The Heroe's Journey

The following quote by Joseph Campbell is quite easy to find on the net, but I've recently a really profound experience that made it really come alive for me. So I thought I'd share it and save you the trouble looking for it ;)

We have not even to risk the adventure alone, for the heroes of all time have gone before us - the labyrinth is thoroughly known. We have only to follow the thread of the hero path, and where we had thought to find an abomination, we shall find a god; where we had thought to slay another, we shall slay ourselves; where we had thought to travel outward, we shall come to the center of our own existence. And where we had thought to be alone, we shall be with all the world.
(Joseph Campbell. The Hero With a Thousand Faces)

Breathing

As human beings we feel the need to cling to every good thing that comes our way. We cling to things, to money, to experiences. We feel we need to possess all that is good because we fear that if we don't we will be left empty. But when we hold on to something good we find it doesn't do what we expect it to do - to fill that hole, to make us whole again, and so we are disappointed and collect more stuff. We eat more food, we drink more wine and collect more and more things. And we worry that we don't have enough and no matter how much we collect, it's never enough.

But when we breath, we don't hold on to the breath. We breath in, the breath does it's work, and we let it go again. And yet there's another breath, and another. When we let go the universe provides what we need. Everything in the universe is constantly moving and changing, as if the whole universe is breathing in and breathing out. Connecting with that rhythm is one of the hardest things to do, because it means dying - letting go of everything, letting go even of that which we call "me". And as each layer is stripped away we discover that we haven't lost anything at all, but we find who we really are. And we discover that the universe hasn't got it in for us and that we aren't so seperate and alien afterall.

So breath in, breath out and find the rhythm of the breath and let it permeate you life. Take what you need and then let go again.

The meaning of Myth

I found the following quote a few years ago. It's probably this quote that started me thinking a bit differently about the word "myth". This led to the study of Jung and the concept of symbols and archetypes, Joseph Campbell's awesome understanding of myth and a few other things. It comes from a book I bought for R5 at a second hand theological bookstore. The title is "The Primal Vision". by John V. Taylor. It's a stunning book and in a chapter on "The Language of Myth" he quotes someone by the name of Nicolas Berdyaev:

Myth is a reality immeasurably greater than concept. It is high time that we stopped identifying myth with invention, with the illusions of primitive mentality, and with anything, in fact, which is essentially opposed to reality... The creation of myths among peoples denotes a real spiritual life, more real indeed than that of abstract concepts and rational thought.
Myth is always concrete and expresses life better than abstract thought can do; its nature is bound up with that of symbol. Myth is the concrete recital of events and original phenomena of the spiritual life symbolized in the natural world, which has engraved itself on the language memory and creative energy of the people...; it brings two worlds together symbolically. (Nicolas Berdyaev, Freedom and Spirit)

The Journey

Paulo Coelho's book "The Alchemist" has to be one of my favourite books. I was chatting with some intersting people this morning and the book came up. As we were talking one of the people mentioned that the treasure at the end of the book is a bit disappointing. I thought about that for a while and to be honest, I couldn't really remember what the treasure was, but I remembered, in detail, the rest of the story. I guess the treasure at the end wasn't as important to me as the journey itself. While the treasure seemed to be the driving force behind the journey, the book without the journey would have been, well, pointless. And maybe that's the point. It's not so much the destination that's important, but the journey we take to get there.

Polyrythms and Ideas

One of the things you need to learn as a drummer is to play different things with each of your limbs. This is known as independance. I can play one pattern on the kick drum, another of the hi-hat or ride, another on the snare, and perhaps my left foot is playing another pattern with the hi-hat foot pedal. To someone starting out, this is usually quite difficult and you often find one limb trying to follow the other. A little way down the line this becomes quite easy and natural, and it's one of the things that can make a great rhythm.
The next challenge is polyrhythms. This is similar to what I've just spoken about except your playing two or more rhythms at the same time. For instance, you may be counting 1-2-3 on the base drum, but at the same you'll play 1-2-3-4 on the ride cymbal - on top of the first rhythm, or even 5 and 4 and so on. Played correctly, you get a really interesting and sometimes hypnotic rhythm.

What does this have to do with my point of view?
Well, some people act as if there is only one way of thinking. They acknowlege that there are other ways of looking at things, but they feel their way is perhaps better than other ways of looking at things. This is usually quite evident in a debate between science and religion, or in understanding concepts like energy, spirit, soul etc.
But, is it not possible to have different points of view at the same time - views that seem to contradict each other?
I have found that it can be quite helpful to entertain that possibility, and quite often there is something else that emerges when you do that. Something emerges that, I find, is more true to me and my experience of life.
I think that it goes back to the concept that theories and ideas can never fully map out the true experience of living. Real life is messy and there are always grey areas - areas of mystery that no theory will ever quite cover. Holding two conflicting ideas at the same time can push you into exploring these grey areas with more honesty.

Truth is often found in the balance between two opposites.

talking about God

How do I experience God? God is like the air all around me and in me. I breath it in and breath it out. Without it I would die. I know it is there, but it's only when I'm really still, or desperate for breath, that I seem to notice it at all.

We want to think about God. God is a thought; God is an idea. But its reference is to something that transcends all thinking. He's beyond Being, He’s beyond the category of being and non-being. Every religion is true in this sense: it is true as metaphorical of the human and cosmic mystery. He who thinks he knows doesn’t know. He who knows that he doesn’t know, knows.
(Joseph Campbell - The Power of Myth)

Honesty and spirituality

I love bookshops. The way a book is able to speak in silence gives me a sense of peace. And that moment of opening a new book, connecting with someone else's mind for me is real magic. The fact that I can write these words and somehow convey to you my thoughts is nothing less than miraculous, something we take so for granted.

But it's also possible to hide behind these words. If I'm careful and clever I can make it sound as if I have all the answers. Well perhaps I can't, but many of the authors I read get it right. I read these books and I must admit that I feel quite small. I can never seem to 'get it right' in those 10 steps that the author guarantees. Maybe it's because some books belong to the world of ideas and ideals, where the raw reality of living seems quite distant.

Every now and again I find a book where the author has dared to let me in on their real life. One of the chapters I read last night was honest enought to speak about the dark side that exists in all of us. Another book I'm reading is about sex and deals with stuff that most of us think, but would rather not admit.

Sometimes I ask myself if I hide behind all the books that are stacked beside my bed, as if by reading them I can escape for a while. Escape from what? I think it's the escape from being alone with myself, or the fear that I am nothing extraordinary..

And I think that perhaps this is why the spritual path is often one of stillness - because in stillness I need to be honest and face my doubts, my fears and my demons. I say 'my' because they are part of who I am. And strangely enough, by embracing these things , I find stillness and peace and relax into the knowlege that I am here and I am living, and I share this life and these feelings with other real human beings - and I don't feel so alone with myself anymore.