"a mythology is not an
ideology. It is not something projected from the brain, but something experienced
from the heart, from recognitions of identities behind or within the appearances
of nature" (Campbell, 1986, p. 17)
"The life a mythology derives
from the vitality of its symbols as metaphors delivering, not simply the
idea,
but a sense of actual participation in such a realization of transcendence,
infinity, and abundance, ..." (p. 18)
-The major role or "first and most
essential service" of myths and mythology is
"of opening the mind and heart
to the utter wonder of all being"
-The second role played is that
it has a "cosmological" service as it represents
"the universe and whole
spectacle of nature, both as known to the mind and as beheld by the eye,
as an epiphany of such kind that when lightening flashes, or a setting
sun ignites the sky, or a deer is seen standing alerted, the exclamation
'Ah!' may be uttered as a recognition of divinity" (1986, p. 18)
The Message of the myth
is to experience
being alive, being aware and fulfilled. To be "caught" by the myth, the
idea or archetype, as Jung said "feeling like fate."
Following a myth and living it
is "the soul's high adventure." The goals of nirvana, peace, or bliss can
only be achieve with knowing one's centre, as they represent a state of
mind without desire, fear or social commitment, not places.
Myths are clues
to
the spiritual potentiality of human life, they do not explicitly pertain
to "meaning". E.g., "God" is an idea or thought, its referent is beyond
thought -transcendent.
Mythology can liberate
"Faith" to get beyond a metaphor (E.g., Jesus' rebirth or ascent to heaven was
metaphorical- actually toward inner space- a rebirth of the spirit
-it is important to recognise the
symbolic as poetry not prose, the connotations not denotations, the transcendent
not the mundane.
Campbell Video -
myth as the
mirror of the ego
Adolescence
-sometimes people get caught up
in the "system" the "machine" like Star Wars,
Darth Vader had given in to the system and was urging Luke to come over
to the other side.
Better off to "follow your Bliss" find your own myth
and cosmology, find your bliss and live it. kendo.jpg
Common Mythological Themes
Hero with 1,000 faces
- is the deed that
is done by so many people, one that is marked by doing or achieving something
that is beyond the normal range. Giving of life to something bigger than
self, other than self.
Hero has learned or found a mode
of experience, a super human mode of spiritual life, and has brought it
back to communicate it to others.
It is a cycle of going and a return
marking a transformation physical and spiritual
Adolescent search for identity
-
like an initiation ritual of becoming an adult (or member) one must die
to one's infantile psyche and be reborn as an adult.
-go from dependency to self responsibility
-leaving, finding a source of life
for a richer more mature way of living
-Going off to university, joining
the Armed Forces, Canada World-Youth, etc
The
moral objective of the hero
is to sacrifice oneself for something better. (But there is no universal
judge.) Essentially to fulfill a transformation of consciousness. A gestalt
switch, a new perspective on life.
Iroquois Story of the
Refusal of suitors
falls in love with a magician,
taken away, eventually pulled from the water (unconscious) by an upper power.
Having to go into the unconscious to find the answer to something in the everyday
temporal. It also shows how one may or may not be ready for a mythic adventure.
Forbidden Fruit (thing)
- Almost always
involves the placing of blame on the snake which is a symbol of life shedding
its past (throwing off skin) and being reborn.
-In Buddhism and Hinduism the snake
is a positive symbol
-In Christianity the is a refusal
of life (rejecting the snake) placing it outside of the divine realm, a
division of opposites. The created and the creator are divided. Have women
being rejected (also representing life-creation) having us divided
Need for Affirmation of the world
-
acceptance of "good" and "bad", not to withdraw from "horror", but to realise
life and death, good and bad as part of the world.
Slaying one's Dragon
is
(in European tradition) a symbol for becoming release from Greed. It represent
the ego and possessiveness - sometimes our frail or fragile aspects of
ourselves. (The Dragon guards Gold and Virgins). "Thou shalt" written on
each scale of the Dragon, being slain, erasing anxiety and social pressure
and our desires to become what we are not.
Alan Roland (1988)
Blending psychoanalysis from various
sources: Klein, Erikson, Kakar, Doi
Self in Indian, Japan
-Provides a rich historical context
against which various cases of self and identity are presented for understanding.
-Uses various selves: We, I,
Expanding, relational hierarchies and developmental "chords" of emphasis
and importance.
-examined myths in dreams as seen
in cultural context
Brahma - The Creator Archetype. "Called the Grandfather of
the Worlds, Brahma is the First Person of the Hindu trinity and is depicted in
standing posture with four faces, witnessing the totality of his created
universes. It was Brahma's request of
Durga-devi that led to creation of the earth, and he always carries a water
bowl filled with life-giving Ganges water, symbol of creative fertility.
He is the god of wisdom, the bearer of the Vedas, and the consort of Sarasvati." (http://jblstatue.com/pages/brahma.html)
Mythology
is used today by people like
Alan Roland and
Beth Hedva to explore the
inner reaches of human experience and psychological challenges. Later we will
examine how this is done in the context of psychotherapy or counselling. Searching for archetypes and mythological themes, meaning of self.
Likewise
Erik Erikson recognized that
finding one's own mythology is finding one's own identity, one's place in
the world.
References
Benjefield, J. G. (1996) A history
of modern psychology. New York: Allyn
Campbell, J. (1986). The inner reaches
of outer space. New York: Harper
Campbell (1987). The Power of Myth.
PBS Television special.
Jung, C. G. (1969). Archetypes of
the collective unconscious. Collected works. Princeton: PUP.
Jung, C. G. & Kerenyi, C. (1963).
Essays on the science of mythology. Princeton: PUP.
Monte, C. F. (1987). Beneath the
mask. New York: Holt.
Rychlak, J. F. (1981) Introduction
to personality and psychotherapy. Boston: Houghton.
