Mask symbolism and what it does to our subconscious
- Joëlle Przytula-Bertherin
- Oct 15, 2021
- 6 min read
Like we all know the mask has become a big part of our daily life since covid-19. Whatever you may think about it, we can all agree that our society is pretty much divided when it comes to wearing one. Some people feel safer putting it on, others say it doesn't help at all. Personally, I belong to the last group. In 2020 I had to wear one for six weeks straight and saw so many conflicting things that I started to do a little research. This does not mean I judge people who want to wear a mask. That's completely up to them. But I do feel strongly that everyone should decide for themselves whether to wear it or not. It's especially this last part, the freedom to not decide for myself, that makes me resist the whole situation. I mean, if masks wouldn't be mandatory and I felt unsafe or felt like I wanted to wear it, I would absolutely have no problem with wearing a mask. And if masks work and I put one on, then shouldn't that be it? Unfortunately, making it mandatory creates a division between people who are pro- and anti-mask.
Still, it made me curious about the symbolism behind the mask. Can wearing a mask influence our psyche?
Let's start with a little mask history. The medical face mask we know today was introduced in 1897 by Polish surgeon Johann Mikulicz. He worked with bacteriologist Carl Flügge, who had shown that respiratory droplets carried bacteria.
The ancient mask however, goes much further back and has always been used for deep symbolic purposes. The oldest masks that have been found are around 9000 years old, but it's thought that masks go back way more than that. These masks have probably never been found because the materials they were made of aren't easily preserved. So what were they used for? Masks have always been used for a lot of different things including spiritual significance, wars, theater, festivities, rituals and more. But the one I found particularly interesting is the use of masks during initiation rites or rites of passage. This is a ceremony which occurs when an individual leaves one group or social status to join another. This initiation has three stages: separation, liminality and incorporation. During the first stage, separation, an individual is separated from what is familiar to them. For example; birth can be seen as a rite of passage. Once the baby is born it's separated from the womb, the place that was familiar to the baby. This can be somewhat traumatic as you can imagine. Marriage is another example, where bride and groom are usually separated until they enter the next stage - liminality - which is the period between stages or as we call it: the wedding ceremony. Initiation rites also occur in sororities, religion, social ceremonies, graduation, death rites, pagan cultures and so on. When you think about it, it's all around us. In western cultures these stages are usually presented in a mild form, but in ancient pagan rituals this separation was usually very abrupt and was used to make the initiate become "detached" from everything they knew before. This was so the initiate could fully accept their new "reborn" self in the last stage: incorporation. An essential part of this stage is an interruption of the normal rules of living that the person is used to. By isolating the individual there are no day to day distractions and the person is forced to reflect and be confronted with patterns that are buried within. Trauma is also often introduced. This is to symbolize and stir up the fear of death. After being confronted with death, the individual can arise anew. Sacrifices can also be made. Because ultimately, for something new to be created, something else has to be destroyed or given. The alchemists used a term for this: solve et coagula. This means something has to be broken down to the basics, before it can be formed into something new. This brings me to the mask. Masks are usually part of the first stage. It can be used as a symbol of transformation. The dissolving (solve) of the ego, as it is pushed back behind the mask, before it's formed into the new self (coagula). The "dying" of the old self before they enter the incorporation stage as a new individual.
Of course anyone who is pro-mask usually says that masks protect us from spreading viruses and that people who don't wear them are selfish. Some articles even said people who refuse to wear masks can be seen as psychopaths. However, I can show you multiple studies that say wearing a mask just doesn't work. Like I wrote before, the inventors of the medical mask used the mask as a protection against bacteria, not viruses. There are many studies and surgeons that say wearing a mask do not protect against viruses. Besides knowing how to use a mask and working in a sterilized environment, surgeons who are sick with a virus like the flu always stay home because they know they can still pass it on to others. There are even studies that show that when people wear a mask for a longer period of time it can be dangerous as it lowers your oxygen and you are continually re-breathing carbon dioxide. So if there are studies that say the mask works, and studies that say it doesn't, can't we at least conclude that the answer is somewhere in the middle? And is that really a reason to call non-mask wearers selfish or worse? Isn't anyone living according to their own beliefs also living their own truth? If someone believes a study that says the mask doesn't work, that means they are just living according to their own beliefs and thus their intention isn't that they don't care about other people's health. They just believe in a different kind of study. And if their intention isn't bad, is it fair to call them psychopaths?
Like I pointed out, different (mainstream) articles can be found that masks aren't effective. However, they did state that wearing a mask could cause behavioral changes. Even the Prime Minister Rutte of my country, the Netherlands, said so in one of his press conferences. If you think about this statement, and combine this with the part I wrote about initiation rites, to me this raises a lot of red flags. Also, doesn't the separation part of the initiation rite remind you of anything? They told us to stay at home and stay away from work, friends and family. A lot of people got depressed during the lockdown and suicide rates went up. It's not really a surprise that people get lonely when they are separated from what they know. Dark thoughts may surface as we are forced to be constantly confronted with ourselves. Sacrifice was another part of the initiation rite. I don't know about you, but to me it seems like we sacrificed a lot since 2020: a big part of our freedom, time with our loved-ones, our businesses, our well earned savings, and more. Also, we are continually confronted with death. This has been going on for almost two years: in the media, when we talk with friends and family and on social media. We are constantly confronted with a dangerous virus that can get us at any time. This reminds me of the trauma part of the initiation rite. I think we can all agree this isn't healthy and adds to the feelings of depression.
These are very confusing times. We are bombarded with information. Not only by our governments and the media but on social media, in our social life and even in stores and restaurants. A lot of the information is contradictory and it's sometimes hard to know what and who to believe. On top of that the immense peer pressure we have to deal with every day and the constant feeling of having to live in fear for something invisible that could hit us at any moment. It's intense to say the least. It's normal to feel depressed at times. By the way, did I mention another part of the initiation rite is to purposely introduce confusion so the initiate can't find solid ground and is more receptive to change? What about the leaders constantly talking about the new normal but not really specific as what this "new normal" will be? I'm just asking questions and pointing out the similarities, the conclusions are up to you. Finally, shouldn't the ultimate goal be to get back to the old normal? Why isn't that our main focus?
Everyone should decide for themselves how they feel about this, but maybe it's an idea to start reading between the lines a little...
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