The Four Archetypes as Life Themes

Exploring the idea of four archetypes as life themes helps us understand how these timeless symbols shape our identity and guide us through life’s journey. Archetypes are living symbols, capturing the essence of human behavior by roles that appear mythological stories and the human experience.

There are four universal motivating archetypes of identity , or as I like to call them, “The Four Life Themes.” Your actions are guided by your dominant Life Theme which is one of the four archetypes. This Life Theme archetype is a deeper force than personality. It drives and motivates you throughout your entire life. 

In this article, you’ll discover the four archetypes as life themes and why understanding your dominant Life Theme Archetype is crucial for your personal happiness, success, and self-awareness.

The Four Archetypes as Life Themes Are: Love, Justice, Wisdom, Power

Though different cultures have used different labels to describe the four archetypes, their qualities and essence remain the same. I chose the terms “Love,” “Justice,” “Wisdom,” and “Power” to describe the four archetypes based on multiple historical references that divide mankind into four domains.

If you ask a group of people what motivates them in their daily lives, you’d likely hear a variety of responses. Some people would say the desire to make the world a better place drives their actions, and others would reply that making money or creating a stable life for themselves and their loved ones are their main motivators.

While people could give dozens of answers about what motivates them, the reality is that there are four primary motivators in life, and regardless of a person’s personality, upbringing, age, where they live or other factors that impact their beliefs, everyone is motivated by one of four things: Love, Justice, Wisdom, or Power. 

Here is a brief breakdown of each of the four archetypes as Life Themes:

• The Love Theme is motivated to better humanity by trying to correct that which causes pain, discomfort, suffering, and victimization. It is driven by love, compassion, and empathy. A Love Theme may express their Theme through activities such as volunteering for a cause that is important to them or taking care of loved ones.
• The Justice Theme seeks balance and harmony. This Theme is a combination of Love and Wisdom Themes. It seeks to correct injustice and imbalance in people, relationships, and organizations. It also gets expressed by seeking harmony and perfection using design such engineering, writing, painting, and music making. They combine what humanity needs with factual information and new ideas. 
• The Wisdom Theme is driven by a need to know and to solve problems for others. Wisdom finds its expression and purpose through teaching, learning, and working with data. Those with a Wisdom Theme often enjoy getting lost in a book or researching a topic of interest.
• The Power Theme needs to act upon thoughts and get into action. Power finds its purpose as a natural leader and agent of change. A Power person may exhibit their Theme by seeking out leadership roles or positioning themselves in positions of authority. A person with this Theme might acquire tokens of power such as money, awards, diplomas, and property. 

It’s important to understand that you do possess — and express — parts of all four Life Themes, even though one dominates your overall expression. For example, if you’re a Love Theme, this doesn’t mean that you’ll never exhibit traits of a Wisdom Theme. Your Life Theme is simply the one motivating factor that dominates and amplifies the power over the others. It is like a living symbol that you express.

Download the eBook “The 4 Life Theme Archetypes” for more information about Love, Justice, Wisdom, or Power

We all need to express the four Archetypes as Life Themes regardless of our upbringing, opportunities, and physical attributes. We show Love when we’re being compassionate toward people and figuring out how to cooperate with others who share perspectives that vary from our own. 

We exhibit Justice when we create relationships that are mutually beneficial and focus on creating moral and ethical solutions for dilemmas.

When we ask questions and seek out new information, we’re creating meaning and displaying Wisdom. Finally, when we adapt and create change around us, we’re showing our Power.

Benefits of Knowing Your Life Theme 

Your Life Theme is responsible for motivating you in life toward developing a single sense of Authentic self. All of your experiences are tethered to this one source as a filter selecting what does and does not conform to your Life Theme. Your life theme therefore is the criterion responsible for the creation of the authentic self. 

Many people struggle to make decisions, a concept sometimes referred to as “decision fatigue.” Studies have shown that this has only become more common in recent years. One of the biggest reasons people struggle with decision fatigue is that they don’t have a strong sense of what choices they should make to meet their goals.

In fact, it’s also common for people not to know what their real life-guiding goals are in life. And without knowing what you want, how can you make a decision that’ll guide you in the right direction? 

The answer, of course, is that you can’t make a truly informed decision unless you know what it is you want and more importantly why you want that outcome. You’re just hoping that you’ll stumble upon something that will make you happy and content by luck.

Once you learn what your Life Theme is, however, you won’t be choosing your next steps on a whim; instead, you’ll make decisions that are based on your true motivations in life. Each Life Theme Archetype is motivated and values very specific things. Knowing these motivations can help shape the goals that you set, the tasks that you prioritize, and the decisions you make each day.

You’ll naturally hold yourself accountable for your choices when you acknowledge what truly and authentically motivates you. If you take steps that aren’t aligned with your Life Theme, your understanding of your Theme will allow you to more easily course-correct and focus your time and energy on what really matters to you. 

Your Life Theme also provides you with the boundaries that influence your perception of the world around you. Through your Theme, you find the stability you need to create a solid understanding of life despite the chaos that exists in the world.

We need Life Themes and there is a reason that we are designed with them. Without a Life Theme, we wouldn’t have a uniform and  reliable view of the world. Imagine how hard it would be to make plans or set goals if you couldn’t depend on your own worldview. You’d feel lost and disoriented, and it’d be impossible to trust your sense of judgment. 

We also need Life Themes to direct your experiences responsible for constructing your Authentic Identity.

Download the eBook “The 4 Life Theme Archetypes” for more information about Love, Justice, Wisdom, or Power

If you are unhappy or just feel lost, once you know your Life Theme, you can take steps to reconnect with your Theme with this new knowledge. When you do this, you’ll be able to view the opportunities and relationships around you with renewed clarity. You’ll understand why you want the things you do, and why you have the desire to want what you do and strengthen  your  alignment even further with your Theme. This awareness will ultimately bring you closer to what you really want out of life.

Life Themes Throughout History And Today

Your true identity lies within the four archetypes, also known as universal virtues: Love, Justice, Wisdom, and Power.  These virtues are an intrinsic part of the human condition. My research has revealed in writings from the ancient Egyptians, Native Americans of North America, global Shamans, authors of holy texts, European philosophers, and psychotherapists the historical presence of four universal and innate sources of motivation, which I’ve labeled Life Themes.

We can see these Themes in history when we look at the Toltecs. The Toltec culture is said to have evolved in Central America from approximately 600 to 800 A.D./C.E. Their insights revealed how powerful a Life Theme is in one’s life and how important it is to know what motivates us. 

Since most information on the Toltecs comes from the Aztecs through oral tradition, the information is incomplete. However, through a careful examination of earlier Mayan texts and the surviving archaeological records, the main elements of this civilization have been outlined.

Toltecs saw the Love Theme in Healers of the body and soul, the Wisdom Theme in Teachers, the Justice Theme in Visionaries, and the Power Theme in Warriors. Any one of these Themes could present itself in different ways based on the person who embodied each Theme. For example, one Warrior might focus on exploring the landscape while another Warrior may primarily be in the role of a protector.

Just as the Toltecs expressed their Life Themes in unique ways, so do we today. In fact, you can often determine your Life Theme by looking at the objects you choose to surround yourself with.

How is this possible? Well, the pieces we choose to fill our living spaces tell a story about how we want to be perceived and the lifestyle we wish to lead. Artwork, trinkets, and other décor can all provide clues into our values and interests. 

A Wisdom person who enjoys reading and wants to be perceived as intelligent and curious might surround themselves with philosophy books, and a Power person who wants to be seen as glamorous might choose to fill their home with expensive pieces of furniture to show off their wealth.

Our possessions can also shape our identities and let us express ourselves, too. A Love person might surround themselves with lots of photos of family and friends and create scrapbooks for themselves and others in order to express their deep feelings of compassion and caring. 

A Justice person could have an array of art supplies that allow them to create balance in the art they create. 

Even the clothes you wear can be telling; while a Power person who cares about status and appearance would likely prefer to wear name-brand clothes tailored to them. A Love person who prioritizes comfort and the ability to do activities with their friends would be less likely to care about fashion. What we buy and how we present ourselves lets us show the world what we value — and what we don’t.

Knowing Which of the Four Archetypes Is Your Life Theme Brings You Closer To Your Purpose

Over time, I’ve noticed, within myself and my clients, that the more you connect with your Life Theme, the stronger your intuition becomes and the easier it is to know your true purpose in life.

Your Life Theme plays a role in those strong gut feelings you sometimes get about decisions you need to make. 

I’ve noticed that the more connected you are to your Life Theme, the stronger your intuition is. Those times when you “just know,” or you get a clear gut feeling about something, increase the more you align your life with your Life Theme.

Your Life Theme will be communicating to you, sending you messages that will help you live in a way that allows you to express your Theme — and therefore toward your purpose in life. Your Life Theme will connect with you through gut feelings, insights, and unexplainable draws to people, places, and activities.

The more you take heed of these messages and follow them, the more easily your Theme can communicate to you. It’s like any relationship — the more you participate, the closer you’ll become to it. You can get so close, and in such good communication with these four archetypes, that it can take on a mystical quality. Moments of insight, as well as synchronicities in your life, begin to increase.

On the other hand, if you live counter to the Archetype as your Life Theme, you’ll have less access to the messages it’s sending you. You will feel like you have a diminished intuition. For example, if you have a Love Theme, and instead of living your life as an advocate for humanity, you’re stuck in a job or a relationship where you are forced to be the one who punishes people or dismisses others’ feelings, you’ll lose connection to your intuition. 

You’d be miserable in this situation, and you’d likely feel lost because you wouldn’t have access to the guidance that your Life Theme was trying to provide. Your Life Theme would still be communicating to you, but it would be harder for you to understand it.

I came to these conclusions after twenty years of seeing clients have similar experiences over and over again. The world changed for them in ways they couldn’t have anticipated as soon as they left jobs or relationships that clearly didn’t resonate with their Life Themes. Once they found a job or situation that was better suited for theme, they could clearly hear their intuition again.

Ultimately, a fulfilled life is one that expresses your Life Theme. This can bring you more happiness, contentment, and well-being. When you’re truly fulfilled, you give your unique gifts to the world, express your true Authentic Self, and have your truth acknowledged by others.

In the next series of articles you’ll learn about each of the four archetypes individually.