Jungian Archetypes as Found Within the Epic of Gilgamesh and Beyond

Carl Jung’s breakdown of mankind’s psyche into separate archetypes gives us a road map to

follow when reading mythological stories. These archetypes can be identified within most myths as

various characters, protagonists, antagonists and other actors that fulfill the roles of shadow, anima or

animus and reflection of Self in the story. They help us understand the darker or shadow side of a

hero or main character as he or she progresses and struggles through trials and tribulations in their

journey to become more than they were originally, more integrated and a better, more capable person.

The archetypes also show us the male and feminine aspects of the character’s mind respectively

through their animus and anima. The journey towards a more integrated and capable Self is achieved

through the interplay of these archetypes in rising above the struggle or imbalance of one aspect into

a harmony of all, allowing the Self to emerge.

In the Epic of Gilgamesh, Gilgamesh, a solar logos type of character (Baring, “Solar Hero”)

goes through a series of trying events and encounters with archetypal counterparts to aspects of

himself in his quest towards becoming a better man and achieving immortality. He begins as a

prideful king who does not always treat his subjects well and demonstrates a lack of maturity in some

ways (Thury and Devinney 168). Gilgamesh first becomes aware of his own shadow when the men

of Uruk and the gods themselves complain about him and lament that he should be a shepherd to his

people (172). His shadow later externalizes and solidifies in the form of Humbaba, guardian of the

Lebanon cedars and nemesis to both him and Enkidu.. Both microcosm and macrocosm being aware

of Gilgamesh’s misdeeds are symbolic of his initial awareness of personal flaws on some level. Out

of this awareness comes the development of the desire and manifestation of the creation of his anima,

his counterpart of feminine fertility in nature. What is interesting about this story is that Gilgamesh’s

main anima is not female but comes in the form of his wild ‘man of the woods’ brother Enkidu.

While he does meet women such as Ishtar, goddess of love as well as beauty and other goddesses

such as Ninsun and Sidura, both more positive aspects of his anima, arguably none of them become

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his companion in spirit as much as Enkidu, and at least for a time Enkidu is much like a female in

nature. While the sequence of marriage proposal from Ishtar occurring after the defeat of Humbaba

is in line with Jungian symbolism in journey towards Self, in this story the attraction is lukewarm at

best. Ironically, Enkidu encounters what would more accurately be a kind of animus role, were he a

woman, in the form of the harlot who Gilgamesh sends to sleep with him. She represents the

modernity and rational reason of the city and perhaps became the whore of Babylon of later

Mesopotamian myth associated also with the corruption, greed and sin of civilization. Since he is

male however, she is his anima, the darkest aspect of which appears in a dream as Ereshkigal (183).

Gilgamesh’s quest towards Self-attainment is alluded to in various ways but it is not

something he fully ever receives. He fails to achieve immortality, as was his somewhat altruistic

goal for himself and his people. His interpretation of Enkidu’s dream shows a predilection towards

Self-growth and wisdom (174), which spurns him towards other kinds of seeking. He encounters 3

main representatives of Selfhood, and in this part of his journey his admissions of weariness are a

kind of spiritual angst. Firstly, his encounter with archetypes of individualized Self begin with the

scorpion-man, gatekeeper of spiritual truths, secondly as Urshanabi, ferryman and gatekeeper to the

real sage, Utnapishtim. When he finally meets the wise sage, he does not get what he expects in the

form of immortality, and yet the revelations shared with him are deeply spiritual and reflective of

Self-awareness. He does not achieve enlightenment in the form of the herbs of immortality or

metaphorically the Philosopher’s Stone. The story ends on a more tragic note, yet he comes back to

Uruk with the tale of his journey against many obstacles towards Self-attainment inscribed on a stone

(192).

Symbols and archetypes are important to study because they reveal within myth and other

kinds of stories universal themes and dramas at play that go beyond the specifics of any story. They

mirror the progression we go through in our own lives, in the process of individuation and integration

of Self. Jung’s archetypes and process of individuation very much remind me of a bodywork

modality I have studied in the past. Integrative massage incorporates the body ‘character structures’

originated by Wilhelm Reich, which resemble archetypes in many ways. Reich noticed regularities

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in the postural tendencies and connective tissue holding patterns of different people and came up

with these various body types, relating them to particular psychological characteristics or habits.

These traits are not just postural habits and body structure but also reflective of the myths we create

about ourselves in the form of our persona. A couple of structures that correlate with Jungian

archetypes of anima and animus are respectively the oral and ‘rigid’ or phallic structures. Once a

therapist becomes aware of these traits in their client they could help them work on achieving a

postural and emotional stance more reflective of a fully expressed Self, less bound by their personal

archetypal attributes or the holding pattern ‘armor’ associated with them. Both Reich and Jung were

students of and therefore influenced by Freud (Baker 1).. Another parallel that relates even more

directly to the process of individuation and Jung’s studies of Western esotericism (Hoeller,

“Alchemical Renewal”) is an alchemical motto, the Latin phrase “Visita Interiora Terrae

Rectificando Invenies Occultum Lapidem,” or VITRIOL, which translates as “visit the interior of the

Earth and by rectifying, find the hidden stone” (Pineda 82). Each letter of the word represents a

stage of self-growth, such as the call to end personal suffering, to attempt a synthesis of opposing

drives and to achieve spiritual attainment through union with what is referred to as one’s Holy

Guardian Angel (83), or fully integrated Self. Everyone can relate to some degree of awareness of

personal qualities they would rather not admit to, or an encounter with someone of the opposite sex

who truly inspires a stirring of the spirit within them. Some may even know the experience of having

a fully integrated and individuated Self. However, Jung’s psychological work brought to light a

public awareness of these deep causal processes that all people encounter in their lives, in the journey

towards individuation and re-integration of self. It seems that he illuminated universal elements

within us and inside our stories that are as old as humankind that will forever express themselves as

emanations of the collective unconscious, in myth and beyond.

Works Cited

Baker, Elsworth. “Sexual Theories of Wilhelm Reich.” The Journal of Orgonomy Vol 20 Number 2. 1982. Print.

Baring, Anne. “The Lunar and Solar Hero.” 2005. 17 July, 2005. Web.

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Devinney, Margaret K. and Thury, Eva M. Introduction to Mythology: Contemporary Approaches to Classical and World Myths. New York: Oxford University Press, 2009. Print.

Hoeller, Stephan A. “C.G. Jung and the Alchemical Renewal.” The Gnosis Archive. n.d. Web.

Pineda, Daniel. The Book of Secrets. San Francisco: Red Wheel/Weiser, LLC, 2011. Print.

Animus - Enkidu is a living incarnation of this energy, the fertile, wild male aspect of nature

Self/growth of the individual/hero - Rama as selfless, righteous king, godlike as an avatar of

Vishnu

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