Swan No. 1 by Hilma af Klint for Ania and Animus, the female and male spirit.

Animus and Anima - the male and female spirit

MotivAction!

Wholeness from the unity of opposites

New reality from the union of male and female

Reality has emerged from the unity of the ultimate opposites of male and female, spirit and matter. Coexistence and constructive interaction between the two opposing forces is only possible if there is something of the other in each. This is illustrated, for example, by the symbol of yin and yang. Animus and anima appear as the two points, white for spirit in matter, life itself; black for matter in spirit, conscious life in love.

The male and the female spirit

The two creative primal forces

Anima and animus are prototypes, archetypes or spiritual (pre)images of femininity (anima) and masculinity (animus) respectively. They therefore cover the entire spectrum of these two opposing energies.
They can interact positively to create love, devotion, new life and new reality or negatively to create struggle, power and death.

[S. Male and Female, the Two Primal Forces of Creation and Male and Female and the Creation of New Reality].

The Animus, FIRE - the male spirit, drive in the body

As the drive (FIRE) in matter (EARTH), the animus represents the male side of the spirit. As the "fire spirit" he thereby embodies active physical and impulse-giving energy, which sets matter and body in motion, be it through fiery passion or burning pain. He also symbolizes the inner man of the woman, her body drive and power.

The Anima, WATER - the female spirit, motivation of the soul

The Anima, the feminine side of the spirit, draws life (WATER) into the realm of the mind and the virtual world (into the AIR to ICE). She awakens fantasies and desires and motivates through ideas and ideals. She is the muse that inspires the artist, the high goal worth living and even dying for.

The Tree of Knowledge and the Tree of Life

The two spiritual powers correspond to the tree of knowledge(anima) and the "tree of life" (animus) respectively in a "paradisiacal garden" of twelve trees. (see for an overview The Wholeness of the Twelve and The Two Trees in Paradise).

Animus and Anima in the Realm of the Gods

Animus and Anima as gods 

Spiritual power and strength

Animus and anima are to be called "spirits" or "gods" because they are not tangible. Their power consists in the fact that they are spiritual complexes which move the human being as a drive or via inner images and imaginations.

Weighty archetypes

As primal types (archetypes) of the energetic opposites masculine and feminine, they appear in positive or negative form, depending on whether they appear in function of love or power.

In their collective meaning, Animus and Anima are represented by important archetypes such as CHRIST, the DEVIL or the FATHER or the VIRGIN, the MOTHER, the WHORE or the SNAKE.

Ambivalent: for good and for evil

The Anima - Goddess, Ideal Woman and the Dream of Men

The anima is the spiritual archetype of femininity, the "goddess."
She is able to draw man into the realm of the spirit, as Goethe put it in his Faust:

"The eternal feminine attracts us".

As a WHORE, however, it can bind the masculine to matter, and as a serpent it paralyzes and blinds.

The animus - drive and force in matter.

The Magic of Anima and Animus: Fire and Ice

Universal effect in matter

Animus and Anima are archetypes for the universal opposing forces male and female, which move matter as spirit-initiating factors. In the form of FIRE and ICE they influence the whole existence, namely all three levels of existence:

1. 1. Matter and earthly reality: ICE TIMES (Anima) or CLIMATE WARMING (Animus).
   2. SOUL - Relations between male and female (soul): Love or seduction (anima) on one side and suffering or passion (animus) on the other.
   3. SPIRIT - on the collective level (spirit): pure love (Christ and the Virgin) or power through seduction/delusion or suppression/violence (white and black magic / the whore and the beast).

Irresistible and dangerously magical

As long as man is not yet aware of these forces, they work hidden and with their negative energy and do their mischief from the shadows.

C.G. Jung wrote:

With the archetype of the anima we enter the realm of the gods, respectively the territory that metaphysics has reserved for itself. Everything that touches the anima becomes numinos, that is, unconditional, dangerous, taboo, magical. She is the serpent in the paradise of the harmless man full of good intentions and intentions.[1]

Animus and Anima in the guise of Maleficent and Conchita Wurst as the archetypes "Devil" and "Whore".

[S. The negative dynamics of the elements: FIRE AND ICE and Negative pair dynamics (basics).]

The encounter with the opposite sex

Animus and Anima - the third in the group

Animus and anima play an important role in the encounter with the opposite sex. They are the third party in the couple relationship.

The inner image of the opposite sex as a mental, driving factor

These inner images of masculinity and femininity are initially strongly influenced by mother and father. If a man meets a woman who unconsciously reminds him of his mother, he may fall in love, and the same applies vice versa: If a woman meets a man who treats her like her father, she may fall in love. However, this is a projection of one's own opposite-sex parts. However, this often falls apart again when one gets to know the other person properly (and realizes: "This person is not at all like ME ... thought". See The Projection of the Shadow).

[For more, see Animus and Anima in the Couple Relationship.]

The Animus as the inner man of the woman

Drive and relationship to the body

The animus as the drive in the woman's body is strongly determined by the mental, inner image she has of masculinity. This is shaped first by her father, second by the experiences she has had with her body and men, and not least by "inherited" ideas from her mother or grandmother and by the wider social consensus. All these factors decisively influence the way she encounters men (figure: woman's relationship triad).

• In its positive form (drive of love) the animus moves the woman to give herself body and soul for the life of others (see Woman as a life-giving vessel).
• In its negative form it drives her through negativity (pain and anger) into aggressive, dominant and power-oriented behavior or thereby activates her pain and death instinct (see The Pain Body of the Woman).

[For more see The Animus.]

The Anima as the inner woman of the man

Soul and relational capacity

The anima as the soul and relationship aspect of the man is strongly determined by the mental, inner image that the man has of femininity. This is shapedfirst by his mother,second by the experiences he has had with women, and last but not least by social ideas and ideals. All these factors have a decisive influence on the way a man encounters women (figure: man's relationship triad).

• In its positive form (pure love, "VIRGIN"), the anima moves the man to commit himself body and soul to a higher ideal (woman, family, vocation) and to embark on the heroic path to attain freedom of spirit ("CHRIST").
• In its negative form, the anima as a whore or serpent binds the man to body, matter and consumption. He will accordingly treat women as whores and want to consume and subjugate the great feminine, matter. The negative anima as a serpent tempts him to manipulate those around him through scheming behavior for the purposes of power (see The Fall of Man account in the Bible and The Mystery of the Serpent.).

[For more see The Anima.]

The integration of animus and anima

The Trial by Fire, a Fire Valley: The Path Through the Shadows

The integration of the opposite-sex parts is a prerequisite for the wholeness of the human being. As the masculine and feminine sides of the spirit, animus and anima are integrated in the trial by fire on the way through the underworld, the realm of shadows (the fifth phase of the hero 's path,see The Trial by Fire, Fifth Phase of the Hero's Path).

C.G. Jung wrote that the integration of the shadow (the inner child) is "child's play" compared to the integration of the opposite-sex personality parts:

If the confrontation with the shadow is the journeyman's piece, the one with the anima is the masterpiece. For the relationship with the anima is again a test of courage and a fire-ordal for the spiritual and moral powers of the man.[2]

The fire-ordal for the woman, on the other hand, is the confrontation with her own weakness and with the inner fiery body of pain that hides in the basement of her house of life.

The integration of the shadow sides of animus and anima

We continue with:

The integration of animus and anima
Anima and animus in negative form (white and black magic)
The negative dynamics of the elements: FIRE AND ICE (basics)
Anima and animus in the couple relationship
The "whore" and the "animal" (Animus and Anima in their collective aspect)

Evidence:

[1] C.G. Jung, Collected Works, Vol. I, "The Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious", p. 37, § 59

[2] C.G. Jung, Collected Works, Vol. 9/I, "The Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious", p. 38, § 61