The Syzygy: Anima and Animus in Jung’s Aion
Jung begins his chapter on the syzygy in paragraph 20 of Aion, using the term to describe the masculine and feminine principles yoked together in the psyche. Derived from the Greek syn (with) and zygon (yoke), the word originally referred to the cross-bar of a harness that binds two horses—a metaphor for psychic duality.
In Jung’s model, the ego sits atop the psychic structure, casting the shadow. Beneath this lies the syzygy: the anima in men and animus in women. These contrasexual components mediate the ego’s approach to the Self. The masculine ego must pass through the anima; the feminine ego through the animus. A “neutral ego” is depicted in Figure 5, though Edinger notes this idealized structure does not exist in reality.
Jung identifies three components of anima/animus (par. 41, n.5):
- Contrasexual qualities of the individual (innate)
- Archetypal image (innate)
- Life experience of the opposite sex (acquired)
On the acquired level, the anima is shaped by relationships with mother, sister, daughter, lover, wife, and companion. The animus is shaped by father, brother, son, lover, husband, and companion. Archetypal manifestations include divine guide, seductress, rapist, personification of fate or meaning, and the principles of Eros and Logos.
Edinger distinguishes four ego states in relation to anima/animus:
- Infantile
- Projected
- Possessed
- Conscious
The infantile state is described by Jung as a man’s passive Eros, seeking to be “caught, sucked in, enveloped, and devoured.” He longs for the “protecting, nourishing, charmed circle of the mother,” where happiness is imposed from outside. This dynamic can result in a “secret conspiracy between mother and son,” preventing maturation and betraying life. The man may attempt to engage reality, but his initiative is “crippled by the secret memory that the world and happiness may be had as a gift from the mother.” ~Edward F. Edinger, The Aion Lectures, pp. 30–33
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