Impact Books: Power of Myth by Joseph Campbell

Summary

In this special episode, the host reviews 'The Power of Myth' by Joseph Campbell, a book that profoundly impacted their life philosophy. The book, originally an interview series, explores universal truths within mythology, emphasizing the importance of following one's bliss and the need for modern mythology and rituals. The host credits Campbell's work with shaping their marriage and Impact Theory, highlighting the book's relevance in understanding the human experience and the hero's journey.

Takeaways

• 📚 The book 'The Power of Myth' by Joseph Campbell has had a profound impact on the speaker's life, shaping their philosophy and influencing various aspects such as marriage and business.
• 🌟 Campbell emphasizes that mythology contains universal truths about the human condition, helping us make sense of life's dualities and the complexities of existence.
• 🎭 Mythology serves as a poetic language that extends our understanding beyond the limitations of words, capturing feelings and experiences that are difficult to articulate.
• 💡 The concept of 'following your bliss' is introduced as a guide to living a life that feels most alive and passionate, suggesting that this path will open new opportunities.
• 🚪 The speaker notes a modern deficiency in mythology and meaningful rituals, which are essential for navigating life's transitional moments.
• 🎬 While modern stories like 'Star Wars' can serve as contemporary mythology, they lack the depth and mystery of ancient myths, making it harder for them to influence our lives deeply.
• 🛠 The speaker suggests that in the absence of traditional rituals, modern equivalents could be the ritualized acquisition of skills and their application in service of something larger.
• 🧘‍♂️ Campbell's quote about life's pain leading to a greater life's reply encourages embracing pain as a part of the journey to self-discovery and personal growth.
• 🤔 The book challenges the audience to seek not just the meaning of life, but the experience of being truly alive, highlighting the importance of personal engagement with life.
• 🌐 The script touches on the idea that despite cultural differences, there are fundamental human experiences that are universally understood through mythology.
• 📖 The speaker highly recommends reading 'The Power of Myth' to gain a deeper understanding of oneself and the human experience, suggesting that it has the potential to be life-changing.

Q & A

What is the title of the book being reviewed in the video?

The title of the book being reviewed is 'The Power of Myth' by Joseph Campbell.

How was 'The Power of Myth' originally recorded?

It was originally recorded as an interview series between journalist Bill Moyers and Joseph Campbell, a preeminent scholar of comparative religion and mythology.

What impact did 'The Power of Myth' have on the speaker's life?

The book had a massive impact on the speaker's life, influencing his life philosophy, marriage, and the creation of his own theory, Impact Theory.

What does the speaker credit the book for in terms of his marriage?

The speaker credits 'The Power of Myth' with setting up his marriage on solid ground.

What is the main idea behind the book 'The Power of Myth'?

The main idea is that mythology contains universal and elemental truths about the human experience, which help us understand and structure our lives.

What is the famous quote by Joseph Campbell that the speaker mentions?

The famous quote is 'Follow your bliss and doors will open where there were no doors before.'

What does the speaker suggest is the modern equivalent of ritual?

The speaker suggests that the modern equivalent of ritual is ritualized skill acquisition and the expression of those skills in service of something larger than oneself.

What is the speaker's view on the importance of mythology in contemporary society?

The speaker believes that mythology is crucial in helping people understand the human experience, cope with pain, and find meaning in life, especially in a postmodern world where traditional myths are not widely believed.

What does the speaker suggest is the problem with modern mythology compared to ancient mythology?

The problem with modern mythology is that people know the stories are fiction and lack the cloak of mystery that made ancient mythology compelling, thus struggling to have a significant impact on our lives.

What are the three impactful quotes chosen by the speaker from the book?

The three quotes are: 1) 'What we're seeking is the experience of truly being alive.' 2) 'Myth is a manifestation in symbolic images of the energies of the organs of the body in conflict with each other.' 3) 'The greater life's pain, the greater life's reply.'

What does the speaker believe is the key to dealing with pain in life?

The speaker believes that enduring pain and finding a way through it, rather than avoiding or masking it, reveals who you really are and what you're truly capable of.

What is the speaker's final recommendation to the audience regarding the book?

The speaker strongly recommends that the audience read 'The Power of Myth' and visit impacttheory.com for more insights, emphasizing that the book can change one's life if allowed to.

Outlines

00:00

📚 The Power of Myth: Life's Elemental Truths

The speaker introduces 'The Power of Myth' by Joseph Campbell, a book that has profoundly impacted their life. Originally an interview series with Bill Moyers, the book delves into comparative religion and mythology. The speaker reflects on the book's influence on their personal philosophy and marriage, highlighting the universal truths found in mythology that help understand the human condition. Campbell's work is credited with inspiring the creation of Impact Theory and the importance of mythology in structuring our lives and thought patterns.

05:02

🌟 Following Your Bliss: Mythology's Role in Modern Life

The speaker discusses the concept of 'following your bliss' as a means to live authentically and passionately. They explore the idea that mythology provides a framework for understanding life's dualities and complex emotions, acting as a guide for living. The speaker also addresses the lack of modern mythology and meaningful rituals, suggesting that people must take on the responsibility of interpreting myths to navigate life's transitions. They emphasize the importance of enduring life's pain as a means to self-discovery and personal growth.

10:03

🌱 Myth and Ritual: Navigating Life's Transitions

The speaker emphasizes the need for individuals to understand and apply mythology in their lives, especially in a rapidly changing world where traditional myths may not resonate. They discuss the importance of rituals in marking life's transitions and the role of modern stories in filling the void left by ancient myths. The speaker shares impactful quotes from the book, such as the pursuit of being truly alive rather than merely seeking life's meaning, and the idea that life's pain can lead to a greater understanding of oneself. They conclude by encouraging readers to engage deeply with the book to experience its transformative potential.

Keywords

💡Impact Books

Impact Books is a segment of the video where books that have made a significant impact on the host's life are reviewed. It is the theme of the video, as the host discusses the profound influence 'The Power of Myth' had on his life philosophy and personal experiences.

💡The Power of Myth

This is the title of the book being reviewed, which is a collection of interviews between Joseph Campbell and Bill Moyers. The book explores the importance of mythology in understanding the human experience and is central to the video's theme of how stories and myths shape our lives.

💡Joseph Campbell

Joseph Campbell is a preeminent scholar of comparative religion and mythology, known for his work on the universality of myth. His ideas are foundational to the video's exploration of how myths provide a framework for understanding life's dualities and complexities.

💡Mythology

Mythology refers to a collection of myths, especially those associated with a particular culture or religious tradition. In the video, mythology is presented as a tool for understanding universal human truths and experiences, such as life, death, and the duality of human nature.

💡Elemental Truth

The term 'elemental truth' in the video refers to the fundamental, underlying meanings within mythology that are common across different cultures. These truths help to make sense of the human condition and are used to illustrate the universal aspects of life.

💡Follow Your Bliss

This is a famous quote by Joseph Campbell, which suggests that one should pursue what brings them a sense of fulfillment and aliveness. In the video, it is discussed as a guiding principle for living a passionate and meaningful life.

💡Modern Mythology

The concept of 'modern mythology' in the video addresses the lack of effective, ritualized stories in contemporary society. It contrasts with ancient mythology by highlighting the challenge of making modern stories impactful due to their acknowledged fictional nature.

💡Ritual

Ritual in the context of the video refers to the practices or ceremonies that mark transitions or significant moments in life. The host discusses the importance of rituals in ancient societies and the need for modern equivalents to help people navigate life's transitions.

💡Hero's Journey

The 'Hero's Journey' is a narrative pattern identified by Joseph Campbell that describes the stages a hero goes through in a myth. In the video, it is used to illustrate the transformative power of enduring pain and challenges, leading to self-discovery and growth.

💡Ineffable

The term 'ineffable' refers to something that cannot be expressed in words. In the video, it is used to describe the power of mythology to capture feelings and experiences that transcend verbal expression, making them tangible and useful for understanding life.

💡Postmodern World

The 'postmodern world' mentioned in the video refers to the current era characterized by skepticism towards grand narratives and a fragmented cultural landscape. It is used to discuss the challenges of finding meaningful rituals and myths in a rapidly changing society.

Highlights

Introduction to 'The Power of Myth' by Joseph Campbell as a book that has greatly impacted the author's life.

The book originated from interviews between Bill Moyers and Joseph Campbell, a scholar of comparative religion and mythology.

The author's personal connection to the book, crediting it for shaping his life philosophy and marriage.

Mythology as a universal language that helps us understand the human condition and the world.

Myths as a tool to make sense of dualities and the inexpressible aspects of life.

The idea that mythology provides a structure for our lives and thought patterns.

Joseph Campbell's famous quote 'follow your bliss' and its interpretation.

The concept of 'bliss' as doing what makes you feel most alive.

The lack of modern mythology and meaningful rituals in contemporary society.

Campbell's view on the modern world as an age without effective mythology.

The distinction between modern and ancient mythology, with Star Wars as an example of modern mythology.

The importance of interpreting and using mythology in our lives for personal growth.

The role of ritualized skill acquisition as a modern equivalent to ancient rituals.

The need for individuals to understand how to transition through life stages using mythology.

Three impactful quotes from the book that have deeply influenced the author.

The idea that seeking the experience of being alive is more fundamental than seeking life's meaning.

Mythology as a manifestation of the energies and conflicts within the body.

The notion that enduring life's pain leads to a greater response and understanding of oneself.

The author's personal testimony on how the book has shaped his belief system and life decisions.

The universality of human experience across different cultures and mythologies.

A call to action for readers to engage with the book deeply and visit impacttheory.com for more insights.

The final quote encouraging readers to find a space for creative incubation, away from worldly concerns.

Transcripts

everybody welcome to a very special

episode of impact books today we are

reviewing what is quite possibly my

favorite book of all time it's certainly

had a massive impact of my life and it's

called the power of myth by Joseph

Campbell

[Music]

we've actually originally recorded as an

interview series between journalist bill

moyers and Joseph Campbell the

preeminent scholar of comparative

religion and mythology and I've had the

great pleasure of reading both the

physical book and listening to the

original recordings and I have to say

there's really no substitute for hearing

the author's voice especially because

the book was pulled from the very

conversational interview which was

recorded not too long before Campbell's

death I read the book about 17 years ago

and it left an indelible mark on me

figuratively and quite literally and I

credit this book not only to planting

the seed in my mind that would

ultimately blossom into impact theory

but I also credit it with setting up my

marriage on solid ground in many ways

this book makes us the very foundation

of my entire life philosophy and the

reason for that is it made very clear to

me that residing within mythology and

rich more are the universal in fact the

elemental truth of the human experience

the power of myth was published by

penguin Random House boys and girls and

I owe you guys a huge debt of gratitude

for this one so thank you impact idea

number one an elemental truth well the

particulars vary from culture to culture

the underlying meaning behind mythology

points you absolutely universal things

about the human condition this help us

codify and understand the world around

us there the human minds attempt to make

sense of things like life and death the

duality of the voices in our head love

and hate pain and bliss and it's not

just the dualities but myth also help us

understand things for which we just

don't have any words they help us come

to grips with the truths that are simply

outside of the realm of language said

another way mythology helps us structure

our lives and our thought patterns the

lessons that they teach us on how to

live act and think really help us to

understand our own existence and to

paraphrase Campbell mythology is the

poetry that pushes our mind beyond what

we can represent with words and into the

world that can be known but never told

in other words they capture what you

feel but can't explain

being able to grab ahold of the

ineffable and make it concrete and

something that then you can use as a

filter for how to live your life really

is the very power of mythology and why I

am so obsessed and why I think quite

frankly that it's important at this

moment in society that we get a better

grip on mythology impactful idea in the

to follow your bliss all right this is

probably the most famous thing that

Joseph Campbell ever said and I think

that his famous quote remains incredibly

relevant today and the full quote goes

like this follow your bliss and doors

will open where there were no doors

before this is very similar to the

concepts of following your passion but I

think in slight variation in choice of

words actually carries some really

useful meaning to people and what he was

talking about when he says to follow

your bliss is to do that which makes you

feel most alive and that sense of doing

what makes you feel most alive to me is

probably the most useful definition of

passion or bliss that's available

[Music]

impactful idea number three there is a

lack of modern mythology and a serious

lack of meaningful ritual to help people

with the transitional moment in life now

when lawyers asked Joseph Campbell what

a world without mythology would look

like

Campbell tells them simply to look

around at the world that he's living in

because we are going through an age

without effective mythology and when

press however Campbell says that he

believes that Star Wars actually is

pretty relevant modern mythology but and

he points out a really critical problem

and that is that people know that the

story is fiction and without the cloak

of mystery that made ancient mythology

so compelling to people the modern

mythology is always going to struggle to

have an impact on our lives

that notion is exactly what planning to

see in my mind about impact theory

because I totally agree with Campbell

the problem isn't mythology we're really

good at creating mythology the problem

is we don't know how to interpret and

use mythology in our lives and if you

look at a sheer volume of morality based

stories pouring out of the comic book

film and TV worlds you can see that the

problem isn't just getting this the

problem is really ritualizing it using

it as a filter and understand

how to actually live our lives and

because of that people don't know how to

award the teachings and I think that the

modern equivalent of ritual is

ritualized skill acquisition and the

expression of those skills and servants

of something larger than themselves so

if you're wondering what's driving the

ideology and content creation behind

impact Theory it's this very idea we

live in a postmodern world where ancient

missing someone observed people don't

believe in them the world is changing so

fast that no myth has any hope of

becoming ritualized and when you start

thinking about needing the rituals in

order to cross into a new phase in life

or to really understand how to live

one's life we all come up wanting so

that to me is something that's really

critical right now that we all have to

take on the burden ourselves is

understanding how to cross from

childhood into adulthood or from single

life into marriage and that's why I

think people have to really refocus on

mythology and they have to understand

how to interpret it as a way to live

boiling down any book into the impactful

quotes is always part of the fun for me

but it's also really difficult

especially this book you really can't

imagine how many quotes from this book

reside in my mind how many of them have

become part of the very fabric of how I

live but here are the three that I've

chosen number one people say what we're

all seeking is a meaning for life but I

don't think that's what we're really

seeking I think what we're seeking is

the experience of truly being alive

let's go back this concept of following

your bliss of finding that thing that

really lights you on fire that makes you

feel alive that is just from a neural

chemistry standpoint exciting and that

it's such a great marker for people to

use to guide them through their lives

and really is one of the most enduring

things to come out of this book not just

for me but for the world at large when

people talk about this book that's the

quote that they cite

impact report number two myth is a

manifestation in symbolic images in

metaphorical images of the energies of

the organs of the body in conflict with

each other this organ wants this that

organ wants that the brain is one of

those organs all right to me that sums

up my entire life literally mythology is

us trying to come to terms with that

more that's going on inside of us with

the desire to be lazy and stay in bed

and yet at the same time to go and

accomplish great things and it really is

mythology that helps us make sense of

all of the conflicting ideas and desires

that we have within ourselves and it

puts it into a narrative and that

narrative makes the incredibly

complicated and complex experience of

being a human tangible and

understandable impactful quote number

three and I want you guys to really pay

attention to this one the greater life's

pain the greater life's reply I

absolutely love this quote because I

think the thing in life that people

succumb to is pain I think that's so

much of the trouble that people get into

is either trying to avoid pain or trying

to mask pain rather than dealing with it

and what I think Campbell makes

incredibly clear here is that if you can

fight through that pain if you can

endure that on the other side of that

especially when you put it into the

context of this man being just a student

of mythology that on the other side of

that hero's journey no matter how

painful it is is a response from life

about who you are and what you're truly

capable of so rather than looking for a

way out find that way through to reveal

who you really are

all right there are so many amazing

quotes and ideas in this book be sure to

go to impact Theory comm for more quotes

from this book that should be lodged

deep inside your mind the part about

reading a book quite frankly and the

book reviews that's the most important

to me how am I going to use this in my

life all right with this one if Pete

Carroll says you need a life philosophy

a belief system that informs your

everyday decisions the power of myth in

no uncertain terms help me define mine

it's touched every aspect of my life

from my marriage to my business it's

helped me identify my bliss and find the

structure I needed to grow together with

my wife over time it's informed my

writing it's given voice to the impact

that I want to have on this world it is

quite simply part of the foundation of

my entire belief system and while I

can't say that this book is the most

important book for everybody to read I

can say that it's the book that's

impacted me the most

partly because I read it at a time as

very formative in my life and partly

because it's just that bad F and I'm

really a little bit mortified by this

will convene because this book can given

so much to my life and I don't feel like

I have adequately captured how effective

it is at helping you understand life at

helping you understand pain at helping

you understand narrative in yourself and

all of the conflict you're going to go

through this book breaks it down by

looking globally at all the mythologies

and stories that we tell ourselves

across cultures and it really shows how

the human experience just isn't that

different and at a time where it seems

like people are more divided than ever

this book is something that's really

going to shown you we just aren't that

different that the experience matter

where you are no matter where you grow

up no matter the particulars of the

stories that your culture has told there

are fundamental elemental truths that

live underneath that that inform and

explain the human experience I really

hope you guys will enjoy this book as

much as I have and as always there just

are way too many concepts and things for

me to cover in this so please this is

not an appeal to you to watch this if

you like and read the book this is an

appeal for you to go and actually read

the book and go to impact theory calm

you can find more insights rants clothes

all kinds of good stuff which will

hopefully make the book come more alive

to you guys I want to leave you guys in

one last quote you must have a room or a

certain hour or so a day when you don't

know what was in the newspapers that

warned you don't know who your friends

are you don't know what anybody owes you

this is a place where you can simply

experience and bring forth what you are

and what you might

B this is the place of creative

intubation at first you might find that

nothing happens there but if you want to

hear the rest of that quote you guys are

going to have to read the book and I

hope you do this one is going to change

you if you let it all right guys this

learn weekly show so if you haven't

already be sure to subscribe and until

next time my friends be legendary

take care

[Music]