The Thinker

We have probably all seen a picture of Rodin's sculpture,
"The Thinker".
"The Thinker" is a naked man sitting on a rock. The elbow of his
right arm rests upon his left thigh while his chin rests upon the
fingers of his right hand. "The Thinker" is deep in Thought.
The Symbolism contained within this sculpture is quite interesting.
Symbolically, the Head represents that portion of the body where
the Mind resides. The Mind is directly connected to Spirit which is
connected to Divinity. Therefore the Mind is Divinity.
(See: Mind, Body And Spirit).
The chin of the Head of "The Thinker" rests upon his right arm
which, in turn, rests upon his left thigh. This is an unusual and
uncomfortable position for someone to assume while in a state of
Thought. Normally, our chin would rest upon our right arm which
would then rest upon our right thigh. Or, our chin would rest
upon our left arm which would then rest upon our left thigh.
However, Rodin, in his sculpture, chose the uncomfortable position
of having the right arm of "The Thinker" rest upon the left thigh!
But, Why?
When we consider this posture within the context of Symbolism we
get our answer. The right arm resting on the left thigh Symbolizes
the Union Of Duality. The right side of our body, which is the
Masculine side of our Nature, represents Reason while the left side
of our body, which is the Feminine side of our Nature, represents
Intuition.
Crossing, and thereby uniting, the right side of the body with the
left side of the body Symbolizes the Interaction, and Union, of
Masculine Reason with Feminine Intuition. This Interaction of
Reason with Intuition is a Union Of Duality. This is the same
Symbolism which can be represented by both The Cross or the
letter X, which also represent the Union Of Duality.
Therefore, the posture of "The Thinker" reminds us of our Dual
Nature: Masculine and Feminine, Reason and Intuition, Logic and
Feeling, Intellect and Insight.
In order for our Mind (our head) to reach a balanced solution to
whatever matter it is that we are contemplating, we must allow
our Mind to rest upon, and use equally, both the Masculine and
Feminine side of our Nature. In other words, we must use our
Divine Faculties of Reason and Intuition, in equal amounts, if we
expect to make True and Wise decisions.
Finally, the sculpture of "The Thinker" is naked. Nakedness,
Symbolically, represents openness, the exposed, the unhidden,
the completely revealed. In other words, nakedness represents
Truth.
Truth has no reason to hide. Truth has nothing to be ashamed of.
Truth has nothing to fear. Truth is Truth and it is all around us.
It is up to us to seek It out, recognize It and understand It when
It presents Itself to us.
Therefore, the sculpture of "The Thinker" reminds us that it is
only by using both the Masculine and Feminine Aspects of our
Nature, in equal Balance, that we are able to uncover the Truth
and Wisdom contained within any matter that we are contemplating.

(Image via Wikipedia)

***If you found this article helpful or informative,
please forward it to other like-minded persons.
Thank you.***

New Age, Spirituality, Religion and Philosophy
© copyright Joseph Panek 2009