Carl Jung associated the sun with consciousness, the ego, and the masculine principle. In Jungian symbolism, the sun represents the light of reason and conscious awareness that illuminates the psyche. Just as the sun makes visible what darkness hides, conscious awareness reveals the contents of the unconscious. Jung noted that solar symbols often appear in dreams during periods of increasing self-awareness and psychological development. The interplay of sun and moon in dreams reflects the balance between conscious and unconscious, masculine and feminine principles.