Plant

Plants symbolize spontaneous life growing according to a given pattern; perhaps something organic that develops from something inorganic. The Self can also be seen as something that grows "objectively" in the human psyche, beyond the ego's whims and attitudes; something dormant and growing within itself. Unlike animals and humans, plants have roots in the earth, and thus belong to the "symbolism of the earth."

On one hand, the plant represents the "lowest" form of life, but on the other, it is the only form of life that nourishes itself; it is entirely autonomous. This type of life cannot be chosen by oneself, but is rather something that happens, an expression of the unconscious spiritual life. For the unconscious, true spiritual life is like growing plants, which aligns with Asian beliefs. It represents "life behind life."

Dormant, Spiritual Development

von Franz notes that dreams at the beginning of analysis often involve wild animals and untamed emotions, but as inner development progresses, these are replaced by symbols of plant life. These reflect the growth of the personality, "mirroring a certain stabilization between the conscious and unconscious," where the personality is no longer driven by desires. (Creation Myths, p. 355.)

"It is a strange fact that spiritual development, humanity's impersonal life, life beyond one's personal psychology, is symbolized by plant life" (Visions, p. 1076).

Psychological Roots

The plant or tree has a root system that is unseen, just as a person’s psychological roots are deeply embedded in the unconscious; or like the soul, which survives the body. Symbolically, plants belong to the "vegetative layer of the psyche," where the psyche merges with the physical processes of the body (Animus and Anima in Fairy Tales, p. 70).

Alchemy

An alchemical text states that just as a sprout condenses earth, water, air, and heat—all elements—into a new being, the plant, "our art produces a substance from surrounding substances."

Plants are associated with healing and medicine, a significant part of philosophical alchemy. The effort to heal people with plants is the background to physicist Isaac Newton calling philosophical alchemy "vegetable alchemy," distinguishing it from the branch that would become modern chemical science.

The similarities between the plant’s need for a certain amount of sunlight, moisture, soil, and temperature to thrive, on the one hand, and human development and the alchemical process on the other, form the basis for plants being depicted in alchemical contexts. Plants are also a recurring symbol in dreams reflecting the process of individuation. Mercurius was referred to as spiritus vegetativus; "miraculous" vegetation can indicate proximity to coniunctio. (See also Garden.)

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