The Archetype of the Dolphin

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Christopher Peknic


• Mythology

• Science / Biology

• Human Interactions (Trans-species)

• Bio-magnetism and Migration Patterns

• Bio-Sonar Fields & Patterns

• The Dolphin Archetype


• We live on a water planet and our human body consists mostly of water.

• So too, the collective unconscious/ psyche has been described as an ocean.

• The Dolphin shares both the air-breathing conscious world and the undersea unconscious world; we may liken the Dolphin to a bridge between both realms.

• Indeed, at one time the ancestors of the Dolphin lived on land and then slowly returned to the sea.

• The Dolphin will dive deep into the ocean to explore and be nourished, as we when we return to the unconscious sea of our dreams.

• We therefore see the Dolphin and its ocean as metaphors to our diving down into the depths of the collective unconscious.



• Dolphins are like us, warm blooded, air-breathing mammals.

• Created 65 million years ago, the same time the dinosaurs became extinct.

• Slowly evolved from land and moved into the sea. Dolphins which exist today have been here 10 to 15 million years. We humans have been around 200,000 years.

• Dolphins use their brain more holistically than humans. There are more connections between the left and right sides of the dolphin’s brain compared to human brain. Dolphins sleep one half brain at a time.



• We both forget and deny that we live on a water planet. Since we live on the land that is what we tend to focus on and study.

• Similarly with our consciousness, we mostly address what is at the surface ego and do not attempt to learn what we do not readily see, our deep and vast unconscious.

• Dolphins exist in all the oceans of our planet. We humans also came from the sea eons ago. The shore is now the boundary between us.

• But perhaps there is a bridge; a bridge which lies in the unconscious.

• Is there perhaps a transcendent function; a wisdom which transcends the consciousness of both human and dolphin?


The Dolphin in Mythology


“ Mythology and the world’s greatest spiritual traditions all speak of healing and the work of finding truth as a journey into unfamiliar terrain.”

Yoram Kaufmann

Exploring the Dolphin Archetype is such a terrain.


• For eons mystics, shamans, and native peoples have heard the call of the dolphin. Dolphins have intrigued humans for centuries.

• The root of the word dolphin in the Greek language is “delphys”, which means womb. This signifies the Greeks’ reverence for dolphins.

• A womb is further defined as “a place where something is generated”.

• The question then is, “What is the dolphin generating?


Historical Highlights

• Throughout all societies, dolphin images have been found in myth, art, pottery, coins, and statutes, and dolphin legends have been recorded in literature and song.

• Eros riding a dolphin at Aphrodite’s side; on a Jewish sarcophagus dating to the 2nd Century AD near Haifa. For early Christians, the dolphin was a symbol of rebirth which guided humans in the sea and allowed him to return to land cleansed of his sins.

• The dolphin as a symbol is an allegory of salvation, and as the friend of humans.

• Its figure is associated with that of the anchor , with pagans, erotic deities and other symbols. When it is shown twined around an anchor, it comes to signify arrested speed or prudence. The ancients believed the dolphin represented the vital power of the sea; the source of life.



Greek Mythology

• Earliest representation of a dolphin- pictographic seal from Crete, 3500 BC.

• Earliest painting -recorded at 1600 BC -frescoes in the Palace of Knossos in

Crete

• Greek Gods sometimes took the form of dolphins.

• Apollo chose to become a dolphin on his way to find his temple in Delphi.

• Neptune sent a dolphin to catch a bride.

• Venus usually had a dolphin escort.

• The temple “Delphi” on Mount Parnassus, 6th century BC honored the god

Apollo. 14th century BC worshippers came to the same site to worship the teachings of Gaia, Mother Earth. This site was believed to be the center of the universe.

• Aristotle (521 BC) first classified whales, porpoises and dolphins as Cetacea.

• Plutarch stated in 79 A.D., “The Dolphin is the only creature who loves man for his own sake.”



Science/ Biology


Evolution

 Long, long ago, were land mammals but then returned to the seas.



When dinosaurs disappeared 65 million years ago, major environmental niches opened which were filled by the rapid adaptation of early mammals.



All whales and dolphins evolved from land-dwelling, wolf-like creatures of the order

“Condylarthra” which lived more than 58 million years ago during the Paleocene Era.



To make the transition from land to water, developed a flatter tail, shorter limbs, and lost their hair, which would slow them down in the water.

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Their tails gradually became muscular and flatter evolving into one that would become a powerful locomotor in their new aquatic environment.

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Evolved a skull and rostrum that over millions of years has telescoped gradually.

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Nares (nose) went from the tip of the nose to above the head (the blow hole).

Today’s dolphins appeared during the late Miocene, between 10 and 15 million years ago.

We humans, have only existed about 200,000 years.



Physical Characteristics

 Overall, the body shape streamlined to improve hydrodynamic efficiency.



Hind limbs have disappeared, the forelimbs have developed into flippers and a powerful tail provides the means of propulsion.

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Normal range of length of dolphins is from 5 to 14 feet.

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Some dolphins live into their 60’s.

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There are species that join at times into pods of 6,000 in number.

 Last 50 years there has been a revolution in our knowledge of the biology of live dolphins.

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Like humans, dolphins are warm-blooded, and air-breathing mammals.




Respiration

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Dolphins breathe rapidly at the surface, exchanging 90 percent of their air while humans exchange only 5 to 15 percent in a breath. This rapid exchange charges the cetacean’s blood with oxygen.

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Dolphins breathe through a blowhole located at the top of their heads. The animals can open and close these crescent-shaped slits with a kind of muscular plug, allowing them to keep water out of their lungs when diving.



The blowhole is naturally closed and must be opened by muscular action.


Diving Ability

 Do not suffer from nitrogen narcosis or “the bends” as humans do.

“Retia mirabilia” or “wonderful nets” of tiny blood vessels serve to protect vital organs from the effects of water pressure, and trap bubbles of nitrogen which may form in the blood during ascents from deep dives.



When dolphins dive their heart rates decrease, conserving oxygen stored in the blood to be supplied to the brain, and keeping the animal’s interior body temperature constant. Circulation adjusts to accommodate the various depths. To resupply the oxygen in its blood when it surfaces, its heart rate increases dramatically.



Bottlenose dolphins, not commonly thought of as deep divers, can repeatedly reach depths of 1,000 feet and can hold their breath for as long as 7 minutes. A killer whale has been recorded at a depth of 3,300 feet.



Sleep



Living in water, dolphins must think to breathe or they would drown.



When they sleep, they use one half of their bicameral brain to rest, the other to maintain the all-important process of respiration.


Mating and Nurturing

 Not monogamous; sexual behavior unrelated to mating is common.



Females carry the fetus between 10 and 12 months; bear a single calf.



Newborns able to swim unassisted to the surface for their first breath. From then on swim nestled to their mother’s sides.



Most stay with their mothers for many months, feeding on her fat-rich milk.



Surrounded by other females in the pod, known as “aunts” who play an important role. The aunts protect the young while the mother feeds.

 Female dolphins mature at 5-7 years and males at 10-12 years. Females live longer than males and males have higher mortality rates than females.



Will stand by a fellow dolphin in distress, excitedly swim around an injured animal, charge its attacker, or actively support as pushing an injured animal to the surface for air.




Human Interactions (Trans-species

)


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Since the 1970’s, several research programs have centered on dolphin’s ability to help unlock secret world of the autistic child and to assist in teaching the learning disabled. Results indicate dolphins may increase the communication skills and learning capabilities of people with autism and learning disabilities.



The dolphin’s natural ability to use ultrasound is also now becoming known. It is hypothesized that dolphins can see within our bodies. When a person is in the water with a dolphin, one can feel being scanned, hearing the echolocation (or bio-sonar) clicks being directed at them. It is also the way they communicate with one another. Dolphins are able to communicate with one another up to eight miles away.



Within the collective unconscious (psyche), there resides both the human unconscious and the non-human unconscious; which includes the dolphins. As noted previously, the dolphins have a similar brain to humans but have been in their current state much longer than humans.

The questions then arise:



Can the collective unconscious of humans overlap with the collective unconscious of dolphins?



Can fields or patterns from the dolphin collective unconscious be intuited by humans (and vice versa)?



In the same manner that some humans possess a strong intuition capability, can some humans intuit dolphins? Or can some dolphins intuit humans?


Human


Biomagnetism & Migration Patterns


Basics of Animal Migration



Migrations can occur for a number of reasons; some animals migrate simply due to lack of food during specific seasons.

 Longest migration is the Sooty Shearwater (bird), which covers 4,000 miles from New Zealand to the North Pacific Ocean.

 How exactly does an animal know when it's time to migrate? Many species use an instinctive photoperiod, the total amount of sunlight in a day. Other species use temperature as its primary cue. Some species depend on internal signals, such as the amount of fat left in their bodies.



Electro-magnetic and gravitational fields have existed 13 billion years, since

the beginning of the Universe. The sun, the stars, geological landmarks, and smells are often key navigating tools, but it is also evident there is a definitive correlation between the Earths' magnetic field and animal migration patterns.


Whales



Whales migrate for a range of reasons including, food supply, breeding/birth of young and salinity in ocean waters.



How do the largest mammals find their way along these annual 1000 plus mile migrations in just a few weeks?



The earth’s magnetic field provides a roadway for these mammals to follow.

Magnetite rich cells in the brain of whales and other animals point in a north south orientation and guide the whale’s annual migration.



In 1980’s British biologist Margaret Klinowska discovered correlation between whales beaching themselves and magnetic lineation/anomalies. Magnetic lineations that occurred near coastlines that were interpreted incorrectly by whales caused beaching to occur in entire pods of healthy whales. Other areas of the world including the eastern seaboard of US have similar magnetic anomalies due to sea floor spreading and had periods of beaching whales.



The navigational tool of the earth’s magnetic field if interrupted during migration disorient the whales and lead to beaching of the pod.




Dolphin Acoustic Fields & Patterns




Human’s strongest sense is vision while the dolphin’s keenest sense is auditory.

Sound waves travel some 5 times faster in water than in air.



In the sea range of vision is rarely beyond 100 feet. With bio-sonar, range is extended several miles.



Dolphins emit high frequency sounds which they use in echolocation to hunt and communicate.

 The melon in the forehead directs the squeaks and clicks that the animals emit in a sonar beam, bouncing the sounds off objects in their environment to “see” it.



When the sound strikes an object, some of the sound wave is reflected back towards the dolphin. The echoes are received by the lower jaw (specifically the panbone) and passed through oil to the ear bone.



While the human ear can distinguish about 30 clicks per second, dolphins can distinguish 700 sonar clicks per second.





Dolphins also convey their emotional state by means of the quality of their sounds, as we do, and seem to enjoy certain kinds of music.



Humans’ sonic range extends from 20 Hz to 20,000 Hz, or cycles per second, while dolphin’s cover from 100 to 150,000 Hz; frequency range is 7x greater than humans.



Could it be that dolphins have the ability to “tune into” disharmonies in the human body? When swimming with dolphins, they come alongside as if investigating, sounding us out. At present this is only hypotheses.


The Dolphin Archetype


•

Every Archetype has its own mythology; its own symbolism.

When an Archetype is activated, other life processes of an individual will begin to be influenced & replicate the features of that Archetypal Pattern. They will become entrained with the patterns of that Archetype.

 “In entering the world of the Archetype through its images, we allow the ego its due, while realizing that deeper meaning will only emerge as we have access to the transpersonal.”

-Yoram Kaufmann



 In order to reach the Archetype of the Dolphin, we need to ask some important questions in the area of Archetypal Pattern Analysis. We also need to study the very nature of the Dolphin Image. The essential power of the Image brings with it a set of mandates and guidelines.

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







What is the major Orient or Dominant of the image of the Dolphin?

What is essential about it? What makes it what it is and no other? What is its uniqueness?

How do we bow to that Orient in a manner which is objective instead of subjective?

How do we identify the red thread of this Image that runs throughout history and mythology?

How do we attune to the Image in a manner that we experience the energy valence or energy release from this Image?



Initially, there appear to be three dominants of the Dolphin Image:

(1) the Generation of Energy

(2) A Projection of our own Intelligence

(3) a Bridge to the Depths-between land and sea or psychically between the conscious and the unconscious.


( 1 ) The Generation of Energy:

 The word “dolphin” comes from the Greek word “delphys” which means

”womb”. The womb is further defined as “a place where something is generated”.

 The question then is, “What is the dolphin generating? As noted, the ancients believed the dolphin represented the vital power of the sea; the source of life. If the dolphin represents the vital power of the sea; how is this represented from a psyche perspective?

 Greek gods, who possessed human attributes as well as magical, mythical powers, sometimes took the form of dolphins. Through the centuries the dolphin has lifted the bodies and the hearts of people.

 We should note that Yoram Kaufmann stated “from the psyche’s point of view, that an image is the carrier par excellence of energy”. This sounds similar to the definition of delphys.



The following next three (3) Slides on the Dolphin as the Projection of our own Advanced Intelligence was contributed by:

David Rottman

Senior Faculty, The Assisi Institute

President, C.G. Jung Foundation of New York


(

2)

The Dolphin: As the Carrier of the Projection of our Potential for our own More Advanced Intelligence

• A primary element of the dolphin is its intelligence.

• There are those language clicks that await our decoding.

• There are the behaviors in the legends that are akin to human motivation such as saving drowning people.

• The amazing desire to play with humans. Play is a true sign of intelligence.

• "Dolphin intelligence” is a very specific kind of intelligence but we can't yet fathom it, it is still very puzzling, and so it is an ideal screen for our projections.



Communication with all layers of psyche

• Since the dolphin has such an obvious & appealing element of intelligence, we want to communicate with it.

• The desire to communicate with another species is a deep and stirring urge in humans presumably because we want to "communicate" with all the layers of our own psyche.

• We know somehow those layers are in us, but we can't reach them except in unusual circumstances. And we miss our "wholeness" as a total creature of the evolutionary process without that contact.

• So if we could talk to the "dolphin-layer" of our own psyche, what would we find? We would find, among other things, that the non-human or nonverbal dimensions of communication are a potential source of great joy

(since we project "joy" into the dolphin, and this projected joy is very

"healing" to be around when we swim with dolphins).



Projection of our Potential

• For this process of communication to go forward, as Yoram points out, we would need a human ego able to register, or experience consciously, our dolphin life.

• That would mean a very flexible ego-consciousness, one that could experience &

“BRIDGE” the world of the human and the world of the dolphin simultaneously.

(Pari passu was a term Yoram often used, i.e. side by side) To know the dolphin in oneself would be to develop one's "intelligence-gathering apparatus" and

"flexibility of understanding" beyond the usual capacity of the "normal.“

• As both Jung and Yoram pointed out, the animal is the symbol par excellence of conscience, since it cannot be anything other than what it is (a dolphin cannot act like a camel and vice versa). When we act with true conscience (which is incredibly hard to do) we can't act against ourselves (e.g. try to be something we are not) or act against the spiritual dimension of the moment.


A Bridge to the Depths


(3)A Bridge to the Depths:

 This Bridge appears to be the most dominant Orient .

 Can the Dolphin be the Bridge between the surface and the deep; between the ego and the collective unconscious?

 Can dolphins somehow assist humans and bridge the gap that exists between what we know in our conscious minds and the vast ocean of the collective unconscious?

 The Dolphin will dive deep into the ocean to explore and be nourished, as do we when we return to the unconscious sea of our dreams.

 We can therefore see the Dolphin and its ocean as metaphors to our diving down into the realm of the collective unconscious, the deep mystery.



 Dolphins have intrigued humans for centuries. We seek each other out; humans drawn to dolphins and dolphins drawn to humans.

 Humans will have images of dolphins and sometimes encounter dolphins in the seas. These dolphins enter deep into the sea in a manner humans cannot.

 They come to the surface, breathe, then dive deep to “a place where something is generated”.

 If the sea is seen as the collective unconscious from a psyche perspective, perhaps the dolphin represents a sentient being or a vehicle in which one can go deep where a vital power exists.

 Perhaps the dolphin is a bridge between surface and sea; and our personal psyche’s surface and the collective psyche. From a psyche perspective, can the dolphin assist humans in swimming in the unconscious? The image of dolphins rescuing sailors or carrying humans recurs again and again in myth and folklore.



 Is there perhaps a transcendent function; a wisdom which transcends the consciousness of both human and dolphin? If Shamans have felt connected to dolphins throughout history, they must be tied to the mystery and the transcendental.

 Perhaps we can to delve into the collective psyche in order to experience and be open to trans-species connection and explore access vehicles such as dreams, active imagination, shamanic rituals, or holotropic breathwork.

 As discussed, it appears that Dolphins have potential sensitivity and readings of fields, such as bio-energy fields, earth magnetic fields, and acoustic fields.

 Perhaps evolving in water they are more sensitive to certain fields than humans. For example, while the human ear can distinguish about 30 clicks per second, dolphins can distinguish some 700 sonar clicks per second.

 Perhaps some type of communication field can be constellated between dolphin and human?


The Dolphin Archetype is:

 A Bridge

 A Bridge to our true Energy

 A Bridge to our Untapped Intelligence

 A Bridge which allows access to the Archetypes of the Ocean of the

Collective Psyche


 Humanity is a part of nature, a species that evolved among other species.

 Many times, we humans think we are separate from the rest of nature; this may contribute to our occlusion of animal fields such as the dolphin.





The more we identify ourselves with the rest of life, the more quickly we will be able to discover the sources of sensibility and acquire the knowledge on which an enduring ethic can be built.

Dr. Michael Conforti reminds us to be ethologists of the psyche and archetypes in the manner ethologists study animal patterns in the field. Ethology (from

Greek, ethos, "character"; and -logia , "the study of") is the scientific study of animal behavior.

• Einstein changed his mind so many times on so many subjects. That is a sign of a great scientist. A great scientist is not somebody who believes his own ideas; it is somebody who does not believe his own ideas. Einstein reminded us to be

“objective”; that what we don’t know is much more than what we know.



T

Thank you……


The Archetype of the Dolphin

The Dolphin in Mythology

Science/ Biology

Human Interactions (Trans-species

Human

Biomagnetism & Migration Patterns

Dolphin Acoustic Fields & Patterns

The Dolphin Archetype

•

2)

A Bridge to the Depths

Thank you……

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The Archetype of the Dolphin

The Dolphin in Mythology

Science/ Biology

Human Interactions (Trans-species

Human

Biomagnetism & Migration Patterns

Dolphin Acoustic Fields & Patterns

The Dolphin Archetype

•

2)

A Bridge to the Depths

Thank you……

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