”Myths are public dreams, dreams are private myths.”
-Joseph Campbell
During these past few years I’ve been drawn more and more towards mythology, religion without the religion. Within it, you can find certain keys and lessons to your subconscious; you learn how to act and re-act in this experience, you face lessons that we have been stripped and disconnected from as time passes. You learn!
At the fast pace in which everything shifts and changes, it’s all the more difficult to create new myths, nothing is really fixed and bolted down anymore. But we must create them, give birth to newer versions written by our actions!
We must do this by comparing, feeling out and analyzing as many of the old archetypes as there are out there, and the ancient writings are full of them! They inspire you to focus and learn, as they hold true knowledge. Knowledge that we’ve chosen to factualise instead of studying. Who is right and who is wrong? Fuck it, it doesn’t matter, you decide that from what’s found within!
So in this article, I’ll share a few myths that have recently begun to make more sense to me, they’re starting to internalise!
One very important detail to mention, or someone to mention, is Joseph Campbell. I’ve talked about him so often to those that know me, and even to those that I barely know for ten minutes.
Joseph Campbell used to be the leading authority in mythology, when he passed away in the late 80’s. He had influenced countless of writers, artists and anyone generally interested in knowledge of the old and forgotten. Star Wars was even massively based from what he taught, George Lucas was a pupil and friend of his, so yeah, he’s out there, kind of like James Brown with funk. Everywhere.
One of the many important themes found in myths, is the pursuit of each of our unique paths.
Here is one of the first quotes that got me interested in Campbell’s work, it blew me away, one of those slap-in-the-face moments.
“Follow your bliss.
If you do follow your bliss,
you put yourself on a kind of track
that has been there all the while waiting for you,
and the life you ought to be living
is the one you are living.
When you can see that,
you begin to meet people
who are in the field of your bliss,
and they open the doors to you.
I say, follow your bliss and don’t be afraid,
and doors will open
where you didn’t know they were going to be.
If you follow your bliss,
doors will open for you that wouldn’t have opened for anyone else.”
It’s beautiful. Packed with understanding and motivation. Too goddamn often we’re scared to do something we would like to, something that we feel deep down inside would fill us with love for the world and ourselves!
Simply because we cannot see where it leads, but that’s the way it’s supposed to be! If you knew where it lead, that would only mean that the path is there, and made by another’s authentic actions. So don’t follow it, go into the dark, slowly tread forwards, look all around you, And instead of having to focus on an already walked path, you now have to concentrate on all that is around you in this instant. And that’s where you find the magic.
Campbell, in one of his many lectures, told a story from King Arthur’s round table days.
He goes on to say that the King and his men were seated at the round table, discussing, eating, drinking, or whatever it is they did at that time, when the Holy Grail suddenly appeared before them all. It’s beauty held all the men in rapture and admiration. Only then to disappear.
Gawain stands up and proposes that they all team up and go looking for the Grail. It draws them all back towards it. The reaction of the other knights was priceless. They immediately found the idea to be shameful, for to go together would be to miss the whole point of the journey.
They believed that if they were all to enter into a forest in search of the holy object, they had to do so each from their own entry. The darkest and toughest directions had to be chosen by each one, for then, they knew, they were to truly live and learn.
This story shows how fundamental it is to our happiness’ that we walk our own paths. We must first find them of course, but that only happens once you begin to look. And it’s great, it’s such a long journey, one that’s been lasting more than just this one lifetime, with each new life, we have to remember and feel what makes us happy. It is only by looking within can we begin understand these things.
Another myth, also of the Grail, speaks of the neutral angels bringing down the holy thing from the heavens as God battles Lucifer.
They’re neutral, within duality, and when you look, you can see the connection between your more positive energies acting in conflict with your less-so positive ones. The middle bit, which is where the ‘neutral’ angels come in, is where it’s at. When you find that point of balance in your life, where the two sides are merging into one, is when you have achieved a certain oneness with all.
The Holy Grail stood to signify that which is within, it meant to show the bliss that can only come from following that which brings you yourself into One. That which completes you, and when you begin to mull over which factors bring you a sense of living a fulfilled life, it pulls you in! You’ll find yourself in your authentic swing!
”Nature’s impulses give authenticity to life.”
We are Nature, and it constantly wishes to express it’s one-of-a-kind signature, to share it with the world.
When you stray from that, by accepting some other’s idea of how you should live, you suffer. Quietly to begin with, but then it weighs and tears at your soul. It tries to tell you, if you would only listen.
And myths, they don’t tell you how to live, they teach you.
As many religions should as well, if only they wouldn’t spend all their time arguing whose belief stands over who’s. Study the messages.
Myths help. They carry in them powerful metaphors in experiencing life, yet we’ve been heavily cut off from them. So, we need to look!
The connection in the last myth, to the one with King Arthur, is what caught my attention a few days ago. You can see how the message is the same, only in different context! It’s great!
Now, for the last one.
This myth is of Indra.
Who one day defeats an evil demon that has stolen all the waters of the world. By remembering that he had a chest of lightning bolts.
As the story goes on, Indra, proud of his victory thinks to himself, ”How good am I, I shall build myself the largest and most beautiful palace of all!”
He then hires another god to build him this palace, but every time he comes to have a look, he wants it bigger and better.
Eventually the god in charge thinks (and i’m paraphrasing here) ”Shit. We’re both immortal, and his desires are endless, this will never stop.”
So goes to the God of all Gods, Brahma, for help. He’s told not to worry about it. And again, i’m paraphrasing slightly here.
One day Brahma, in disguise, appears at the palace, and meeting Indra tells him that truly, this is a palace as no Indra before him has ever built.
You can kind of already understand that something isn’t really right in that statement, to which Indra asks about as they walk up to a massive ant-trail passing them, Brahma laughs and Indra becomes anxious and asks him what is he laughing at.
”Do not ask, if you do not wish to be hurt.”says Brahma.
”Teach.”
He then learns that there have been countless Indras before him And each of them, just as he, defeats the demon and thinks that they are good, thus rewarding themselves. That is when they fall and begin again. One after the other. They are born, and they die. They fight, win and forget, only to start over. Brahma, sleeping on the lotus petal, opens his eyes and the world comes into being, he closes his eyes and it ceases. Then he opens them again.
I learned to accept that there are battles happening within us, demons fighting it out, different conflicting energies, that must be brought into balance.
We are all unique and yet we feel the same, and that makes living so beautiful! We go through this together, so without even meeting, we share something already. It’s fucking bananas.
And we constantly overcome and learn.
That’s what it’s all about, you understand how to work with a certain energy. As the demon that stole the waters is the energy that steals your life; you are Indra, having with him the tools to deal with this all the time. You don’t have lightning bolts, but you got something, that mojo!
Then, clouded over by pride and ego’s whispers, you forget what got you to where you are, what brought that vibration up to that level, so you let go and fall back into older patterns that haven’t been completely changed yet.
”How good am I, I’ll build that palace now and chill.”
Don’t forget! Do not forget where you were heading, you were making your way towards your self, on your path, keep at it.
The journey has to be continued right away, you do not do it for the rewards, but out of duty, duty for Truth. Let the divine spark within you speak and create, out of creation’s sake, not for personal gain! Nature does not and will not tolerate that shit.
So many times,I’ve understood something beautiful, that’s showed me myself, even heals some inner nudging or discomfort I carry around. Then to relax and treat myself in some way that knocks down what had been built out of effort, love and persistence.
But as time goes, it’s becoming much easier to let it all just pass, and continue on forward. You learn to love yourself, so you don’t wish to harm your body, mind and heart. You love damn it! You love!
So there you go, my take on mythology and the great stuff born and expressed from it, hope you enjoyed this and thanks for reading!!
Here’s one last quote to think of, I can’t remember who said it though:
”Do you remember who you were before you were told who you should be?”
Written by Mikelis Dobrajs
My Mind Talk Series, A series devoted to our readers. Does your Mind do a lot of thinking too ? Do you have questions to ask ? A Poem, A question, an article or any thought that wants to be shared. Pour them here. Click the Submit button and we will publish it on our Site. Why let that thought Sink ? Let it be free Write on.. ? Let the Mind Talk Begin
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