Patterns & Metaphors
Terrestrial natural symbols
Other Names:
Sub-lunar nature
Template:
Many of the features and objects of nature found on this planet enter into the psychic life as symbols. One sub-class of symbols is all forms of water: oceans and seas, lakes, ponds, pools, rivers, bays; waves, springs, spouts, whirlpools, currents, tides, ripples, rivulets, drops, deluges, dew; waterfalls, floods, fords, rapids (white-water), tidal waves, frost, snowbanks, ice, icicles, avalanches, etc. Water-related symbols are shoals, reefs, sand bars, breaks, beaches, sea floor, islands, icebergs, driftwood, sea shells, grottoes, sea salt and brine. Symbolic land features are volcanoes, mountain peaks, mountains, hills, valleys, fields, meadows, plains, ravines, gullies, defiles, boulders, rocks, sand, mud, desert, quicksand, dunes, caves and caverns, geysers, glaciers, and earthquakes.
Metaphor:
Some of these symbols refer to the positional relationships of height and depth. Volcanoes and most water symbols refer to energy. Obstacles and barriers are symbolized by reefs, sand bars and icebergs. Psychologically, floods may represent overpowering circumstances; waterfalls and rapids represent danger; quicksand, a trap. Grottoes, caves and caverns may indicate the unconscious; the sea, one's life; sea salt, preservation. Mountain peaks, caves, islands, and rivers are archetypal symbols which comment on the progress of the personality towards psychic integration and personal development.<
