The Power of Myth [entries|friends|calendar] The Power of Myth [ website | Joseph Campbell Foundation ] [ userinfo | livejournal userinfo ] [ calendar | livejournal calendar ]

Why Life Sucks [18 Jul 2008|09:58am] emrys_nc Recently I was re-reading bits of Paulo Coelho’s “The Fifth Mountain,” a novelization of the story of the Biblical Elijah. The purpose of the novel is to address the age-old question of why there’s tragedy and suffering in the world. Why do things go wrong? Coelho (a self-consciously mythic writer) says that tragedy comes to us for one of three reasons: • There are things that are brought into our lives to lead us back to the true path of our Personal Legend. • Some things come along to teach us. • Other things arise so we can apply all that we have learned. (i.e. to test us) The first type is what Joe Campbell indicated when he said, “You have to be willing to give up the life you’ve planed in order to have the life which is waiting for you.” Campbell and many others have pointed to this idea that some tragic things that befall us, later-on, put us on the path we need to be on, often for the greater good of ourselves or others. Naturally, this doesn’t necessarily balance the tragedy or take the sting away. In one song by the rock band U2, Bono sings, “Mother, you left and made me into someone.” If you know U2, you know that the early death of his mother is really the primary motive force of Bono’s lyrics, his poetry, his emotion, his spirit… Naturally Bono, like any of us I expect, would not have chosen to lose his mother in order to become a great artist… but that’s the price the Universe decided he had to pay. Campbell also was fond of saying, “The Fates guide those who will; those who won’t, they drag.” Some things teach us. This is the primary idea of Nietzsche who famously said, “That which does not kill me makes me stronger.” And Toni Morrison who wrote, “The purpose of evil is to overcome it.” Fate hurts us to make us tougher. Fate puts obstacles in our way to make us more relentless, stronger, or cleverer. (This reminds me of another of my favorite quotes, this one by Thoreau: “If you are weak in the knees, don’t complain that the hill is too steep.”) Finally, the Hero Quest shows us how, inevitably, the hero must be tested to see if he has learned what he is supposed to have learned along the “Road of Trials.” In most quest-stories, if the hero succeeds, it is often because of something he has learned along the way (perhaps a skill, some secret knowledge or insight, or, most often, a moral lesson). If the hero fails it is normally because he has resolutely failed to learn the lessons Fate was trying to teach him. So some tragedies which befall us are “exams” to see if we’re doing our homework. In the structure of the Hero Quest, Coelho’s first form of tragedy corresponds to the “Call to Adventure.” The second type is what we encounter while on the “Road of Trials.” The third form is what Campbell called “the Ordeal.” 3 found their bliss | make your myth

Stories for 1000 Years [26 Jun 2008|08:08am] emrys_nc This month the topic at our Mythology RoundTable was "Stories for 1000 years." This was a fun one -- it was a two-part discussion. In the first part, we considered the question: Why have some myths (like the Trojan War) stuck around and remained relatively well-known for thousands of years... where other myths vanish in the mist of time, either forgotten entirely, or known only to a collection of academic specialists. What makes a myth a "story for 1000 years?" Some of our suggestions included: • Timeless/archetypal (characters & themes transcend the local & historical setting) • Crosses-boarders (story is known globally) • Adaptable to new media (books, movies, video games, pop-merchandising…) • Lends itself to transformations & re-interpretations (Why is “Hamlet” still around?) • Rituals and a “Cult” following -- the story is "transformative" Second, we discussed what are the myths of our day, and which stories from the last (say) 100-150 years will still be remembered in the year 3000. Here are some of our suggestions: Late 19th century: • Dracula and Frankenstein • Sherlock Holmes • Alice in Wonderland • R.L. Stevenson’s "Treasure Island" and "Jekyll & Hyde" • Dickens’s "A Christmas Carol" and "Oliver Twist" 20th century: • Superman (and maybe Spider-man & Batman) • Mickey Mouse and maybe Bugs Bunny • The Wizard of Oz (sort of a variation of Alice in Wonderland) • The hard-boiled, noir detective (ie. Sam Spade & Philip Marlow) • The John Ford/John Wayne western (ie. Stagecoach, My Darling Clementine and The Searchers) • The Hobbit/Lord of the Rings • Star Trek and Star Wars 21st century: Too early to say... (I was surprised no one thought Harry Potter would stick around.) And I added a third question: What story would you like to see popularly remembered in the year 3000… but think probably won’t be? For me, it would be "Zen & the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance." My wife nominated the Jim Henson movie, "Labyrinth." 5 found their bliss | make your myth

Tour of the Tarot [12 Jun 2008|04:02pm] emrys_nc Last weekend, at a housewarming party, a group of us fell into an interesting conversation about tarot cards. Most people in England & America associate the cards w/ fortune-telling… but tarot cards are actually the early version of the modern playing card deck, and, outside the English-speaking world, are still frequently used to play a trick-taking card-game called “tarock” or “tarot.” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tarock) The first tarot playing cards began to appear in the late-14th century (in Northern Italy & Southern France)… but they were never used for fortune-telling prior to the 18th century. However, even putting divination aside, there may still have been a secret, spiritual meaning behind the cards from the very beginning. Joseph Campbell believed the cards depicted a path of spiritual growth & initiation and interpreted them to a medieval expression of the “pedagogical function” of myth – the function which guides us through the course of a human life development from immaturity to youth to maturity to old-age. ( Read more... ) 1 found their bliss | make your myth

The Angel of Death [27 May 2008|09:26am] ragwad   Angel of Death: (Malakh ha-Mavet, Mar Mavet, Malach Ahzari). God’s agent of death in the world and the most dreaded of all numinous beings.   First mentioned in Biblical literature simply as Mavet (personified Death), ha-Mashchit (the Destroyer), Malach-Adonai (Angel of the Lord),   And the Angel of the Lord went out and attacked the Assyrian camp; One hundred eighty-five thousand. And when they arose in the morning, they were all dead bodies. (Isaiah 37:36)   in later literature the title “Angel of Death” becomes conventional. God created the Angel on the first day, along with light. The various legends about the Angel are so diverse it is hard to reconcile them all….for the complete article, go to www.ejmmm2007.blogspot.com make your myth

A question [17 May 2008|03:12pm] wondrousstrange I once read in an anthology of world mythology an account of the fall of Lucifer that went like this: Lucifer loved God more than any of the angels. Then God created humans and commanded the angels to bow down to them. Lucifer refused to do this and for his unwavering love of God was cast into hell. I think this was a myth in one of the Islamic sects. I read a lot of comparative mythologies and can't remember where I heard this one. If anyone has heard this myth I'd appreciate sources or elaboration. 2 found their bliss | make your myth

What should I read next? [12 May 2008|04:53pm] doug_e_fresh I have read "Hero With a Thousand Faces" and the "Power of Myth" book with Bill Moyers. I have seen several other works by Campbell in my Amazon Recommendations. Which books do you recommend I tackle next? Some of the titles I remember seeing are "Masks of God" and "Myths to Live By". Thanks in advance. 7 found their bliss | make your myth

From a Heathen World to a Christian World: Can Universal Morality Work? [23 Apr 2008|01:19pm] owl_clan http://cauldronborn.blogspot.com/2008/04/from-heathen-world-to-christian-world.html RA make your myth

The Dragon and the Dragonslayer [29 Mar 2008|07:07pm] owl_clan Here is an essay about the eternal struggle that we are all a part of, whether we would be or not: http://www.robinartisson.com/dragon.html RA make your myth

Mythology of the Winter Solstice [21 Dec 2007|07:40am] emrys_nc This Saturday is the Winter Solstice. In Ireland, on this morning, the sun will come over the horizon, its light will penetrate the 60’ long, narrow underground shaft of New Grange, and, for 17 minutes, illuminate the famous triple-spiral triskel carved on the farthest wall of the chamber. In Gaelic, New Grange has been known as uaimh na gre’ine, the “cave of the sun.” Over 5,000 years old, it is the largest earth-chamber in Europe, although there are numerous similar chambers from the Neolithic period once used for ritual purposes, all oriented on an East-West line to match the movement of the sun. Going back long before the Neolithic, Neanderthal man used to burry his dead facing East (the oldest sign of religious or mythological thinking)… just as Medieval churches were all constructed on the same East-West axis… and even Native American burial mounds and kivas were also built to mimic the sun’s movement. New Grange itself is a tomb. According to Irish mythology, New Grange was one of the sidhe, or fairy-mounds, where the Tuatha Dé Danann lived. It was an entrance into the Otherworld (known as Tir na Sorcha, the Land of Light)… the place where the dead went. The association with the passage of death into the Afterlife w/ the passage of the sun, suggests a belief in a rebirth or resurrection – that the dead will return, just as the sun returns from its “death.” ( Read more... ) 2 found their bliss | make your myth

The Joy of Yule [18 Dec 2007|09:49pm] owl_clan Not thankfulness... Joyfulness! http://cauldronborn.blogspot.com/2007/12/joy-of-yule.html RA make your myth

[10 Dec 2007|12:17pm] dragon_han Love has no attitude to objects of love... It is your Love... It is only reflected in the objects... In some it is reflected better, in others - is worse… All the objects will start to reflect Love... When you will start to taste Love directly, without any intermediaries… This sensation of Unity and Integrity is yours from the beginning!.. The World becomes One object of Love!.. When the objects are no more necessary for the feeling of Love … make your myth

Mythical: The Hidden Way of the Witch [07 Dec 2007|03:10pm] owl_clan I hope you enjoy this narrative about Traditional Land-Based Paganism and Witchcraft, and Glad Yule to you all. http://www.robinartisson.com/scarespite/mythical.html RA make your myth

Mythic Jourenys Documentry [06 Dec 2007|03:38pm] emrys_nc A 12 minute preview! http://www.imaginalcellsinc.com/video/Mythicjourneystrailer.htm make your myth

Making Gold [03 Dec 2007|05:57pm] owl_clan Good Day: I've started another blog for my more neutral esoteric writings and social/political writings, opinions, personal philosophy quips, and other assorted miscellania: http://aurifaber.blogspot.com/ I'm Aurifaber, the Goldsmith, attempting to use words to make the gold of understanding out of the lead of the monstrous cloud of bullcrap we all live under. Maybe I'll succeed, maybe I won't. I'm not wed to any expectations of outcome. Some of you might find the blog worth watching. There are two entries in it currently; I am creating a "subject matter" index so that posts will be easy to find. I just wrote a post today about The Sacred Word and the great occult secret hidden in plain sound: http://aurifaber.blogspot.com/2007/12/sacred-word-secret-hidden-in-plain.html I hope you enjoy. RA make your myth

[22 Nov 2007|09:13am] dragon_han Why do people always try to draw the witnesses and to register their Love? Why do they try to state in their passports the existence of this feeling…? Maybe they are too scared to lose It? Probably… I am truly convinced that Love and fear are incompatible… Love does not need any registration! Is it a party of fear then? That is in its honor people drink champagne and pronounce toasts… Welcome clearness and reliability! In addition, a FEAR – to lose it! 5 found their bliss | make your myth

[15 Nov 2007|12:47am] dragon_han I die of laughter when I hear: « I have fallen outside the limits …» « I have reached the understanding …» « I’m Enlightened …» I want you to understand that... « I » it is the actor that plays a role... You have simply been transferred to play the other performance... With more mysterious name … For example: «A Game in the Enlightenment…» The Show proceeds! An applause please!!! When the hypnosis will disappear … It will be no matter for you what role to play... As there are neither bad nor good roles... There Is the Understanding: « It is only a Game! » 1 found their bliss | make your myth

Long Feast of the Einherjar: Long Live the Fighters! [12 Nov 2007|05:29pm] owl_clan Here's a little article I wrote about honoring our heroes, and the fighters of the modern day, in keeping with the spirit of our Einherjar feast, held this time of year by most Asatru groups. http://cauldronborn.blogspot.com/2007/11/long-feast-of-einherjar.html RA make your myth

[17 Oct 2007|11:23pm] dragon_han We always consider God to have a human character… Now He can think, He can dream, He can be angry and unsatisfied… He may have aims to achieve but not the sources to do that… Oh, that’s so funny!... Your God is as miserable as you are!... make your myth

Muslim-Christian Brotherhood [11 Oct 2007|02:18pm] emrys_nc An important document has just been sent from a group of eminent Muslim scholars to The Vatican, the Baptist Convention and other Christian sects, addressing the desire to find common ground between Christianity and Islam. Please visit this link: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/bsp/hi/pdfs/11_10_07_letter.pdf I haven't read all of it, but the opening paragraph is a pretty significant thought: Muslims and Christians together make up well over half of the world’s population. Without peace and justice between these two religious communities, there can be no meaningful peace in the world. The future of the world depends on peace between Muslims and Christians. make your myth

[01 Oct 2007|12:02pm] dragon_han The basis of all your problems and sufferings is… That you think that you own the luggage of God… Trying to carry it with you all the time … Every day you take complicated decisions… Produce a great amount of different thoughts, words and covings… I feel sorry for you… As this luggage is really hard – but you will not leave it!... As you’re so scared to become “no one” without it!... I’ll tell you secret… you are not able even to lift this luggage!... You’re just holding it with you hand!... make your myth

navigation [ viewing | most recent entries ] [ go | earlier ]