Iron John: A Book About Men

by Robert Bly

When a contemporary man looks down into his psyche, he may, if conditions are right, find under the water of his soul, lying in an area no one has visited for a long time, an ancient hairy man. The mythological systems associate hair with the instinctive and the sexual and the primitive.

There’s a general assumption now that every man in a position of power is or will soon be corrupt and oppressive. Yet the Greeks understood and praised a positive male energy that has accepted authority. They called it Zeus energy, which encompasses intelligence, robust health, compassionate decisiveness, good will, generous leadership. Zeus energy is male authority accepted for the sake of the community.

Being brought to the water by a mentor means the end of enchantment. The Wild Man’s water does not itself heal the wound that led to the escape or ascension; but it gives strength to the part of us that wants to continue the effort to gain courage and be human.