The archetype of the Bully manifests the core truth that the spirit is always stronger than the body. Symbolically, our physical bodies can “bully” our spirits with any number of reasons why we should back down from our challenges, which appear to overwhelm us by their size and shape. Your relationship to this archetype should be evaluated within a framework far more expansive than evaluating whether you “bully” people. Consider whether on your life path you confront one experience and relationship after another that appears to have more power than you and ultimately leads you to ask, “Will I stand up to this challenge?” People are often called to take on bullies for the sake of others, as David did Goliath, and this is another criterion of your connection to this archetype. Finding a Bully quality in yourself takes a little work because it is not an archetype that people want to admit to having. You need to look deeply at yourself and think about when and how you bully others. Think of all the clever ways there are to bully people behind the scenes. Think about the many ways of power that you can use to bully people. “I’m not going to do that for you,” or, “I will do that for you.” Bullies blackmail. There are all kinds of subtle techniques to bully people, to get your way; bullying is not just about a fist-fight on the playground. It relates to how you handle people and manage your own power.
Conventional wisdom holds that underneath a bully is a coward trying to keep others from discovering his true identity. Symbolically, the Coward within must stand up to being bullied by his own inner fears, which is the path to empowerment through these two archetypes. A Coward is also one of those archetypes that you may be reluctant to
claim, thinking, I’m not a Coward, absolutely not. Or you may indeed recognize it as one of your archetypal patterns. The Coward archetype makes people uncomfortable. Do you feel that developing courage and facing fears is a constant theme in your life? When looking at your life lessons, your relationships, at everything in your interior, do you see a constant theme or thread about facing your fears and having to hang on with courage? How many times have you found yourself in situations where you have to go forward in life and you choose not to? The primary barrier to going forward is not really money or time, but fear or cowardice. The Coward is an exceptionally strong archetype that challenges you to stand up and face yourself or whatever is coming toward you. Many people have caved in under this archetype and it is brutal to live with the fact that you have run away from your own life.
Film Reference: Mel Gibson in 'Braveheart'
Conventional wisdom holds that underneath a bully is a coward trying to keep others from discovering his true identity. Symbolically, the Coward within must stand up to being bullied by his own inner fears, which is the path to empowerment through these two archetypes. A Coward is also one of those archetypes that you may be reluctant to
claim, thinking, I’m not a Coward, absolutely not. Or you may indeed recognize it as one of your archetypal patterns. The Coward archetype makes people uncomfortable. Do you feel that developing courage and facing fears is a constant theme in your life? When looking at your life lessons, your relationships, at everything in your interior, do you see a constant theme or thread about facing your fears and having to hang on with courage? How many times have you found yourself in situations where you have to go forward in life and you choose not to? The primary barrier to going forward is not really money or time, but fear or cowardice. The Coward is an exceptionally strong archetype that challenges you to stand up and face yourself or whatever is coming toward you. Many people have caved in under this archetype and it is brutal to live with the fact that you have run away from your own life.
Film Reference: Mel Gibson in 'Braveheart'