Clarissa Pinkola Estés quotes
1945 – · Contemporary, 20th–21st century · poet, psychoanalyst and post‑trauma specialist
About Clarissa Pinkola Estés
Born in 1945 in Indiana, Estés draws on oral tradition, folklore and analytical psychology to examine healing, instinct and creative life—especially in women. As author and storyteller she weaves immigrant and Indigenous‑influenced family practices into a mythopoetic, trauma‑informed approach.
Works: Women Who Run With the Wolves
Quotes
“The doors to the world of the wild Self are few but precious. If you have a deep scar, that is a door, if you have an old, old story, that is a door. If you love the sky and the water so much you almost cannot bear it, that is a door. If you yearn for a deeper life, a full life, a sane life, that is a door.”
Source: Women Who Run With the Wolves · Check the source
Verified attributionWhat we know
- What is documented
- The phrasing is consistently attributed to Clarissa Pinkola Estés and is cited in connection with Women Who Run With the Wolves in reputable quote collections.
- What remains uncertain
- Attribution is well established across sources, though the strongest confirmation would be a direct page citation from the book; the examined indexes reproduce the passage without a primary-page image.
Estés frames certain pains and longings as threshold experiences that grant access to the deeper, instinctive Self. The passage, associated with Women Who Run With the Wolves, suggests that scars, old stories, and intense longing can become openings to a more embodied, sane life.