Great Mother

The Great Mother is the archetype of life-giving, protective, and sometimes devouring presence. Jung drew her across cultures — as Demeter, as Kali, as the Black Madonna, as the Neolithic earth-goddesses whose figurines predate writing. Her dream-appearances can be tender or terrifying; the archetype is larger than any single mood. A dream of a vast maternal figure offering food is a classical image of the psyche being nourished at a source deeper than any actual mother can be; a dream of a devouring mother, an aspect of the archetype that has overtaken the dreamer’s capacity for independent action. Notice the feeling tone carefully — it names which aspect of the Great Mother is active.