The Hero's Journey

I remember reading Joseph Campbell's work on the hero's journey and I am reminded of the journey whenever I watch today's mythological stories in the form of movies, mostly with comic book heroes or animations of toys.

The latest we went to see was Transformers: Darkside of the Moon. I love the Transformer movies (go figure). How is it that the movie makers can make me feel so much for made up characters in the form of Autobots? Anyway, our little human hero played by Shia LaBeouf is a powerful portrayal of the mythic hero. He is insignificant in his regular life yet when faced with grave danger he jumps right into the middle of it rather than running away. You can see that's where he feels most alive, most focused and most present.

Sometimes I think we are faced with seemingly insurmountable problems so that we too can have the hero experience in our own unique way. The challenges may not seem all that big on the outside in many cases but the inner challenges can be truly mythic in proportion. The question that seems to be asked in the face of any challenge is 'What qualities are you going to express in the face of this?' I say what qualities rather than who because it is really about the qualities that are brought forth and expressed rather than any self-identity.

Becoming too attached to any identity, including the hero archetype, must eventually bring unhappiness and emptiness because it isn't who we are. Qualities expressed through the human form, whether we consider them negative or positive are simply ideas being played out. Different qualities show up in response to different situations. The more we remain present to what's unfolding through us in any given situation, the more in touch we are with the qualities that are ready to be expressed in a way that allows us to fully embrace and appreciate the wonder of it all. Hanging on to any of them is really about fear based beliefs in separation than anything else.

Hmm, ever wonder what it would be like to be completely open to each moment without any preconceived ideas about who you are? Could be a fun thing to wonder about no matter what's going on.