Many possible roads. Only one is your own.

What it means

There are always many lives you could lead. Only one fits who you really are, and nobody can hand you the list in advance. Finding it takes attention to yourself, not just willpower.

The source

"Many possible roads. Only one is your own." Carl Jung said it in Collected Papers (1917), ch. XIV 'The Psychology of the Unconscious Processes'. Translated by Constance E. Long, 1917.

"Destiny lies before us, perplexing us, and teeming with possibilities, and yet only one of these many possibilities is our own particular right way."

Constance E. Long, 1917, Collected Papers (1917), ch. XIV 'The Psychology of the Unconscious Processes'. 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 "Many possible roads. Only one is your own." mean?

There are always many lives you could lead. Only one fits who you really are, and nobody can hand you the list in advance. Finding it takes attention to yourself, not just willpower.

Who said "Many possible roads. Only one is your own."?

Carl Jung (1875–1961). Source: Collected Papers (1917), ch. XIV 'The Psychology of the Unconscious Processes'.

What is the original wording?

Destiny lies before us, perplexing us, and teeming with possibilities, and yet only one of these many possibilities is our own particular right way (Constance E. Long, 1917). Translated by Constance E. Long, 1917.

Is "Many possible roads. Only one is your own." on a shirt?

Yes. We print it to order on our tees in 7 illustrated looks, from $44, with free US shipping.

"Many possible roads. Only one is your own." (Carl Jung, Collected Papers (1917), ch. XIV 'The Psychology of the Unconscious Processes', trans. Constance E. Long, 1917). https://spartansurfers.com/quotes/many-possible-roads-only-one-is-your-own