The symbol of psychology is the letter "psych". The word "psyche" meant a butterfly in Latin, as well as such things as light wind, breath, energy and, finally, soul. Anyone who has studied psychology will remember how, while studying at university, this strange symbol appeared almost everywhere. Books, professors' offices, information notes - everywhere you could see this letter. Anyone who is interested in this branch of science also probably knows about the symbol of psychology, because it has become part of the symbol culture that is common in many other disciplines such as philosophy.
Devil's Trident
However, there are times when we take symbols too bluntly and don't think about their true meaning. Many of us believe in urban legends that distort some of the real myths and beliefs. For example, many, especially believers, are sure that the symbol of psychology (Ψ) is the Devil's trident.
This wrong theory comes from a time when people thought of mental illness asdemonic possession. It was believed that mental disorders had supernatural causes such as spells and witchcraft, things beyond the control of a person. This meant that everything was in the hands of the church and, of course, fate in the first place. But nothing could be further from the truth than such an opinion. So, let's look at the true origin of the psychology symbol.
True story
In ancient Greek, the word psyche (as we mentioned earlier) meant a butterfly. This insect was also a symbol of the breath of life and the life-giving wind. Gradually, thanks to the influence of the Roman Empire, the word became a symbol of the human soul. What the Greeks and Romans meant by "psyche" was our life force, also known as "ka" in Egyptian culture. All this, however, has a very indirect bearing on the question of what the symbol of psychology means.
The Greeks and Romans had a special view of the soul when it came to people. One of their beliefs was that when someone died, this "ka" that the Egyptians spoke of would leave their body, turning into an entity in the form of a clot of air. This clot then takes the shape of a butterfly. For the Greeks and Romans, butterflies symbolized light, change and hope.
Link to mythology
In Greek mythology, the word "psyche" means more than just a butterfly, soul and mind. Psyche was also a goddess, a beautiful creature with butterfly wings. Her love story is one of the most beautiful love stories of all time and was immortalized by Apuleius inMetamorphoses.
According to history, among the three daughters of the King of Anatolia, there was a girl who was truly special. She was so thin, attractive and full of joy that even Aphrodite herself began to envy her, seeing her rival in her. She was so desperately jealous that she immediately persuaded her son, Eros (Cupid), to hit her with his arrows. She wanted the young Psyche to marry the most terrible, ugly and heartless man in all of Anatolia.
A great love story
But things didn't go according to plan. Instead, it was her son, Eros, who fell in love with Psyche. Unable to stop, the young god decided to go to her room every night to conquer her and make her his. Psyche fell in love with a mysterious stranger who visited her every night. She didn't even see his face. The stranger was a god who wanted to keep his identity a secret.
But something went wrong. When Psyche told the sisters about this, they told her that she should end the relationship until she saw the face of her mysterious lover. And so she did. While Eros slept in her bed, she brought the lamp to his face. At that moment, the son of Aphrodite woke up and lost his temper, completely enraged by the audacity of Psyche.
Descent into Hades
Crazy, desperate and annoyed, the daughter of the king of Anatolia went to Aphrodite to ask for help. Eros' mother saw this as an opportunity to get the better of her. She saw Psyche's visit as a chance to rid the world of this girl whodared to compete with the goddess of beauty. She gave her four tests that Psyche had to pass in order to earn the love and forgiveness of Eros. But the trials included entering the underworld, meeting Cerberus, traveling with Charon, and then talking to Hades to eventually get to Persephone and ask her for some special beautiful thing she kept in a small box. Her story reminds us of the deeper meaning of the psychology graphic symbol.
Against all expectations, the quick-witted Psyche has proven that she is not only beautiful. She was smart, brave and determined. But when she completed each task and received the Persephone box, vanity and curiosity took possession of her. She decided to open the box to see what was inside and take this mysterious beautiful item that was kept there. And then immediately went blind. Fortunately, Eros, who forgave Psyche, came to her aid and cured her of her blindness. This story is often mentioned in the context of subject symbols in psychology.
Happy ending
This beautiful story could not end otherwise than with a happy ending. Aphrodite stopped being envious of her son's lover and danced with them at their wedding. Zeus decided to make Psyche immortal. Now this brave, beautiful girl with butterfly wings also represents the symbol of psychology "Ψ".
The complexity of symbolism
Not all images are necessarily symbolic. We can appreciate them as beautiful pictures without anyspecific interpretation proposed or required. However, the symbolism certainly makes them interesting, especially for people who like to find meaning in different things and phenomena.
Just a certain symbol is something that represents, designates or points to something else, hidden from view, invisible at first glance. Most people are familiar with the idea of dreams containing symbols. Many are also familiar with the idea of "interpreting" dreams. Actually, dreams are images. Any image, even if it's just a picture in your head, can be symbolic and open to interpretation.
Symbols and images in psychology
Some symbols are very versatile. Many people from different cultures around the planet endow the same symbols with the same meanings. Water symbolizes birth, purification and rejuvenation. The house represents the self, the self, the personality, the ego. The circle indicates unity and eternity. Carl Jung, the famous psychological theorist, called these images "archetypes". They are universal patterns of human thought that reside in our collective unconscious. Instinctively we react to these images, although we may not always be aware of this reaction. Some of these symbols stem from pagan beliefs about nature. Others may have evolved from the most basic elements of human psychology, culture and spirituality. One way or another, deciphering symbols in psychology is a very exciting activity.
Interpretations of characters can also be unique. People from different cultures and backgrounds can, among other things, endow symbols with different meanings. For example, colors, which can be highly symbolic, vary in meaning from one culture to another. In one culture, black may be the color associated with death; in another, the color of death may be white. People can also have their own personal symbols based on their unique personality and history. If you have seen a small bird die next to a rose bush, you may associate roses with death.
Associations in psychology
Symbols are responsible for the most ancient and basic type of thinking, known as "association".
One way to discover the possible meanings of a symbol is through free communication. When you see a particular image element, what does it remind you of? It is the same with the symbol of psychology - it evokes a variety of associations, but it has a clear symbolic meaning that we perceive on an unconscious level.
Things get a lot more complicated, and a lot more interesting, when an image contains many possible characters. In this case, we have images interacting with symbols, meanings interacting with meanings. And not only the elements of the images interact with each other, but also the tones, colors and compositions, which give even more maneuver for interpretation.
Conclusion
How does it all fit together? Again, there can be a number of ways to answer this question, and they willvary from person to person. That is why we are fascinated by great works of art. They abound with all sorts of meanings and symbols. Also, "psi", the sign-symbol of psychology, is saturated with a special semantic load, closely related to the mission that this relatively young science has taken on.
