Heather Buzbee

Dr. Watanabe
CLST 3090
4 May 2015
Persephone and Sitas Process of Individuation
Abstract:
Based on Marie Von Franzs process of individuation, this essay compares the abductions of
Persephone from the Hymn to Demeter to Sita from the Ramayana, in order to determine if and
how these women find their true Selves. Although their situations and cultures are different, both
women undergo abductions, deal with similar themes of marriage, death, and reunion with an
earth mother, and despite their ordeals find their true Selves.
In the Hymn to Demeter and the Ramayana, I will compare the abductions of Persephone
and Sita as processes of individuation through Jungian psychology. In both of the myths, these
female characters are prominent figures in a quest narrative in which they are abducted.
Although the circumstances surrounding their abductions are different with different outcomes,
these women negotiate their roles after the abductions and gain new honors in the end. Because
of these outcomes, the abductions appear to function more as calls to action than traumatic
experiences. Therefore, I will use Marie Von Franzs process of individuation to determine if and
how these women find their true Self after their abductions. In comparing the abductions of
Persephone and Sita in the Homeric Hymn to Demeter and the Ramayana through Marie Von
Franzs process of individuation, although these myths have different circumstances surrounding
the abductions, deal with different aspects of marriage, and hold different significance for each
culture, both women realize their true Selves in the end and deal with similar themes such as
marriage, death, and a reunion with an earth mother.
Marie Von Franz outlines the process of individuation based on Jungian psychology.
According to Carl Jung, through dreams, people can access their unconscious mind and become
aware of various aspects of themselves as individuals, which he named the process of

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individuation (Von Franz 160). That is to say, in this process, a person understands all the inner
aspects of themselves including unconscious attributes or impulses and in doing so, understands
their true Self or inner most psyche (Von Franz 196). Jung believed that myths were similar to
dreams and thus could be analyzed through this process as well (Watanabe Jung). Von Franz
defines this process through four main stages: the call to action, the shadow, the anima or
animus, and the realization of the Self (Von Franz 165-196). These four stages are what I will
use to determine how Persephone and Sita discover their true Selves.
According to Von Franz, first, the process of individuation starts with a call to action.
Von Franz claims the process, begins with a wounding of the personality and the suffering that
accompanies it. This initial shock amounts to a sort of call (166). For both women, their calls
to action are their abductions because the abductions wound their personalities and begin their
suffering. Persephones abduction is particularly shocking because she was calmly picking
flowers when Hades comes up out of the ground and takes her: She was dazzled and reached
out with both hands at once to take the lovely delight; Earth with its wide roads gapedson of
Kronos sprang out upon her (2.15-18). The Hymn particularly emphasizes Persephones
helplessness: Against her will he seized her and on his golden chariot carried her away as she
wailed (2.19-20). Because Persephone is taken against her will, not only is the abduction
shocking, but it also wounds her personality as she is faced with her powerlessness. And, just as
Von Franz describes, this call to action begins Persephones suffering. Persephone is separated
from her mother Demeter, and with Hades Hymn reveals: she was in many ways reluctant and
missed her mother (2.343-44). Additionally, Helene Foley also supports this reading of
individuation stating, separation from the mother represents the first phase of individuation

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(121). Thus, for Persephone, the abduction and separation from her mother is clearly a call to
action.
Likewise, while Sitas abduction is less shocking because the reader knows Ravanas
plan ahead of time, Sita is still outraged when Ravana suggests that she become his wife instead
of Ramas (Ramayana 279). This is also shocking because Sita is the ideal woman and the
reincarnation of Laksmi. Yet, Sita is still taken by Ravana, and like Persephone, she is also faced
with her helplessness and unable to save herself .The Ramayana claims that Sita cried out for
Rama and clung to the trees like a climbing vine to prevent Ravana from kidnapping her (283).
She even leaves some of her jewels among the monkeys sitting on a mountain, hoping they will
tell Rama of her abduction (Ramayana 284). However, like Persephone, Sita cannot save herself,
sustaining a wound to her personality and beginning her suffering. Sita suffers at the hands of
Ravana. The abduction itself is humiliating and painful since Ravana treats her roughly and even
drags her by the hair at one point (Ramayana 283). However, afterwards, Ravana also imprisons
Sita in the asoka grove where in the hands of the raksasia, Sita was like a doe surrounded by
tigers. Overwhelmed with grief and terrified by those ugly creatures, she found no peace
(Ramayana 289). As these examples demonstrate, for both women, being abducted is a call to
action because these abductions were shocking, wounded their personalities, and led to suffering.
Interestingly, both women are also picking flowers at the time of their distractions before
being abducted. Persephone is gathering flowersall over a soft meadow (2.6-7). Likewise,
Beautiful Sita, her own skin glowing like gold, watched the glittering deer as she gathered her
flowers (270). On the one hand, picking flowers could be seen as a care-free, innocent activity
to emphasize the violence of the abductions about to take place. This carefree activity fits with
Von Franzs process of individuation as well. Von Franz goes on to describe this call like a child

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who begins to understand the world; the call to action disrupts the innocent or carefree nature
with painful shocks (Von Franz 165). Therefore, picking flowers can signal Persephone and
Sitas innocent nature before the call to action. However, picking flowers is also symbolic. The
Homeric Hymn to Demeter directly relates Persephone to a flower: a girl with a flowers
beauty (2.9). And, in ancient Greek tradition, a meadow in particular symbolizes sexual
maturity. Bremer states that the Homeric Hymn to Demeter firmly establishes this tradition: of
the flowery meadow as a place of love, more specifically as a place where virginity finds its end
and fulfilment in sexuality (269). Therefore, for Persephone, picking flowers in the meadow
symbolizes sexual maturity and the readiness for a sexual encounter, even though the sexual
encounter she has is unwanted and violent. Based on this tradition of meadows, it is interesting
that Sita is depicted as also picking flowers because as a married woman, she is already sexually
mature. However, because Sita is not in a meadow per se and is from a different culture with
different traditions, for Sita, picking flowers may not mean the same thing1. Not to mention, the
flowers are Persephones distraction while Sita is distracted by a golden deer. Regardless,
picking flowers for both women illustrates how they are both easily swayed by beauty and
desire, which signals their care-free before their abductions.
After the call to action, the character encounters the shadow. According to Von Franz,
In dreams and myths, the shadow appears as a person of the same sex as that of the dreamer
(169). Von Franz also claims that the shadow is the opposite side of the ego and to embody just
those qualities that one dislikes most in other people (173). Unfortunately, in the Homeric
Hymn to Demeter, although the main conflict is Persephones abduction, there is not much

Perhaps, this could still foreshadow an upcoming sexual encounter or perhaps a readiness for a sexual encounter
that will finally produce offspring since after her abduction, Sita gets pregnant with Ramas twin boys. Or, for both
Persephone and Sita, this could be subtle foreshadowing that, like the flowers, these women are about to be
plucked away.

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information on Persephone or her point of view. Because the text does not reveal much of
Persephones ego or her personality, it is thus difficult to identify her shadow. Based on the text,
Persephones shadow could be Demeter because they are the same gender. Additionally,
Demeter could be seen as the opposite side of Persephones ego since Demeter is her mother,
and, therefore, older and more powerful. In fact, Jung talks about the idea of daughters living
through their mothers and vice versa: every mother contains her daughter in herself and every
daughter her mothera woman lives earlier as a mother, later as a daughter (Jung 225).
Therefore, according to Jung, Persephone and Demeter are natural opposites of each other and
live through one another. Persephones wails during her abduction also call her mother into
action: her mighty mother heard her.rushed like a bird over nourishing land and the sea,
searching (2.39,43-44). Persephones cries awaken Demeter just as the shadow would be
realized after the call to action. However, as far as qualities that Persephone denies in herself and
Demeter has is hard to determine. Perhaps, the ignorance in her own marriage plans or even the
helpless of being a rape victim2 since Dobson points out that Demeter was also raped (47).
However, without knowing more about Persephones personality, this is a stretch in the analysis,
and, as I will address later, this is not a satisfying shadow and proves to be problematic. Still,
with this little information on Persephone, Demeter could be read as the possible shadow.
Sitas shadow, on the other hand, is much easier to identify. While Sita is viewed as the
ideal woman, in the text Kaikeyi is condemned as a bad woman for forcing Rama into the forest
and her son on the throne. Therefore, Kaikeyi can be viewed as the opposite side of Sitas ego

Jung points out that Demeter was also raped by Zeus then by Poseidon later: [Demeter] is wroth because of the
rape of her daughter and at the same time because of the marriage by rape which she herself had to undergo. In
the legend that comes down to us it is said that she was overpowered by Poseidon while looking for her ravished
daughter. This mythological elaboration doubles the rape (171). While the episode with Poseidon is not in the
text, Demeter could have been raped by Zeus before, and this attribute is something that Persephone wanted to
deny about herself. However, this is stretching the analysis.

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and Sitas shadow. Although Kaikeyi is not in the forest at the time of Sitas abduction, she is the
one who forces Rama and consequently Sita out into the forest (117-121). Because Kaikeyi
commits this act, she is condemned: cruel woman, this despicable creature who has brought this
terrible calamity (Ramayana 120). However, although Sita could be viewed as Kaikeyis
opposite, she too exhibits some of the qualities that Kaikeyi possesses. When Sita gets angry
because Rama will not let her go into the forest with him, she yells at him to take her with him
(142-43) just as Kaikeyi speaks harshly to the king to get her will (121). Kaikeyi also threatens to
kill herself in front of the king if he refuses her (120). Likewise, when Sita is trying to convince
Laksmana to leave her and help Rama, Sita also threatens to kill herself: I shall kill myself in
front of you right now! (274). This greedy side of Sita also comes out in her willfulness to
obtain the golden deer that is sent to distract her and Rama. She states I know it is inappropriate
for a woman to speak cruelly like this out of greed, but the deers magnificent body has me
completely enthralled (270-71). Here, even Sita admits that she should not speak or feel this
way, but she does, which clearly illustrates that these are qualities that she denies in herself but
are still present. Therefore, because Kaikeyi is Sitas opposite but Sita still possesses some of the
same qualities she dislikes in Kaikeyi, as Von Franz outlines, Kaikeyi is evidently Sitas shadow.
After the shadow is the realization of the animus, or the man within. According to Von
Franz, the animus exhibits four different stages of development3 and can be either negative or
positive. Persephones animus is Hades because he takes Persephone and is the male character in
the story who interacts with her the most. Because he violently abducts Persephone, he is
perceived as the first level animus, representing mere physical power by exerting his brute

The animus appears in four different forms according to Von Franz. The first level is the personification of mere
physical power, such as TarzanIn the next stage he possesses initiative and the capacity of planned action, such
as Ernest HemingwayIn the third phase, the animus becomes the word, often appearing as a professor or
clergyman. Finally, the animus is the incarnation of meaning, such as Gandhi (Von Franz 194).

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strength. He is also a negative animus because he acts violently out of lust. Von Franz even
refers to Hades specifically in her analysis claiming, psychologically he represents a particular
form of animus that lures women away from all human relationships and especially from all
contacts with real men. He personifies a cocoon of dreamy thoughts, filled with desire and
judgements about how things ought to be which cuts a woman off from the reality of life
(191). By taking Persephone into the underworld, he cuts her off from her mother and the reality
of her life as a goddess as Foley also points out, Gods cannot die and normally do not
experience the limitations imposed by mortal marriage. But, Persephones marriage with Hades
who lives in a world inaccessible to mortals and immortals alike (88). Additionally, according
to Von Franz, the negative animus is usually a demon of death (189). This further justifies a
reading of Hades as a negative animus since he is the Lord of the Underworld and could be
perceived as a demon of death.
However, Hades is not all bad. He offers Persephone great honors in the end for
becoming his wife: I shall not be an unfitting husband among the immortals, as I am father
Zeuss own brother (2.363-64). Because Hades offers Persephone the position of queen of the
Underworld with honors and sacrifices as well as to be the wife of Zeuss brother, he seems more
like a positive animus as Von Franz claims, the animus does not merely consist of negative
qualities.He too has a very positive sidethat can build a bridge to the Self through his
creative activity (193). According to the process of individuation, Hades also becomes more
positive because Persephone initially refuses him. Von Franz states, If she realizes who and
what her animus is and what he does to her, and if she faces these realities instead of allowing
herself to be possessed, her animus can turn into an invaluable inner companion (194). The
Hymn reveals that Persephone refused Hades because she was in many ways reluctant and

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missed her mother (2.344). Therefore, by wrestling with her animus and not allowing herself to
be violently possessed by him, Hades evolves into the next level of animus and becomes more
positive, giving Persephone the means to become queen of the Underworld and closer to her
Self.
Like Persephone, Sitas animus is both negative and positive, but unlike Persephone, Sita
has two animus, one negative and one positive. Sitas first animus is Ravana, the king of the
rakasasis. Like Hades, he is the first level animus and negative because steals Sita away from
reality and hides her from all other men. Ravana even states, Let no man or woman see Sita
without my permission! (285). He represents the characteristics of the negative animus that Von
Franz outlines -- brutuality, recklessness, empty talk, and evil ideas -- by kidnapping Sita and
bringing on the wrath of Rama (Von Franz 193). He also represents mere physical power not
only in his abduction but also in his lust after Sita. Ravana states, I burn with desire for you,
submit to me! (287). He is even a demon of death like Hades. Ravana is described, as
terrifying as Death (280) and the raksasa who looked like Death (283). However, Sita firmly
refuses Ravana when he first proposes to her (278), when Ravana first takes her to his palace
(289), and the entire time she is locked up in his garden, illustrating her purity and rejection of
the negative animus, just as Persephone rejects Hades at first. In doing so, Sita is then rescued by
her husband, Rama, a more positive animus with more positive attributes, such as initiative,
courage, objectivity, and spiritual wisdom (194). Rama represents the second level animus
because he demonstrates initiative and planned action in coming to kill Ravana and rescue Sita4.
Unlike Ravana, Rama is clearly Sitas other half: The marriage between Rama and Sita which
united the son of a royal sage with the noblest of princesses was like the union of Visnu, the lord

It is hard to say what level Rama is exactly because he is the ideal man and a god he could even be the last one,
but his rejection of Sita does not make him seem like a clergyman or professor or endowed with spiritual wisdom.

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of all men, with the illustrious Laksmi (98). Just as Sita is seen as the ideal woman, Rama is
seen as the ideal man (Hess 5). Thus, Rama is clearly Sitas animus and more positive than
Ravana, able to endow her with more positive attributes and help her become closer to her Self.
Although Rama is more positive of the two animus, he is problematic because he
continuously tests and rejects Sita. According to Von Franz, the positive animus is supposed to
be an invaluable inner companion (193) and build a bridge to the Self through his creative
activity (194). However, when Rama tests Sita twice and banishes her because of gossip, he
seems more like a threat to her self-worth than an inner companion supporting her on her journey
to her Self. In fact, Linda Hess quotes a modern one-act play in which Sita states, This king you
all worship is a cruel, heartless tyrant. For the sake of his glory, he wants to sacrifice your
queenRemember me not as a goddess of virtue, but as a defenceless woman, fighting for her
self-respect (Hess qtd. Snehalata Redday 18). This modern interpretation illustrates that other
readers also interpret Ramas actions as disrespectful to Sita, rather than helpful. However, while
the text claims that Rama and Sita go together as a pair, in order for Sita to complete the process
of individuation, she must part from Rama in the end. Von Franz claims, If an individual has
wrestled seriously enough and long enough with the animus problem so that she is no longer
partially identified with it, the unconsciousappears in a new symbolic form, representing the
Self (196). According to Von Franz, Sita has to wrestle with Rama in order to no longer be
partially identified by him and attain her Self.
Now, some scholars such as Linda Hess, argue that Sita is allowing herself to be
possessed by Rama because Sita is acting out Ramas will in these tests. Linda Hess claims, The
Sita who clung to the dharma of worshipping her husband and bowing to his will, even when he
repeatedly and cruelly rejected her (27). However, Sita acts against Ramas will and does not let

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herself be possessed by him. When Rama questions Sitas faithfulness after first rescuing her, he
banishes her from him, and Sita refuses and asks for the trial of fire: Build a funeral pyre for
meThat is the only solution I see to this terrible calamity that has befallen me! I cannot bear to
live under these false accusations! (635). Of course, after Sita passes the test and is carried out
by the fire god, Rama reveals this is what he meant to do all along, but still, Sita demands the
trial herself and is honored by the gods for her faithfulness. And, although Sita allows Rama to
banish her from society afterwards, when he tests her the second time, he claims he will then
take her back if she passes: When Sita proves her innocence before the world I shall be able to
love her again (677). However, Sita rejects him and his will by allowing the earth goddess,
Madhavi, to take her away instead (678). Thus, the tests that Rama enacts for Sita allow her to
wrestle with him, suffer, and discover her Self. Once Sita is abandoned by Rama, she is then free
from her animus and can begin to find herself.
Finally, after the call to action and realization of the shadow and animus, the character
can realize the Self. Von Franz claims that for women the Self is personified asa priestess,
sorceress, earth mother, or goddess of nature or love (196). At the end of the Hymn, Persephone
reunites with her mother Demeter, who is a goddess of nature. Therefore, Demeter is the
representation of Persephone realizing her true Self. It is evident that Persephone grows as a
person by gaining a worthy husband, becoming the queen of another realm, goddess of
Mysteries, and still identified with her mother. However, Persephone does not fit into Von
Franzs process flawlessly. It is problematic that Demeter is both Persephones shadow and her
Self. Additionally, according to Von Franz, Persephone is supposed to no longer be identified
with her shadow and animus. However, Persephones identity as both Demeters daughter and
Hades wife grants her significance. Helene Foley states, Persephones rolecreates a new

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relation between earth, Olympus (heaven), and Hades (the world of the dead below) by linking
them for the first time in her own person, as wife of Hades and daughter of Demeter (82). Being
identified with both her husband and her mother gives her freedom to be more of herself as two
halves of a whole and the link between the Heaven and the Underworld for mortals. Therefore,
while Persephone does not fit Von Franzs process perfectly, it is clear that Persephone still
realizes her true Self.
Likewise, Sita also realizes her true Self through the earth mother or goddess of nature,
Madhavi. When Rama asks Sita to return to him after her banishment, she calls forth the earth
goddess to prove her purity. When Madhavi comes, she takes Sita away proving not only Sita
purity but also the manifestation of her Self according to Von Franz. In doing so, Sita gains great
honors as well: The goddess of earth lifted Sita in her arms and with all due honor, she placed
her on the throne. Heavenly beings showered Sita with blossomsWell done! cried the gods
with delight, Such a thing is worthy only of someone like you, Sita! (678). Like Persephone,
Sita can be read as returning to her earth mother since Sita was born from the earth: when I was
ploughing the sacrificial grounds in order to clean them up, the blade of my plough turned up a
little girl. This child who was born from the earth has grown up as my daughter and she is known
in the world as Sita (79). Therefore, in the end, in passing the test, wrestling with her animus,
and no longer partially identified with him, Sita is granted new honors5 and attains her true Self.
Although both women realize their true Selves after their abductions, the situations
surrounding these abductions are very different. Persephone was unmarried and promised to
Hades. Therefore, although Persephones abduction is upsetting to Demeter, to the other gods,
this was a marriage contract as Helios tells Demeter: Zeus who gave her to Hades (2.78-79).

After her abduction, Sita also gains the title of mother by having Ramas twins. Just as Persephone takes on a new
role as Hades wife, Sita takes on a new role as a mother.

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Sita, on the other hand, was already married to the ideal man, is described as the ideal woman,
and is the reincarnation of the goddess Laksmi, Visnus lover. Sitas abduction is therefore
problematic because she is taken from her husband and despite being the ideal woman and a
goddess, her faithfulness and purity are questioned. This is problematic not only in the text,
which is evident when Rama and the kingdom banish Sita but also to modern readers, like Hess,
who are confused by the ideal mans treatment of the ideal woman (5). Thus while Persephone
gains new honors, a husband, a renowned place among the gods, and her own prayers and
sacrifices, Sita is rejected by her husband and society and is only accepted by the gods. Because
of the different situations, these myths also deal with different aspects of marriage. Persephones
story deals with the separation of the mother and daughter when the daughter is married off
while Sita deals with being separated from her husband, questions to her faithfulness, and what it
means to be treated like a base woman who can be stolen away6.
Yet, although these myths are from two different cultures, both of these two abduction
tales have similar patterns in dealing with women, marriage, and fertility, and in fact, fit in
Helene Foleys idea of a female quest. Helene Foley defines the female quest as, issues relating
to marriage and fertility [rather than] the male quest by war and kingshipthe female quest
[ends] with a cyclical reunion and separation that also mitigates death (104). Both marriage
and fertility are key themes, but interestingly, the abductions focus more on death and reunion.
Both women are taken by demons of death and both are in liminal spaces that are similar to
death. By being taken to the Underworld, Persephone experiences not only a mortal marriage but
also death, and the Underworld is a liminal space where no other gods or mortals can enter and is

However, Sita also gains fertility after her abduction while Persephone never has children. This could also be
because of the different focuses of the narratives themselves and the values held by each society. Because Sita
was already married, the next honor she would receive is the title of mother. Persephone, on the other hand, is
newly married and queen of the Underworld.

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separate from Persephones usual reality. Likewise, the forest is a liminal space in the Indian
tradition. Parkhill points out that the actions surrounding going to the forest mimic a kind of
death as the characters are then separated from the civilized world, the change of clothes in both
instances marks the end of one state of existence and previews the next. In both cases, the
clothes-changers are experiencing a kind of death to a world they have known (135). And, in
the end, both Persephone and Sita are reunited with their loved ones and return to their earth
mothers. Just as Foley describes, after undergoing a kind of death, there is also an idea of a cycle
and returning back to the mother7.
Both narratives did not fit Von Franzs outline flawlessly; however, the patterns did fit
enough to detect the self-growth and determine whether these women end up finding themselves
in the end. Although there were different circumstances, this comparison is interesting because
the similarities between Sita and Persephone go beyond just being abducted. Despite being from
different cultures, both narratives have similar patterns in dealing with uniquely female issues
such as marriage, fertility, and returning to the mother, just as Helene Foley describes. This is
also rather terrifying that these women also have to deal with violent issues such as abductions
and death in the process. It is important to keep in mind that these abductions functioned for
different purposes within each text and culture; yet, for both cultures, there are similar patterns
and ideas, perhaps to encompass the female experience in general, and to show that beyond
cultural differences, women encounter similar problems. What is exciting about using the
process of individuation as a base for analysis is that this comparison illustrates that these texts
with female protagonists can also be about more than just getting married and having babies,
getting kidnapped and facing death. These texts can also illustrate how these women faced their
7

This also makes sense in terms of Jungian analysis too because Jung claims that the mothers live through the
daughters and daughters live through their mothers. Thus, it would make sense through Jungian analysis that both
women realize their true Selves in the reunion with their mother.

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problems with grace and determination and not only gained new honors for themselves, but they
also defined and found their true Selves.

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Works Cited
Bremer, J.M. The Meadow of Love and Two Passages in Euripides Hippolytes. Mnemosyne
28.3 (1975) 268-280. JSTOR. Web. 11 April 2015.
Foley, Helene. The Homeric hymn to Demeter: translation, commentary, and interpretive
essays. (Princeton UP 1994).
Hess, Linda. Rejecting Sita: Indian Responses to the Ideal Mans Cruel Treatment of His Ideal
Wife. Journal of the American Academy of Religion 67 (1999): 1-32. JSTOR. Web. 24
March 2015.
Parkhill, Thomas. Going To the Forest: The Case of the Pandavas. Annals of the Bhandarkar
Oriental Research Institute. 67.1 (1986) 133-138. JSTOR. Web. 11 April 2015.
The Homeric Hymn. Trans. Apostolos N. Athanassakis. (Baltimore and London: The Johns
Hopkins University Press. 2004).
Valmiki. The Ramayana. Trans. Arshia Sattar. (New York: Penguin Books, 2000).
Von Franz, Marie-Louise. "The process of individuation." Man and his symbols 164 (1964).
Watanabe, Albert. Jung. CLST 3090. Louisiana State University. Spring 2015.

Copyright Heather Buzbee 2015