The Myth Of The Phoenix: About Our Fantastic Resilience

In his book Symbols of Transformation  , Carl Gustav Jung explains that  humans have a lot in common with the phoenix. That archetypal, fiery creature, with the ability to miraculously rise from the ashes of its own destruction, also symbolizes the power of our fantastic resilience. By this we mean our unparalleled ability to transform ourselves into much stronger, brave and smarter creatures.

If there is one myth that has fueled just about every doctrine, culture, and every original story, it is undoubtedly related to the story of the phoenix. People say of the phoenix that its tears had  healing properties, that it was an animal with extreme physical toughness, control over fire and infinite wisdom. In fact, it was one of Jung’s most powerful archetypes. Caught in his fire lie proportionate parts of creation and destruction, life and death.

So it’s interesting to find out that there are early references to this mythological creature as well, be it in Arabic poetry, Greco-Romance culture, or even much of the historical legacy of the East. In China, the phoenix (or Feng Huang ) not only symbolizes the  highest virtue, strength or prosperity,  but it also represents the yin and yang, that duality that shapes the entire existence of the universe.

But, and this is worth remembering,  it is Ancient Egypt where the first cultural and religious testimonies  surrounding this figure appear. So it is also where this image of its resilience that we know today was formed. Every detail, shadow and symbol surrounding this mythological creature is worth reflecting on.

The phoenix, or the power to rise from ashes

Viktor Frankl, neuropsychiatrist and founder of logotherapy, survived the torture of the Nazi concentration camps. Just as he explains in many of his books,  a traumatic experience is always negative, but the outcome depends on the person. It is in our hands whether we will rise again, rise again from our ashes, in an astonishing victory. Or, instead, wanting to sit down and crumble slowly.

This admirable ability to update ourselves, to take our breath, desire and strength out of suffering and broken glass has to go through a really dark phase that a lot of people have probably experienced personally. We are talking about ‘death;. When we experience a traumatic event ‘we all die a little’. We let go of a part of us  that will never return, that will never be the same.

So, out of all the myths surrounding this creature, it is Egypt that offers us what we call the ‘key elements’ to better understand the relationship between the phoenix and our fantastic resilience. Let’s look at the following.

The Phoenix in Egypt

In his writings, Ovid explains that in Egypt the phoenix died and was reborn every 500 years. To the Egyptians, this majestic bird was Bennu, a bird associated with the tides of the Nile, the Sun, and death. According to them, this bird was born under the tree of Good and Evil. This imaginative being understood that  it was necessary to renew itself every so often so that it could gain more wisdom. To do that, it followed a very precise process.

The bird flew all over Egypt to build itself a nest of the most beautiful elements: channel branches, oak branches, nard and myrrh. Then it settled in its nest and sang one of the most beautiful songs the Egyptians ever heard. Immediately afterwards it would be completely consumed by the flames. Three days later, the phoenix was reborn full of renewed vigor and strength. It would then pick up its nest and leave it in the Sun Temple of Heliopolis to initiate a new cycle of inspiration for the Egyptian people.

Fantastic resilience and our ‘transformation nest’

As we have seen, the Egyptian myth about the phoenix is ​​a beautiful story. But now  let’s analyze some of the details. Let’s start by looking at how the phoenix makes its nest. He goes in search of the richest materials in his area. The materials that combine both fineness and strength and that will help in its transformation, in its resurrection.

If we think about it carefully, this process is very similar to the process that makes up the psychological dimension of resilience. Because we also look for those magical elements to construct a really strong nest in which we can increase our strength.

All of these components will help the phoenix to rise again, but not before it is aware of one specific aspect. This aspect is that  it will come to an end, that part of his being will also leave him, become ashes, the remnants of a past that will never return.

But the wind will not blow this ash away, just the opposite. It will be part of its new forms to shape a being that comes out of the fire stronger, bigger and wiser… Someone who may become an inspiration to other people, but who, above all, will help us move forward with our heads lifted and our wings wide open.