remains helpless. Or she becomes more interested in the outside world, develops skills and competencies and is unable to maintain the same old dynamic of dependency. Either way, most Damsel/Prince relationships ultimately find that they change or fail. The Damsel/Princess must ultimately learn to fight her own battles and evolve into a Queen.
The Princess is more often associated with romance rather than distress. She awaits a Knight who is worthy of her beauty and rank and will take her not to his castle but to a palace. The castles that Damsels are taken to have prisons, cold stone walls, drawbridges, and moats. Palaces are fantastically beautiful and charmed and are associated with ballrooms and elegance. The common (archetypal) expression, "Daddy's little Princess" implies an adoring father who brings up his daughter surrounded by beauty and abundance. There is no "Daddy's little Damsel in Distress." The Princess and the Damsel, however, both are taught to be helpless and do share a yearning for a Knight as a partner in life, the implication being that without a Knight, they are powerless in this world. The challenge inherent in these archetypal patterns, therefore, is to do for yourself what you expect the Knight to do for you--provide and protect yourself.
The Princess archetype is also influenced by our colloquial use of the term and especially its heavy freight of antifeminist connotations of a woman who is overly demanding, as in "Jewish-American Princess" or in the story of the Princess and the Pea. Even when used positively, the word can imply an unreal, bland, or cosseted character, like the teenage daughter nicknamed Princess on the TV series Father Knows Best. But a genuine Princess looks out not for her own comfort and whimsy but for the welfare of those around her. In Asian, tales abound of clever and resourceful Princesses, of conflicts between schools of martial arts for instance in which a Prince and Princess battle it out, as depicted in the Ang Lee film Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon. And Scheherezade bravely married the sultan who had decided to kill all his new wives at daybreak, and beguiled him with tales for a thousand and one nights until he rescinded his decree, thus saving all the women.
In reviewing your relationship to this archetype, return to your fantasies as a young girl and note what your expectations were in looking for a mate. Most significantly, were you (or are you) consciously or unconsciously awaiting the arrival of your Knight in Shining "Amour"? Did you think or behave like a Damsel? Were you hoping to be rescued? And if you are now coping with the consequences of a broken relationship, can you trace the reasons for the failed partnership back to being disappointed that your expectations as Damsel were not met?
Films: Pearl White in the Perils of Pauline silent films; Fay Wray in King Kong; Betty Hutton in The Perils of Pauline; Jean Simmons in Young Bess; Robin Wright in The Princess Bride; Carrie Fisher as Princess Leia in the Star Wars Trilogy; Ingrid Bergman in Anastasia; Gwyneth Paltrow in Shakespeare in Love; Kate Winslet in Titanic; Jeff Daniels in Something Wild.
Fiction: Gone with the Wind, by Margaret Mitchell; Emma by Jane Austin.
Fairy Tales: Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, Rapunzel, Cinderella.
Religion/Myth: Ko-no-Hana (in Shinto belief, the Japanese Blossom Princess, who symbolizes the delicate aspects of earthly life); Io (in Greek myth, a princess and the daughter of a river god, who suffered continually as the object of Zeus's lust); Princess Aigiarm (strong, valiant daughter of Mongolian King Kaidu who offered herself in marriage to any suitor who could wrestle her down but who, if he lost, had to give her a horse. She never married, and won 10,000 horses).
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Destroyer (Attila, Mad Scientist, Serial Killer, Spoiler)
Destruction and Reconstruction is another way of describing the Death and Rebirth cycle of life. Systems and structures must be dismantled so that new life can be born. Myths and legends about gods and goddesses bringing destruction to the earth are common to all traditions. Yahweh destroyed the world through the great Flood and rained fire and brimstone on Sodom and Gomorrah. In the Hindu tradition, the goddess Kali, generally pictured wearing a belt made of dismembered arms and a necklace of human skulls, represents the positive power of destruction, annihilating ignorance and maintaining the world order. The god Shiva, Kali's male counterpart, destroys in order to create.
The impulse to destroy and rebuild is archetypal. We are bound to that cycle and therein lies the learning. Destruction also refers to releasing that which is destroying us, and, so, many therapists and other healers serve the role of the Destroyer by assisting others to release destructive emotions or behavior. The power of positive destruction is enormously healing and liberating.
In its shadow manifestation, destruction becomes an end in itself, and one becomes intoxicated with one's own destructive power and addicted to it. The Destroyer generates death, madness, and abuse and targets individuals and groups. It can manifest as a nation that destroys other nations or people who destroy the environment. To count this shadow archetype as part of your support group, you will be able to recognize a pattern within your psyche that destroys relationships or promotes attitudes and opinions that destroy others' dreams or potential.
Films: Jack Palance in The Sign of the Pagan; William Holden in The Wild Bunch; Anthony Hopkins in The Silence of the Lambs; Ralph Fiennes in Schindler's List; Richard Baseheart in Hitler.
Religion/Myth: Angra Mainyu or Ahriman (in Zoroastrianism, the eternal destroyer of good, personification of evil, conveyor of death and disease); Kalki (in Hindu belief, the final incarnation of Vishnu, who will descend from the sky on a white horse to destroy the wicked, renew the world, and restore righteousness); the Furies or Erynies (avenging deities of Greek myth who pursued and persecuted anyone who killed a parent, brother, or fellow clansman, by driving the murderer mad); the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse (allegorical figures in the New Testament Book of Revelation, or Apocalypse, who symbolize war, pestilence, famine, and death).
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Detective (Spy, Double Agent, Sleuth, Snoop, Sherlock Holmes, Private Investigator, Profiler)
- also see Warrior
Positive characteristics of the Detective include the ability to seek out knowledge and information that supports solving crimes and protecting the public. Detectives combine great powers of observation with highly evolved intuition to deduce the solutions to crimes. Whereas the Detective is public and often highly respected--especially its modern counterpart, the police Profiler--the empowered Spy is associated far more with the surreptitious and often illegal acquisition of secret information regarding politics, business, or national security. Our attitude toward spies often depends on whose side they're on. Many Americans see Gary Powers as a heroic figure, while Double Agents such as Robert P. Hansson or British intelligence officer and Soviet spy Kim Philby are considered traitors.
The shadow side of these archetypes can manifest as voyeurism, falsifying information, or selling out to the highest bidder. Parents who "spy" on their children with good intentions, such as uncovering their involvement with sex or drugs, are nonetheless flirting with the shadow Detective.
Films: Humphrey Bogart in The Maltese Falcon and The Big Sleep; Richard Burton in The Spy Who Came in from the Cold; Kelly McGillis and Jeff Daniels in The House on Carroll Street; Kathleen Turner in V. I. Warshawski; Laurence Olivier in Sleuth; any James Bond, Sherlock Holmes, or Charlie Chan film.
Fiction: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle; Dashiel Hammett, Agatha Christie, Rex Stout, Tom Clancy, John LeCarré.
Television: I Spy; Magnum, P.I.
Religion/Myth: Sinon (in Greek lore, a spy who gained the trust of the Trojans by pretending to have deserted the Greeks, then convinced them to take in the wooden horse that led to their downfall).
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From a Latin root meaning "to delight in," the Dilettante is a lover of the fine arts who never rises above the level of an amateur, and to whom the phrase "jack of all trades, master of none" applies. Although the word has the negative connotation of a dabbler who seeks only a cursory knowledge or experience, it never completely loses the sense of delighting in the arts. The Amateur, from the Latin root for "love," has many of the same qualities of the Dilettante applied to the realm of sports or applied arts such as cooking and gardening. In many cases it's better to be an inspired amateur than a grind-it-out professional. Like the survival archetypes, the Dilettante or Amateur can alert you when you are in danger of becoming merely superficial in your pursuits, or losing the love that drew you to your avocation in the first place.
The shadow Dilettante manifests as a pretension to much deeper knowledge than you actually possess.
Films: Catherine Frot in La Dilettante; Carol Channing in Thoroughly Modern Millie; Liza Minnelli in Cabaret; Spring Byington in You Can't Take It with You; Hermione Gingold in The Music Man; John Savage in The Amateur; Henry Fonda in The Lady Eve (Amateur).
Fiction: Dodsworth by Sinclair Lewis; "The Dilettante" by Edith Wharton.
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Don Juan (Casanova, Gigolo, Seducer, Sex Addict)
Sexual energy provides great power when properly channeled. Like the Femme Fatale, the Don Juan archetype can make us aware of falling into sex role clichés, misusing the power of romantic attraction and pursuit. Although associated with sensuality and sophistication, this archetype represents a man preying on women for the sake of conquest alone. Sex addiction is not about sex but about the need to gain control of someone. Don Juan radiates an attitude that all women need him far more than he needs them, and that he is invulnerable to their charms.
The positive aspect of this archetype is its underlying vulnerability and its power to open wide a heart that is capable of deep love. As many stories portray, once the gigolo meets his match, he has also found his mate. But his match, in keeping with the profile of this pattern, must have emotional independence and the self-esteem to be immune to his manipulative skills.
Films: Warren Beatty in Shampoo; Richard Gere in American Gigolo; Donald Sutherland in Casanova; Michael Caine in Alfie; Johnny Depp in Don Juan di Marco; Jude Law in A.I.
Fiction: Quiet Days in Clichy by Henry Miller.
Religion/Myth: Satyr (in Greek myth, a creature with a goat's tail, flanks, hooves, and horns, but otherwise human upper body, who drinks, dances, and chases nymphs. The Italian version is the faun, and in Slavonic culture, the Ljeschi); Priapus (Greek and Roman deity of gardens attributed with enormous genitals); Aka Manah (in Zoroastrianism, the personification of sensual desire).
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Engineer (Architect, Builder, Schemer)
The Engineer is eminently practical, hands-on, and devoted to making things work. The characteristics of the Engineer reflect the grounded, orderly, strategic qualities of mind that convert creative energy into a practical expression. This archetype also manifests as a talent for engineering everyday situations or designing solutions to common dilemmas. The shadow Engineer manifests as a master manipulator, designing and engineering situations to one's own advantage regardless of the needs or desires of others.
Films: Alec Guinness in The Bridge on the River Kwai; Gary Cooper in The Fountainhead; Jeff Bridges in Tucker.
Drama: The Master Builder by Henrik Ibsen
Religion/Myth: Elen (in Welsh myth, the world's first highway engineer, who protected her land by magically creating highways so that her soldiers could defend it); Amenhotep (ancient Egyptian architect who later was venerated as the god of building); Daedalus (renowned Cretan architect who constructed the Labyrinth of the Minotaur and fashioned artificial wings for himself and his son, Icarus).
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The ability to confront evil in the form of possession by destructive or antisocial impulses in oneself and others is as valuable today as it was in the time of Jesus, the master Exorcist. Just as modern biblical scholars suggest that the demons that Jesus cast out may have been forms of psychological illness, so we can see our own inner demons as arising from forces that we feel are beyond our control. Shamans, for example, conduct rituals for the release of negative spirits from a person's soul. To include this among your family of archetypes, however, you would have to find a life-long pattern or exorcising the negative spirits of others or of social groups or society.
The shadow Exorcist attacks the evil in others without having the courage to face his own demons.
Films: Jason Miller in The Exorcist; Bruce Willis in The Sixth Sense.
Religion/Myth: Shoki (Shinto god of the afterlife and exorcism); Zhong kui (Taoist god of the afterlife and exorcism).
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Father (Patriarch, Progenitor)
This archetype combines a talent for creating or initiating with the ability to oversee others, whether a biological family or a group of creative people. Although the Father has taken on negative connotations associated historically with paternalism and male dominance, we shouldn't lose sight of its primary characteristics of courage--think of Abraham leaving the home of his ancestors to father a new race in a strange land--and protectiveness. A true Father guides and shields those under his care, sacrificing his own desires when that's appropriate. The shadow Father emerges when that caring guidance and protection turns into dictatorial control or abuse of authority.
Being a biological father and family man clearly isn't enough to include this archetype in your intimate circle. You will need to uncover a life-long attachment to the role of family patriarch, however you conceive of that family.
Films: William Powell in Life with Father; Spencer Tracy in Father of the Bride; Dustin Hoffman in Kramer vs. Kramer; Gregory Peck in To Kill a Mockingbird; Lamberto Maggiorani in The Bicycle Thief; Raymond Massey in East of Eden (shadow).
Television: Robert Young in Father Knows Best; Fred MacMurray in My Three Sons.
Fiction: All the Way Home by James Agee.
Religion/Myth: Most ancient cultures had at least one Father god, usually associated with the sky, who also functioned as creator and patriarch, including Uranus and Zeus (Greece); Jupiter (Rome); Indra and Brahma (India); the "Jade Emperor" (China); Izanagi (Japan); Re and Ptah (Egypt); Olorun and Obatala (Africa/Yoruba).
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Femme Fatale (Black Widow, Flirt, Siren, Circe, Seductress, Enchantress)
The female counterpart of Don Juan sometimes adds the twist of killing her conquests as an expression of her ability to dominate, thereby reversing the conventional sexual stereotypes. As with Don Juan, the Femme Fatale represents highly refined skills at manipulating men without investing personal emotion. The Femme Fatale is a sexual and a financial archetype, and either comes from or is drawn to money and power. Seducing men with money and power and for the sake of personal control and survival is a classic part of this archetype, although the Femme Fatale is not looking for a home in the suburbs and the pleasures of family life.
As with the Don Juan archetype, the positive aspect of this pattern is the opening of the heart, which often occurs when the male object rejects the manipulations and dependency of the Femme Fatale, as Rhett Butler rejects Scarlett O'Hara at the end of Gone with the Wind.
Films: Barbara Stanwyck in Double Indemnity; Linda Fiorentino in The Last Seduction; Theresa Russell in Black Widow; Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes; Kathleen Turner in Body Heat; Elizabeth Taylor in Cleopatra.
Fiction: The Postman Always Rings Twice by James M. Cain.
Religion/Myth: Circe (in Greek myth, a sorceress/seductress who could turn men into animals with her magic wand); Potiphar's wife (in the Hebrew Bible, when her attempt to seduce Joseph failed, she had him thrown into captivity. Her name is Zeleikha in Islamic tradition); Tapairu (Polynesian nymphs who inhabit the waters that lead to the underworld. The goddess of death employs them to seduce men away from the earth); Lorelei (in Teutonic myth, a beautiful maiden who drowned herself after being spurned by her lover, and was then transformed into a siren whose hypnotic music lured sailors to their death).
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The Gambler is a risk-taker who plays the odds. This archetype has far more aspects than are commonly considered, including not just card sharps and racetrack gamblers, but also drug addicts, entrepreneurs, and day traders. The Gambler is also active in the psyche of people who take risks in politics and other social activities that amount to gambling with one's reputation. From an energetic perspective, gambling is an attempt to outrun the speed at which ordinary change happens. Acquiring great wealth in a casino in one throw of the dice or by winning the lottery is a spectacular experience not only because of the money but because of the experience of the compression of time. The drama of trying to outrun the odds is the psychic lock on the Gambler within a person's psyche.
The positive aspect of this archetype manifests in following hunches, and in the belief in one's intuition, even in the face of universal doubt. From real estate ventures to scientific research, hunches have often yielded successful fruitful outcomes. To assess whether you are a Gambler, review your ability to follow your intuition and what others might consider risky inner guidance. Ask yourself how many of your decisions are based on gut instinct rather than facts and figures.
You can evaluate your relationship to the shadow Gambler according to whether you have a compulsion. Some people who are obsessed with winning lotteries and striking it rich at casino tables--or in get-rich-quick and pyramid schemes--may spend relatively little money compared to professional gamblers, but their focus on finding ways to beat the odds is a central part of their life. A related form of gambling may affect the way you are focused on looking for lucky breaks in your relationships, rather than doing the hard psychic work needed to make them succeed.
Films: Steve McQueen in The Cincinnati Kid (shadow); Paul Newman, Jackie Gleason, and George C. Scott (shadow) in The Hustler; Woody Harrelson and Wesley Snipes in White Men Can't Jump; Edith Evans in The Queen of Spades; Clive Owen in Croupier; Roger Duchesne in Bob le Flambeur (Bob the Gambler).
Fiction: The Gambler by Dostoevsky
Religion/Myth: Jason, Odysseus (heroic figures of Greek legend who fearlessly gambled against the odds, risking life and limb to achieve their goals); Cunawabi (American Indian--Paiute--figure known as a gambler who takes many risky adventures and who also brings night and illness)
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Whether a great worldly power or a great physical specimen, the God archetype represents the ultimate in male dominance. On the positive side, a God can be benevolent and compassionate, willing to use his powers to help others out of love for humanity. The shadow God easily becomes a dictator or despot, oppressing others with those same powers, or using his physical attractiveness to get what he wants without ever returning the affection he elicits. To claim this archetype among your support circle of twelve, you need to have a life-long sense of great power, used either selfishly or selflessly.
You may feel a powerful connection to a particular deity, so here are a few from the Roman/Greek:
Jupiter/Zeus: father god, head of the pantheon
Bacchus/Dionysus: wine and revelry
Mars/Ares: war
Neptune/Poseidon: the sea
Pluto/Hades: death and the underworld
Films:
Religion/Myth: Like the archetype in human manifestation, mythic and religious Gods run the gamut from omniscient, benevolent deity to arbitrary destroyer. In addition to those listed above are Yahweh (Hebrew); Shiva, Vishnu, Brahma, Indra (Hindu); Allah (Muslim); Ra, Osiris, Ptah (Egyptian); Baal (Canaanite); Marduk, Ishtar (Babylonian); Quetzalcoatl, Tezcatlipoca (Aztec); Enlil, Dumuzi (Sumerian); Osun, Olokun (Yoruba); Wakan Tanka (Native American).
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The oldest religious tradition on earth may well be Goddess worship, which some archaeologists trace back further than 30,000 years. It was certainly natural to worship the archetype of woman as the Source of all life, especially in the age before male warriors replaced Her with their combative sky gods. The connection of fertility with exaggerated sexual attributes found in ancient statues of the Goddess survive in modern worship of screen goddesses such as Marilyn Monroe and Jayne Mansfield. The Goddess can be inspiring to women, embodying wisdom, guidance, physical grace, athletic prowess, and sensuality. This aspect is awakened by our relation to the goddesses of various spiritual traditions, including Kali, Durga, and Uma in India, Tara in Tibet, Quanyin in China, and the many manifestations of Mary, the Mother of Jesus, in Western belief, such as Our Lady of Guadalupe or the Black Madonna of Czestajowa.
The shadow side of the Goddess emerges from the exploration of the feminine power, including the exploitation or over-indulgence of movie stars and fashion models.
Identifying with a goddess figure as a major archetype in your chart requires that you review life-long associations with the image and personality associated with it. Athena is the able-bodied warrior woman as well as the classic "powerful woman behind the throne." Today we see this power re-emerging in popular form in neo-mythic characters such as Xena the Warrior Princess and Buffy the Vampire Slayer--attractive women who are also strong and capable. The energy of Venus (Aphrodite) is prevalent in women who form their self-image strongly around their sexuality. Study the specific qualities of each goddess and evaluate how much of your sense of self is reflected in one of those patterns, beginning with a few of the most familiar names from the Roman/Greek pantheon:
Venus/Aphrodite: love and fertility
Diana/Artemis: nature and hunting
Minerva/Athena: strength, clear thinking
Ceres/Demeter: motherhood
Juno/Hera: queenship and partnership
Proserpina/Persephone: mysticism and mediumship
Sophia: wisdom
Films: Kim Stanley in The Goddess; Ava Gardner in One Touch of Venus; Marilyn Monroe in The Seven Year Itch; Mira Sorvino in Mighty Aphrodite.
Fiction: She by H. Rider Haggard
Religion/Myth: Every culture in the world has mythological stories portraying the power of the Goddess. Besides those mentioned above, you can choose from Tara and Quanyin (Tibetan and Chinese bodhisattvas of compassion); Amaterasu Omigami (Shinto Sun goddess); Shakti (Hindu personification of energy as Divine Mother); Branwen (Celtic goddess of love and beauty); Oshun (East African Yoruba goddess of pleasure, love, and beauty); Pan Jin Lian (Chinese goddess of prostitution); Frigg (Norse goddess of marriage, motherhood, childbirth, and midwifery); Turan (Etruscan goddess of love, health, and fertility).
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