Genesis is the very first book of the Bible. Most people think of it as either ancient history or an old religious myth. But what if it’s something more?

What if it’s also an example of a map of the human mind?

Carl Jung, the psychologist who talked about the shadow and the journey toward wholeness, believed myths tell us about our inner world. If you look at Genesis with that concept in mind, it stops feeling like some dusty old story or just religious dogma and starts looking like a script we’re all still acting out in politics, on social media, even in pop culture.

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“CREATION”: Before Life Gets Messy

Genesis starts with God bringing order from chaos, light from dark, sky from sea, male from female.

Jung would call this the Self: a place of balance and wholeness. Think of it like the world we lived in as a kid before we realized how messy things can get.

It’s like the honeymoon phase in a relationship or the early days of social media, when everything felt perfect. But eventually…”reality” inevitably shows up.

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Waking Up to Yourself

Eve eats the fruit, Adam does’t stop her, and suddenly they’re aware of themselves. They feel exposed and ashamed.

This is the birth of the ego and with it, the shadow (the parts of ourselves we try to hide).

It’s kind of like the moment you get your first Instagram account. At first, you’re just having fun. But then you notice: people are watching. Suddenly, you start curating, hiding your flaws, only showing what gets likes. That can be paralleled to being tossed from Eden…

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Cain and Abel: Envy Online

Cain kills Abel because he can’t handle rejection. He doesn’t face his own envy, he lashes out.

Sound familiar? You see it online every day: cancel culture, toxic comment sections, anonymous rage on Reddit. Instead of dealing with our feelings, we attack. Cain may be ancient, but he’s still alive. Only now he’s on Tik Tok.

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The Flood: When Chaos Takes Over

The world (even our inn er world) grows violent and corrupt. The flood wipes everything away.

This is what happens when the shadow overwhelms us. On a personal level, it’s a breakdown, a burnout, a full-on mental health crash.

On a bigger scale? Think global pandemics, climate disasters, or political chaos. The flood is when life feels out of control. The ark is whatever routines, values, or relationships keep you afloat until the waters settle.

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Babel: The Ego on Overdrive

People build a tower to reach heaven. God scatters them.

This is ego inflation, thinking we’re untouchable. It’s tech billionaires talking about living forever or colonizing Mars. It’s AI companies saying they’ll “connect the world,” while everyone just argues more and gets spied on.

The Tower of Babel isn’t only an ancient myth It’s in all of us. It’s every empire, every startup, every “big idea” that gets too big for its own good.

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Abraham: The Leap of Faith

Abraham leaves his home because he feels called to something bigger.

That’s the start of the hero’s journey. Today, it’s the person who quits a safe job to chase a dream. It’s the immigrant who leaves everything for a new life. It’s anyone who listens to that inner voice that whispers: You’re meant for more.

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Jacob: Wrestling in the Dark

Jacob spends his life hustling, cheating, and running. Then one night, he wrestles with a mysterious figure until morning. He comes out limping, but changed.

That’s what it feels like to face your shadow. For us, it looks like therapy, recovery, or those nights when you can’t sleep because you’re battling your own demons.

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Joseph: Redemption and Wholeness

Joseph is betrayed, enslaved, and imprisoned. But he rises to power and forgives the brothers who sold him out.

That’s integration. Going through chaos, climbing back out, and making peace with every part of yourself even the ones that once hurt you.

Joseph’s story is every redemption arc you’ve seen: Tony Stark in The Avengers, Zuko in Avatar: The Last Airbender, or Taylor Swift turning heartbreak into billion-dollar art. David and Goliath. Harry Potter. Literally EVERY good redemtion movie ever.

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Why Genesis Still Speaks

Seen through Jung’s eyes, Genesis isn’t just some old story or even just bilbical… it’s the story of all of us.

• Creation → Before things get messy.
• Fall → Becoming self-aware.
• Cain → Envy and cancel culture.
• Flood → Chaos and breakdowns.
• Babel → Tech ego trips.
• Abraham → Taking risks.
• Jacob → Wrestling with your demons.
• Joseph → Redemption.

Genesis isn’t the story of the world’s beginning…

It’s the story of being human.

-Adam Niall