A Wheel Rolling Out of Its Own Center
“Nietzsche’s words that relate to this with respect to masks and the processes of life. He speaks of three stages in the life of the spirit incarnate in each of us. Three transformations of the spirit, he calls it.
The first is that of the camel which gets down on its knees and asks, “Put a load on me.” That’s the period of these dear little children. This is the just-born life that has come in and is receiving the imprint of the society. The primary mask. “Put a load on me. Teach me what I must know to live in this society.” Once heavily loaded, the camel struggles to its feet and goes out into the desert — into the desert of the realization of its own individual nature. This must follow the reception of the culture good. It must not precede it. First is humility, and obedience, and the reception of the primary mask. Then comes the turning inward, which happens automatically in adolescence, to find your own inward life.
Nietzsche calls this the transformation of the camel into a lion. Then the lion attacks a dragon; and the dragon’s name is Thou Shalt. The dragon is the concretization of all those imprints that the society has put upon you. The function of the lion is to kill the dragon Thou Shalt. On every scale is a “Thou Shalt,” some of them dating from 2000 b.c., others from this morning’s newspaper. And, when the dragon Thou Shalt has been killed — that is to say, when you have made the transition from simple obedience to authority over your own life —
the third transformation is to that of being a child moving spontaneously out of the energy of its own center. Nietzsche calls it a wheel rolling out of its own center.”
― Joseph Campbell, Trick or Treat: Hallowe’en, Masks, and Living Your Myth
Nietzsche’s Three Transformations of the Spirit
“Nietzsche speaks of three stages in the life of the spirit…
1. The camel that kneels and says, ‘Put a load on me.’
2. The camel becomes a lion, who must slay the dragon called Thou Shalt.
3. When the dragon is dead, the lion is reborn as a child—‘a wheel rolling out of its own center.’”
(Paraphrased from Friedrich Nietzsche, “Thus Spoke Zarathustra,” as retold by Joseph Campbell.)
Nietzsche isn’t giving us a biology lesson—he’s sketching an inner journey that every growing person must face. Each creature is an archetype: a symbolic character that lives in myths, dreams, and movies and points to a hidden part of ourselves.
The Camel
Key idea: Humble learning and willing endurance
What the camel represents
- Humility & strength. A camel kneels to be loaded, yet survives the harsh desert.
- The “mask” of society. Psychologist Carl Jung called this the persona: the face we put on to fit into family, school, or nation.
- Childhood & early teens. At this stage we ask, “Tell me what is right. Show me how to belong.”
Why the load matters
- Rules, language, and craft skills are heavy but necessary; without them we would have no shared world to live in.
- Accepting the load is not weakness—it is training packs on an athlete.
The Lion (and the Dragon “Thou Shalt”)
Key idea: Rebellion and the fight for inner authority
The lion’s job
- Courage & self‑assertion. The lion roars, “I will!”—the opposite of the camel’s, “You may.”
- Adolescence to young adulthood. We question parents, teachers, even our earlier selves.
Meet the dragon – “Thou Shalt”
- Picture an ancient monster whose scales are covered with glowing commandments: “Be polite.” “Believe what we believe.” “Wear this uniform.”
- Some scales are centuries old (religious law), some appeared yesterday (trending hashtags). All say: “Obey.”
Slaying the dragon
- Not a literal battle but an inner critique: we keep life‑giving rules and melt away the dead ones.
- The moment we stop living by borrowed “shoulds” and start acting from conviction, the dragon falls.
The Child
Key idea: Creative freedom, a new innocence
Symbolism
- Playfulness & spontaneity. Like a child building castles from nothing, this stage invents meaning instead of receiving it.
- “A wheel rolling out of its own center.” Motion powered from inside—no external push needed.
- Jung would call this the Self: the whole, integrated personality after the persona and the shadow have been faced.
Does the child ignore society?
- No. It re‑enters the world carrying gifts—art, ideas, compassion—shaped by authentic desire rather than fear or duty.
- Think of inventors, reformers, or simply a neighbor who lives lightly and sparks others to do the same.
Putting the three together
- Learn the rules (Camel).
- Question and refine them (Lion vs. Dragon).
- Create and contribute from your own center (Child).
Skipping a step short‑circuits growth. Staying forever a camel leads to blind conformity; becoming a permanent lion can harden into cynicism. Only the flowing circle of all three produces a full human being.
Nietzsche’s animals are inner milestones, not fixed labels. You may feel like a camel at work, a lion in politics, and a child while painting. The point is movement: carrying what serves life, burning away what stifles it, and finally playing in the open air of your own truth.
The child‑wheel is only the beginning. Once you roll free of “Thou Shalt,” no map can claim you. Your task now is to steer from your own hub—testing, adjusting, discovering what rings true in real time.
Keep what nourishes, discard what dulls, invent what is missing. The fourth move is not a stage but a lifelong practice: crafting a path so personal it leaves no trace but the authenticity of each fresh step.
