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Archetypes and Mandala Symbols in Naguib Mahfouz’s The
Dreams: AnEmancipation from Meaninglessness
Ayesha Kanwal
MPhil English (Literature) Candidate
Department of English Literature and Applied Linguistics
Government College University Faisalabad, Pakistan
Sofia DildarAlvi
Lecturer
Department of English Literature and Applied Linguistics
Government College University Faisalabad, Pakistan
Abdul Baseer
Lecturer
Department of English Literature and Applied Linguistics
Government College University Faisalabad, Pakistan
This paper is based upon an MPhil thesis.
Abstract
This study emphasizesthe significance of archetypes and mandala symbols in imparting a
sense of coherence and meaningfulness to scrappy, fragmentary and apparently absurd
dreams which are not parts of any plot,and occur individually. These archetypes and
mandala symbols reveal the psychic commotion of the dreamer and lay bare the workings
of the unconscious. The research is conducted by following the Jungian model of
„individual dream interpretation‟ according to which we can access the intrinsic meanings
of dreams by analyzing them in the light of archetypes and mandala symbols. The textual
data is taken from Nobel laureate Naguib Mahfouz‟s The Dreams. This studydetermines
that despite the meaninglessness and incongruity that surround dreams, we can grasp the
deeper hidden meaning by locating the archetypes and mandala symbols.
Key Words: Psychoanalysis, Carl Jung, Archetypal Psychoanalysis, Mandala Symbols,
NagiubMahfoz, The Dreams
Introduction
The purposeof this research paper is to demonstratethat fictional dreams without any
context (i.e. the isolated or individual dreams) also convey meanings and reveal the
presence of inner psychic activity of the unconscious of the dreamer, and this happens
dueto the presence of the archetypes and mandala symbols in dreams. In fact dreams are
not a junk of incoherent confused happenings as they appear to be on the exterior level.
There always exist deeper inherent meaningshidden under the surface of meaningless
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illogicality and imprecision. But finding these hidden meanings is a complicated task as
things and happenings in a dream mean more than what they seem to be. The latent
content i.e. the deep hidden meaning is always different from the manifest content i.e. the
apparent happenings. This research article deals with how we can rescue individual or
secluded dreams from meaninglessness and nothingness by detecting the archetypes and
mandala symbols.
Dream-interpretation has beencarried out in world culture since the ancient times.
Even the ancient people thought dreams to be of some value. Some considered them
prophesies and forecasts of the future and the others took them as good or bad omens.
Some people regarded them to be of divine nature. Savage people inferred their dreams
on the basis of their superstitious beliefs (Mégroz, 1939, p.30). Mégroz (1939)
furtherrecorded that savage people treated their dreams as good or bad omens as well. For
example if a person died in a dream they would say he would not die and if they saw
weddings or other signs of happiness they would consider them signs of death and funeral
(p.32). Though their method of dream interpretation was non-scientific and superstitious,
they never declared dreams as meaningless and absurd. Similarly, in ancient Eastern
civilization, dreams were divided in two kinds (Oppenheim, 1956): „Message Dreams‟
which contained messages directly sent by divine power and „Symbolic Dreams‟ which
are further divided into „Mantic‟ and „Prophetic‟ dreams and to interpret these dreams the
help of an interpreter was required. Aristotle, as Freud (1998) tells us, believedthat
dreams areconnected to psychology and called them the psychic activities of the dreamer
(p. 3). Barcaro (2010) debates about dreams in literature and said that “while some of
these literature dreams can more or less exactly correspond to real dreams, a lot of them
were certainly made up by the authors for more or less strictly literary purposes” (p. 64).
Ruppprecht (1993) on the other hand distinguished „Literary Dreams‟ from real ones. He
wrote that „Literary Dreams‟were possible to be interpreted like real dreams „by taking
into the psyche of the dreamer‟ as they were „more elaborated in psychoanalytical sense‟
(p.11). The psyche wasexposed through archetypes which appeared in form of images in
dreams as well as in fiction.
Moore and Gillete (1991) write:
These archetypes provide the very foundations of our behaviors-our thinking, our
feeling, and our characteristic human reactions. They are the image makers that
artists and poets and religious prophets are so close to. Jung related them directly
to the instincts in other animals. (p. 9)
Jung(1988) is the pioneer in analytical psychology, and his work Dreams, declares that
dreams are meaningful and are a mode to understand the communications of the
unconscious. He describes dreams as follows:
the dream…is a creation, a piece of work which has its motives, its trains of
antecedents, and like any considered process it is the outcome of a logical
process, of a competition between certain tendencies and the victory of one
tendency over another. Dreaming has a meaning like everything else we do. (p.3)
Dreams perform the task of restoring the psychic equilibrium and through the
symbols and archetypes present in them they present a way to create a harmonious and
balanced relationship between the conscious and the unconscious worlds, as Jung (1988)
says that “dream symbols are the essential message carriers from the instinctive to the
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rational part of the human mind, and their interpretation enriches the poverty of
consciousness” (p. 52).
Archetypes
According to Jung (1990) the human psyche is divided into two parts: the
conscious and the unconscious. The conscious is the part of the psyche known to us and
the unconscious is the part that is not known to the conscious mind. The unconscious,
says Jung (1988) is further divided into two layers: the personal-unconscious and the
collective-unconscious / objective psyche. The personal-unconscious is personal in nature
as is clear from the name, whereas the collective-unconscious is of universal nature and is
shared by all human beings. When a portion of personality is ignored and overlooked to
the extents that the balance of the personality is disturbed, the unconscious directs the
conscious to restore the balance through its own means. To preservethe condition of
psychic health the center of the conscious, i.e. the ego, has to re-erect a balanced
relationship with the center of the unconscious (Jung et al., 1988, p. 128). This procedure
of building balanced relationship with self is known as individuation. Individuation or
self-realization balances the uneven nature of the conscious. To achieve this balance the
conscious must comprehend what the unconscious conveys through its messages. So the
question arises how does the unconscious transport its messages and are these messages
obvious enough to be understood? Jung (1988) asserts that the unconscious converses
through its „contents‟. He terms the „contents‟ of the personal-psyche or unconscious as
the feeling-toned complexes which create private and personal side of the psyche. The
„contents‟ of the objective-psyche or collective-unconscious, on the other hand, are
termed by Jung as Archetypes(Jung et al., 1988, pp.3-5). These archetypes are defined as
archaic remnants by Freud.The ideas of the unconscious are shared with the conscious in
an altered form with the assistance of symbols i.e. they are not directly communicated but
are well concealed under the surface of meaninglessness that usually encompasses a
dream. In Jung‟s words we can express archetype as: “essentially an unconscious content
that is altered by becoming conscious and by being perceived and it takes its colour from
the individual consciousness in which it happens to appear” (Jung, 1981, p.5). The major
archetypes that appear in dreams to make a person bring a balance in different aspects of
his personality realize his true-self are the ego, the anima/animus, the shadow,
wiseoldman and the self. The existence of these archetypes shows that some kind of
psychic activity is going on in the dream. It is better to understand the archetypes before
we actually analyze a dream.
Ego-archetype as it appears in dreams is the conscious side of the dreamer‟s
personality and so it supports us to decide what type of connection the conscious has with
the unconscious. It is the center of the conscious. The self-archetype on the other hand is
the pointer of total personality; a combination of both good and bad; the center and
totality the ego must find for the sake of individuation. The ego is affected and changed
when it comes into contact with the „contents‟ of the unconscious. The archetypes of the
unconscious that exercise very distressingeffect on conscious ego are the shadow and
anima/animus. The shadow, says Jung (1981) is “so disagreeable to his egoconsciousness that it has to be repressed into the unconscious” (p.165). It is generally the
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negative and sometimes the positive aspects of the personality that are kept concealed
and bottled-up by the conscious ego (Jung, 1988, p. 118). It appears in dreams as the
same sex as the dreamer- feminine in women and masculine in men. The shadow is
projected on other people i.e. dreamer sees the unconscious negative ego personality i.e.
the shadow side in other people. The shadow takes the form of a person that
fetchesdisagreeable and displeasing feelings. Jung (1950) says:
The shadow is a moral problem that challenges the whole ego-personality, for no one
can become conscious of the shadow without considerable moral effort. To become
conscious of it involves recognizing the dark aspects of the personality as present and
real. This act is the essential condition for any kind of self-knowledge, and it
therefore, as a rule, meets with considerable resistance. (p. 8)
Jung (1981) further elaborates that “the shadow is not necessarily always an opponent. In
fact, he is exactly like any human being with whom one has to get along, sometimes by
giving in, sometimes by resisting, sometimes by giving love whatever the situation
requires” (p. 173) .The ego has to realize and accept its shadow as Jung says “ego and
shadow, indeed, although separate, are inextricably linked together in much the same way
that thought and feeling are related to each other” (Jung et al., 1988, p. 118).
Unlike the shadow, the anima and animus-archetypes appear in the form of opposite
sex, feminine in male and masculine in female. The anima, according to Jung (1981) is
the feminine aspects of a man‟s personality “such as vague feelings and moods, prophetic
hunches, receptiveness to the irrational, capacity for personal love, feeling for nature, and
– last but not the least- his relation to the unconscious.” (p. 177); it is the woman within
who appears in the dreams to convey “vital messages of the self”.
The anima in dreams plays both positive and negative purposes. The negative
animamisguides the person, and their feminine tendencies subjugate them. Thus it
becomes a peril to their masculinity. The positive anima, on the other hand helps the
conscious personality to have a balanced relation with the unconscious one. It escorts a
man to the depths of the unconscious and helps him comprehend the „contents‟ of the
unconscious.
Whenever a man's logical mind is incapable of discerning facts that are hidden in
his unconscious, the anima helps him to dig them out....the anima takes on the
role of guide, or mediator, to the world within and to the Self. (Jung, 1981, p.181)
Jung describes the self as “a union of conscious (masculine) and unconscious
(feminine). It stands for the psychic totality.” (Jung, 1950, p. 268).Therefore building a
good relationship with anima in a way means the realization of the self which starts when
the shadow and anima are given due acknowledgement.
Trickster figure is another archetypal figure that appears in a dream. It, says Jung, for
being „primitive cosmic being of divine animal nature‟ replicates the multifaceted nature
of the unconscious and how it is realized into the conscious. It appears in dreams to mock
the ego for its lack of wholeness. Jung (1981) says:
The trickster obviously represents a vanishing level of consciousness which
increasingly lacks the power to take express and assert itself. Furthermore, repression
would prevent it from vanishing, because repressed contents are the very ones that
have the best chance of survival, as we know from experience that nothing is
corrected in the unconscious. (p. 264)
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Wise old man is one more archetypal figure that makes its appearance in dreams. In a
man it “manifests itself as a masculine initiator and guardian (an Indian guru), a wise old
man, a spirit of nature, and so forth” (Jung et al., 1988, p. 196). He also states that the self
can also appear as superior human figure or marvellous young man (pp. 96-98). This
archetypal figure leads the dreamer and supports him to comprehend his center, and
rescues him from negative and disparaging influence of the components of the
unconscious.
Mandala symbols
Self does not just manifest itself in dreams through the symbol of wiseoldman; it shows
itself through many other types of symbols. These symbols are calledMandala symbols
by Jung. Mandala, as Jung (2004) opines, means „ritual or magic circle‟. A circle is a
whole; a symbol of completeness and so it represents the self which is not only the
„inner-most nucleus of the psyche‟ but also the entirety of the psyche. Mandala symbols
appear in dreams when psychic balance suffers a lack of equilibrium. Jung (2004)
describes mandala symbol as:
The true mandala is always an inner image, which is gradually built up through
(active) imagination, at such times when psychic equilibrium is disturbed or when
a thought cannot be found…(Jung, 2004, p. 171)
Mandala symbols do not just appear as circles but they also present themselves
through quaternary system and encompass the theme of four-foldness. Such symbols are
labelled as quadraturacirculi by Jung which means „squaring of the circle‟. Aniela Jaffe,
in Man and His Symbols edited by Jung (1988) says that “roundness (the mandala motif)
generally symbolizes a natural wholeness, whereas a quadrangular formation represents
the realization of this in consciousness (P. 215). Jung (2004) also says that Mandala
symbols “signify nothing less than a psychic center of the personality not to be identified
with the ego.” (pp. 172-173). Thus any circular thing in dreams is a way for the center of
the unconscious i.e. the self to assert itself and when we comprehend the meaning of such
symbols we can realize how the unconscious of a person affirms its existence and how he
is dealing with the unconscious.
Let‟s take the example of Dream 1from Naguib Mahfouz‟s The Dreams.
Apparently Dream 1 is about a person‟s futileeffort of finding some means to gratify his
hunger. All his efforts to find food fail as all doors are bolted. This fragmentary text
achieveswhole meaning if we find archetypal and mandala symbols in it. The first vital
archetypal symbol is hunger. Hunger can only be contented by eating and eating, says
Jung in his lectures complied by McGuire (1984), has psychological meaning; when a
person eats in his dream he in fact eats his complexes and integrates them and
getscombined with his unconscious (p.12). Here the dreamer is incapable to satisfy his
hunger which means that he is lacking a balanced relationship with his unconscious and
cannot embrace its components. The hungry dreamer is truly the ego archetype whose
hunger will only be pleased if he finds its true center i.e. the self and gains
wholeness.Food points are the symbols of the unconscious as the components and
complexes he requires to „eat‟ are present in them. But the doors to the unconscious
areshut. When he is successful in finding anopen door after his unceasing struggle it does
not lead him to a hall but to the wrecks; as the conscious does not accept the components
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of the unconscious and neglects and curbs them, they appear in form of something
useless and unfamiliar e.g. the ruins. The door will lead him to the hall, center of the
unconscious when the disinclination to accept the unconscious and its components fades
on the part of the ego. The friend he encounters is the archetype of shadow. As a shadow
„antagonistically confronts a personal consciousness‟ (Jung, 1981, p.264), and is reluctant
to show its identity, it deprives the ego of its means to reach the place to satisfy his
hunger for wholeness.Thus the dream exposes the inner psychic activity of the
unconscious of the dreamer which stimulates him to gain wholeness and grasp the center
of the unconscious. It also specifies the commencement of the process of individuation.
Dream 7
The activity of the unconscious also discloses itself in Dream 7. Mandala symbol as well
as anima archetype appear in this dream. The dreamer is on a station, a symbol of
collective unconscious, because people of all types and diverse destinations gather there
just like unconscious is a storehouse of all sorts of good and bad aspects of personality.
Tram car is a mandala symbol as it also has wheels and is also an image of movement.
Such symbols states Jung (2004),designate the „kind of movement or the manner in
which the dreamer moves forward in time---in other words, how he lives his psychic life,
whether individually or collectively, whether on his own or by borrowed means, whether
spontaneously or mechanically‟ (194). The tram moves faster than a bicycle and indicates
that the conscious ego will also realize the center of the psyche faster now. The tram, the
dreamer is waiting for, is Tram Number 3. The girl who is also waiting for the same tram
is the anima, the woman within, the guide and the mediator. She seems to be a „daughter
of the night‟. Night is related with darkness and darkness hides the true nature of things.
The dreamer does not yet know the anima as part of his own self therefore sees her as
someone secretive and unknown. The number of the people in tram is also noteworthy.
There are two people, the driver and the conductor, already on the tram and if the ego and
the anima also get into the tram it will complete the quaternity- the mandala symbol
which presents the theme of four-foldness. But neither the anima, nor the dreamer board
on the tram. The tram drives away and the dreamer follows the anima. Following the
anima indicates that the unconscious is preparing for the realization of the anima and the
ego can conformto the anima only when it starts following her and know her true nature.
The wholeness will not be accomplished unless the assimilation of anima is done. When
the anima is truly assimilated it will act as a guide to the unconscious and will help the
dreamer to reach his center by realizing other components of the unconscious. But realize
any component of the unconscious and move ahead on his journey of self-realization the
dreamer has to leave behind his fears. The ego repels to the unconscious traits of the
personality because it fears the truth due to which it will lose its position as a center as
the greater center, the self will take its place. So the ego is required to sacrifice its pride to
gain wholeness.
Dream 17
Walking in one place is a mandala symbol in the sense that it also indicates
circular movement like the wheels of the tram car and the bicycle. Therefore it
accentuates the need for balance between the conscious and the unconscious. He is forced
to go back home due to rain water. The water is also an archetypal symbol and “is the
excellent symbol of the living power of the psyche” (Jung, 2004, 148). The unconscious
makes the conscious ego to go to the „home‟ the symbol of the unconscious where he will
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be able to come face to face with mechanisms of the unconscious. The person who is
following the dreamer is the shadow archetype which takes a very apt guise i.e. it appears
as a thief. The shadow like a thief hides itself and is not willing to come forward. Clothes
are the archetypal symbol for the cover the ego uses to hide the true self. When the ego
puts off the clothes the true self the real center will be achieved. The dreamer feels the
presence of the shadow when taking the clothes off. Through this situation the
unconscious is telling the dreamer that he should throw away the false cover of the ego
and accept the negative and repressed side of his personality as well. The shadow seems
to be a very influential person to the ego because of his fears. The unconscious wants the
dreamer to be brave enough to accept his shadow side. But the ego has to go a long way
before it overpowers its fears. Not being able to raise the alarm is also an indication of the
fears and reluctance of the ego. The message of the unconscious conveyed through this
dream is the dreamer will not be able to achieve wholeness as long as he gives
importance to his cover.
Dream 25
In this dream the wise old manseems to help the dreamer to reach his objective of
self-realization faster. The anima archetype in this dream appears in a developed form; as
a beloved which according to Jung (1988) is the most developed anima for modern man
(p. 185-186). This indicates that the assimilation of the anima is somewhat complete but
total assimilation of the unconscious with its other contents is still needed. The conditions
that he has agreed to admit are the conditions of the unconscious to pay attention and find
and accept the new center, the self so that the balance of the personality is reinstated.But
the ego demands time and as unconscious is unwilling to accept any postponement. It
sends its message in the form of wiseoldman; the professor who asks him to realize the
worth of time. The ego has agreed to take down the tough task of self-realization which is
specified by piano-playing. Playing a piano requires a lot of time, practice and effort.
When the art is learned it brings appreciation and happiness for the player. Similarly,
when all negative and positive traits are assimilated into the conscious and psychic
harmony is restored, the person enjoys a sense of totality and wholeness. The „man from
China with a long beard‟ is the shadow figure as the beard hides the true features of the
face the shadow meets the dreamer in a disguised form. The shadow in this dream is not
antagonistic in nature; he rather bows to him and appreciates the efforts of the conscious
ego. It also means that the ego will be able to realize and assimilate the shadow if it
agrees to the terms of the unconscious. The appearance of piano which normallyhas black
and white keys, in this dream also highlights the need for seeing things in black and white
that is as they really are. The dreamer is also required to see the shadow as a part of his
own personality instead of in form of other people. The aloneness is the feeling of being
alone; it is the fear of the ego to be left alone and so indicates the desire to be unified with
the unconscious so that the wholeness is achieved. So again it is the unconscious
stimulating the ego to achieve self-realization and become a whole so that it would not
have to experience loneliness.
Conclusion
The interpretation of these four dreams demonstrates that the dreams contain
meaningswhich are usually hidden under the garb of absurd happenings and confused
occurrences. In fact it reveals the presence of the unconscious. The archetypes and
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mandala symbols help us to find out the inner activity which strives for wholeness and
psychological development.
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