Carl Jung's 10 greatest quotes (sourced NOT made up)
Carefully selected with commentary from Kyle Shepard
Carl Jung produced some of the profoundest quotes in the world.
(He was the greatest psychologist of our age)
But there’s 2 problems:
1. Most the quotes you see flying around are made up or paraphrasing what Jung actually said
And
2. What the hell is he talking about, and how does this apply to me?
To solve this, I’ve dug through the 30 something Jungian psychology books I’ve read over the last 5 years, and have ruthlessly sourced the following 10 most impactful quotes to ensure authenticity. I’ve also collaborated with the wise and powerful
of Resilient Mental State.He’s provided insightful and down-to-earth commentary to give you a real-world understanding of what these quotes mean.
(I couldn’t have written them better myself).
I’ve also written a commentary on his curated 10 greatest quotes of Theodore Roosevelt (read HERE).
Here’s Carl Jung’s 10 Greatest Quotes (Authenticated)
Quote #1
“How can I be substantial without casting a shadow? I must have a dark side too if I am to be whole; and by becoming conscious of my shadow, I remember once more that I am a human being like any other”
– C.G. Jung, ‘The Practice of Psychotherapy,’ para. 134
Commentary by
We are comprised of multiple selves. Who I am when I’m angry, sad, stressed, relaxed, exerting, or happy is prone to different behaviors.
No one is completely good or bad. Positive attributes can be found in the worst of people just as the greatest people who have ever lived had shortcomings.
Your idol is flawed and so are you.
Good.
Perfection is impossible.
Honest assessment of ourselves reveals opportunities for improvement.
Quote #2
“Everyone carries a shadow, and the less it is embodied in the individual’s conscious life, the blacker and denser it”
– C.G. Jung, ‘Psychology and Religion,’ para. 131
Commentary by
The dichotomy between wanting to improve while being content with yourself is a worthwhile reflection.
Training for improvement is self-care. Accepting yourself throughout the journey is self-love.
Without acceptance, a miserable life is inevitable.
There is no amount of success or love from others that will ever soothe a soul that doesn’t love itself.
Accept yourself before you wreck yourself.
Quote #3
“As far as we can discern, the sole purpose of human existence is to kindle a light in the darkness of mere being”
– C.G Jung, ‘Memories, Dreams, Reflections,’ p. 248
Commentary by
We are continuously reminded of all the tragedies and suffering throughout the world.
Death is inevitable and there will be countless struggles on our path to it.
Can you live to your fullest despite this knowledge?
Is life not the yang to death’s yin?
Is thriving possible without suffering?
How can one become comfortable with living if uncomfortable with dying?
There is no light without darkness.
How are you contributing to the collective conscious?
If you’re new here, I’m Rowan.
I take the knowledge and wisdom from the greatest books and turn them into easy 5-min letters for FREE.
If you want to pick up the book and support this publication, you can buy it through the link below (gives me a small commission):
Memories, Dreams, Reflections by C.G. Jung
Happy reading.
Quote #4
“Cleverness conquers the world, but simplemindedness, the soul”
– C.G. Jung, ‘The Red Book,’ p. 105
Commentary by
A good life is simple, not easy.
Very little is needed for fulfillment. Adequate sleep, proper nutrition, movement, and connection for living. Applied virtue for thriving. Virtue, however, requires a lifelong pursuit of excellence.
There are no hacks, shortcuts, or effortless routes to fulfillment.
The soul is conquered simply with continuous alignment of core values and action. Integrity in this pursuit is paramount.
Be good for yourself, nothing else.
Fulfillment comes from simple application of virtue daily - forever.
Quote #5
“The sad truth is that man's real life consists of a complex of inexorable opposites - day and night, birth and death, happiness and misery, good and evil. We are not even sure that one will prevail against the other, that good will overcome evil, or joy defeat pain. Life is a battleground. It always has been and always will be; and if it were not so, existence would come to an end”
– C.G. Jung, ‘The Symbolic Life,’ para. 564
Commentary by
Every attribute, skill, or thought has counters.
Dichotomies to all things.
Good vs bad, life vs death, or thriving vs misery, however, are not simply either/or conclusions.
Everything operates on a perceptual spectrum.
The question is which direction are you heading on these continuums?
The war within is a lifelong pursuit. How it is approached requires strategic vision.
Every moment is an opportunity - a metaphorical battle to gain ground on the path to self-mastery.
There are no end states, only endless chances to edge closer to fulfillment and a life well-lived.
Use virtue as your strategy in the battleground of life.
Quote #6
“Life calls us forth to independence, and anyone who does not heed this call because of childish laziness or timidity is threatened with neurosis”
– C.G. Jung, ‘Symbols of Transformation, Para. 461
Commentary by
Whether or not you think you have free will, you are correct.
Forces will continuously push and pull us in all directions. The response can always be a choice.
Despite modern convenience, your environment is not curated for your thriving.
Many of our subconscious instincts are not optimized for fulfillment.
Delegate your functioning to the world and experience the consequences.
Self-command is freedom. We only have the ability to control the interpretation of our thoughts and subsequent actions. These two decisions, however, can change the world around you.
Only you can determine the type of life you will live.
Make the subconscious conscious with intention. Assess your thoughts, determine your state, rationally choose your actions.
Answer the call of optimized living. Take ownership of your life. Live consciously. Control what you can.
You don’t HAVE to live; you GET to live. How and why you live is completely up to you.
Achieve independence over yourself.
Quote #7
“In all chaos, there is a cosmos, in all disorder a secret order”
– C.G. Jung, ‘The Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious,’ para. 66
Commentary by
Resilience is a skill that can be trained.
Chaos is a mental state.
Variability in response to chaos is explainable by the presence or absence of resilience.
Experience, support systems, and developed strategies encourage resilient mental states.
Experience can be cultivated. Networks can be formed. Strategies can be trained.
The secret order to all things is conscious intention and specific training.
Prepare strategies, develop teams, and create experiences.
If you want to become courageous, train your fears.
If you want to become resilient, train the stress response.
If you want to become calm, train in chaos.
Quote #8
“The psychological rule says that when an inner situation is not made conscious, it happens outside, as fate”
— C.G. Jung, ‘Aion,’ Para. 126
Commentary by
It’s easy to blame the world for our problems until we realize problems are perceptions.
How many live passively, never reflecting on their respective why?
We are a culmination of our skills and most of them are suboptimal.
Anything you do passively is a subconscious habit.
Self-reflection, self-awareness, and adaptability are three of the most beneficial skills you can pursue.
Opportunities won’t be revealed without reflection.
Effective intervention isn’t possible without awareness.
Productive change will never happen without adaptability.
Skill development can progress from incompetence to mastery by making the interpretation of our thoughts and subsequent actions conscious.
Set an intention. Train your desired skills. Become subconsciously competent in self-awareness, self-reflection, and adaptability.
Fate results from one’s mental state.
Quote #9
“During the first half of life it [Ego] strives for growth; during the second half, softly at first and then ever more perceptibly, it points towards an altered goal”
– C.G. Jung, ‘Symbols of Transformation,’ para. 680
Commentary by
The ego is an asset.
Ambition, aggression, and passion can all be tools for growth when consciously managed.
Healthy ego development requires humility, curiosity, acceptance, empathy, and virtue.
Ego application is a skill. With mentors and training, the first half of life is an ideal time to become competent in self-command.
A well-managed ego oriented at virtue creates a special person.
Once subconsciously competent, self-directed efforts can transition to transcendence in the second half of life.
Start inward and then expand outward.
Know how to grow, then let go and flow.
Quote #10
“Every transformation demands as its precondition ‘the ending of a world’ – the collapse of an old philosophy of life”
– C.G. Jung, ‘Man and his Symbols,’ p. 291
Commentary by
Certainty closes the mind.
Growth is not possible without change.
Evolution requires death.
An open mind is willing to terminate outdated opinions, beliefs, and assumptions in order to expand.
Curiosity is a skill. Its development is available to those willing to transform.
Uncertainty aids continuous learning and improvement.
Embrace change.
It’s insane to remain the same.
That’s it!
Let me know your thoughts.
If want a comprehensive Jungian reading list, check out My Ultimate Reading List on the homepage.
(Don’t forget to check out Kyle’s page and my commentary on his selected Theodore Roosevelt HERE)
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Bonus links & Recommended reading
Memories, Dreams, Reflections by C.G. Jung
Inner Work by Robert A. Johnson
Man and His Symbols by C.G. Jung
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