Egg

The egg is a symbol of cosmic wholeness and the Self; its white surface, perfect form, and the fact that it contains everything it needs draw such associations. It is the very core of the origin, a being before opposites are separated; but like the circle, it also symbolizes the (re)union of opposites. Alchemists sometimes referred to the vessel as the egg, where the world or the marvelous substance or gold was produced.

The Self

In alchemy, the egg is prima materia and at the same time the philosopher's stone, containing the world soul; sometimes an image for the Self that has not yet been born; the innermost core of the human. Since this is thought to survive earthly life, the egg becomes a symbol of immortality, and because it is something on the verge of being born, it is also a symbol of rebirth. In traditional yoga, the root chakra and the center of the human where all channels meet is described as an egg, for example in the Vasisthasamhita from the 1200s.

Rebirth

The egg is a symbol of rebirth, for the one who breaks out of the egg is born a second time – first as an egg and then as, for example, a bird or a serpent. The one who has only been born once has not broken out of the limited world, but is still in the darkness of the unconscious, though potentially enlightened. This is a recurring symbol in, for example, alchemy (but also in Christianity, yoga, etc.). In this tradition, the egg as a mystical content is sometimes synonymous with the special water and the dragon (the mercurial serpent).

Reflection

The egg as a symbol is associated with concentration, contemplation, and the birth of intelligence. von Franz states that she has often observed this in her work, how the egg appears in dreams when a person – perhaps for the first time – has begun quiet self-reflection. She further says that when the egg appears in a dream, "the birth of consciousness" is near. "The libido is focused on a point and now it can emerge." (Creation Myths, p. 230f.) It is consequently fitting that the I Ching identifies hexagram 61, "Inner Truth," with the egg. 

The Origin of All Things

The idea that the egg is the beginning of all things is a widespread belief; it is the subject of the same projections as seed, grain, and seed, but has a more "cosmic" quality. There are endless examples of how eggs symbolize the origin and creation of all things.

Yellow and White

The yolk is associated with gold and the sun, and the egg white sometimes with silver and the earth. Mythologically, the egg is connected with light and sunrise and with the appearance of gods; with sudden enlightenment.

Fertility

In folklore, the egg is a fertility symbol more or less linked to Mother Earth. As is well known, it is a central symbol in the celebration of spring (when hens start laying eggs).

The New

The egg is a seed, a beginning of something new. As a dream image, the egg can symbolize new life, new insights, new opportunities, or character traits, etc. – it is a kind of birth. The egg is "the eternal example of the perfect sprout in a dormant potential state" (Visions, p. 365).

Like the child, the egg is fragile and requires care. The egg expresses a latent content, it is not predetermined that it will hatch and something will be born. According to Jung, the symbol always appears as part of individuation or rebirth, but when individuation is in a "hanging" state. (Visions, p. 871.) The egg may also primarily refer to the shell that must break for the new to emerge – perhaps a call to "break out of your shell"?

Illustration

In the song Highlands, a story of depression and alienation, the singer Bob Dylan asks for eggs at a restaurant (compare Consumption). As a symbol of rebirth and renewal, it is what the depressed man needs, but in the state he is in, it is something he cannot yet achieve. The waitress says they do not have any eggs. "You came at the wrong time," she says. Many artworks, like this song, can be interpreted as if they were a dream, for they are like dreams born from the imagery of the unconscious.

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