Carl Jung, a Swiss psychiatrist and the founder of analytical psychology, described archetypes as the psychological and emotional energy patterns that are in the collective unconscious.
These can manifest individually, in forms of physical symptoms, complexes, dreams, and patterns of behavior, or culturally in popular trends, music, and current economical and social events.
In South Africa, we have seen a tremendous rise in the AIDS epidemic over the last few years, which has contributed to the current health and social welfare concerns.
An estimated 6 million out of the 45 million people in South Africa are living with HIV/AIDS, the highest officially recognized total of people in the world (South African Department of Health).
But underneath this crisis may be a larger social injustice at play that needs attention: sexual violence and gender inequality.
Sexual violence is not a new phenomenon.
Dating back to antiquity, women have always played a lesser role in society.
Most myths and fairytales depict the feminine as a weak victim in need of rescue.
Rape has been used as a medium of torture and humiliation in war, whether between countries or tribes.
Sexual abuse is one of the most annihilating forms of enforcing power, one that strips away personal choice.
It is most damaging in the context of a trusting relationship, such as in the case of child sexual abuse and spousal rape.
It is no surprise that in South Africa, there has been tremendous sexual abuse in the past as part of the patriarchal society.
Whenever a cultural milieu is one of violence, the communication transmitted from one generation to another is one of repressed humanity.
A violent man who himself has been oppressed and violated upon lacks the language of expression and therefore is reduced to shouting, hitting and raping.
During apartheid, people were more worried about the larger political situation and threatening civil war.
Perhaps the end of that oppressive era and introduction of democracy has constellated a different archetype, one personifying independence, freedom and the voice of the feminine.
If once again the culture does not embrace this need in its nation, the result can be further violence to the soul of its people.
In the book Goddesses in Every Woman, Jean Shinoda Bolen states: "The virgin goddess is that part of a woman that has not been worked on, either by the collective social and cultural expectations of what a woman should be, or by an individual's male judgment of her.
This archetype represents a pure essence of who the woman is and of what she values.
It remains untarnished and uncontaminated because she does not reveal it, because she keeps it sacred and inviolate, or because she expresses it without modification to meet male standards.
" Maybe the popular "virgin myth" as a cure for HIV is an attempt to silence the virgin goddess archetype in the women of South Africa.
Each time a man rapes a woman, and she does not recognize the violence in her home as his attempt of dominating her soul, the goddess is silenced and cultural oppression continues.
Oppressed women produce immature sons whose psyches are weakened so the pattern continues.
This time there is no need for the White man to do the work.
According to Kofi Annan, "What is needed is positive change that will give more power and confidence to women and girls.
Change that will transform relations between women and men at all levels of society.
" In the words of Hegel, there can be no love between master and slave.
It is time to replace the old, negative and abusive myth of slavery and oppression with the magic of a new, alchemical myth of creativity, beauty, love and compassion; the concept of Ubuntu.
These can manifest individually, in forms of physical symptoms, complexes, dreams, and patterns of behavior, or culturally in popular trends, music, and current economical and social events.
In South Africa, we have seen a tremendous rise in the AIDS epidemic over the last few years, which has contributed to the current health and social welfare concerns.
An estimated 6 million out of the 45 million people in South Africa are living with HIV/AIDS, the highest officially recognized total of people in the world (South African Department of Health).
But underneath this crisis may be a larger social injustice at play that needs attention: sexual violence and gender inequality.
Sexual violence is not a new phenomenon.
Dating back to antiquity, women have always played a lesser role in society.
Most myths and fairytales depict the feminine as a weak victim in need of rescue.
Rape has been used as a medium of torture and humiliation in war, whether between countries or tribes.
Sexual abuse is one of the most annihilating forms of enforcing power, one that strips away personal choice.
It is most damaging in the context of a trusting relationship, such as in the case of child sexual abuse and spousal rape.
It is no surprise that in South Africa, there has been tremendous sexual abuse in the past as part of the patriarchal society.
Whenever a cultural milieu is one of violence, the communication transmitted from one generation to another is one of repressed humanity.
A violent man who himself has been oppressed and violated upon lacks the language of expression and therefore is reduced to shouting, hitting and raping.
During apartheid, people were more worried about the larger political situation and threatening civil war.
Perhaps the end of that oppressive era and introduction of democracy has constellated a different archetype, one personifying independence, freedom and the voice of the feminine.
If once again the culture does not embrace this need in its nation, the result can be further violence to the soul of its people.
In the book Goddesses in Every Woman, Jean Shinoda Bolen states: "The virgin goddess is that part of a woman that has not been worked on, either by the collective social and cultural expectations of what a woman should be, or by an individual's male judgment of her.
This archetype represents a pure essence of who the woman is and of what she values.
It remains untarnished and uncontaminated because she does not reveal it, because she keeps it sacred and inviolate, or because she expresses it without modification to meet male standards.
" Maybe the popular "virgin myth" as a cure for HIV is an attempt to silence the virgin goddess archetype in the women of South Africa.
Each time a man rapes a woman, and she does not recognize the violence in her home as his attempt of dominating her soul, the goddess is silenced and cultural oppression continues.
Oppressed women produce immature sons whose psyches are weakened so the pattern continues.
This time there is no need for the White man to do the work.
According to Kofi Annan, "What is needed is positive change that will give more power and confidence to women and girls.
Change that will transform relations between women and men at all levels of society.
" In the words of Hegel, there can be no love between master and slave.
It is time to replace the old, negative and abusive myth of slavery and oppression with the magic of a new, alchemical myth of creativity, beauty, love and compassion; the concept of Ubuntu.
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