6. Visual impression
A veiled woman is sitting on the stairs.
Jung links the motiv of the unknown woman to the anima. Here, it is described as the personification of a vivified psychic atmosphere. The personification implicates that the unconscious starts acting. It is noted how such activity often anticipates something the dreamer would do himself later.
Jung describes how the processes within dreams like these have their historical analogy in initiation. Although he does not say that literally, I think he may refer to dreams initiating the process of individuation, i.e. the initial dreams. Refering to Apuleius, however, he mentions how the seven-step planetary system often play a major role in these. Initiation rites like those of antique Syncretism would deal with ascension in the form of sublimation. The latter appears to have the same value as in alchemy: lifting some prima materia up to the next higher level. In case of an initiation, that starting material would correspond to the soul, of course. Correspondingly, Jung explains the idea of ascension through the seven planetary circles as the souls' return to the sun deity, where it has its origin.
This origin seems closely related to some of Jungs ideas, as we will see throughout the next few dreams. The unconscious before the process of differentiation seems to be a point of origin, from the standpoint of everyday-consciousness.
7. Visual impression
The veiled woman covers her face. It shines like the sun.
Here, Jung describes the anima as undergoing solification, corresponding to illumination & enlightenment. Being a 'mystical' process for the rational understanding of consciousness, the solification opposes the latters rational perspective. However, Jung upholds how scientific - and with it, probably rational in general - insights are only satisfactory for the present time personality, not for the collective psyche that goes back to prehistoric times.
Here again we find the motive of an origin that goes further back than conscious personality. I find it interesting to note that here, this origin opposes personality which eventually sprang from it by differentation, as this suggests a wide gap between the source and the now. This seems to speak of alienation of unconscious content, strongly reminding me of "the light of god protected by the heraldic shield of satan" (fosforos).
However, Jung explains how the collective unconscious would always require a certain rite in order to connect to consciousness of the present. Correspondingly, in this dream an 'illumination' of the unconscious would be prepared, having more of an "illuminatio" than an rational explanation.
8. Visual impression
A rainbow shall be used as bridge, but one should not walk across, but under the bridge. Whoever crosses the bridge, dies.
Being just a pleasant illusion, the rainbow bridge could only be crossed by the gods, while mortals who would attempt crossing it would fall to death. Human beings would have to walk under the bridge. There, water would be flowing, following the slope.
Jung here refers to a woodcut from Edward Kelleys
Tractatus duo de Lapide philosophorum:
In the corresponding note, he describes this as mercurius tricephalus as anthropos. In context of his thoughts, I found the sphere under the rainbow and its content very interesting, showing a blindfolded man lead by an animal. I was wondering if here, the animal is not the counterpart of the gods who alone can cross the bridge.
9. dream
a green land where many sheep graze. It’s sheepland.
Jung links this to impressions from the childhood, especially religious ones refering to the analogy of sheep and shepherd.
10. visual impression
In sheepland, the unkown woman shows the way.
Here, so Jung, the anima appears as psychopompos, showing the way. Again, he links sheepland to the childhood, and unfolds some very interesting ideas. At first, rational consciouisness is not seperated from the historical soul of the collective unconscious. Eventually, this seperation is inevitable, but can lead to a great distance that may cause the 'childs world' to remain infantile and hence a source of childish inclinations and impulses, if not dealt with proberly (i.e. made conscious). These inclinations and impulses are not welcome by consciousness, which hence either acts overly childish, or, these influences are countered by cynical senility or bitter resignation. I think that the anima showing the way within a place connected to childhood speaks volumes: in order to proceed, a return to childhood must occur. Jung has the idea that in this context, the rational mind would actually repress life, which, I think, can be seen in both resignation or overly childish impulses. One seems to constantly struggle against a given impulse, hence hindering any progress, whereas in the other case, rationality would utterly ignore the source of the impulses and end up incapable of any change. Hence, Jung interprets, consciousness must return to the childhood, where it can receive the guidance of the unconscious.
This reminds me of something we may be familiar with from Matthew 18:3:
“Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.” (King James version)
In either resignation or a flooding of the conscious with childishness, one is not 'as little children', but rather influenced by impulses from the childhood not properly made conscious, I'd interpret.
Related to that, Jung explains how it would be childish not only to stay a child for too long, but to seperate oneself from ones childhood, thus rendering it noneexistent. In either way, the connection or return to seems crucial for Jung, as he describes the 'primordial' psychic as twofaced: one would look forward, one backwards, meaning that it is ambiguous and hence symbolic like every living reality.
Jung closes this interpration with the following:
In consciousness we are standing on a summit and my childishly, the further way to greater heights leads beyond the summit. This is the chimerical rainbow bridge. In order to reach the next summit, one first goes down into that country where the paths only begin to intersect.
11. dream
A Voice says: you are still a child.
In this, Jung sees the demand for recognition of the fact that the differentiated consciousness has not yet dealt with the child-like, making a return to the childhood necessary.
I think that this later dream supports his earlier interpretations in the same direction, and gives further credibility to his approach of creating the context in-between the dreams by working with them as a series.
12. dream
A dangerous tour across many ladders, up and down, with father and mother
To Jung, childlike-consciousness is always connected to mother and father. Correspondingly, the return to childhood means the return to the parents including their burden as non-ego and its history. The travel with mother and father corresponds to the infantile, not integrated contents becoming conscious. Without these becoming conscious, one could not free oneself from one's childhood. This is not done by intellectual knowledge, but by reexperiencing of the childhood. If one would go back to childhood after years, one still finds living aspects of ones personality that would have been lost. He writes:
“Much remains unfinished because of the rapid flow of years and the overwhelming influx of the newly discovered world. One has not freed oneself from it, but merely distanced.”
Hence, only if these living aspects would be reconnected to adult-consciousness, they'd loose their infantility and could be corrected.
In order to access the collective unconscious, these personal unconscious matters must be dealt with first, i.e. become conscious, according to Jung.