The graphic above is one I created to express my strong belief in the innate, inextinguishable spark of fiery potential humans have for rising above their limitations and transcending the ashes of death. Even though the bird in the graphic is an Eagle and not a Swan, the two are very interchangeable and fitting for the "Ugly Duckling" story. Both provide validation for the universal theme found in religion, mythology, and folklore that positive change and transformation can arise from the ashes.
The beloved folk tale by Hans Christian Anderson, Danish poet and author, was published in 1845 and since then has been told innumerable times in many languages. Wikipedia lists some of the different language translations for this tale of adversity, darkness, and ultimate transformation:
Undoubtedly, there are a myriad of other related titles in many different languages by which this universal tale of spiritual growth has been known and told. But why has this story persevered in its popularity? What is it about the Ugly Duckling that captures our hearts and imagination?
It is worth going back and re-reading the short text of the Ugly Duckling if you have not done so recently. One of many sites you can find it is:
Apparently, Hans Christian Andersen's tale of the power of positive transformation was autobiographical. Writers have commented upon his own experiences of being a tall, gangly person who suffered teasing and abuse and a feeling of not fitting in. Some have speculated that he was the illegitimate offspring of Danish crown prince Christian Frederik, hence the story can also be understood as a metaphor of struggling to reclaim his rightful royal heritage. In any case, Andersen succeeds in capturing a theme of the potential of humans to grow beyond adversity and achieve dignity and transformation to higher levels of functioning.
In the story, our newborn hero, the misplaced swan in the midst of a clutch of duck eggs, enters life with the distinct disadvantage of "being different." In many instances, the Hero figure of folktales and mythology starts life in this exact manner - immediately challenged and burdened with the awful burden of "self-consciousness" - the human ego. This trait is, of course, at once "blessing" and "curse." "Why am I here?" "Am I special in any way?" "Is this barnyard existence all there is?" "Is there some higher meaning for the suffering I've known?" "Can I become something more?" "Does the ember of possibility of Beauty exist within the ashes of rejection and death?"
We cannot escape the fact that, for better or worse, we are born into life with the distinct ability to discern and judge ourselves; to compare ourselves with others and of course to experience emotion. The Hero is in all of us, but only those prepared to engage in a long, arduous, and uphill spiritual pilgrimage to find our true identity as the duckling did, can hope to realize the transcendant identification with our higher destiny and identity. The Swan is used frequently in folklore and mythology as a robust metaphor for the realized higher potential of the human spirit and so is fittingly used in the Ugly Duckling tale.
In the Ugly Duckling story, our young little Hero is shown to be loved and accepted by his mother - an indication of the amazing, encompassing potential of maternal affection and enduring compassion. But in the world, the duckling finds only rejection, humiliation, and abuse. Many who experience these kinds of trauma in their lives will certainly be able to deeply feel and identify with the lonliness and pain expressed in the lines of this tale as well as the enduring hope for healing and positive transformation. Additionally, many will rightly see in this story the tragic tendency homo sapiens have had and still have, to ostrasize those who are different - those deemed inferior by race, gender, sexual preference, ethnicity, or socio-economic status. The tragic footprints of racism, xenophobia, homophobia, and genocide are clearly etched upon the winding path of human civilization and history. This dark and persistent tendency of our species is a powerful way to frame the ugliness of the concept "Ugly Duckling."
There is another level of identification and meaning worth considering. All good mythology and folk-tale telling holds up a mirror and allows us to look inside something universal and reflective. The mirror of story telling provides an opportunity for us to connect to our soul - to join the march of countless others who have felt the stirrings of the Phoenix within the limiting ashes of their temporal life in the flesh.
Relevance & deeper meanings: In the Ugly Duckling, our Hero is shown to be bullied by siblings, barnyard animals, circumstances, and humans. We usually read the story and interpret these anti-hero/villain figures as the authority figures, parents, culture and others who have mistreated us in our lives. Certainly that is a valid level of understanding and interpretation. But what a wonderful vista that unfurls when we read this story and many other stories from religious and mythological disciplines with the knowledge that the anti-hero/villain figures can respresent our own negative tendencies. What if it is not really others with the power to continually hold us down and back, but ourselves? What would we do if we had the power to grant ourselves "Swan" or "Eagle" status and rise above our own self-imposed limitations.
The disciplines of psychology and psychotherapy teach us that it is very human to project our own personal longings, unmet needs, and darkness onto others. This "projection" mechanism is not inherently bad and serves to protect us from truths about ourselves that we are not yet ready to admit or comprehend. However, at some point in our spiritual growth and development, a time will arise when this level of function will be experienced as unsatisfactory. Just as in the Ugly Duckling story, a deeper consciousness will arise and inform the Hero that perhaps our own actions, choices, and karma have played a role in bringing us to exactly where we are now. We begin to understand that the so-called "bad guys" in the Ugly Duckling story can symbolize the self-destructive forces within ourselves. As the old line goes, "I have seen the enemy and they are us." In more modern parlance, it is the same moment expressed by Darth Vader saying "Luke, I AM YOUR FATHER..." and Luke's horrified retort: "NOOOOO!"
Knowledge of our self-defeating, destructive ego-based patterns is not easy to come by of course. Like the Ugly Duckling, there is a long, uphill pilgrimage involved. Our status as a student in the School of Hard Knocks is affirmed continually. We seek and find support from wise others, mentors, who have already navigated this confounding duckling-to-Swan path. We grown in knowledge and as the saying goes, "Knowledge is power." We come to also understand another saying, "A little knowledge is a dangerous thing." We come to understand that whatever our particular level of spiritual growth and knowledge is, it is only a "little" of the awe-inspiring mystery that is life. We grow more tolerant of our own human weaknesses and hence, of our brothers and sisters as well. We learn to forgive those who have hurt us and see that our own ego and self-destructive qualities have played a role in the path designed to teach us about our higher purpose and destiny. We gain the qualities of tolerance and patience. In short, we begin degree by degree to transform into the Swan - the symbol of grace, compassion, and love. We see the plight of others suffering from the weight of discrimination, rejection, and trauma as our own story. An excitement begins to build in realizing that the diversity of religion, philosophy, and culture on this planet is a wonderful thing - something to celebrate and learn.
In all stories of the Hero's journey of trials as the Ugly Duckling, the scene of rejoining the Swans symbolizes our return to the world of existence as a fragment/spark of the Spirit residing in the world of material flesh. We are indeed and will continue to be "the marriage or union of Earth and Sky." We are an unlikely but undeniable partnership of evanescant, ephemeral fire of invisible divinity married to the temporal, mortal ashes of humanity. The Phoenix Swan-Eagle arises from defeat. The Sacred Fire is rekindled and holds out to us the hope and promise of a spark - only one is needed - that can rekindle our own potential and continued upward growth toward our higher destiny as human beings.
Keith Overstreet November 3, 2010
Dearest W.K.....wonderful, wonderful. Congratulations on the big leap! Love and Light ♥♥♥
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