Joseph Campbell became famous for at least two things: His template of the common human story (monomyth) that is true across all cultures and his advice to ‘follow your bliss’.
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.
Joseph Campbell
In his book, The hero with a thousand faces, he describes the story line that all of us are destined to live no matter what our particular circumstances are – from the innocent, blissfully unaware and unwitting protagonist in our own life story to the blissfully aware hero that we ultimately emerge as.
This story line is, however, predictably not straightforward. It’s treacherous. There are unimaginably horrifying demons that we must confront, ones that we’ve been fleeing from in terror, that is until we become too exhausted or too enraged to keep running.
That’s when we somehow, miraculously and mystifyingly summon (or unleash or activate) the courage, the inspiration, that was always held as potential within us (think adventurers in The Wizard of Oz), and (gasp) turn around and eyeball those vile beasts (or take off their masks as Toto eventually does to the Wizard), whereupon they shrivel and shake and crumble into a pitiful mess. Often, this will involve some kind of help from a more knowledgeable or experienced other.
This experienced other won’t do the fighting for us – no one can – but they are able to help us see what we have thus far not been able to see. To guide us into the deep truths about ourselves by helping us recognize our false beliefs about ourselves and about the wretched demons (think fear, anger, shame, guilt, unforgiving, resentment, jealousy, unworthiness, powerlessness…) that torment us mercilessly. And that’s when we’re finally able to slay the demons and emerge heroically from those painful, perilous and gruelling battles.
Follow your Bliss Mentoring is about helping you understand how this story plays out in your life, what your ‘demons’ are and how they have prevented you from living the life that you so achingly desire. It is 100 percent designed to ensure that you do emerge heroically from all the battles you are facing and from all the ones that you will likely continue to face.
Now, please don’t let the thought that you’ll continue to face battles discourage you. You see, the fact is you and I will live this monomyth many times over, each time slaying a different demon, or slaying the same demon that reveals more and more of itself.
However, when you work with me, you will find pretty quickly that these ‘battles’ can actually be exciting and the demons, dare I say, seductive. Yes, rather that dread your ‘demons’, you’ll find yourself becoming more and more curious and excited about getting to know them. You’ll discover that, like the Wizard, they are really harmless, fear-driven entities that your beliefs have breathed life into. Dare I say, the demons ARE your beliefs and the thoughts and emotions associated with them! Erroneous and disempowering, until you know how to relate with them differently.
You see, beliefs and thoughts can indeed be replaced or surpassed by the deeper truths that you will uncover from within your true wisdom Self. And in the process, you’ll discover (or uncover) wonderful heroic qualities and capabilities within yourself that you never ever thought or dared to believe you had!
Follow your bliss Mentoring is about helping you discover, as you slay your demons i.e. uncover their ultimate emptiness or falseness, what life is calling you to be and to do. And as you become more and more intimately familiar with this calling, you will indeed find your experience of life to be ever more joyous, exciting, energizing and effortless, drawing you into greater, freer and more powerful versions of yourself, uncovering more and more of Life’s potential within you!
This is no idle boast. This is what we are all, each one of us, called to do and to be. Life has only one setting – the best. As Life’s very own offspring, it is only logical that you are naturally called to bring out the best in you! Life offers nothing less.
When we fail to do this, when we keep resisting Life’s calling, as the Hero initially does in Joseph Campbell’s monomyth (the one myth that reflects everyone’s story), we suffer. We suffer from fear, from unworthiness, from loss, guilt, shame, victimhood, addictions, powerlessness and so on. It’s because these are all ways in which we prevent Life from expressing itself i.e. the best of us. In short, we suffer the pain of being less than we are!
Battling with Life, resisting Life is not a smart thing to do. You cannot win. Life is all there is. To battle with Life is really to deny Life’s greatness in you, as you and through you. Most of us spend too many years of our journey battling futilely with Life. Oh sure, we may think we’re fighting for our rights or for justice or to save the world or to overcome our traumas. But really, what we are doing is resisting the natural flow of Life which impels us to be and do our best.
When you finally stop fighting (and we will inquire into all the ways that you do), you can then start following your bliss. You can start really listening to what Life is calling you to be and do in a way that is uniquely you. You can willingly allow Life to sweep you along its joyous, peaceful, rapturous, thrilling, effortless flow. You can seriously experience living effortlessly the enlightened way!
It doesn’t mean you’ll simply sit back and do nothing. Oh no. Chances are that as long as you’re wearing this mind-body suit i.e. have a physical existence, you will be called to make good use of it. But you will use it to think, speak and act with an awareness and confidence and power so wonderfully greater and better than you’ve ever known. Seriously, isn’t this what you truly desire?
Let Life guide you so that you can follow your bliss. Anything else will never be enough.
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