Back to the Roots; for a Revision?!

Standard

The longing to return to the womb — to the very origin of existence — reflects a deep, universal desire for renewal. It embodies a conscious wish to turn back time and retreat into the ultimate sanctuary where life’s struggles and regrets have not yet taken hold. Recently, I have noticed I often wake up with memories of scenes or songs from a TV series that Al and I enjoyed in our youth; for example, today I woke up with the theme song from the 60s Batman TV show, and I wonder how it entered my mind, since I haven’t heard it in ages! I then ask myself: Is this a desire to return to that joyful, simple time, or even more, to go back to the basics and start anew?

The womb symbolises comfort, safety, and innocence. The desire to return often signifies a wish to escape the burdens and complexities accumulated over a lifetime. In psychoanalysis, returning to the mother’s womb may sometimes be viewed as a sign of incest. However, it also reflects a longing for the simplicity and purity that existed before self-awareness and responsibilities—before choices and their consequences shape our identities. Nonetheless, this longing goes beyond mere escapism. It reflects the human yearning for change and a fresh start. Although we acknowledge that a literal return isn’t feasible, the desire reveals our profound wish to leave past mistakes behind and start anew. It acts as a cry for self-forgiveness and the bravery to reinvent ourselves—building on the wisdom gained from our experiences rather than erasing them.

Ultimately, the desire to return to the womb is not about going backwards but about renewal. It acts as a reminder that, although we can’t literally start over, we can seek personal rebirth—discovering new purpose and hope at each stage of life. This may also evoke memories of those days and the happiness I now long for.

Jung’s investigation of incest in Transformations and Symbols of the Libido (1912) caused a rift with Freud. He describes the archetype’s dual nature as both “spiritual” and rooted in the “organic–material substrate” (“On the Nature of the Psyche” par. 380), allowing him to formulate a concept of libido that combines Freud’s sexual perspective with a broader view. In Freud’s view, libido is fundamentally sexual; incest symbolises a link from Oedipal desire to the taboo and the formation of the superego. Although Jung does not deny the actual occurrence of incest (McGuire 505–506), he highlights its symbolic role in expressing libido creatively rather than focusing on its biological aspect. As he proceeds, the foundation of incest is thus:

The strange idea of becoming a child again, of returning to the parental shelter, and of entering the mother in order to be reborn through her. But the way to this goal lies through incest, i.e. the necessity of finding some way into the mother’s body. One of the simplest ways would be to impregnate the mother and beget oneself in identical form all over again. But here the incest prohibition intervenes; consequently [myths develop new mother–analogies] for the purpose of canalising the libido into new forms and preventing it from regressing to actual incest [. . .]. It is not incestuous cohabitation that is desired, but rebirth [. . .]. The effect of the incest taboo and of the attempts at canalisation is to stimulate the creative imagination, which gradually opens up possible avenues for the self–realisation of libido. In this way, the libido becomes imperceptibly spiritualised.
~Carl Jung, “Symbols of the Mother and of Rebirth” par. 332)

Thank you for staying by. 🙏💖

14 thoughts on “Back to the Roots; for a Revision?!”

  4. Interesting thoughts. As one of those wombs which produced offspring, there is a permanent ‘Exit->’ sign – and no desire to readmit a much larger version of the things I rid myself of – as much as I love them – many years ago (first one turns FORTY on St. Patrick’s Day).

    No no no.

    If I man wants to go back, what he really wants (IMNVHO) is to be taken care of and coddled and have someone else be responsible for such things as clean underwear (sounds a lot like marriage in some of the incel videos I accidentally see pieces of).

    Sorry, but NO!

    We did enough for you by taking a genetic blueprint and growing you from something microscopic. I would not repeat those uncomfortable months for anything.

    Liked by 2 people

    • Honest, wise, and insightful words from a feminine perspective. Very comprehensive! I previously explored why men are often attracted to women whose behaviour mirrors that of their mothers. I appreciate your point of view; thank you, dear Alicia.🤗💖

      Liked by 1 person

      • You took my diatribe well – but it occurs to me that any man writing about wanting to go back to the womb (or any woman, for that matter), never bore a child!

        It is, literally, the script of a horror movie.

        Women have had the children since time immemorial, because they really had no choice, and a few of them claim to feel better during pregnancy than they normally do, but you try doing your daily activities with an ever-larger and ever-heavier basketball strapped to your front but inside, and you’ll see what I mean. The women are trying to minimize the physical experience BECAUSE it produces the much desired cute baby.

        But we really don’t remember it fondly, have physical effects for the rest of our lives (I’m dealing with a bunch of them right now), and, as strong as the bond can be between mother and child, we know it is DESIGNED to be BROKEN, because it is ultimately a bond between unequals.

        This is the kind of thinking that happens when only men’s opinions are allowed to be published and talked about. ‘Magical thinking’ about covers it. If men had really cared about women from the beginning of human history, and been coequal partners (now there’s a fantasy!), things would be more practical and more balanced. And very, very different.

        We all block off large parts of our selves just to survive. It results in stunted growth on all sides.

        Liked by 1 person

Leave a reply to balladeer Cancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.