The Dew
Ros, the heavenly moisture
Grace falling in silence from above.
The Dew: what does it mean in analytical psychology?
In the Rosarium woodcuts dew falls from a cloud on the dead body of the united pair, washing it white: the ablutio, which heralds the return of the soul. Jung read the falling dew as the grace that comes from beyond the ego’s effort.
The alchemists gathered dew in spring on linen cloths as the purest of waters, the moisture of heaven itself.
The Dew: where does it appear in myth and tradition?
Gideon’s fleece, wet with dew when the ground was dry, read as the Virgin; the manna that came with the dew; the dew of Hermon in the Psalm.
From the Sources
Through Hosea the Lord promises to be as the dew to Israel, who will grow as the lily.
“I will be as the dew unto Israel: he shall grow as the lily, and cast forth his roots as Lebanon.”
The King James Version of the Bible, Hosea 14:5. Project Gutenberg eBook #10. The text, read in part
In the old 'Parabola' that Silberer reproduces, vapours condense in the night into a lovely and fruitful dew, which falls very early in the morning, moistening the earth and washing the dead bodies.
“They were condensed in the night in a lovely and very fruitful dew, which very early in the morning fell and moistened the earth and washed our dead corpses”
Dr. Herbert Silberer, Problems of Mysticism and its Symbolism, Part I, Section I, 'The Parable', section 15. Translated by Smith Ely Jelliffe, M.D., Ph.D.; New York: Moffat, Yard and Company, 1917 (Internet Archive OCR text). The text, read in part
Each passage is quoted from the text named, which the press fetched and read, and was checked word for word against a fresh copy of it; the link opens that copy. Passages are given as printed, without the editors’ footnote numbers, and with words broken across lines joined.
Where to Read
- “The Psychology of the Transference,” CW 16
Jung’s writings are cited by the volume of the Collected Works (CW), Bollingen Series / Princeton, 1953–79.
Related Symbols
In the Glossary: Albedo.
Also among The Elements
“Learn as much as you can about symbolism; then forget it all when you are analysing a dream.”
Cite This Entry
“The Dew.” In Symbols of the Psyche, the Symbolarium. The Thinking Press, 2026. https://thethinkingpress.org/symbolarium/psyche/dew.
Symbols That Share Its Terms
Nearby in the alphabet: The Desert: The empty place of trial and revelation. The Devil: The adversary, and the dark fourth. Dionysus: Ecstasy, intoxication, and the dissolving of every boundary. Dismemberment: Torn apart, to be put together anew.