Facing a great task, you reach the moment that decides: ruin or new life.

Carl Jung, Psychology of the Unconscious (1916), Part II, ch. VI 'The Battle for Deliverance from the Mother'

What it means

Before anything big there is a moment when you want to retreat to safety. Jung says that moment is the real test. Shrink back and you lose ground; push through and something new begins.

The source

"Facing a great task, you reach the moment that decides: ruin or new life." Carl Jung said it in Psychology of the Unconscious (1916), Part II, ch. VI 'The Battle for Deliverance from the Mother'. Translated by Beatrice M. Hinkle, 1916.

"Therefore, when some great work is to be accomplished, before which weak man recoils, doubtful of his strength, his libido returns to that source - and this is the dangerous moment, in which the decision takes place between annihilation and new life."

Beatrice M. Hinkle, 1916, Psychology of the Unconscious (1916), Part II, ch. VI 'The Battle for Deliverance from the Mother'. Text read at gutenberg.org.

Who said it

Carl Jung (1875–1961). Swiss psychiatrist who broke with Freud and founded analytical psychology. He mapped the persona, the shadow, the collective unconscious and the lifelong work of becoming yourself, which he called individuation. Our lines come only from his writings published before 1931, in our own translations from the German or in English translations of the time.

Questions

What does "Facing a great task, you reach the moment that decides: ruin or new life." mean?: Before anything big there is a moment when you want to retreat to safety. Jung says that moment is the real test. Shrink back and you lose ground; push through and something new begins.
Who said "Facing a great task, you reach the moment that decides: ruin or new life."?: Carl Jung (1875–1961). Source: Psychology of the Unconscious (1916), Part II, ch. VI 'The Battle for Deliverance from the Mother'.
What is the original wording?: Therefore, when some great work is to be accomplished, before which weak man recoils, doubtful of his strength, his libido returns to that source - and this is the dangerous moment, in which the decision takes place between annihilation and new life (Beatrice M. Hinkle, 1916). Translated by Beatrice M. Hinkle, 1916.
Is "Facing a great task, you reach the moment that decides: ruin or new life." on a shirt?: Yes. We print it to order on our tees in 6 illustrated looks, from $44, with free US shipping.

Cite this line

"Facing a great task, you reach the moment that decides: ruin or new life." (Carl Jung, Psychology of the Unconscious (1916), Part II, ch. VI 'The Battle for Deliverance from the Mother', trans. Beatrice M. Hinkle, 1916). https://spartansurfers.com/quotes/facing-a-great-task-you-reach-the-moment