Sophia Reveals her Mercurial Nature from a fourteenth-century manuscript of Aurora

FIGURE 22 Sophia Reveals her Mercurial Nature. From a late fourteenth-century manuscript of Aurora Consurgens. (Zentralbibliotech Zurich, MS. Rh. 172, f. 29v) 

Others, whose sighing makes the bubbles come 

Lodged in the slime they say Once we were grim And sullen in the sweet air above, that took A further gladness from the play of the sun  

In this context, the man coming up out of the mud represents the appearance of that which has never been cultivated and presents the greatest potential for growth, something that has to be redeemed from the unconscious. This development is more profound than the weakening of the formerly dominant principles and functions (represented by the old king in the previous painting). This can be seen in the dream of a man in analysis  

A new attitude toward life, represented by the father, could help the patient leave his fantasy world (of denial) so that the river of life might flow. After the analytic session in which he talked about the dream, this man felt the need to take some action that would give him direct and immediate experience of this new part of himself. He went on a long hike and found a small stream, following it to a blockage. He dug out sand and rocks until the water flowed freely, and this activity made him feel alive and powerful. This helped him fix in his mind and body the living symbolism of his dream. 

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