Using Ritual, Dreams, and

PERSONAL
Imagination to Discover

MYTHOLOGY
Your Inner Story

David Feinstein, Ph.D. and

Stanley Krippner, Ph.D.
Foreword by June Singer, Ph.D.
 Digitized by the Internet Archive
in 2012

This book has been downloaded from Internet Archive:

Digital Library and re-digitized for better reading and
viewing. I hope this adds to your reading pleasure.

http://archive.org/details/personalmytholoOOOfeiri
 PEKJOML
HYTHOLOQY
 Also by David Feinstein:
Rituals for Living and Dying
(with Peg Elliott, in press)

Also by Stanley Krippner:

Human Possibilities: Mind Research in
the USSR and Eastern Europe
Song of the Siren:
A Parapsychological Odyssey
Dreamworking: How to Use Your Dreams for
Creative Problem-Solving (with Joseph Dillard)
Healing States (with Alberto Villoldo)
The Realms of Healing (with Alberto Villoldo)
Dream Telepathy: Experiments in Nocturnal ESP
(with Montague Ullman and Alan Vaughan)
 FEKJOML
HYTHOLOQY
The Psychology of Your Evolving Self

Using Ritual, Dreams, and Imagination

to Discover Your Inner Story

David Feinstein, Ph.D. and Stanley Krippner, Ph.D.

Foreword by June Singer, Ph.D.

JEREMY P. TARCHER, INC.

Los Angeles
Distributed by St. Martin’s Press
New York
Art in Prologue: Mirth by William Blake. Reproduced by courtesy of the
Trustees of the British Museum.
Art in Chapter 1: Madras Rameshwaram, Corridor of the temple (17th—18th
century).
Art in Chapter 2: Drawing by Andrew Lang from The Andrew Lang Fairy Tale
Book (New York: Signet Classics/New American Library, 1986).
Art in Chapter 3: The Fall of Man by Albrecht Diirer. Reproduced by courtesy
of the Trustees of the British Museum.
Art in Chapter 4: Jacob's Dream by William Blake. Reproduced by courtesy
of the Trustees of the British Museum.
Art in Chapter 5: The Creation of Adam (detail) by Michelangelo.
Art in Chapter 6: Drawing Hands by M. C. Escher. Copyright © 1988 M. C.
Escher Heirs/Cordon Art—Baarn—Holland. Reproduced with permission.
Art in Chapter 7: The First Probe by Rob Vanderhorst. Copyright by Rob
Vanderhorst. Reproduced with permission.
Art in Epilogue: Earthrise. Photo courtesy of NASA.

Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data

Feinstein, David.
Personal mythology, the psychology of your evolving self / David
Feinstein and Stanley Krippner.
p. cm.
Includes index.
ISBN 0-87477-483-7.
ISBN 0-87477-484-5 (pbk.)
1. Attitude (Psychology7) 2. Mythology—Psychological aspects.
3. Self-perception. 4. Attitude change. 5. Self-actualization
(Psychology) I. Krippner, Stanley, 1932- . II. Title.
BF327.F45 1988
155.2—dcl9 88-10056 CIP

Copyright © 1988 by David Feinstein and Stanley Krippner

Foreword by June Singer © 1988
All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or
transmitted in any form by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying and recording, or by any information
storage or retrieval system, except as may be expressly permitted by
the 1976 Copyright Act or in writing by the publisher.
Requests for such permissions should be addressed to:
Jeremy P. Tarcher, Inc.
5858 Wilshire Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90036
Design by Rosa Schuth
Manufactured in the United States of America
10 987654321
First Edition
For Sol and Edith Feinstein
_____________________________ Contents

FOREWORD xi

PROLOGUE: Expanding Your Mythology 1

Beyond Limiting Cultural Images

CHAPTER 1. Into Your Mythic Depths 17

CHAPTER 2. The First Stage: Recognizing When a 45

Guiding Myth Is No Longer an Ally

CHAPTER 3. The Second Stage: Bringing the Roots 75

of Mythic Conflict into Focus

CHAPTER 4. The Third Stage: Conceiving a 108

Unifying Mythic Vision

CHAPTER 5. The Fourth Stage: From Vision to 138

Commitment

CHAPTER 6. The Fifth Stage: Weaving a Renewed 160

Mythology into Daily Life

CHAPTER 7. Your Evolving Mythology 185

EPILOGUE: Tending to the Mythic Vision 212

of Your Community

APPENDIX A: Enhancing the Program 233

APPENDIX B: A Primer for Working with Your Dreams 239

APPENDIX C: When the Program Becomes Unsettling 245

NOTES 249

SUGGESTED READINGS 255

INDEX 259

vii
_____________________ Acknowledgments

Discussions with Rosie Adams, Sharon Doubiago, Joel Elkes, Richard

Evans, Steven Goldstein, Joel Heller, Jerry Jud, Steve Kierulff, Don
Klein, Ron Kurtz, Danielle Light, Bill Lyon, Gene Mallory, Rollo May,
Reid Meloy, Stella Monday, Paul Oas, Tiziana de Rovere, Virginia
Satir, Chuck Simpkinson, Meredith Spencer Foster, Katherine Yates,
Carl Young, and the Wightman Men’s Gathering all contributed to our
thinking in ways that are gratefully acknowledged. Dan P. McAdams
offered many wise and productive suggestions on an earlier draft of
this volume. Peg Elliott, who has been a constant source of perceptive
and buoyant counsel, has contributed more of substance to this work
than we can measure. Marj Davis gracefully offered spiritual respite
along with her twinkling spirit. We also would like to express our
gratitude to Rita Rohen and the late Richard Price, whose generous
hospitality permitted us to write parts of this book in the beautiful
surroundings of Esalen Institute.
Jeremy Tarcher has been a compelling and imaginative force in
this effort to bring the ideas and methods presented in our seminars
and professional writings to a wider audience. Our editors, Connie
Zweig and Ted Mason, have been generous in talent and good humor.
The love, understanding, and inspirational presence of our part­
ners in marriage, Donna Eden and Lelie Krippner, are appreciated
beyond words.

ix
 Foreword

Personal myths are not what you think they are. They are not false
beliefs. They are not the stories you tell yourself to explain your
circumstances and behavior. Your personal mythology is, rather, the
vibrant infrastructure that informs your life, whether or not you are
aware of it. Consciously and unconsciously, you live by your mythol­
ogy. In this remarkable book, the authors challenge you, through the
use of ritual, dreams, and story, to become aware of the mythology
you are living, to confront it, and in the end to gain some mastery over
it. The book is an exercise in the "evolution of consciousness”—your
consciousness and the consciousness of the culture in which you are
embedded.
To live mythically means to become aware of your personal and
collective origins. In the process of learning to do this you will dis­
cover, or affirm, that you are not an isolated independent being, but
the end product of the millennia of acculturation and maturation of
the human race. Personal mythology is but the flower on the bush: the
family myth is the branch, society’s conventions form the stem, and
the root is the human condition.
Personal myths structure our awareness and point us in the direc­
tion that becomes our path. If we are unacquainted with the contents
of our personal mythology we are carried by it unconsciously, with
the result that we confuse what exists objectively in the world with the
image of the world supplied to us by our own distorted lenses. Based
on an unconscious personal mythology, or a mythology rigidly im­
posed by our social group, we tend to see only one correct path. We
do not see it as our way, but as the way, and we do not see that it could
lead to disaster as easily as to contentment.
The book has its roots in a research project at The Johns Hopkins
University School of Medicine in which Feinstein compared several
emerging systems of personal growth therapies with more traditional
therapies. He found a common denominator: each therapy, in its own
way, attempted to influence how people construct their understand­
ing of themselves and their place in the world. He used the term
personal mythology to describe this “evolving construction of inner
xii PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

reality” and to emphasize that all human constructions of reality are

mythologies.
Krippner's role in this book has been one of offering inspiration
and insight to the primary author. He brings to the collaboration
thirty years of pioneering research on human consciousness, particu­
larly his studies of dreams, healing, and altered states. Over the past
decade the authors have conducted workshops and developed meth­
ods through which people can become aware of the mythologies that
have guided them in the past. With that understanding, it is possible
to move on to guiding myths that are more vital and viable. The
process is systematically arranged and comprises the major portion
of this work. Step by step, the book sets forth a guide to personal
transformation through explanation, participatory experiences, and
case material. It not only provides the necessary conceptual informa­
tion, but helps the reader integrate the knowledge through rituals and
practices and then apply the new awareness to everyday life.
An approach that delineates five stages of growth is offered. The
stages are informed by sources encompassing many schools, all the
way from ancient Greek philosophy to the methods and theories of
Freudian and Jungian psychology to the practical approaches of con­
temporary behaviorism and cognitive psychology. None of these sys­
tems is applied uncritically, and the authors have managed to inte­
grate a coherent synthesis of a tremendous body of psychological
theory into their work.
The first three stages echo the Socratic thesis, antithesis, and syn­
thesis. Stage One involves recognizing and defining one’s own per­
sonal myth and discovering to what degree this guiding myth is no
longer an ally. Stage Two requires the identification of an opposing
personal myth, one that creates a conflict in the person’s psyche. The
conflicting myths are brought into focus and examined to see how
each is linked to the past. The person will soon recognize that the
myths of childhood are rarely appropriate to serve the adult.
Stage Three, synthesis, entails conceiving a unifying vision. Here
the old myth and the counter-myth are brought into confrontation.
They may be personified so that the conflict can be worked out as a
drama of the inner life, and so that, as Feinstein and Krippner so
nicely put it, it does not have to be “played out on the rack of life."
In the process, obstacles to harmony are re-visioned as opportunities
for growth.
Stage Four begins where many modes of therapy end. It is called
“From Vision to Commitment.” Here is where the insights are tested
and reinforced so that the process envisioned can move from the
Foreword xiii

hypothetical or imaginal realm into the phase of intention and then

into action. Stage Five entails weaving the new mythology into life.
Here a series of practical steps is suggested whereby the inner trans­
formation can be demonstrated in the world. The butterfly emerges
from the chrysalis and is (and is not) a new being. From here on, the
process continues both as inner work and as living in the world in a
new way, more free of the constrictions of unconscious assumptions.
Personal Mythology’s great contribution, it seems to me, lies in the
way it facilitates individuals in recognizing the root causes of their
difficulties and then taking responsibility for their own healing pro­
cess. In this age, information is more accessible to more people than
ever before, and individuals are better informed about what is needed
to gain and maintain a healthy state both physically and psychologi­
cally. Consequently the physician, the psychiatrist, and the psycho­
therapist are no longer held up as the only people who can lead us to
better health. In many situations it is possible and also desirable for
individuals to take responsibility for their own well-being. This is
done through such practices as exercise, good nutrition, and main­
taining a variety of interests. Feinstein and Krippner point the way
and provide some very good guidance for attending to one's psycho­
logical health and development. Each person who reads this book is
challenged to undertake the journey in whatever way is appropriate:
alone, with a partner, with friends, or in a group committed to a
growth process.
At some point along the way, personal myths converge with cul­
tural myths to govern every human activity. There comes a time, as
we work on our personal issues, when we realize the degree to which
our personal concerns are of limited significance. The "independent
individual” is a myth gone bankrupt. We have always depended upon
others for our most basic needs: food, shelter, security, and affection.
How much more do we need one another to supply all the complex
requirements of life today! You are a participant in the creation of
whatever will happen next on this planet. Looking toward the future,
the authors point out that a rigid nationalism, "the fiercely indepen­
dent ego writ large,” is losing its feasibility as a social form. In the
emerging Global Village, as Marshal McLuhan called it, allegiances
transcend regional and cultural boundaries. Information, business,
the arts, the media, the news, all know no national limitations.
We can no longer separate ourselves from the destiny of the planet,
be it a global society in which people may live in mutual trust and high
productivity, or nuclear annihilation. The next challenge, which Fein­
stein and Krippner raise in closing, is to apply to the human commu­
 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

nity the principles derived from observing the way individuals think
mythically. Can the methods the authors have presented for dealing
with intrapersonal conflict be used in dealing with the cultural myths
that foster intergroup and international conflicts? As in any open
system, the solution of one series of problems opens the door to
working with a set of higher-level problems. That challenge may well
lead us to the next step in the “evolution of consciousness.”

—June Singer
 ____________________________ Prologue

Expanding Your Mythology

Beyond Limiting Cultural Images

Mythic images . . . are pictures that involve us both physiologically in

our bodily reactions to them and spiritually in our higher thoughts
about them. When a person is aware of living mythically, she or he is
experiencing life intensively and reflectively. —naomi Goldenberg1

To be aware of living mythically is to understand your life as an

unfolding drama whose meaning is larger than your day-to-day con­
cerns. It is to nurture a ripening appreciation of your cultural and
ancestral roots. To live mythically is to seek guidance from your
dreams, imagination, and other reflections of your inner being, as
well as from the most inspiring people, practices, and institutions of
your society. To live mythically is also to cultivate an ever-deepening
relationship with the universe and its great mysteries.
Since the mid-1970s, we have taught some two thousand people a
system for learning to live more mythically. In this book we present
that system as a series of “personal rituals” designed to bring greater
awareness to the submerged mythology that shapes your thoughts,
emotions, and behavior. The quiet guidance of your personal mythol­
ogy gives meaning to every situation you meet and determines what
you will do in it. Your personal mythology acts as a lens that colors
your perceptions according to its own assumptions and values. It
highlights certain possibilities and shadows others. Through it, you
view the ever-changing panorama of your experiences in the world.
People often live their lives with very little awareness of the lens
through which they are looking. According to Jungian analyst
Frances Wickes, “modern man is unaware of the myth that lives itself
within him, of the image, often invisible, that dynamically impels him
2 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

toward choice."2 It is possible, however, to step back and begin to

inspect the lens, the mythology that is directing your choices. For
Wickes, the art of living is, in essence, a development of the power of
inward choice. She believed this to be "of all creative arts the most
difficult and the most distinguished."3 Developing the power of in­
ward choice is the challenge this book sets before you. We offer this
challenge with the conviction that examining your personal mythol­
ogy will strengthen your ability to make choices that are more crea­
tive and empowering.
Much of the psychological suffering people experience is entan­
gled in personal myths that are not attuned to their actual needs,
potentials, or circumstances. Attempting to follow a personal myth
that is not in harmony with who you are or with the world in which
you live is painful, and a mythology that is unable to serve as a bridge
to deeper meanings and greater inspiration than you can find in the
outer world is often accompanied by a deep and nameless anxiety. As
you develop greater awareness of your emerging mythology, you ex­
perience increased intimacy with your inner being. To "know thyself”
in this informed and substantial manner inoculates you against at
least one strain of the generalized anxiety of the day by engaging
greater support from your deeper self.
Your personal mythology is the distinctive, although sometimes
imperceptible, self-psychology4 that guides your behavior and pre­
pares the way as you evolve in the world. Personal Mythology: The
Psychology of Your Evolving Self presents an integrated set of psycho­
logical principles and procedures you can master for promoting your
personal development. The book can help you examine, revise, and
revitalize the private theories that shape your life. Kurt Lewin, who
was distinguished for his ingenious application of psychological
knowledge to social problems, was fond of pointing out that "Nothing
is as practical as a good theory.” His observation is valid not only for
scientific theories, but also for the private theories or personal myths
we all hold. Such theories are more than just intellectual constructs;
they are ingrained models of reality that determine how you see your
world and understand your place within it. When such models are
flawed or out of date, they lead to unrealistic expectations, poor
choices, and emotional distress. When they are serving you well, you
have better access to your inner wisdom and greater understanding
of your environment.
Myths, in the sense that we are using the term, are not legends or
falsehoods. They are, rather, the models by which human beings code
and organize their perceptions, feelings, thoughts, and actions. Your
 Expanding Your Mythology
Beyond Limiting Cultural Images
4 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

personal mythology is rooted in the very ground of your being, and

it is also a reflection of the mythology held by the culture in which you
live. We all create myths based on sources that are within us and
sources that are external, and we live according to those myths. Psy­
chologist Henry Murray thought of myths in this way: myths serve to
inspire, generate conviction, orient action, and unify a person or a
group by creating the "passionate participation of all functions of the
personality (individual myth), or of all members of a society (collec­
tive myth).”5
Through your personal mythology, you interpret the experience of
your senses, give order to new information, find inspiration and direc­
tion, and orient yourself to powers in the universe that are beyond
your understanding. Without your mythology, your experiences
would be disjointed and chaotic. Myths, in this broader sense, are not
properly understood as being true or false, right or wrong. They are
ways of organizing experience that may ultimately be judged as more
or less effective for the well-being and performance of an individual
or group.
Our approach is organized around three basic premises:

1. Myth-making, at both the individual and the collective levels,

is the primary though often unperceived psychological mech­
anism by which human beings navigate their way through
life.
2. People in contemporary cultures are more capable of con­
structing distinctively personal mythologies and reflecting
upon those mythologies than in any previous period of his­
tory—and the need to become conscious of the mythologies
we are living out is more urgent than ever before.
3. By understanding the principles that govern your underlying
myths, you become less bound by the mythologies of your
childhood and of your culture, and you may begin to influ­
ence patterns in your life that once seemed predetermined
and went unquestioned.

MYTHOLOGY IN A
CONTEMPORARY CONTEXT

There recently has been a resurgence of interest in mythology as a

path to a richer inner life and a more sophisticated spiritual outlook.
Bruno Bettelheim, Robert Bly, Jean Shinoda Bolen, Joseph Campbell,
Joan Halifax, James Hillman, Jean Houston, Robert Johnson, Sam
Expanding Your Mythology Beyond Limiting Cultural Images 5

Keen, Rollo May, Arnold Mindell, Paul Rebillot, William Irwin

Thompson, and Barbara Walker are among the contemporary figures
who have offered more vital psychological perspectives by calling
upon mythology. We like to think of our work as also helping to revive
this powerful, ancient concept and applying it in a contemporary and
somewhat novel manner. Besides suggesting that mythologies func­
tion in the modern world as much as they did in earlier times and that
they operate at personal as well as cultural levels, we are emphasizing
that it is possible for you to develop a set of skills for revising your
personal mythology in ways that will benefit you. When you alter a
guiding myth, decisive changes in your perceptions, feelings, and
behavior follow.
Your mythology is, to an extent, your culture’s mythology in mi­
crocosm. Everything you do and every thought you have bears the
distinctive mark of the mythology of the culture in which you were
raised. Even activities that might seem natural or universal are dic­
tated by the basic assumptions and underlying images that are re­
flected in your culture. What you eat and the way you eat it, what you
wear and how you wear it, whether your thinking is oriented toward
the present or the future, whether your experience of the moment
accents thoughts or feelings, how you greet strangers and receive
friends, and how you acquire, accumulate, and display material
possessions are all fashioned, in important ways, by the mythology of
your culture.
Today’s myths appear in less distinguished guises than the elabo­
rate stories and exotic rituals of tribal and ancient peoples. The spirits
and deities whose authority was unrivaled in tribal, classical, and
medieval cultures have faded into antiquity. Now we find an abun­
dance of mortal heroes and heroines, both real and imaginary, in
novels, comics, movies, and television stories. While these images are
less than venerable—rather than reaching back through the genera­
tions, they appear suddenly and fade abruptly—they are disseminated
through powerful media and leave strong impressions. The lyrics of
popular songs often provide compelling mythic messages that may
later appear word for word in a teenager’s protestation of love, state­
ment of defiance, or suicide note.
Myths permeate all areas of modern life. They are reflected in and
transmitted through stage, screen, and song; education, religion, and
politics; literature, art, and architecture; advertising, fashion, and
design. They are intertwined with our child-rearing practices, sexual
norms, and social systems. They are maintained by the slant of our
history books and news stories and exposed by the salary differential
6 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

between a good schoolteacher and a good salesman or a movie star.

The myths operating in modern societies tend to support material
progress and the control of nature, rather than the attunement and
participation with natural cycles that characterize more classical
mythologies. Because technologically oriented cultures have dis­
counted the mythological dimension that underlies the material
realm, we have as a society become less adept in our commerce with
the deeper levels of existence.
The logic of Western mythology, according to Sam Keen, has been
dictated by “the erotic obsession with the machine.”6 He identified
some two dozen articles of faith that grow out of this mythology, such
as: sensation, intuition, and feeling are primitive, immature forms of
thought; females, like nature, are to be controlled and excluded from
positions of power; human life is organized around the laws of the
market; and knowledge and power are the twin pillars of human
identity. These axioms are now being challenged as they are followed
by a trail of increasingly hazardous ramifications.
A primary role of myth always has been to carry the past into the
present. Through this binding of time, a culture’s accumulated knowl­
edge and wisdom are brought to each new generation. Today, how­
ever, the circumstances for which our mythologies must provide guid­
ance are changing at an unprecedented rate. Long-enduring myths
have been cracking under the strain of abrupt shifts in the very foun­
dations of social organization, such as overpopulation, diminishing
resources, and increasing jeopardy for future generations. Cultural
myths have been drifting toward obsolescence more swiftly since the
midcentury than in any previous period of history. The half-life of a
valid guiding myth has never been briefer, and we see new myths
being hammered out daily on the anvil of people’s lives.
Writing about the experience of being a young American in the
1980s, Wanda Urbanska observes that the boundaries of imagination
were

defined by the grim prospect of worldwide nuclear annihilation,

not the sense of a better tomorrow. . . . We grew up with the
disgrace of Vietnam and Watergate, not the stability of the Eisen­
hower presidency. We grew up with the odd urgings of the Moon-
ies and the fear of political terrorism and airline hijackings, not
the certainty of church on Sunday and American supremacy. We
grew up with punk rock and MTV, not the Lennon Sisters and
"Father Knows Best.”. . . We are a generation raised on Jack-in-
the-Box hamburgers and Diet Pepsi, not home cooking and
whole milk.7
Expanding Your Mythology Beyond Limiting Cultural Images 7

The guiding values and cherished convictions of recent genera­

tions are often all but useless in dealing with contemporary issues.
The myths that supported large families were not concerned with
overpopulation. Expectations of continual upward mobility with
larger homes and greater consumption assumed a boundless supply
of natural resources. Cultural images that exalted the compliant fe­
male defined her as an appendage to the male. The belligerent foreign
policies that were traditionally thought to convey a nation’s strength
have created a Damocles sword of nuclear destruction that reverber­
ates in the nightmares of children and the disquieting suicide rate of
adolescents. Guiding myths that were workable in recent memory
have lost their viability at a dizzying pace. As history has advanced
more rapidly, so has the need to become more facile in revising the
myths that guide us.
The diversity of the mythic images we encounter through elec­
tronic and other media can also be overwhelming. For most of the
history of civilization, the myths held by the individuals in a society
were relatively uniform, allowing for little question or variation. To
stand out was to risk censure and even death. Ancient mythologies
were bound by tradition or, perhaps, altered by a shaman’s sacred
vision. However, no single unifying force in today’s complex civiliza­
tions is powerful enough to preserve cohesion amid the multitude of
competing myths and fragments of myths people are exposed to now.
It is likely that your attitudes and values differ from your neigh­
bors’ in ways that could not even have been conceived in tribal cul­
tures. In addition, you have been obliged to learn how to reflect on
the fit between your myths and the situations you encounter with
more agility than your parents or the generations before them.
Never have so many visions been available to choose from, nor has
there been media so capable of parading those visions in front of
you. Growing up is no longer a matter of following in the well-tried
footsteps of ancestors who may for generations have been in the
same trade, held similar religious convictions, and considered the
tradition-bound roles of men and women to be part of the natural
order.
The need to unshackle ourselves from outmoded myths is becom­
ing ever more pressing. Rollo May has commented that "the old myths
and symbols by which we oriented ourselves are gone, anxiety is
rampant.. .. The individual is forced to turn inward.”8 In our disillu­
sion with the spellbinding cultural images of the past, combined with
the capacity of our imagination to soar beyond the real and the pres­
ent, we can each envision a range of possibilities for ourselves whose
scope was previously unthinkable. In short, mythology has become an
8 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

increasingly personal affair, and one of the distinguishing features of

modern life is the rate at which that development is accelerating.
We are all called upon to participate in selecting, realigning, and
updating the myths that we follow. This book outlines a system for
teaching yourself to become more adept in contemplating your direc­
tion. We believe that a well-articulated, carefully examined mythol­
ogy is one of the most effective devices for countering the disorienting
grip of a world in mythic turmoil. Such a mythology also points the
way back to the deeper world of the psyche. Because you are less able
to rely on the myths of the past or of the society in which you live, you
are compelled to establish a greater degree of self-reliance. People
who are effective at what they do instinctively use creatively con­
ceived myths to deal with the problems they face. The renowned
inventor R. Buckminster Fuller, late in his life, described the signifi­
cance of his severely impaired eyesight as a small child. Everything
he saw was extremely fuzzy until, at age four, he was given eyeglasses
and was astounded by how the world suddenly came into focus. This
modern Renaissance thinker speculated that receiving those glasses
might have accounted for his lifelong conviction that even if ideas and
relationships seemed fuzzy to him at first, they would eventually be­
come clear. That was, for him, a positive, effective, and realistic guid­
ing myth.
As you become more aware of your developing mythology, you
become more capable of finding creative guidance from within and
of drawing dependable conclusions from the lessons of your personal
experiences, rather than being compelled to follow antiquated beliefs,
family codes, or cultural images. Gaining a measure of autonomy
from the limiting mythic images of your culture and from other early
influences increases your psychological freedom and strengthens
your ability to cope within a rapidly changing world. This book offers
a set of tools to help you better understand and constructively work
with your ever-evolving mythology.

PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY IN A
PSYCHOLOGICAL CONTEXT

Psychologists have offered numerous terms and concepts for helping

people think about their inner lives. We turn to mythology because
myth is the language that most closely approximates the natural
workings of the psyche. "Personal mythology,” however, is sometimes
misunderstood because “myth,” in its vernacular usage, has come to
mean a mistaken idea. Yet we know of no better term than personal
Expanding Your Mythology Beyond Limiting Cultural Images 9

mythology for capturing the way that human consciousness reflects

deep mythological images while simultaneously being shaped by the
mythology of the surrounding culture. Unlike terms such as scripts,
attitudes, or beliefs, myth is able to encompass the archetypal dimen­
sion of the unconscious mind, which transcends early conditioning
and cultural setting. A mythic outlook also reminds you that you are
part of a larger picture than your immediate concerns. Bringing a
mythological perspective to psychology yields a framework that is
more potent in its facility with unconscious processes, in its sensitiv­
ity to cultural forces, and in the dignity it lends to the act of examining
the human story.
The term personal myth was first introduced into the psychiatric
literature in 1956 by Ernst Kris, who used it to describe certain elusive
elements of human personality that psychoanalysts must account for
if the effects of therapy are to be lasting.9 Similar concepts, however,
can be found in the work of Sigmund Freud, Alfred Adler, and Carl
Jung. Freud was fascinated by mythology, selecting the Oedipal myth
to portray the pivotal dilemma in human development. Adler believed
that an individual’s early recollections revealed a "private mythol­
ogy.” The striking parallels found by Jung in dreams, works of art,
and cultural myths led to his penetrating studies of the psychological
relevance of mythology, and he discussed his own "personal myth” in
his autobiography.10
The psychotherapeutic approaches that trace directly back to the
work of Freud, Adler, and Jung are collectively thought of as depth
psychology because of their emphasis on unconscious processes.
Depth psychology, according to James Hillman, is "today’s form of
traditional mythology, the great carrier of the oral tradition.”11 He
stresses that "myths talk to psyche in its own language; they speak
emotionally, dramatically, sensuously, fantastically.”12 Depth psy­
chology offers a framework and a method for examining the human
psyche—the "organ” of psychological life, operating both within the
field of conscious awareness and far beyond it, balancing innumera­
ble desires, impulses, and intuitions, and capable of expressing itself
in images, feelings, thoughts, and actions. The promise of depth psy­
chology is that as you become more conversant with your psyche,
unconscious impulses become less menacing and unconscious wis­
dom becomes more accessible.
While psychoanalysis and other depth psychotherapies were ini­
tially the property of the privileged, a wider interest in and accessibil­
ity to approaches that promote an understanding of unconscious mo­
tivation have now become a mass phenomenon. Growing numbers of
10 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

people are systematically thinking about their psychological develop­

ment. For many individuals, supporting their inner growth has be­
come a guiding value that influences key choices in areas ranging
from career to family to the use of leisure time. In the United States,
this emphasis on the evolution of the self traces back at least to the
transcendentalism of Emerson and Thoreau. An avalanche of new
techniques for pursuing personal growth has been witnessed since the
mid-1960s, proffered by psychotherapists, healers, self-proclaimed
gurus, growth groups, and self-help books and tapes. We view this
mass phenomenon, in part, as being an outgrowth of the widespread
anxiety and disorientation that accompanies the gnawing realization
that existing mythologies are leading us toward destruction. How­
ever, we also believe that it is a call to the individual’s deeper
creativity. The trend has produced some innovations that are of genu­
ine value, leading to greater insight, inspiration, and ability to produc­
tively participate in society, as well as to self-indulgent activities that
further isolate people from inventively meeting the culture’s mythic
crisis.
Our work had its origins in a research project designed to compare
some of the emerging systems of personal growth with more tradi­
tional therapies.13 One of the common denominators among the ap­
proaches examined was that each, in its own fashion, attempted to
influence the way people construct their understanding of themselves
and their place in the world. In a paper published in The American
Journal of Orthopsychiatry in 1979,14 David Feinstein used the term
personal mythology to describe this evolving construction of inner
reality and presented a five-stage model designed to assist individuals
in working with their inner mythologies. Later that year, Stanley
Krippner organized a symposium for the American Psychological
Association that examined some of the issues raised in that paper.15
The theory has been developed further in seminars and in a series of
professional reports.16
Beyond the understanding and procedures adapted from the prac­
tice of depth psychologists, we also have drawn from the fields of
cognitive and humanistic psychology in developing our model.
George Kelly’s personal construct theory17 was a forerunner of the
contemporary cognitive trend in psychology that teaches people to
overcome emotionally disabling thought and behavior patterns by
altering their internal representations of the world and their place
within it. By insisting that cognitive psychology must bridge the gap
between the rational and the imaginative, Jerome Bruner has ex­
panded the field’s boundaries to include the study of narrative, mean­
Expanding Your Mythology Beyond Limiting Cultural Images 11

ing, and myth.18 The approach we have developed also was directly
influenced by Carl Rogers’s respect for the ability of individuals to
direct their own growth,19 and by Abraham Maslow’s insistence that
the field of psychology, which was oriented toward psychopathology
and stimulus-response relationships, concern itself as well with psy­
chological health and "the farther reaches of human nature."20

USING THIS BOOK TO EXPLORE

YOUR PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

This program is presented with the hope that it will help you to more
consciously and systematically participate in the evolution of your
unique mythology. The program adapts numerous techniques from
the practice of psychotherapy. Psychotherapists offer diverse ap­
proaches for helping people with problems that result from the fail­
ings of what we are referring to as personal myths. Therapists, in fact,
perform many of the functions that in earlier times were reserved for
shamans, priests, and other spiritual leaders. However, psychother­
apy is often practiced within a framework that limits a full response
to the complex psychological and spiritual needs of modern people.
We believe that many forms of psychotherapy would be better con­
ceived in the context of the individual's evolving mythology than in
the medical model of illness and treatment. Carl Jung's approach to
psychotherapy, which maintains a mythological perspective, was dis­
tinguished, among other things, for its appropriateness with people
who could not properly be given a psychiatric diagnosis yet were
suffering from the sense of meaninglessness and emptiness that has
been called "the general neurosis of our times.”21
This book is a guide for learning to live more mythically and for
dealing more effectively with the mythic dilemmas that are central to
adjustment and personality development. It is neither a substitute for
psychiatric treatment nor an attempt to facilitate major personality
reconstruction. While some of its goals may parallel those of psycho­
therapy—such as increased insight, the resolution of inner conflicts,
and decision making that is more psychologically informed—we do
not see the book as a surrogate therapist. In the face of emotional
turmoil, persistent depression, overwhelming life crises, or recurrent
patterns that prove to be destructive, psychotherapy can be of im­
mense value. It is one of the most direct ways to gain access to the
existing storehouse of behavioral science knowledge and technique
designed to help people adjust and develop.
Many of the methods presented in this book are adapted from
12 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

clinical practice and may have a strong emotional impact. While they
will not cause new emotional problems, any potent experience can
bring underlying difficulties to the surface. A number of steps you can
take if the program becomes too unsettling are presented in Appen­
dix C. If you are currently in psychotherapy or have reason to believe
that you need psychiatric care, we request that you use the program
presented in this book in consultation with a therapist. Psychotherapy
and this program are, in fact, quite complementary.
Like many of our professional colleagues in psychology, we have
been concerned about the superficiality and glib promises of many of
the “pop psych” books that have been flooding the market since the
1960s. In designing this book, we have attempted to conform to the
principles for self-help books implicit in the guidelines published in
the journal Contemporary Psychology.22 For instance, after working
with some two thousand people in educational, clinical, and commu­
nity settings as the program was developed and refined, we engaged
an additional thirty participants specifically to test and revise the
program in the self-guiding format presented here. We have framed
the book’s assertions within our understanding of the limitations of
a self-help format and the dilemmas involved in working with uncon­
scious personality dynamics. We must also emphasize that while the
program arose out of more than a decade of development in a range
of settings, our premises and methods are yet to be evaluated by
systematic scientific investigation.23
We believe it is possible, through the methods presented here, for
you to initiate the following types of changes: (1) to begin to identify
outmoded or otherwise unproductive personal myths that have been
operating largely outside of your awareness; (2) to begin to revise
them; and (3) to experiment with ways of bringing your life into
greater harmony with these revised myths. In addition, by coming to
understand your own mythology, you become more able to under­
stand the mythology of your culture and to participate more effec­
tively in its evolution. In teaching people how to examine and recast
the deep-seated myths that govern their lives, we have repeatedly
observed the practical benefits of simply becoming able to articulate
the myths that are operating. The periodic crises of faith, courage, and
identity that punctuate life may be treated as calls for renewal in your
mythology, as unending a task as that of the paint crew on the Golden
Gate Bridge, whose work is never finished.
This program introduces you to a particular terminology and
methodology for bringing a mythic perspective to the lifelong process
of reflecting on your inner experience. It is, of course, only a begin­
ning, and even at that it calls for a substantial commitment of time
Expanding Your Mythology Beyond Limiting Cultural Images 13

and energy. However, reading the book without performing the per­
sonal rituals can also be of value, and an understanding of the basic
concepts can still be gained. You will become more attuned to the
mythic dimension of your inner life, and you will be exposed to a set
of instructions that you can adapt to your own needs or return to at
a later point. We encourage you to survey the entire book so you will
have an overview before deciding how to proceed. Below are some
preliminary points about the program:

Personal rituals. A ritual is a symbolic act that celebrates, wor­

ships, or commemorates an event or a process in the individual's or
the community’s life. Human beings are extraordinarily flexible, and
all societies have created rituals that shape the individual’s develop­
ment, a consequential feat in human engineering. Character traits
that served the needs of the clan could be fostered, and the individ­
ual’s passions and spiritual aspirations could be directed to benefit the
community.
Rituals may strengthen rapport with the rhythms of nature, deline­
ate the tasks of individual or community development, or establish a
connection with aspects of the cosmos that are held to be sacred or
divine. A ritual can be centuries old or devised for a contemporary
occasion.24 It might be performed regularly, occasionally, or only
once. A ritual can be carried out privately or with others. A private
ritual might consist of writing a farewell letter and ceremoniously
burying or burning it. Public rituals are typically performed in a
prescribed manner and in a certain order, such as a graduation, wed­
ding, or funeral. They may be conducted by a family, a small group,
or an entire community. Rituals may or may not be accompanied by
words, music, or mind-altering techniques such as the whirling dance
of Sufi dervishes, Native American peyote ceremonies, or the deliri­
ous frenzy of a rock concert.
Modern people crave fresh rituals, attuned to the times and capa­
ble of responding to their higher sensibilities. A growing number of
innovative approaches are helping individuals and communities
rediscover ancient ceremonies and create new rituals.25 Our focus has
been on developing a set of essentially private rituals to systematically
guide you in identifying a core conflict in your mythology and finding
a resolution to that conflict. The rituals in this book will also help you
make contact with the inner symbolism your psyche is continually
generating. Robert Johnson explains that when we experience such
images, "we also directly experience the inner parts of ourselves that
are clothed in the images.”26 Each of the rituals presented in the
following chapters builds on those before it, so it is important to carry
14 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

them out in the order given. They may be conducted privately, with
a partner, or within a small group.

Using a personal journal. Psychologist Ira Progoff pioneered the

“intensive journal” as a tool for assisting people in working with their
inner lives and discovering deeper levels of meaning in their experi­
ences.27 You will be using a personal journal throughout the program.
The instructions will guide you in recording your experiences with
each of the rituals, as well as your reflections upon them. Most people
use a spiral notebook or an aesthetically pleasing diary, and some use
personal computers. Describing your thoughts and feelings in a jour­
nal will help you fix your insights in your memory and foster the
unfolding of unconscious processes into your awareness.
Your journal will provide a record of your discoveries and your
growth during the program, and you will periodically be asked to
review it as you proceed. As you engage yourself with your journal,
extend your experience beyond the ritual you are describing. Let your
journal entries emerge in their own way. Journal work can take you
into a deep, contemplative state. Give voice to your imagination and
spontaneously describe the associations you have to your memories,
emotions, and ideas. Sense where your writing wants to lead you and
follow it. This may feel awkward or forced at first, but you will eventu­
ally begin to uncover deeper feelings and contact earlier memories.
Allow your journal work to become a process unto itself and it will
enrich your experience in the program as well.

Guided imagery instructions. Many of the personal rituals take

you on “guided imagery” journeys. Some preparation is necessary for
these experiences. You might, for instance, read the instructions into
a tape recorder and let the tape guide you through the experience. You
might arrange to have another person read the instructions to you. Or
you might thoroughly familiarize yourself with the instructions and
allow your memory to lead you through the ritual. You can also
purchase a cassette recording that has the instructions for these imag­
ery journeys, along with meditative background music, prerecorded
on it (see page 269).
If you tape the instructions yourself, we suggest you follow a few
simple guidelines. Read the instructions slowly and deliberately.
While it may be necessary to experiment a bit with tone and tempo,
the most common error is to read too rapidly. When you read the
instructions into the tape, or if you are reading them to a partner,
pause for about ten seconds each time you come to the word "Pause,”
each time you come to the end of a paragraph, and after each word
Expanding Your Mythology Beyond Limiting Cultural Images 15

that is in uppercase letters (as in: . breathing deeply, ONE, TWO,

THREE, FOUR, FIVE”).
Where the instructions ask for a 20-second pause or longer, these
are estimates that are most useful for reading the instructions to a
group. If you are working alone or with a partner, it is best to say
"Pause” or use a chime or clicker at these points. Then, if you are using
a tape, you can simply stop it for these pauses and resume whenever
you are ready (a hand-held remote switch or a microphone with an
on-off switch is ideal). If you are working with a partner, establish a
hand signal to indicate when you are ready for further instruction.
Also, at any point where you need more time to carry out an instruc­
tion, freely indicate this to your partner or stop the tape.

Pacing the program. There are several reasonable ways to struc­

ture your time as you work with the personal rituals presented in the
program. One recommended way of pacing the program is to allow
yourself one to two weeks to complete each of the five stages. It is
usually best to go through each chapter in several sittings; each typi­
cally requires four to seven hours. These estimates will vary, however,
depending upon your natural pace, whether you are working with a
partner, the amount of attention you give to exploring your dreams,
and how much detail you choose to put into your journal. Another
way to pace the program is to go off for a few days and plunge into
it intensively. You also may go through the program any number
of times, each time exploring a different area of your personal
mythology.

An attitude toward resistance. The same resistance that may

seem such an obstacle to personal development also may serve as a
powerful teacher. Recognize that resistance is natural in the face of
change: it is one of the ways that we maintain our equilibrium. There
may be good reasons that a part of you is resisting. We encourage you
to appreciate the resistance and approach it with an attitude of curios­
ity and the sense that if you can penetrate to its core, you will gain
greater self-understanding. Perhaps you find yourself frittering away
time you have set aside for the program, or keep losing your journal,
or find that you are unable to concentrate when you sit down to work.
Such unintentional actions can provide you with information about
a part of yourself that has been outside your awareness. Perhaps you
are pushing yourself too hard, or trying to change qualities about
yourself that hold symbolic meaning you have not recognized, or you
need more time to relax rather than to undertake another concen­
trated task. Listening to what the resistance is attempting to tell you
16 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

can reveal new understandings that ultimately enhance the program.

By using resistance as a gauge that points to areas of your life that are
in need of greater attention, it becomes a teacher rather than a tyrant.

Working with your dreams. Working with your dreams is a

supplementary track throughout this program that can substantially
enrich your experience. You are encouraged to record your dreams.
We have found that the dreams people spontaneously recall as they
go through the program often parallel themes relevant to the stage of
the program in which they are working. Each stage of the program
includes one or two "dream focus” instructions that will suggest you
review your journal to find themes in recent dreams that relate to that
stage of the program. The "dream focus” segments also provide in­
struction for requesting dreams to clarify specific questions, a process
called "dream incubation." These are optional instructions, and the
book is arranged so that the personal rituals can stand alone, with no
special attention given to your dream life.

The appendices. The three appendices are to be consulted at any

point in your work. Appendix A offers specific suggestions for enhanc­
ing the program by building habit patterns that anchor and support
the work, creating an inspirational setting, engaging other people in
your efforts, using retreat settings, and intensifying the personal ritu­
als. Appendix B provides a primer for remembering and working with
dreams. It gives an overview of some of the most useful approaches
we have found for investigating the significance of dreams as related
to personal myths. Appendix C provides suggestions for you in the
event that your work in the program arouses painful feelings or other
troubling emotions. Please skim these appendices before starting the
program so that you will know what they contain and can consult
them when they would be most useful.

Chapter 1 presents our basic assumptions concerning the nature

of personal myths, how they evolve, and how they affect people. It also
leads you through two personal rituals that initiate you into the pro­
gram. Chapters 2 through 6 will guide you through our five-stage
model, one stage per chapter. Chapter 7 provides a theoretical frame­
work for understanding the ongoing evolution of your personal my­
thology and closes with a review of the program. The Epilogue places
the model into a broader context by exploring its implications for
understanding and working with mythic processes at the cultural
level.
 Into Your Mythic Depths

Myth is the secret opening through which the inexhaustible energies of

the cosmos pour into human cultural manifestations.!
It has always been the prime function of mythology and rite to supply
the symbols that move the human spirit forward.2
—JOSEPH CAMPBELL

Through your personal myths, you interpret the past, understand the
present, and find guidance for the future. Your myths address the
broad concerns of identity (“Who am I?”), direction (“Where am I
going?”), and purpose (“Why am I going there?”).
This chapter will present our assumptions about the nature of
personal myths and how they evolve. It opens with an imaginary
journey back to your ancestors and will then introduce you to some
people whom you will come to know through the myths that have
orchestrated their lives. Issues that arise as people attempt to change
their mythologies are discussed, and several preliminaries to working
with your own mythology are addressed. The chapter closes with a
ritual that introduces you to your “Inner Shaman,” a wise companion
from the invisible world who will assist you as you make this journey
into your mythic depths.

A JOURNEY BACK TO YOUR ANCESTORS

We begin with a personal ritual that will give you an experiential

sense of how personal myths operate. You will be using your imagina­
tion to locate the roots of your own mythology in the mythology
passed down through your family. Personal myths are laden with the
hopes and disappointments of prior generations. Your mythology is

17
18 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

your legacy from the past, as well as a source of guidance and inspira­
tion for the future. The family is the crucible in which genetics and
cultural mythology are amalgamated into the unique mythic frame­
work that shapes personal development. It is the institution charged
with creating a person-sized mythology for each of its young. Family
myths evolve as they are passed from one generation to the next, and
the development of the individual’s mythology must be viewed
against the backdrop of the family’s mythology.3

Personal Ritual: “Remembering”

the Myths of Your Ancestors

This opening ritual will make it possible for you to understand your
later explorations in the context of your forebears and the mythology
they passed down to you.4 Read the instructions into a tape that can
then lead you through the experience, or have someone else read the
instructions to you, or familiarize yourself with the instructions well
enough that you can perform the ritual from memory with only
*
glances at the book.

Stand where you can move several feet in any direction. Find a
comfortable posture and close your eyes. Take a backward step and
imagine that you are stepping into the body and the being of your
father ifyou are a man, or ofyour mother ifyou are a woman. (Ifyou
were adopted, make a choice between your biological parent andyour
adoptive parent for this experience.) Then take a few moments to get
a sense of what it must have felt like to be in this body and this
personality.
Take another step backward and step into the body and being of
your parent's parent, your same-sex grandparent. After sensing this
grandparent for a few moments, take another step backward and
enter the body and being of your same-sex great-grandparent.
Finally, take another step backward to become your same-sex
great-great-grandparent. You might be a late-seventeenth-century
craftsman’s wife in downtown London, a foot soldier in the army of
the Czar, or the slave of a tobacco farmer in Virginia in the 1830s.
Physically assume the posture that you imagine might have been

*See box on page 269 for information on ordering prerecorded tapes of the guided
imagery instructions.
Into Your Mythic Depths
20 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

a typical posture for your great-great-grandparent. Dramatize this

posture until it begins to symbolize what you know and imagine about
this person s life. You will be reflecting upon the persons perceptions
of self, environment, and purpose.
Even though it is unlikely that you will have access to the facts that
would allow you to answer these questions with certainty, the an­
swers your great-great-grandparent gave to them shapedyour family’s
mythology and echo in your own psyche. Assume that these echoes
are registered so deeply in your being that the answers your intuition
offers now will, if not factually precise, be instructive as metaphors
for further understandingyour heritage. Consider the following ques­
tions as if you were your great-great-grandparent:

1. What are your major concerns?

2. What are your primary sources of satisfaction?
3. How do you understand your position within your society—
its limitations, privileges, and responsibilities?
4. If you look to a nonhuman authority to explain human des­
tiny, what is its nature? [60-second pause]

Once you have answered the four questions, take a step forward
and assume a posture that you imagine to be typical of your great-
grandparent when he or she was your current age. Dramatize this
posture until it begins to symbolize what you know and imagine about
this person’s life.
Consider the same questions as if you were your great-grand­
parent:

1. What are your major concerns?

2. What are your primary sources of satisfaction?
3. How do you understand your position within your society?
4. If you look to a nonhuman authority to explain human des­
tiny, what is its nature? [60-second pause]

When you have answered these questions, take another step for­
ward and assume a posture that might be typical of your grandparent
when he or she was your current age. Dramatize this posture until it
begins to symbolize what you know and imagine about this person's
life.
Again consider the four questions as if you were your grandparent:

1. What are your major concerns?

2. What are your primary sources of satisfaction?
Into Your Mythic Depths 21

3. How do you understand your position within your society?

4. If you look to a nonhuman authority to explain human des­
tiny, what is its nature? [60-second pause]

When you have answered these questions, take another step for­
ward and assume a posture that represents your parent when he or
she was your current age. Dramatize this posture until it begins to
symbolize what you know and imagine about his or her life.
Again consider the four questions as if you were your parent:

1. What are your major concerns?

2. What are your primary sources of satisfaction?
3. How do you understand your position within your society?
4. If you look to a nonhuman authority to explain human des­
tiny, what is its nature? [60-second pause]

Now, step forward into yourself. Find a posture that represents the
statement your own life is making. Hear this statement as an actual
phrase or sentence. Say it aloud.
Let your posture become animated as you continue to repeat your
statement. Explore and experiment with the movement and the state­
ment. If you have a sense that you need a greater statement or ex­
panded posture, stretch your movements or your words to represent
this new statement. [60-second pause]
When you have explored the statement and the movements to your
satisfaction, come to a resting point and reflect on your observations
during this ritual. Finally, describe your experiences in your personal
journal.

As you identified with your progenitors, you may have begun to

sense how they perceived themselves, how they understood their cir­
cumstances, and what they valued and trusted—core questions at the
heart of your own mythology as well. By reflecting on how they might
have related to these issues, you are also opening yourself to new
insights about the mythology you are living out.
Can you see patterns that have been carried to you from your
parent’s generation? Are you likely to pass these patterns along to
your children? At some point, you may wish to repeat this exercise,
stepping into the lives of your opposite-sex parent and ancestors, or,
if you were adopted, stepping into the life of the biological or adoptive
parent whose lineage you did not explore the first time. This specula­
22 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

tion on the mythologies of those who preceded you will provide a

reference point as we begin to discuss the nature of personal myths.
Your understanding of the concept will further unfold as you explore
your own personal mythology through the sequence of personal ritu­
als in the following chapters.

WHAT IS A PERSONAL MYTH?

During the visit to your forebears, you began to explore the relation­
ship among personal myths, family myths, and social change. You
considered several questions that are at the core of the mythologies
all people live. Here we will examine in greater detail the characteris­
tics of personal mythologies and the way they develop.
How can you recognize a personal myth? Would you see it in
images? Would it come through as thoughts that tell you what to do?
Would your heart race if it were challenged? Does it unfold like a
story? Are you the main character in that story? We want to take you
into the mind of a single individual, a young boy, to demonstrate how
personal myths develop and come to be expressed in all of these ways.
The boy is a bundle of impulses, experiences, aptitudes, uncertain­
ties, ideas, needs, fears, and longings. He depends upon models from
the outer world to help him order this highly charged interior and give
him direction. The cultural heroes who touch him emotionally are
powerful influences in helping him organize his life. If the boy was
born in the United States in the World War II era, one of his mythic
heroes would be the ruggedly individualistic cowboy, personified by
figures such as John Wayne. This strong, tough, and confident image
was at the core of the personal myths that showed innumerable little
boys, who are now in positions of leadership, how to behave and what
to expect of themselves. Many little girls also internalized the John
Wayne image, but as a model of what to expect in a man and what
to avoid in their own behavior.
Our little boy will mimic the heroes to whom he is most strongly
drawn. How does he incorporate the John Wayne image into his own
identity? Because of the human capacity to make comparisons, he will
see analogies between the image portrayed by John Wayne and his
own life. He will find or create opportunities, often unconsciously, for
behaving according to the image. When he acts tough, brave, or inde­
pendent, engaging a situation the way John Wayne would have, he
feels affirmed for having lived up to his ideal. The qualities and behav­
iors he associates with John Wayne provide reference points as he
maps his personal world.
Into Your Mythic Depths 23

Once he has incorporated that image, however, he is controlled by

it. Consider him in a situation that he finds threatening, such as en­
countering the class bully. He may feel fear and uncertainty, but the
image so strongly prohibits such feelings that he represses or denies
them. He may even become ruthlessly aggressive in an unconscious
attempt to defeat his fears. Punished for having injured the bigger boy
with a rock, he defiantly responds, “Nobody’s going to beat me up!”
Unnamed myths may decisively shape our feelings, thoughts, and
behavior.
The image at the core of a personal myth is generally far more
complex than in the John Wayne example. Rarely in our diverse
culture, with its daily onslaught of media figures, is a personal myth
organized around a single image. The boy has probably been in­
fluenced by the qualities of other heroes he has admired—people in
his life as well as media figures—and he will modify the John Wayne
image to blend with the models they provide. The model will also be
challenged and altered over time. Since the boy was first exposed to
John Wayne, in fact, the John Wayne image has been changing within
him, interacting with other models and ideas, and becoming tailored
to his unique character and circumstances.
What is it that makes some images more attractive to the boy than
others? What early experiences would predispose him toward John
Wayne? Figures that are idolized by his peers and venerated by the
"myth-maker machinery”5 of his culture have powerful appeal. More
personally, perhaps he resents an ineffectual father and has desper­
ately been looking for someone he can admire who is as different
from his father as possible. Or maybe he has already internalized the
cultural message that men are to appear brave and strong, and he
seizes the John Wayne image as a model for his attempts to manifest
those ideals. As he makes the model his own, it guides his activities,
and he measures himself against it.
However, what if he has learned to accept his fears and show his
sensitive side? What if he is repulsed by pretense and bravado? The
John Wayne image may have little emotional appeal for him. He will
flounder until he is able to find or invent other models. Ideally, his
culture will be bountiful in providing constructive alternatives. Today
the range of available heroes to teach him about strength extends
from Rambo to Gandhi. The culture’s spotlight, however, persistently
shines on the figures that are more dramatic and arrogant. A sensitive
boy finds himself in the midst of difficult choices.
You can see how uniquely personal your myths can become. You
lo not simply adopt all the myths of your culture. And the myths you
24 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

do adopt evolve with time. The boy’s mythology will be further shaped
by what happens to him when he acts in accordance with the John
Wayne image. Some parts of it will be supported and others will not.
Perhaps his toughness will get him into fights. If he wins the fights,
he may adopt the image in even greater detail. If he loses, he may stop
acting so tough, but also experience an inner crisis as he is forced to
reconcile the discrepancies between the way he feels he is supposed
to be and who he is. We all face many such crises during our lives.
Myth has been described as "the dramatic representation of our
deepest instinctual life . . . capable of many configurations, upon
which all particular opinions and attitudes depend.”6 At the core of a
personal myth is a central theme. You organize new experiences
around such themes. The theme serves as a template, a bare motif, a
map, a skeleton without flesh. But rich imagery, complex beliefs,
passionate feelings, and powerful motivations attach themselves to
this framework and fill in its character.
A personal myth is a constellation of beliefs, feelings, and images
that is organized around a core theme and addresses one of the do­
mains within which mythology traditionally functions. According to
Joseph Campbell, these include: (1) the urge to comprehend the natu­
ral world in a meaningful way; (2) the search for a marked pathway
through the succeeding epochs of human life; (3) the need to establish
secure and fulfilling relationships within a community; and (4) the
longing to know one’s part in the vast wonder and mystery of the
cosmos.7 Personal myths explain the world, guide personal develop­
ment, provide social direction, and address spiritual longings in a
manner that is analogous to the way cultural myths carry out those
functions for entire societies. Personal myths do for an individual
what cultural myths do for a community.
Your personal mythology may be thought of as the system of com­
plementary and contradictory personal myths that organizes your
sense of reality and guides your actions. The theme at the core of a
personal myth is a composite, usually built from many sources. Be­
cause the theme is symbolic and abstract, it is versatile. It provides a
structure that allows images reflecting the culture’s diverse mythol­
ogy to be blended with the varied impressions of daily experience and
sculpted into the uniquely personal myths by which you live. The
images provided by your culture, from John Wayne to Michael Jack-
son, are evaluated and organized according to your existing mythic
structure. Media images may add new features or even change the
direction in which your mythology will develop. So did the examples
provided by your parents, teachers, and peers. Your personal myths
Into Your Mythic Depths 25

are also responsive to the rewards and punishments you receive for
your behavior or appearance. In addition, images that originate in the
deepest parts of your being may be reflected in your mythology. Such
images may be foreign to your previous experiences, yet they often
provide inspiration that is sound, creative, and durable.
Often your personal myths will be in conflict. This underlying
conflict may become evident when your beliefs do not match your
behavior. Many people think of themselves as lazy, even though they
consistently push themselves beyond the point of exhaustion. The
statements they make to themselves may echo the words of a parent
who long ago was frustrated with them for not being more responsive
to the parent’s desires. The enormous suggestive power of a father’s
or mother’s emotionally charged remarks leave indelible images. Per­
haps, because of a father’s goading, a boy works diligently and as an
adult accomplishes more than might be expected of him, although
always with the whip of his father’s admonitions, now internalized,
echoing at his backside. His image of himself as lazy may be coun­
tered by another model that is outside his awareness. That model may
portray him as being capable of pushing through his acknowledged
“laziness” and working prodigiously. Even though he cannot articu­
late this model and continues to think of himself simply as lazy, the
new model may be running the show and driving him to herculean
efforts. The personal myths with which we consciously identify are
not the only influences at work.
Personal myths are intimately connected with deep feelings. If you
argue about politics, religion, or social change with a friend, you
quickly begin to sense that personal myths run much deeper than
mere rationality. You may, in fact, have to conclude that the emo­
tional dimension of your friend’s passionately held mythology carries
more weight than the rules of logic. Although your myths will inevita­
bly seem quite sensible to you, at least until you have reason to chal­
lenge them, they are complex products of your culture, experiences,
and temperament. You may have such a strong emotional investment
in them that it is difficult even to entertain explanations and possibili­
ties that are based upon different premises. There seems, in fact, to be
a nearly universal tendency to denounce “myth as falsehood from the
vantage-point of a rival myth."8 Understanding how your own myths
function helps you relate more productively with family, friends,
colleagues, and adversaries whose mythology may in important ways
differ from your own.
To summarize, your personal myths address themselves to your
past, present, and future, as well as to your identity and purpose in
26 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

the world. They typically operate outside of your awareness but have
a powerful effect on your feelings, thoughts, and behaviors. They are
influenced by your accumulating experiences, the guidance provided
by your society, and visions that arise from your unconscious mind.
Your personal myths reflect your culture’s myths, yet they can be
relatively independent from them. At the core of a personal myth is
a motif that shapes your perceptions, guides your development, es­
tablishes your role in society, and helps you find spiritual meaning
and connection. Your mythology fuels your emotions and shapes
your beliefs. As you come to understand the principles by which your
personal mythology operates, you will become more able to con­
sciously participate in its development.

THE SELF-FULFILLING NATURE

OF PERSONAL MYTHS

The personal myths that are central in your life tend to be self-fulfill­
ing in the sense that you are drawn to live out their underlying
themes. If a premise of your personal mythology is that you are
bright, you are likely to use your intellectual capacities more effec­
tively than if you believe you are dull. If "disappointment in love” is
a dominant motif in your mythology, you will tend to select partners
and make choices that bring it your way.
Such myths inhibit your development. Others, which once pro­
vided sound guidance, become outmoded. When they do, your psyche
begins to cultivate alternative mythic images. This process, a natural
part of your psychological development, is usually gradual and
largely unconscious. The following stories illustrate how people’s
myths shape their actions, and how new personal myths can emerge
at various points in life.

Dana. Dana was a middle child, the second girl between an older
sister and a younger brother. Her father was conspicuous in his inter­
est and affection for his older daughter. The brother aroused the
father's jealousy, while Dana simply did not seem to elicit much atten­
tion from her father. She longed for his affection, however, and con­
stantly witnessed the spirited relationship between her father and
sister.
Dana’s sister was uncomfortable with her father’s intimacies.
When the sister recoiled at his approach, Dana intently observed her
father’s pain and figured out ways that she could help him to feel
better. This became her role in the relationship. While she could not
Into Your Mythic Depths 27

obtain her father’s impassioned affection, she took pleasure in receiv­

ing a growing number of appreciative words and glances. This re­
lieved some of her desire for deeper contact with her father, but she
still wondered if something was wrong with her because she never
received the rapt attention he had for her sister. Dana continued to
find ways to comfort her father, and even if he seemed disinterested
in her for herself, she was finally receiving some of the attention she
craved. She became adept at comforting others as well. It made her
feel good to make them feel good. Dana found great solace in Sunday
School stories about the life of Jesus. Like Jesus, she thought, she
would devote herself to loving others without expecting anything in
return.
When the older sister became a teenager and attracted the atten­
tion of boys, the father turned his fond overtures into an irritated
disapproval of his older daughter’s activities. Dana had developed an
unusual capacity for empathy, and she saw the anguish of everyone
involved. She could sense how each of them felt, and she tried to
respond in ways that would comfort them. She was particularly atten­
tive to her father. No matter how cross or unreasonable he might be,
she always could understand his feelings. Even when she was very
young and he would spank her, she would think, "Poor Daddy, he just
doesn’t know any better.”
Dana could listen to others with such compassion that they would
be inspired to share with her their most intimate thoughts and feel­
ings, and she would continually find herself in the middle of their
problems. She might be the confidant of two girlfriends who were
themselves in the midst of a disagreement. After talking with Dana,
each would feel affirmed in her own feelings and position. Then each
would feel betrayed when it became clear that Dana also was cham­
pioning the other. The only truth that mattered to her was the one that
took away pain and made people feel good about themselves.
In romance, Dana felt at home with men who admired her for how
good she could make them feel. This mirrored her experience with
her father, and she would further ensure the pattern by avoiding
relationships with men who showed too much romantic interest.
Their overtures collided with her mythology that nothing about her
could evoke a good man’s passion, and she was never drawn to them.
Her affection was most easily elicited if a man was in need of support
and affirmation. She expected nothing in return, and her relationships
were markedly one-sided.
Dana stayed acutely attuned to other people’s pain, responded
competently, and gained a reputation as a selfless helper. When an­
28 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

other person was hurting, she hurt as well, and she would continue
to hurt until she had helped the other person feel better. What she did
not do well was set limits. She collected a cadre of '"best friends”
wherever she lived. Once there were so many people clamoring for
her attention that she actually moved to a new city to avoid their
demands without having to hurt their feelings. Her mythology entan­
gled her so deeply in their pain that she could see no other way to get
out from under the impossible expectations people placed upon her.
Dana’s personal life was overrun with the needs of the many peo­
ple who depended upon her. She was genuinely valued in her commu­
nity and widely sought as a resource, but she was always overinvolved
and overtaxed. A man who was interested in marrying Dana nearly
left her, protesting that there was too little space for him. He com­
plained, "There are five hundred people in this town who think you
are their best friend!” A series of events, including confrontations
with him, a health problem, and continual exhaustion, caused Dana
to begin identifying the dysfunctional elements in her myth. She re­
ported the following dream as a turning point as she began to recog­
nize and question the myth that had been governing her relationships:

The dream was horrendous. Spokespeople for the world come

to me with a plan. They say they have a way to heal all the people
in the world . . , and that if I truly love unconditionally, I will go
along with it. They tell me they have an amazing formula that can
make my body feed everyone. They want me to give up my life and
be made into white bread that could feed the multitudes. They
know how to bottle "Dana Essence” and they plan to squirt one
drop into each loaf with an eye dropper. Then all the people would
be healed. This, they say, is a much better plan than the present
arrangement where I am using up my essence by stretching myself
too thin and trying to help too many people.
I agree to let them kill me "mercifully,” as they put it. The
scheduled time for my killing is 10:30 a.m. But at 10:15 I know I
don’t want to give up my life essence to go into white bread to feed
the multitudes. I go to this warehouse to see if I can call off the
killing. I hear people talking, and I know that it is too late. They
have their solution to the world’s problems, and they will not listen
to me now. I feel in such danger that I hide in the warehouse, not
knowing what my next move will be.
I don’t know how the dream would have ended because I woke
up at that point with my nose bleeding. I had developed an open
sore on the side of my nose that sometimes appears when I am
Into Your Mythic Depths 29

stressed. It had become raw and blood was squirting out of it,
reminding me of the stigmata. I couldn’t stop the bleeding for a
long time. Finally, when it did stop, my sheets were red with blood.

The dream left Dana with images of Jesus feeding the multitudes.
She vividly recalled a scene from the musical Jesus Christ Superstar
in which Jesus screams at the crowd, “Heal yourselves!” She played
the record over and over that morning, and it was as if he were
speaking for her as well. The dream was a strong stimulus for commit­
ting herself to change the way she related to others. As she painstak­
ingly traced the roots of her interpersonal style back to her relation­
ship with her father, her accommodating responses to others became
less automatic. A new personal myth gathered strength, which as­
serted that she should respond to her own needs as well as to others,
that people are best served when they are able to take care of them­
selves, and that she is worthy of passionate as well as appreciative
interest.

Michelle. While growing up in an upper-middle-class family with

an alcoholic father, Michelle was unhappy. By her mid-teens she had
run away from home numerous times. After her parents discovered
that she had been sleeping with her boyfriend and smoking mari­
juana, they managed to have her involuntarily committed to a psychi­
atric hospital.
Michelle could hardly believe what was happening to her. She
became disruptive on the ward, screamed at the nurses, and was given
medications that sedated and confused her. The experience was like
a nightmare for her, and she began to wonder if she was indeed going
crazy. On her last day there, she overheard one of the few staff mem­
bers she had come to trust tell someone, “People who have been in
mental hospitals always return to them.”
Michelle was released from the hospital after three weeks. There
was no evidence that her behavior had been a sign of mental illness.
But the statement, "People who have been in mental hospitals always
return to them,” stayed with her. She recalled it whenever she heard
of the relapse of anyone who had at one time undergone psychiatric
treatment. She remembered the words whenever she read newspaper
accounts of former mental patients who had committed acts of vio­
lence, and she was plagued by fears that she would have a bizarre
psychotic break in which she lost control of her behavior. Any time
she felt depressed, her distress was complicated by her fear that she
was about to plunge into insanity. When she pulled out of her depres­
30 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

sion, she told herself that this was probably only a temporary re­
prieve. The statement by the staff member had become a personal
myth for Michelle.
Michelle saw every emotionally difficult period of her life as fur­
ther evidence of her impending mental breakdown. She was certain
it would be only a matter of time. She began to consider her poor
memory, her low tolerance for stress, and her penchant for day­
dreaming as further proof of her tendency toward insanity. Each
indication of mental problems, no matter how slight, was thoroughly
examined and analyzed for signs of her looming crash, thus magnify­
ing her already existing stress. Michelle noticed that she had begun to
take fewer emotional risks, narrowing her scope of activities by avoid­
ing situations that might make her uncomfortable.
Her belief that she was mentally unstable was causing her, increas­
ingly, to behave as if she were. After ten years of contending with
these fears, she consulted a psychologist. She was given a battery of
psychological tests which revealed that she had a high capacity for
imagination and superior intelligence, but no signs of a serious men­
tal disorder. As Michelle began to acknowledge that the preponder­
ance of evidence from her life showed a basic emotional stability, she
was able to take comfort in her strengths and to relax the concerns
that had for a decade been keeping her anxious and limiting her
development.

Fred. Like many men born in the first quarter of the twentieth
century, Fred was a stern, hardworking husband and father. His per­
sonal mythology, the product of a youth spent in the rural South
during the Depression, held that life is serious business. He believed
that "you get what you earn and you earn what you get.” He reasoned,
"It is best not to be too positive lest you set up expectations that will
result in disappointment.” For Fred, there was little room for emotion
because "feelings keep you from what is important and make you look
weak.” Unlike many of his peers, he had no use for religion. He was
bitter about his early church experiences, and he found no assurance
in promises of an afterlife.
At the age of fifty-five, Fred had a heart attack and was hospital­
ized. In the hospital, he had another massive coronary. His vital signs
indicated eight times that he was clinically dead. But he was revived
each time, and after the final episode he related a remarkable story:

First I was up near the ceiling and I could see the medical team
trying to resuscitate me. I heard a doctor say, "He's had it!” I yelled
Into Your Mythic Depths 31

back, "Whatever it is, I don’t want it!” but nobody heard me. Sud­
denly, I was walking over a bridge with a dry riverbed underneath.
On the other side was an open field. Walking to greet me was Bart
[a childhood friend who had died in his early twenties]. I was
overjoyed to see Bart. He greeted me warmly and told me to ob­
serve everything. But he said that I had to go back. "Why?” I asked.
"Because you haven’t learned the most important thing, Fred. You
haven’t learned how to love.”

As Fred became aware of being back in the hospital room, he

opened his eyes and met the gaze of a concerned nurse. The words "I
love you” came out of his mouth. He said, "I love you,” to each nurse
and doctor in the room. One doctor, according to family legend,
uncomfortably replied, "That isn’t necessary.” His family was
amazed. His daughter explains that Fred did not find it easy to say,
"I love you,” to anyone. He would sometimes walk out of the room
when a song on the radio or a program on television "got too mushy.”
For the remaining sixteen years of Fred’s life, he seemed to be
making up for lost time in cultivating an ability to listen, taking an
intense interest in the lives of others, traveling extensively to other
parts of the world to try to understand people from different cultures,
making amends for the past with his intimates, and enjoying the
company of his grandchildren. At his memorial service, the theme
most dwelt upon was the loving spirit Fred had developed in the latter
part of his life.

In each of these cases, you can sense the role that early experiences
played in fashioning the person’s mythology, and you can see how the
mythology then shaped subsequent development. Dana’s resourceful
approach for winning her father’s attention initially focused on his
emotional pain, but it grew into a compulsion to respond to the dis­
tress of anyone around her. Michelle’s self-limiting myth, formed on
the basis of a comment overheard in an impressionable moment,
maintained her long-standing belief that she was on the edge of insan­
ity. It caused her to choose her goals and activities gingerly, as if she
were indeed dangerously unstable. Fred had emphasized the value of
hard work but, until his heart attack, had systematically neglected
opportunities for loving contact.
The mythologies that Dana, Michelle, and Fred had been living out
seemed logical to them, given their experiences to that point of their
lives. But important aspects of who they were and what they might
become were being inhibited. As they changed these mythologies—as
32 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

Dana questioned her "compulsion to help,” as Michelle acknowledged

her emotional sturdiness, and as Fred grew to learn about love—their
lives changed accordingly.

CHANGING YOUR PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

One quality of a vital personal mythology is its capacity for change.

Your mythology is regularly challenged to incorporate information
that contradicts its premises, to adapt to new circumstances, and to
expand as you mature and accumulate new knowledge. There are
many ways in which you can consciously participate in and cultivate
its evolution. Some people, however, spend a lifetime attempting to
live according to cultural images that never quite fit them. Joseph
Campbell describes the dilemma: "Whenever a knight of the Grail
tried to follow a path made by someone else, he went altogether
astray. Where there is a way or path, it is someone else’s footsteps.
Each of us has to find his own way. . . . Nobody can give you a
mythology.”9
The goal of our program is to teach you to participate more effec­
tively in the evolution of your mythology, both in your inner life and
in its expression in the outer world. We are not, however, suggesting
that it is possible to control or even fully understand your mythology.
Jung succinctly summarized the stalemate that is inevitably met by
such efforts: "The totality of the psyche can never be grasped by the
intellect alone.”10
A central aim of depth psychotherapy is to bring the conscious ego
into increased accord with the deeper forces that undergird it. By
developing greater awareness of your intuitions, feelings, and inner
images, you gain a more complete view of the mythology that lives
itself within you. That is the vantage point we ask you to seek as you
enter into this program. We ask that you begin to recognize your inner
life as the poetics of mythic themes vying for expression. James Hill­
man has suggested: "Let us reimagine psychodynamics as mythic tales
rather than as physical processes; as the rise and fall of dramatic
themes, as genealogies, as voyages and contests and respites, as inter­
ventions of Gods.”11
By reaching imaginatively and persistently toward your innermost
depths, you open a door to a more profound view of your daily con­
cerns. You broaden the horizons of your self-knowledge, and you tap
into a power that can transform you. Erich Neumann, the great
Jungian analyst, offered an image for the inward journey: "The dis­
covery of the reality of the psyche corresponds to the freeing of the
Into Your Mythic Depths 33

captive and the unearthing of the treasure."12 As you work with your
personal mythology, you update and embellish your map for
"unearthing the treasures” of your own psyche.
The journey requires effort. While the mythic world within you is
rich in symbolism that can inspire and motivate, we modern individu­
als, enthralled with our new-found individuality and mastery over
nature, have not been as attentive in tuning into the deeper mythic
levels. As a result, we have become less versed in this realm and have
alienated ourselves from it. On the other hand, in more ancient times,
when consciousness was steeped in the mythological dimension, the
ability to reflect and maintain objectivity had not yet been developed.
Inhabiting one’s rich inner world with volition and self-awareness
was a possibility reserved only for sages, shamans, and seers. Now
there is opportunity to make the journey into the interior even more
extraordinary than had ever been possible as you use your rational
capacities to reflect upon the miracle of your unfolding mythology.

Myths That Need to Be Changed

By understanding how your personal mythology developed, you can
recognize outmoded myths and you can accept that their season has
passed. Without the recognition that a particular myth is no longer
serving you, you are likely to dissipate your energy with misdirected
effort as you continue to live according to its guidance. You also bring
about the problems bred by a dysfunctional myth. With the realiza­
tion that the myth is deficient, and a compassionate understanding of
how it became that way, you are more able to marshal your energies
for changing it rather than to squander them on self-condemnation.
To move forward, you are best served by appreciating rather than
rejecting your past.
The desire to change an impoverished myth may be strong, but
change does not occur in a vacuum. No one’s mythology or behavior
exists in isolation from its social and political context. Many people
are trapped in circumstances so overpowering that they are blinded
to any mythology but the one that dominates in their situation. They
may remain in an unhappy marriage, unfulfilling job, or oppressive
social role because societal conditions prevent them from conceiving
of, no less moving toward, other options.
Even where external change is not possible, more sophisticated
attitudes, values, and philosophies can help you persevere in a difficult
situation, and often you do have freedom to bring about change.
Freedom has been defined as the "state of mind you enjoy when you
are aware of a choice and have the power to choose.’’13 Your aware­
34 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

ness of choice increases in a profound way when you recognize that

undesirable patterns in your life are being supported by myths you
had not previously questioned. Very early in your life, you began to
create a mythology to cope with your unique circumstances. If you
came to believe that the world is a loveless place, you may, for self­
protection, have sensibly avoided intimacy. If, as an adult, you are
able to recognize that you are living a mythology that is keeping you
emotionally isolated, you then have a choice. If you challenge the
myth and open yourself to greater closeness, you may be struck by
how many more opportunities for choosing intimacy seem to come
your way.
How do you know when a myth needs to change? On occasion, a
single powerful experience will deal a mortal blow to a limiting myth,
but more often a series of less momentous events leads to changes.
Sometimes the feedback that a myth is not working is quite subtle.
Harmful patterns that keep recurring in your life are particularly
noteworthy. Underlying myths that play themselves out repeatedly
may be found in difficulties with authority, explosive love relation­
ships, or a tendency to grab failure from the jaws of success. Often the
example of a parent’s life sets a ceiling on a person’s mythology re­
garding success or achievement, and breaking through that barrier is
an important part of maturation. If you can recognize the mythic
dimension of patterns you wish to change, you will be more effective
in working with its deeper layers.
This relationship between early experiences and patterns in adult
life has gained increasing recognition in recent decades. Adult chil­
dren of alcoholics are articulating common themes, such as an unrea­
soned need to please a remote or abusive partner. Women are identi­
fying the way an unfulfilled longing for their father’s love may have
left them addicted to men who are emotionally unavailable. Men are
seeing how the models provided by the culture, and more specifically
by their fathers, caused them to despise and repress vulnerable feel­
ings. Adult victims of child abuse are finding ways to control their
own abusive impulses. There is freedom in recognizing underlying
themes. Rather than automatically living out these patterns, people
can develop the ability to reflect on them and find new options. Psy­
chologists have described numerous constellations of thought, feel­
ing, and behavior that are arranged around a nuclear theme and
cause problems in people’s lives. These patterns are often called com­
plexes.
Freud held that the Oedipus complex, organized around the theme
of the son’s competition with the father for the mother’s erotic love,
Into Your Mythic Depths 35

must be resolved if he is to go on to healthy relationships and a

normal life. Alfred Adler emphasized the “inferiority complex” and
the “power complexes” related to it. Henry Murray referred to the
“Icarus Complex.”14 In the Greek myth, Icarus, son of Daedalus, had
an inflated estimate of his capacities and flew so close to the sun that
the wax on his artificial wings melted, carrying him to his death. The
“Icarus Complex” leads people, particularly young adults, to reach too
far and expect too much, until they fall and become psychologically
disabled with fear or apathy. The "Jonah Complex,” in contrast, was
described by Abraham Maslow to portray the fear of attaining one’s
full potential.15 Just as Jonah, in the biblical account, ran away from
his call from God and ended up in the belly of a whale, many individu­
als avoid their inner callings and find that their vitality begins to
atrophy. Carl Jung, who introduced the term complex to psychoanaly­
sis, believed that each person has a number of core complexes that
grow out of conflicts concerning archetypal themes.
The program you are about to begin will help you identify patterns
of that magnitude in the language of your own psyche, understand
them in the context of your past and your aspirations, and initiate
changes in the service of your mythology’s evolutionary capacity.

How Your Myths Evolve

Our most fundamental myths may be glimpsed through dreams and
other products of the unconscious, and they are particularly evident
during those life crises in which our ways of understanding the world
and directing our actions are failing us. If a tragic illness occurs to
someone we love, we may reel in despair, bewildered by questions we
cannot answer: “What did he do to deserve such agony?” Embedded
in the question is the belief that those who are visited by grave misfor­
tune deserve it; those who are worthy will be spared. That myth once
gave us comfort and security, but when it does not hold up, our sense
of balance in the world may waver as well. Your personal mythology
changes both through a gradual evolution and more dramatically
through such crises.
A gradual refining of your mythology grows out of the inevitable
conflict that will develop between existing mythic structures and new
experiences. The two establish a feedback loop. Your inner models
guide you toward particular actions, and the consequences of those
actions either reinforce or challenge the original model. A married
man who secretly believes he is a Casanova divorces, begins to pursue
his fantasies, and is consistently rebuffed by the women he tries to
lure. He is likely to suffer unwelcome shifts in the model he holds
36 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

about himself. Perception is a match-mismatch process. If there is a

close correspondence between your myths and your perceptions, both
remain intact and equilibrium is maintained. But if your internal
models and your experiences do not match, the imbalance leads to
attention, thought, and action aimed at removing the mismatch and
replacing it with a better fit.16
When your experiences and your myths do not correspond, there
are two basic possibilities for handling the contradiction: alter your
perception of the experience or change your myth. Jean Piaget used
the term assimilation to describe how perceptions may be filtered or
distorted to fit internal models, and the term accommodation to de­
scribe how internal models may be altered to fit new experiences. The
man described above may interpret his rejections as a confirmation
rather than a refutation of his myth, modifying his perceptions to fit
his Casanova self-image (assimilation). He might, for instance, tell
himself that his magnetism is so powerful and so overwhelming that
a particular woman simply could not cope with it and was forced to
make a hasty retreat, selecting instead a less manly suitor who didn’t
intimidate her. Or, after numerous rejections, he might adjust his
self-image (accommodation). Thus you may unconsciously distort
your perceptions so that they may be assimilated into the mythology
you hold, or you may (also often unconsciously) revise your mythol­
ogy to accommodate new or freshly perceived experiences. It is
through a continual accommodation to experiences that contradict
the premises of your mythology, or are altogether beyond its bounda­
ries, that your mythology gradually evolves.
Your mythology also evolves through crisis. Erik Erikson used the
term identity crisis to describe the transitional period between one
stage of psychosocial development and another. Such crises occur
naturally and periodically, and they accompany a breakdown in your
mythology. One reason that such an event is called a "crisis” (repre­
sented in Chinese by a combination of the characters for "danger" and
"opportunity”) is that it is painful and threatening to give up a familiar
myth, even when it is limiting your opportunities. Established myths
are sometimes so central to your identity that to renounce them,
though they are dysfunctional, means suffering what Elisabeth
Kiibler-Ross has referred to as one of the "little deaths” we face
throughout our lives.
Jean Houston points out that in the ancient mystery schools, one
is required to die to one story in order to be reborn to a larger one.
The soul’s development is said to begin "with the wounding of the
psyche by the Larger Story.”17 Because our life had been organized
Into Your Mythic Depths 37

around the old story, the wounding of the psyche by the Larger Story
is a crisis of immense proportion. The Larger Story is infused with
higher purposes and may shatter cherished values that were pre­
sumed in the old story. It demands worthier involvements than were
imaginable within the old story, and it embraces parts of the psyche
that the old story fearfully consigned to the shadows.
The Larger Story is immense beyond comprehension, so the crisis
that assaults an old myth does not necessarily leave a new mythic
image in its place. Jerome Bruner observed that “when the myths no
longer fit the internal plights of those who require them, the transition
to newly created myths may take the form of a chaotic voyage into the
interior, the certitudes of externalization replaced by the anguish of
the internal voyage.”18
But, according to Houston, the wounding "becomes sacred when
we are willing to release our old stories and to become the vehicles
through which the new story may emerge into time.” She points out
that, in the Greek tragedies, the gods forced themselves into human
consciousness when the soul had been wounded. "Wounding opens
the doors of our sensibility to a larger reality, which is blocked to our
habituated and conditioned point of view.”19 If we cannot open our­
selves to this larger reality, we continually repeat the old story. The
struggle between the prevailing myth that keeps you tied to the old
story, and an emerging myth that is often kindled by glimpses into the
larger reality, is the second way your mythology evolves.
It is at the points of conflict between prevailing myths and emerg­
ing myths that the most dramatic changes in your mythology are
possible. And it is at these points that your mythology is the most ripe
for your attention. The old and the emerging typically engage in a
struggle deep within you, a contest between the dying and the unborn,
for the dominance of your perceptions, values, and motivations.
While the first flights of the fledgling new myth will probably be
tried outside your awareness, as its struggle with the old myth intensi­
fies, it begins to break into consciousness, often through dreams,
fantasies, unfamiliar impulses, novel ideas, or the emergence of a
budding “subpersonality.”20 There will be much in the old myth wor­
thy of preservation, and the emerging myth will hold promises that
are not attainable. Ideally, a synthesis between the old myth and the
emerging myth will incorporate the most vital elements of each and
point you in new directions that are both realistic and inspired. By
bringing the process to your awareness, you have a greater chance of
working out the conflict as a drama in your inner life rather than
having to play it out on the rack of life.
38 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

Participating in the Evolution of Your Mythology

Developing a framework for thinking about your personal mythology
allows you to participate more effectively as it develops. You are less
likely to cling to an outdated myth if you are able to envision the
potential value of changing it. You are less likely to naively or desper­
ately grab at untested alternative images when you are able to appreci­
ate the constructive functions the old myth once served. Still, there
are many dilemmas in attempting to revise one’s mythology. When
people enter psychotherapy, their presenting problem is often formu­
lated according to the premises of the old myth. Rather than speculat­
ing that the old myth may be failing them, they assume that they are
not adhering to it closely enough. When the conquering Spaniards
laid waste to Mexico in the early sixteenth century, the Aztecs felt that
they had failed to honor their gods, and they increased the number
of victims they sacrificed.
In today’s world, a long-standing myth might instruct a woman to
maintain a friendly, cheerful disposition at all times—submerging her
legitimate frustrations and resentments, her minor irritations about
life, her responses to injustice, and generally creating a doll-like cari­
cature of who she really is. If people do not treat her with respect, she
may conclude that she is not following the old myth closely enough.
Her self-criticisms and her motivation for "self-improvement” may be
directed toward perfecting herself in that image. She may become
even more agreeable, more passive, more falsely cheerful, regardless
of the personal costs. Like the Aztecs before her, she may remain
oblivious to the foibles of the old myth and scurry back to whatever
psychological security it can offer.
We think of conflict or shortcomings in people’s myths as the
leading edge of their psychological development. As you reach new
stages in your own maturation, and as your circumstances change,
myths that once offered effective guidance may become unworkable
and even destructive. Difficulties in making a decision, unfamiliar
fears or anxieties, self-contradictions, puzzling dreams, nagging con­
fusion, ambivalence, and even physical symptoms may signal mythic
conflict. It is in those areas of your life where you are having difficulty
or experiencing dissatisfaction that work with your personal mythol­
ogy is likely to have the most impact.
As you will see, an early focus of the program involves identifying
such trouble spots in your underlying mythology. You will then be
shown, step by step, how to work with one of these areas. In renewing
Into Your Mythic Depths 39

this aspect of your mythology, you also will be gaining a basic under­
standing of how your mythology operates and how to continue to
constructively involve yourself in its evolution.
Each of the next five chapters provides guidance through one of
the five stages in the program. In each chapter, you will be asked to
carry out between five and seven structured procedures that we call
“personal rituals.” These rituals range from creating a symbolic shield
and going on guided fantasy journeys to writing personal “Fairy
Tales” and staging the enactment of a desired personal myth. The
rituals will lead you through a systematic and practical exploration of
your personal mythology. We turn now to a personal ritual that will
introduce you to your “Inner Shaman.”

MEETING YOUR INNER SHAMAN

Just as cultural myths may bring out the best or the worst of an entire
people, personal myths affect each of us at this most basic level. One
way of evoking your deeper wisdom and higher possibilities is to
cultivate what we call the “Inner Shaman.”21 Shamans—the spiritual
leaders, healers, and “technicians of the sacred” of tribal cultures—
have been receiving increasing attention in recent years. They provide
a model, rooted in nontechnological societies, for guiding the West­
ern mind back to its estranged primal roots.22
The shaman’s powers and ecstatic visions provided guidance and
explanation to tribal peoples for natural events that were otherwise
unfathomable. The shaman was an artist in relation to the culture’s
guiding mythology, adept at guarding, transmitting, and transform­
ing it.23 As myth-making has become more highly personalized, mod­
ern individuals are called upon to become skilled in developing such
facility with their own personal mythologies. To cultivate the Inner
Shaman is to develop within yourself the skills for becoming a
thoughtful agent of your own evolving reality. Your Inner Shaman
can be a guide to the hidden and unutterably rich landscape of your
unconscious.
The Inner Shaman has three essential responsibilities. The first is
to maintain a conduit between the waking consciousness of "Ordinary
Reality” and the hidden reality of the "Other Worlds.” Tribal shamans
believe that people are influenced by the animal spirits of the “Lower
World” (one’s animal nature) and the godly spirits of the "Upper
World” (one’s spiritual nature). Just as shamans regularly entered the
40 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

Other Worlds, reemerging with new visions and direction for their
people, your Inner Shaman can serve as a guide as you take periodic
inward journeys to the Other Worlds. The ability to take such inward
journeys can be developed, and a central feature of this program
involves practice in accessing and using those altered states of con­
sciousness that can be reached through deep relaxation, guided visu­
alization, and imagery work.
The second responsibility of the Inner Shaman is to creatively
and effectively bring new circumstances into accord with your guid­
ing mythology. Traditional shamans used their powers to influence
physical and social events toward outcomes that were harmonious
with the culture’s existing myths. The Inner Shaman taps into deep
mythic guidance for approaching life’s demands and opportunities.
This requires an ability to selectively apply and adapt the existing
mythology. The Inner Shaman is able to impartially observe your
personal mythology and astutely bring its wisdom to changing cir­
cumstances.
Third, your Inner Shaman guides the evolution of your existing
mythology. The tribal shaman had to find a balance between estab­
lished customs and cultural innovation, serving as a guardian of tradi­
tion, while also introducing new mythic visions to the society. Flaws
in the existing mythology may have become conspicuous, or the my­
thology may not have been able to adapt to new circumstances. New
mythic images were periodically required. Sometimes, the shaman’s
visit to the Other Worlds resulted in a new and inspiring vision—a
glimpse of the Larger Story—that refined or replaced an existing
myth. But visions and insights encountered in altered states do not
necessarily constitute sound mythic guidance. The Inner Shaman is
challenged to bring you informed and seasoned judgment as you
shepherd your mythology’s development.
The program presented here calls upon you to develop and exer­
cise your ability to carry out all three of these responsibilities. The
Inner Shaman operates from the position that some psychologists call
the "observing ego" and that meditators often refer to as the "inner
witness.” While you will not always need to invoke your Inner Sha­
man to work effectively with your personal mythology, drawing upon
this inner witness will generally be empowering. There will be numer­
ous times that you may call upon your Inner Shaman for assistance
in maintaining a passageway between your waking consciousness
and the Other Worlds, for creatively drawing upon deep mythic wis­
dom as you meet new situations, and for further refining your devel­
oping mythology.
Into Your Mythic Depths 41

Personal Ritual:
Meeting Your Inner Shaman

The following personal ritual will introduce you to your Inner Sha­
man. The instructions are arranged so that you may have someone
read them to you, make a tape, or become familiar enough with the
words that you can lead yourself through the ritual from memory. As
with all the instructions in this book, feel free to modify the following
in any way that makes it more useful and appropriate for you.
When you meet your Inner Shaman—whether in the guise of a
Wise Old Man, the Earth Mother, a known Master, a Celtic Priestess,
Jesus, Confucius, or whoever else emerges into your awareness—it
will be a significant moment in your life. It is probable that your Inner
Shaman’s appearance will suggest a spiritual connection, perhaps
through a ceremonial setting, ritualistic objects, or by being sur­
rounded in light. The scene will be markedly different from the mun­
dane. Your sense of security and comfort will transcend the ordinary.
Begin by finding a comfortable position, sitting or reclining.

Allow your breathing to become slow and deep. [Pause] Relax

comfortably. Begin to release any tension in your body. [30-second
pause]
Bring to mindpeople who have been inspiring models to you, such
as good teachers, wise friends, or talented leaders. [Pause] Focus on
one or two of them. [Pause] Consider the qualities that made these
individuals important models for you. [30-second pause]
Now move more deeply into your appreciation of these figures
and, searching your own vulnerabilities, discover your need for in­
struction and protection. Affirm to yourself your resolution to take
this journey into realms that are usually hidden from you. Your ef­
forts here are earning you the right to access deep wisdom.
In a few moments, you will imagine yourself becoming very small.
You will find yourself standing on your own stomach. You will not
be troubled by the ordinary laws of physics regarding size, speed,
gravity, the presence oflight where it is normally dark, or your ability
to exist in two forms simultaneously. With your next three breaths,
you will begin to become smaller until you find yourself standing on
your own stomach. Feel yourself becoming smaller now. ONE. TWO.
THREE. Explore your stomach. Find your navel. It is a magical en­
trance to your Inner World. Imagine yourself climbing inside your
body through your navel.
42 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

You are in a timeless and dreamlike reality. It is dark as you feel

your way and move bravely forward and downward on a path
strangely familiar to you. Notice your sensations and feelings in this
non-ordinary reality. Breathe deeply as you become more comforta­
ble here.
You move forward for a long while. You are starkly alone, lacking
landmarks, acutely aware ofyour vulnerability, need, and hope. With­
out knowing how, you find you have come to a monument, and on it
are the beliefs and injunctions by which you have lived. Read one or
more of them, and recognize that these have been your command­
ments. Take time to consider them. [45-second pause]
Gather your courage, for you must enter evermore deeply into the
dark places of your being. The challenges make you worthy of the
guidance you desire. The Inner Shaman is not revealed to the unpre­
pared or casual seeker. Moving beyond the monument, you eventu­
ally find yourself on a stone prominence overlooking the Valley of
Your Youth. Your sight and hearing are strong and you feel compas­
sion as you survey the emotional world of your childhood. Without
faltering, consider the terrors, deprivations, confusions, and blessings
of your early years. Do not flinch or condemn, for your task is to
affirm your stamina in having survived. [45-secondpause]
Continue to move, one slow step at a time, until you come to a
clearing surrounded by lush green plants. At its edge, the branches of
two large trees touch and form an archway. You know that on the
other side of that archway is the sacred setting ofyour Inner Shaman.
It may be a mountaintop, a desert, a temple, or a forest. Walk to the
trees and notice how they form pillars for the archway that leads to
the dwelling place ofyour Inner Shaman. Now step through the arch­
way and behold. [30-second pause]
Respectfully walk up to and greet your Inner Shaman. Use your
senses to discover what you can of the appearance and temperament
of this mysterious individual. [Pause] Thank your Inner Shaman for
having met you. Use words, gestures, or silent intuitive communica­
tion. [Pause] Recognize your Shaman’s bottomless affection for you
and belief in your worthiness. A profound silence falls upon you as
you gaze at your Shaman and your Shaman gazes at you.
Ask any question of importance about your life. You may well
receive an unexpected answer. [60-secondpause] Now ask about your
ritual ofreturn. You need to be able to visit your Shaman at will. Your
return ritual will be described to you in the way in which you learn
best, perhaps by speaking, movement, or imagery. Remember that the
laws of ordinary physics do not apply here. You may be told to find
Into Your Mythic Depths 43

your way back by visualizing the paths you have just taken, by using
the sound of a gong, a ritualized movement, or with the repetition of
a few chosen words. Now, with your Shaman’s assurance that you can
return, receive instruction for how to embark on your next visit.
[60-second pa use]
It is time to come back to Ordinary Reality. Be respectful in your
leavetaking. [Pause] You will return in your own manner. Perhaps
you will retrace your steps with the speed of a running deer, passing
the Valley of Your Childhood, the monument, and coming up through
your navel. Perhaps you will return by another route. Return now.
[20-second pause] Now that you are back, you will with your next
three breaths return to your normal size and your ordinary reality.
ONE. TWO. THREE. Coming into waking consciousness, gently open
your eyes. Record the experience in your journal, emphasizing espe­
cially the method you will use for your next visit.

Here is the journal account of Meg, a woman with whom you will
become quite familiar in the following chapters:

I greet him with "I knew you’d be here, and I am most grateful. You
are revealing the path to me, reluctant as I’ve been to follow it.”
He’s smiling at me. I don’t know how to feel about being loved so
much. I’ve never felt such absolute acceptance for who I am. His
eyes are remarkable. They are infinitely wise and young and curi­
ous and laughing and forgiving. There is nothing for me to prove.
Nothing is asked of me. He has said nothing, but I know these
things in all my senses, wordlessly. My words are pale facsimiles
of the experience. I ask, "Have I permission to return to you?” He
makes a gesture, a shrug with upturned palms that I read as "Of
course, silly.” I sense a playfulness that enjoys my naivete. I mimic
his movement and hear myself say, "Though the path be dark, the
goal is light.” I don’t know where these words came from, but they
seem like a great teaching. I somehow know that repeating the
phrase and the gesture will be the ritual for my return. For a
timeless time I am in the cradle of my own center, in healing
communion with my Inner Druid Shaman.

On to Stage One
The following chapters present a carefully arranged sequence of ritu­
als that will teach you how to understand more of your life at the
mythic level. Your Inner Shaman will assist you at various points
44 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

along the way. We invite you to take this journey, by way of rituals,
stories, ideas, and dreams, to the inner realms where your myths are
made. In the process, you will have an opportunity to consider new
perspectives on the myths that guide your thoughts and actions, and
to apply these insights toward a more mythically informed life.
______________________________________ 2
The First Stage: Recognizing When
a Guiding Myth Is No Longer an Ally

Error is just as important a condition oj lije’s progress as truth.

—C. G. JUNG1

We open this first stage of the program with a series of personal rituals
that will take you into the past and help you understand your unique
history in terms of your evolving mythology. From this perspective,
you will begin to identify areas of your mythology that are not serving
you well. While these personal myths may at one time have been the
best inner guidance conceivable for facing the dilemmas that con­
fronted you as a child, they are no longer allies. By the close of this
chapter you will have selected one of these areas for your attention,
and in the remainder of the program you will be mobilizing your
determination and creativity as you transform that part of your my­
thology. The task of engaging yourself fully in this process will be
challenging, perhaps at times discouraging; yet it holds the potential
of yielding novel insights, greater meaning, and fresh direction as you
consider central questions in your life from a larger perspective.

PERSONAL HISTORY FROM

A MYTHIC PERSPECTIVE

Freud showed how the past creates the present; Erik Erikson, one of
Freud's most innovative successors, showed how the present reorga­
nizes the past.2 Our self-identities, according to Erikson, are formed
as we come to interpret experiences from the past in light of their
meaning for our current lives. Consciously and unconsciously, each
of us is continually creating an inner story to explain the past, under­
stand the present, and anticipate what the future may hold.

45
46 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

That story forms the basis of your identity, your sense of who you
are. When, in chapter 1, you took an imaginary excursion back to the
lives of your ancestors, you were reconstructing history according to
available facts and considerable conjecture. We all continually recon­
struct our personal histories as we incorporate new experiences into
them. Yet we may not realize the powerful influence exerted by the
way we construct the past on our current convictions, doubts, and
view of the future. Articulating your past from a new, spirited, and
mythically informed vantage point allows you to begin to rewrite
your life story in a manner that beckons to your higher possibilities
while realistically accounting for your limitations.
Many motifs from classical mythology, such as Odysseus’ heroic
journey, Persephone's descent to the Underworld, the quest for the
Holy Grail, the tale of Psyche and Eros, or the dialogues of Krishna
and Arjuna in the Bhagavad Gita, speak to dilemmas that are still
germane to the modern psyche. Any of them could provide a structure
that would be meaningful to most readers for reviewing their own
lives.3 Our program draws upon the motifs of “Paradise” and “Para­
dise Lost” from the Eden myth to structure an initial examination of
your life story.4 Later, you will be telling your story with your own
metaphors, but we have found it useful to begin by organizing the
work around the stirring images of this fundamental cultural myth.
Although our pragmatic, materialistic culture has tended to rede­
fine "Paradise” in terms of worldly riches, most of us are aware of
deeper longings. Attaining a particular vision of Paradise (Heaven,
Nirvana, Valhalla, Elysium, Devachan) is the ultimate goal of many
religious systems. Not only do scriptures describe some version of
Paradise, they also attempt to explain why life on earth does not
correspond with that vision, along with what believers must do to
enter through the celestial gates. Adam and Eve’s story is, of course,
firmly embedded in the deeper recesses of the Western mind. The
progression from Paradise to Paradise Lost and then toward a vision
of Paradise Regained, at the core of Judeo-Christian tradition, is also
a mythological representation of a fundamental theme for the indi­
vidual’s psychological development. And it provides a fertile context
for the line of exploration you are about to pursue.
The Eden myth recalls the time in humanity’s development before
individual consciousness progressed out of an idyllic identification
with nature and the life of the body. With the fall from innocence
came an awakening of self-consciousness, paid for, however, with an
anxious sense of separation from community and from the natural
order—Paradise Lost. Theorists who have noted parallels between the
Recognizing When a Guiding Myth
Is No Longer an Ally
48 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

early stages of humanity’s development and the child's personal devel­

opment have interpreted the Genesis story as psychologically repre­
senting the individual's "fall'' from innocence during the journey
through childhood.5
As the human embryo typically develops in an environment that
provides for all its warmth and safety needs, so too do infancy and
childhood often provide long stretches of time blessed by innocence
and wonder. Even in those troubled homes and damaged families
where childhood is hardly a carefree idyll, boys and girls often enter
into fantasy worlds that provide a measure of security and hope,
charged with images about the lives of children that are found in
stories, television, and movies. Progressively, however, a disquieting
awareness of separation from the nurturing environment and from
the fantasies ensues as the child matures.
The infant's realization of separateness from the mother begins a
sequence of differentiations that extend through the early years of life.
Sometimes these separations are experienced as the achievement of
independence, and they bring satisfaction and joy; at other times, the
severance is a source of anxiety and grief. In either case, the increas­
ing awareness of estrangement between self and environment is part
of growing up and has been mythologically likened by Rollo May to
"the time when each child re-enacts the 'fall' of Adam."6
But myths of Paradise Lost are accompanied by visions of Paradise
Regained, the promise of recovering a secure and tranquil position in
the order of things. People adhere to images of Paradise Regained
passionately and, for the believer, they reveal the Larger Story. Some
psychologists have equated the powerful motivation to pursue Para­
dise Regained, the religious impulse, with a primitive longing to
recapture a sense of womblike peace and union. Others have argued
vehemently that to understand this passion in anything but a broad
spiritual context is blindly reductionistic.7 Whatever the true signifi­
cance of this longing may be, the great myths and religious systems
of diverse cultures have portrayed it as the soul's yearning to awaken
to its connection with powers that are beyond the visible world.8
Channeling this deep longing into an ever-maturing vision of Para­
dise Regained in this lifetime, an inspired understanding of where you
are headed and why you are headed there, opens you to the Larger
Story and keeps your journey on a more heartfelt path. Elaborating
and supporting such a vision is a pivotal challenge for your personal
mythology.
In the first four rituals of this chapter, you will explore the role of
The First Stage: Recognizing When a Guiding Myth Is No Longer an Ally 49

your own childhood version of Paradise (or its absence), your Fall
from that buoyant moment in time, and the Quest you have pursued
(or abandoned) toward a dimly perceived or well-articulated vision of
Paradise Regained.

Personal Ritual: Your Lost “Paradise0

Slumbering in your unconscious mind may be dim recollections of a

time prior to your awareness of separateness—a period when life was
a rhapsodic dream. And you may recall childhood experiences that
were permeated with a dreamlike sense of joy, security, or wonder.
The purpose of this first personal ritual is to take you back, in your
memory or imagination, to these pristine eras of innocence.
Where the instructions do not bring actual pictures to your mind,
create the experience, as if you are telling yourself a story. For specif­
ics your memory is unable to retrieve, embellish whatever you do
recollect with your imagination. If you are unable to recall any serene
or pleasurable early experiences, use your capacity to pretend. Treat
this as an experiment in how things might have been. Fantasy is a
practical tool in work of this nature.
Decide which of the methods for leading yourself through a guided
imagery exercise you will use (asking someone to read the instruc­
tions to you, reading them into a tape, or becoming familiar enough
with the instructions so you can guide yourself through them from
memory). Also, recall that whenever you come to the end of a para­
graph, to the word "Pause," or to words written in uppercase, a delay
of about ten seconds is needed. For pauses of twenty seconds or more,
consider using a chime, click, or a phrase indicating that the tape
should be stopped at that point or that your partner should stop
reading until you are ready to continue.
After choosing the method you will use and making the appropri­
ate preparations, find a safe, secluded space where you are unlikely
to be interrupted, close your eyes, take several deep breaths, and
begin to relax:

As you settle into this safe, secure spot, focus on your breathing.
Begin to release any areas of tension in your body. [Pause] Listen for
and feel each in-breath and each out-breath. [Pause] Notice your belly
and chest rising and falling. [Pause] Your breathing becomes slow
50 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

and deep as you relax more and more completely with each of your
next five breaths—ONE, TWO, THREE, FOUR, FIVE.
Thoroughly relaxed, re-create in your memory your last exchange
with your Inner Shaman. Recall the instructions you were given for
making another visit. Follow those instructions now. [30-second
pause] When you have found your Shaman, exchange respectful, af­
fectionate greetings. In your Shaman's company, sense the rightness
of being together and attend to the sounds, colors, and forms in this
sacred place.
Your Shaman lets you kno w that a pleasant experience awaits you.
You are bid to prepare yourself for a journey to an earlier time when
you were untested, innocent, and receptive. Your Shaman makes an
evocative gesture and you are transported in time back to a pleasant
moment of childhood. You view the world from the height of a child
and with the curious eyes and inquiring ears of a child just come to
the use of language and questioning.
You are revisiting the time ofyour very firstjoy-filled memory. See
who is with you. Feel their touch. Sniff unashamedly the good odors
around you. Sense how right it is for you to be alive. Move, skip,
dance, or roll with the unfettered abandon of youth. Explore your
world, unconscious of threat. Be fully present with this early experi­
ence. [60-second pause]
Now, focus on the most pleasant, peaceful feelings in that scene.
Direct your breathing into them, allowing them to intensify and fill
your body. Every cell comes to life as these positive feelings in vigorate
you from head to toe. [Pause] The feelings become deliciously vivid
as they continue to build. [30-second pause]
Your Shaman has a lesson for you about this period of your life.
Basking in the positive feelings, receive. You will remember in mind
and body. [30-second pause] Take one last look at your Shaman and
communicate anything you wish. [20-second pause] It is time to take
lea ve of your Shaman. Express your farewell.
Prepare to return to your waking consciousness. Counting from
five back to one, you will be able to recall all you need of this experi­
ence. When you hear the number 1, you will feel alert, relaxed, and
refreshed, as if waking from a wonderful nap. FIVE, move your fin­
gers and toes. FOUR, stretch your shoulders, neck, and face muscles.
THREE, take a deep breath. TWO, bring your attention back into the
room. ONE, open your eyes, feeling refreshed, alert, and fully compe­
tent to meet the requirements of your day.
The First Stage: Recognizing When a Guiding Myth Is No Longer an Ally 51

In your journal, describe the scene you focused upon and the
bodily sensations you experienced. Consider the degree to which the
sense of an early Paradise was available simply by reaching inward
according to the instructions. Reflect on how such early experiences,
or the lack of them, may have influenced your ideas about yourself
and about what you could expect from life. The lesson offered by your
Shaman may have touched upon this question.
Many of our clients and workshop participants have, over the
years, sent us copies of their journals. We’ve selected an account that
is particularly lively and articulate to serve as an example as you lead
yourself through the program.9
Meg was a fifty-five-year-old freelance writer when she went
through the sequence of personal rituals presented in this book. Ex­
cerpts from her journal will provide you with a preview of each ritual
you are about to perform. Read through the instructions for each
ritual and the example following it before you perform the ritual.
Because Meg is a professional writer, her images are especially vivid
and her journal is unusual in its literary merit. While her writing
lends rich example, be forewarned that it is not presented as a stan­
dard for comparison. The only relevant requirement for your journal
is the degree to which it speaks from your deeper self.
During the Paradise fantasy, Meg returned to a happy childhood
memory. She used the first person, present tense, to record it in her
journal:

I am seven and I am running around on Point Loma. There are

no houses anywhere around me, just scrub brush on the cliffs above
the ocean. I am limber and strong, with no sense of my own mortal­
ity, and I am recklessly clambering down the cliff to the exposed
rocks below. My joints move freely, my hands are strong in finding
crevices to grab onto, and my bare feet seek and find toeholds
easily. The ocean is calm and the air is salty-sweet. The temperature
is in the mid-70s and I am comfortably dressed in pants and T-shirt.
Gulls are flying above and a line of pelicans surf the air currents
over the incoming waves.
I walk out on the rocks, my tough feet unhurt by the barnacles
and mussels underfoot. I see the lovely tidepools, filled with riches
in anemones, sea-hares, and shells. I pause and discover a perfect
abalone shell. The outside of it is rugged and rocklike with seven
little vent holes in the edge which, when the creature was alive,
curled over to make a strong seal on the rocks. Inside the shell is
a rainbow of sinuous, reflective forms in iridescent colors and
52 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

complex patterns. I have never seen anything so beautiful in my

life. The abalone shell is the most precious possession I have ever
had, and I have no scruples about taking it from the tidepool and
keeping it for myself. I am alone, happy, free and unmindful of
time, demands, the past, or the future.

In tracing the influence this event had on her subsequent life, Meg
reflected:

The underlying theme I have carried forward from this early

experience is the sense that there is always positive discovery
ahead, that unimagined potential lies in the dullest-appearing ob­
ject or circumstance. Also, my sense of myself as a participant in
nature has never been lost.

By going on this brief journey back in time, Meg was left with a
concrete Paradise image drawn from her own childhood. She recalls
her escapade on Point Loma as an ecstatic union of body, mind,
feeling, and spirit. The little girl is alone, contained, excited, yet there
is no sense of relationship with anyone else. Each moment provided
more than enough stimulation to keep her happy and engaged. With
the abalone shell, she had, in her estimation, acquired a perfect pos­
session. This memory reflects an internalized model that Meg carries
within her, a standard against which she may now unconsciously
measure the quality of her experiences. As you will see, the abalone
shell also became a symbol on her Personal Shield.

Personal Ritual:
Creating Your Personal Shield

We now invite you to construct a “Personal Shield.” Many Native

American cultures used Personal Shields for protection, healing, and
reverence. An image received in a powerful dream or during a vision
quest or other purification ceremony might be interpreted by the
tribal shaman and painted on a circular hide, hung with feathers, fur
tassels, or shells. The symbols on the Shield told who the person was
and what he loved, feared, or dreamed.
For this ritual, your Personal Shield should be round, at least 10
inches in diameter, and you should be able to draw or paint on it. One
The First Stage: Recognizing When a Guiding Myth Is No Longer an Ally 53

way of making a Shield is to put white unbleached muslin in an

embroidery hoop and use embroidery paints. Simpler methods in­
clude cutting a white piece of construction paper into a circle or using
the back of a large paper plate. You will need several colored crayons,
felt-tipped pens, or a paint palette.
Divide your Shield into five equal sections (drawing five spokes out
from the center) and, on the outer rim, label the sections: "Paradise,”
"Paradise Lost,” "Paradise Regained Vision,” "My Quest,” and "A
Renewed Vision.”
The following instructions will evoke the imagery that you will be
drawing on your Shield. First reread your Paradise fantasy. Then
make preparations for another guided fantasy experience by arrang­
ing to have someone read the instructions to you, tape-recording
them, or familiarizing yourself with them well enough so that you can
lead yourself through the exercise unassisted. Find a comfortable
position, keeping your journal, your Shield, and the drawing imple­
ments nearby.

Take several deep breaths. [20-second pause] Look at the section

ofyour Shield labeled "Paradise. ” [Pause] Close your eyes and recall
your Paradise fantasy.
Thinking ofyour Paradise fantasy, notice the most pleasant sensa­
tions in your body. [Pause] Focus on your positive feelings. Breathe
into them, allowing them to become more vivid. The positive sensa­
tions Pill you.
Focus on the part of your body in which the pleasant sensations
are the most intense. See the color of the sensations. Trace with your
fingertips or in your mind the shape of these feelings in your body.
Note their color. Explore the interesting texture. [30-secondpause]In
a moment you will see or sense a symbol emerging out of the shapes
and colors.
Watch as a symbol appears that represents a time of personal
Paradise for you. [Pause] You may actually see the symbol take form,
or you may simply sense what it is. [Pause] It will further evolve over
the next few moments. Relax as it becomes increasingly clear.
Once you have come upon a fitting symbol, open your eyes and
draw it on the Paradise portion of your Shield. If after listening to
these instructions, you still have no sense of having had even mo­
ments of happiness in your childhood, find a symbol that represents
what you are feeling or remembering. Even leaving the Paradise por­
tion ofyour Shield blank can be a powerful statement.
After you begin to draw your symbol, you may find that it is
54 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

changing even as you are creating it, or that you have more than one
image to draw. Or an additional image may occur to you while you
are dra wing. Dra w whatever comes to you. Do not be concerned about
what may be “aesthetic" or “correct. "As long as the dra wing is mean­
ingful to you, you are doing it right. [Ifyou are reading these instruc­
tions into a tape, add: “Now turn off the tape until you have finished
drawing your symbol. ’’]
After you have completed drawing your Paradise symbol or sym­
bols, look at the Paradise Lost portion of your Shield. [Pause] Close
your eyes and move forward in time to a point where the happiness
represented by the Paradise portion of your Shield was interrupted.
[Pause] This may involve a change in your circumstances, a betrayal
by a loved one, a personal tragedy, or a memorable failure. [Pause]
Feel your body’s response to this event.
Focus on the part ofyour body in which you feel this loss. Trace
with your fingertips or in your mind the shape of these feelings in
your body. Note their color. Explore their texture. [30-secondpause]
In a moment you will see or sense a symbol emerging out of the
shapes and colors.
Watch as a symbol appears that for you represents Paradise Lost.
[Pause] You may actually see the symbol take form or you may simply
sense what it is. [Pause] It will further evolve over the next few mo­
ments. Relax as it becomes increasingly clear.
Once you have come upon a symbol that represents this period of
your life, open your eyes and dra w it on the Paradise Lost section of
your Shield. Ifyou did not see a vivid image, create the symbol as you
complete this second portion ofyour shield. [Ifyou are reading these
instructions into a tape, add: “Now turn off the tape until you have
completed drawing your symbol. ’]
Now that you have drawn a Paradise Lost symbol on your Shield,
allow yourself to consciously breathe out any unpleasant bodily sen­
sations. [30-second pause]
After adjusting to a disappointment of the kind depicted on the
Paradise Lost section of the Shield, we gradually formulate ideas and
fantasies for restoring the sense ofpeace and contentment associated
with Paradise. Look at the section of your Shield labeled “Paradise
Regained Vision. ” Close your eyes and reflect upon the ideals or im­
ages you formed about the way you wanted your life to become.
[Pause] As you begin to identify the ideals or images you formed at
that time, sink into your feelings about them.
Focus on the part of your body in which these feelings are most
intense. Trace with your fingertips or in your mind the shape of these
feelings. Note their color. Explore their texture. [30-second pause] In
The First Stage: Recognizing When a Guiding Myth Is No Longer an Ally 55

a moment you will see or sense a symbol emerging out of the shapes
and colors.
Watch as a symbol appears that for you represented your aspira­
tions, your personal version of Paradise Regained. [Pause] You may
actually see the symbol take form or you may simply sense what it is.
[Pause] It will further evolve over the next few moments. Relax as it
becomes increasingly clear.
Once you have come upon a symbol or a set of symbols that repre­
sents the hopes and aspirations you came upon early in your life, open
your eyes and complete the Paradise Regained portion ofyour Shield.
[Ifyou are reading these instructions into a tape, add: "Now turn off
the tape until you have completed drawing your symbol."]
Look at the progression of symbols on the "Paradise," "Paradise
Lost, "and "Paradise Regained" sections ofyour Shield. Now look at
the portion of your Shield labeled "My Quest." [Pause] Once more
close your eyes. Move forward in time from the Paradise Lost period
of your life and consider the path you have taken toward Paradise
Regained. Think about what you have done to attempt to make your
life better—activities you have carried out, personal qualities you
have developed, accomplishments you have attained. [Pause] Reflect
on the dilemmas you were facing, what you attempted to do about
them, and the outcome of those actions. [30-second pause]
Focus on the part ofyour body in which your feelings about your
Quest are the most in tense. Trace with your fingertips or in your mind
the shape of these feelings. Note their color. Explore their texture.
[30-second pause] In a moment you will see or sense a symbol emerg­
ing out of the shapes and colors.
Watch as a symbol appears that represents your actions in the
world. [Pause] You may actually see the symbol take form or you may
simply sense what it is. [Pause] It will further evolve over the next few
moments. Relax as it becomes increasingly clear.
Once you have come upon a symbol ora set ofsymbols that repre­
sents your Quest, open your eyes and draw this on the section ofyour
Shield labeled "My Quest." This drawing ofyour personal Quest is the
last drawing for now.
Ifyou would like to add details to your Shield, or to place borders
on it, or to embellish it with some other decoration such as feathers
or beads, do so now. Then sit back and inspect your creation.

The symbol on the Paradise portion of Meg's shield was of the

abalone shell she had seen in her Paradise fantasy. Her Paradise Lost
symbol was a hypodermic syringe. Her Paradise Regained image was
56 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

the yin-yang symbol, a divided circle used in ancient China to repre­

sent the interplay of opposing tendencies. The symbol she drew for
her personal Quest was a small coat-of-arms with the words Freedom,
Strength, Good, and Competent written in its quadrants.
In the following personal ritual, you will be introduced to a tech­
nique for creatively examining the personal meaning of such sym­
bols, and you will see the significance Meg found in each of the
symbols on her Shield.

Personal Ritual:
Exploring the Meaning of Your Shield

Choose at least one symbol from your Shield for deeper examination.
Focus particularly on symbols that evoke discomfort, sadness, anger,
or other unpleasant feelings. Examine the symbol and then begin to
speak as if you have become that symbol. Give it a voice. You are the
symbol; describe yourself in the present tense and in the first person.10
If the symbol is of a rowboat, you might begin by stating: "I am a
small rowboat, I am blue, and I am on a stormy sea.” Then continue
to talk about yourself as a rowboat. Let your words come spontane­
ously and unrehearsed. If you are working alone, you may want to
keep a record by talking into a tape recorder or writing your thoughts
directly into your journal. If you are working with a partner, your
partner’s job is simply to listen, to gently remind you if you wander
away from the first person present tense as you identify with the
symbol, and to encourage you to go beyond the first few layers of
associations. Discussion should wait until after you have explored the
symbol in its own voice as fully as possible.
When you are finished, sketch the symbol in your journal and
summarize the way you identified with it. Comment on the meaning
the symbol seems to hold for you. Meg summarized her associations
with all four of the symbols on her Shield:

Abalone Shell (Paradise): I am an unblemished abalone shell in

a tidepool on an unspoiled coast. A glorious natural phenomenon,
a thing of beauty, I am utterly unstudied in my grace. It is clear that
the hand of God created me.
Hypodermic Syringe (Paradise Lost): I am the hypodermic sy­
ringe. I am a cold, efficient device for injecting drugs into the
human body. I am a tool: mindless, efficient, disposable, benign or
The First Stage: Recognizing When a Guiding Myth Is No Longer an Ally 57

deadly, depending on the use made of me. When Meg was a child,
she knew me both by observation and use. She saw me putting
morphine and adrenaline, alternately, into her mother’s body. She
was taught to use me to save her mother’s life. I am indifferent
about who uses me. I have no morality, no sentiment.
Yin-Yang Symbol (Paradise Regained): I am a symbol of unity.
All contrasts are reconciled within me. I reflect the Tao, the One,
the principle of unification. I encompass, without prejudice, all
creation and all time. I am One with All: Godlike and Humble,
Creator and Dissolver, Whole and Diffuse.
Coat-of-Arms with the words freedom, strength, good, and com­
petent, written in its quadrants (the Quest): I am a strong protective
covering, made of leather and oak, designed to protect Meg in her
journey through life. Very few weapons can penetrate me, and Meg
rarely lays me aside. I carry the emblems she values, even though
she rarely lives up to them fully. What cannot be seen is my patched
and shabby reverse side.
I speak of “freedom”—freedom of thought and action, freedom
from convention and orthodox limitations. Behind me, however
[on the back of the coat-of-arms], is "fear”—fear of censure and
alienation. I keep my back side well hidden.
One of my sections is designated "strong”—strong in purpose,
body, values, courage. The flip-side of "strong” is “rigid”—unwill­
ingness, inability to yield without collapse.
Part of my front is “good”—I want to do good work and have a
good heart, good will, good life, and good death. Good is defined
as being a positive force. On the back, however, is its opposite:
"self-serving.”
My last quarter is for "competence”—development of my skills
and facilities in a narrow range of activities (my artwork, mother­
ing, writing—all easy stuff for me). On the back is "laziness and
defensiveness”—being unwilling to challenge myself with difficult
or boring tasks and unwilling to admit my incompetence at money
management, at many human relations situations, or at physical
challenge.

Frank, a thirty-five-year-old investment counselor, used this tech­

nique to explore the symbolism of a fist he had drawn on his Shield:

The symbol in the Paradise Lost portion of my Shield is a picture

of a fist striking an innocent belly—specifically my belly, when I
58 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

was four and a half. Okay, I am a fist. I am clenched. I am moving

very rapidly. I have anger in me. I have incredible anger in me. That
anger just wants to express itself. Wants to hit out. That anger is
strong. And there is this kid playing with my toys. I have an excuse
to put my anger right into his stomach. And that’s what I'm doing.
Wham! That felt good. I feel my power—instead of my usual help­
lessness. I feel contact instead of isolation. I feel dominance instead
of feeling dominated.
Going from the warmth and safety of a loving, nurturing, and
I guess overly protective home into kindergarten was totally over­
whelming. I never seemed to know what was going on or what was
expected of me or how to relate to the other kids. One day, one of
the tougher boys was playing with a wooden train set. He went
away and I started to play with it. Now I wasn't certain he was
through with it, but he had left it, so with a shade of trepidation I
went over and played with it. But he returned, saw me playing with
the trains, and without a word, belted me in the stomach. I don't
think I ever knew anything could hurt that much. All my breath
was jerked out of me and I found out what it means when they say
someone "sees stars.”
It never occurred to me that it was wrong for him to have hit
me—I always assumed he was justified because I should have
known he was coming back and shouldn't have been messing with
the toys he was using. For me, that fist represented an arbitrary
authority that has always kept me in my place. I couldn't compre­
hend what was going on when I got hit, so I just took on a sort of
unquestioned sense of being oppressed around strength or author­
ity. I never really thought about what was on the other side of the
fist.
“Becoming” the fist humanized it for me. I believe that my as­
sociations to the fist may have been very similar to what was going
on for that kid. While I don’t remember thinking of his fist for
decades, I believe it represents a sense that I must be overly careful,
a kind of self-oppression that I carry with me to this day. Somehow
I believed I was bad because I was playing with those toys. So I
accepted moral restrictions: I shouldn't ever break any rules; I must
even abide by unwritten, imperceptible, and invisible rules. So now
I put a lot of energy into second-guessing what might offend some­
one, what might cause someone to be angry with me, and I wind
up stifling my spontaneity, and then I'm very uneasy around other
people.
I tried real hard never to make the teacher or the principal or
The First Stage: Recognizing When a Guiding Myth Is No Longer an Ally 59

my classmates mad at me, and I still try not to make others, even
strangers, uneasy around me or to give them any reason to judge
me as doing something wrong. What a burden! What’s striking is
how I gave the kid that hit me so much authority to judge me.

You can see how Frank’s elaboration upon this single symbol from
his Shield began to reveal a persistent, self-limiting aspect of his per­
sonal mythology. Since childhood, he had given other people’s opin­
ions unwarranted authority in determining his own self-evaluations.
In particular, the ways he imagined people might react to him caused
him to sternly police his spontaneity.
This method, which begins with “becoming” a symbol and drama­
tizing it, is called creative projection. We encourage you to practice its
use by exploring any symbolism—dream or waking—that emerges
throughout the program. Creative projection is also a valuable tool for
examining your reactions to artistic, spiritual, or other cultural im­
ages. For example, if you have access to a Tarot deck, pick a card, find
the image on that card that you respond to most strongly, and use the
creative projection technique to explore its symbolism. With this tech­
nique, you can develop your capacity to link symbols that move you
and the personal meanings they hold.

Dream Focus: “My Quest”

The events that make up the Paradise and the Paradise Lost portions
of your Shield occurred in the past. The Quest segment of your Shield
symbolizes an ongoing story. The following optional dream instruc­
tion may provide further insight into your personal Quest.
If you have been recording your dreams, scan your journal to
identify any dream images or sequences that might provide a glimpse
into the nature of your personal Quest. Reflect on these dreams. If you
would like an additional dream that might reveal more about your
Quest, use the following instructions to “incubate” a dream tonight
before going to sleep:

As you relax, reflect upon the Quest portion ofyour Shield. What
bodily sensations resonate with the feelings you have about your
Quest? Focus on these sensations. [Pause] Repeat to yourself, or out
60 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

loud, ten to twenty times, "I will dream about my Quest, and I will
recall my dreams.”

Be prepared with your journal and a pen or tape recorder to cap­

ture your dream as soon as you awaken. If there is no dream, be
receptive to your early morning insights. The important considera­
tion in attempting to incubate a dream around a particular question
is not necessarily whether you are given such a dream. Most people
can incubate a dream only on occasion, if at all. Here, and in all the
dream incubation instructions that follow, the primary intent is to
have you invite insights from the deeper realms of your psyche and
remain alert for what comes through in any form—fantasies, sudden
insights, early morning thoughts, or nighttime dreams.
Also, do not be concerned if the relationship between a dream you
recall and the question you asked is not readily apparent. Often, you
will find as you examine the dream that it did touch upon your ques­
tion in ways that were not obvious at first glance. You may use struc­
tured dream interpretation techniques, such as those presented in
Appendix B, to gain a deeper understanding of the dream’s meaning.
Meg recorded the following dream in her journal:

I am at a beach. The dry sand is white and deep, but slopes

steeply to the shore. It is a clear day and the tide is low. My husband
is asleep on the blanket beside me and our baby is exploring the
water edge. I look up and see a line of huge swells coming in—the
tide has changed abruptly. There is no way I will be fast enough to
race down the shore and save my baby. I scream to Ron to wake
up! Wake up NOW! He does and races toward the baby. I’m still
screaming for him to hurry when I wake up, my heart pounding.

Meg used the creative projection technique to explore several of

the elements from her dream:

After I woke up, I remembered that the dream had come in

answer to my meditations on the Quest portion of my Shield, with
its words, Freedom, Strength, Good, Competent, and all morning
I’ve sensed that there is a relationship between these words and the
images in the dream . . .
“I am the baby boy. I’m heedless and curious, exploring my
world under the watchful eyes of my mother. I have never been
The First Stage: Recognizing When a Guiding Myth Is No Longer an Ally 61

hurt and I have no sense of danger. I have no sense of my own

limitations or mortality—I am fresh and alive. Iam freedom. ”
“I am the rising tide. I’m irresistible and subject to the laws of
physics. I am moving forward, bound to follow my own destiny,
subject to the pull of moon and sun, remote from human concerns.
I am Nature—unsentimental, life-giving, life-extinguishing, harmo­
nious, primal. I am strong and swift.”
“I’m Ron—I’ve been ripped from relaxed sleep to complete mo­
bilization—I have the speed and determination to save my son from
the sea. I am mortal, but I’m rising to the challenge as if I had no
limits. I will be successful, because to do otherwise is to lose what
matters most to me—my sense of continuity and purpose. I am the
essence of goodness."
“I am Meg. I’m acutely aware of my senses on this beautiful
beach and of my blessings, as I look at my beloved husband and
beautiful child. My contentment is shattered by the annihilating
danger approaching and I am suddenly suffused with terror—I feel
the heaviness of my legs, my lack of agility, and know my compe­
tence to protect my innocent child is compromised. My child will
die if I can’t mobilize Ron to extraordinary effort. I am faced with
the mortality of all that I love and of myself. My own competence
depends upon recognizing the power of the natural forces that
surround me. I must find my place in Nature and not foolishly
decide that my mind makes me immune from the changing of the
tide.”

Meg elaborately linked her dream symbols with the four words
that were on the “Quest” portion of her shield. Usually, such connec­
tions are not this direct, nor is it necessary that they be spelled out so
literally. Yet just as Meg’s initial creative projection with the four
words on the “Quest” portion of her Shield revealed that each word
contained its antithesis, this exploration of her dream also deepened
her understanding of these four qualities in her life.

Personal Ritual:
Your Shield as Autobiography

If you are working with a partner or with a group, present a brief

(about 10 minutes) autobiography by describing the significant events
of your psychological development as they are associated with the
symbols on your Shield. If you have been working alone, it may be
useful to share this experience with another person. Alternatively,
62 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

speak your story into a tape recorder or write it in your journal.

Before you begin, review the identifications you made with the sym­
bols from your Shield during the previous ritual.
Meg wrote her story directly into her journal. While space does not
allow for her entire account to be reported, the following excerpt,
which focuses on the hypodermic syringe from the Paradise Lost
portion of her Shield, illustrates the process:

I feel very young when I think of the syringe. I remember my

mother vomiting and crying out to my poor father for an injection,
"Please, Ben, just one shot.” She was in withdrawal from morphine
that had been medically prescribed. The cycle seemed endless. She
would choke herself to unconsciousness with her asthma, be
revived with adrenaline, become hyperactive, be brought down
with morphine, and instantly become addicted.
I have plenty of feelings for the little kid, cowering in bed,
uncomforted, who heard this every month for years. I have even
more empathy for the kid who learned to give an injection at age
nine. The crowning horror of my childhood was the time I came
home from third grade and found my mother, at 3:30 in the after­
noon, sprawled across the kitchen table with her fingers in a cup
of cold coffee. I did as I had been instructed, filling the syringe with
adrenaline to the 5cc mark, pressing the plunger carefully to re­
lease any air bubbles, and then dealing with her as best I could
remember. That was the hardest part. She was unconscious and
although she was not a large woman, I was only nine.
I pushed her back in the chair and opened her robe. I had never
seen my mother’s breasts before. When I was instructed what to do
in an emergency, they showed me on my own bony chest, demon­
strating how to count the ribs and how to find the place beside the
sternum to push the needle. They had me practice on a lemon. I
found that pushing the needle into her body was infinitely harder
than into the lemon—at one point I was afraid that the needle
would bend or break. But I did as I had been told. Within a few
minutes she revived enough to lie on the couch. Within an hour or
so Dad was there, and he called the doctor, who came over to help
my mother as best he could.
Later, Dad told me I had been a "brave little soldier” and that
I had done well. I don’t think I ever cried about this incident until
I was an adult. I’ve tried, most of my life, to be a “brave little
soldier,” not to cry but to take care of business. I also have had an
unspoken, nearly unconscious, contempt for people who are
The First Stage: Recognizing When a Guiding Myth Is No Longer an Ally 63

chronically ill, seeing them as exploitive and treacherous. I’m basi­

cally a squeamish person. I've been able to take care of my kids
when they were sick, and to handle emergencies and birthing situa­
tions, but I'm secretly sickened by illness. I’ve hated myself when
I’ve been ill, associating it with my mother and her wretched help­
lessness that (unintentionally, of course) distorted my childhood
and my father's life with her constant need for nursing, until she
died the month I turned twelve.

The "brave little soldier” theme persisted as Meg grew up. It came
to both serve her and limit her, as is often the case with personal
myths that were initially developed to resolve specific dilemmas dur­
ing childhood.

Your Shield symbolizes, in a highly condensed manner, many

aspects of your personal history and unique mythology. You may
wish to display it in a special place where you can see it frequently.
It will be a companion as you go through the remaining personal
rituals in this book, and you will be shown how to use it as an instru­
ment for emotional protection as you move into uncharted areas of
your personal unconscious. You may also, from time to time, wish to
add a new symbol to your Shield or to examine existing symbolism
further by using the creative projection technique. In chapter 5 you
will complete the section of the Shield labeled "A Renewed Vision.”
Meanwhile, you may find your Shield taking on greater meaning as
you proceed through the following chapters.

IDENTIFYING UNDERLYING
MYTHIC CONFLICT

Your Shield and its symbolism provides a broad survey of the events
that have shaped your personal mythology. Here the program shifts
to concentrate on areas of your mythology that are no longer serving
as allies in your development or adjustment to circumstances. As your
understanding of yourself and your world increases, your myths are
continually challenged and revised. By the end of this chapter, you
will have identified at least one guiding myth that is causing difficulty
for you.
The areas of your mythology that are the most primed for change
are likely to be marked by personal conflict. Confusion over what is
important to you or where you should direct your efforts may bring
64 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

your attention to personal myths that are limiting you. Irrational

fears, self-defeating behavior patterns, disturbing dreams, or incon­
sistencies between word and deed may also reflect parts of your my­
thology that need attention.
If, for instance, you find yourself frequently complaining about
how busy you are but keep overscheduling every opportunity for free
time, the personal myth with which you consciously identify may
have little to do with your actual behavior. At the same time this myth
is directing you to slow down and smell the flowers, a different myth,
serving purposes that are outside of your awareness, may be govern­
ing your choices. Such unrecognized mythic conflict can keep you
enmeshed in dysfunctional patterns of thought and behavior. When
you bring the conflict into focus, however, the opposing myths can be
recognized and a constructive resolution becomes feasible.
The continual search for approval, for instance, may be linked to
a self-defeating personal myth in which you require validation from
authority figures who, at an unconscious level, stand in for your
father. If you are able to identify the myth that perpetuates the pat­
tern, you have a chance to make changes in it. Perhaps you longed so
much for affirmation from a remote father that you made every at­
tempt to mold yourself into the image of who you thought your father
wanted you to be. Even as you grew up and your father was no longer
an active character in your life, you might have continued to make
monumental efforts to gain approval from symbolic substitutes who
remained cold and distant. Psychoanalysts use the term repetition
compulsion to speak of “the blind impulse to repeat earlier experi­
ences and situations quite irrespective of any advantage that doing so
might bring from a pleasure-pain point of view.”11 By systematically
working with your personal mythology, you will become less com­
pelled to repeat destructive patterns that are maintained by outdated
or conflicting personal myths.

Personal Ritual: Assessing Your Conflicts

In this ritual, you will create a broad summary of the points of conflict
in your life. Write the words Conflict Survey at the top of a fresh page
in your journal and divide the page into three columns. Label them
"Self-Defeating Behaviors,” "Troublesome Feelings,” and "Symbols of
Conflict.”
Look at the first column and think about patterns of behavior that
The First Stage: Recognizing When a Guiding Myth Is No Longer an Ally 65

consistently fail to get you what you need or want. Identify recurring
habits you seem unable to change, mistakes you seem destined to
repeat, or decisions you seem unable to make. Describe these self-
defeating behavior patterns in the first column of your Conflict
Survey.
Then turn to the second column and think about emotional pat­
terns that are difficult for you, such as unrealistic fears, inexplicable
anxiety, unwarranted dissatisfaction, persistent ambivalence, or inap­
propriate discomfort. Describe these troublesome feelings in the sec­
ond column.
In the third column, Symbols of Conflict, describe or draw any
images from your dreams, fantasies, or artistic creations, such as your
Shield, that seem to represent conflict in your personal mythology.
We also suggest that you consider stress-related symptoms, such as
shoulder tension or digestive problems, as symbols of possible con­
flict in your underlying mythology. Psychological conflict and stress
are often implicated in ulcers, headaches, and hypertension, and
there is increasing evidence of their involvement in other illnesses as
well.12
Be speculative. Whenever you recognize an area of underlying
conflict, you are taking a step toward participating more consciously
in its resolution. We suggest that you carry your journal around with
you for a few days and add new ideas or symbols as they occur to
you.

Here is a sampling from Meg's chart of conflicts:

1. Self-Defeating Behaviors:
• I seem fated to be stupid in money management.
• Sometimes I really should back down on a stand I’ve taken,
and I don’t know how to without feeling like a jackass.
• I become overly defensive when I think someone is putting
something over on me or talking over my head.
• When I’m sick, I either whine or withdraw.

2. Troublesome Feelings:
• I think, too often, of dying as an escape from sometimes
rather mild discomfort.
• I become deeply anxious when a pretty woman pays atten­
tion to my husband, even though I know it is to his advan­
tage to have these needed affirmations.
66 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

• I often have a desire to lie or conceal any unpleasant truth

about myself, not trusting others to have generous judg­
ments about me.
• I’m uncomfortable in the company of well-groomed, mid­
dle-aged women who have "paid their dues” and are satis­
fied with their conventional lives.
• I see the effects of the aging process on my body and I am
ashamed, as if I had committed a great crime.
• I’m horribly selfish and possessive, unless it’s easy to be
gracious.

3. Symbols of Conflict:
• In a dream, I have a hidden treasure. I don’t know what it
is, how to protect it, or who the enemy is.
• The hypodermic needle from my Shield.
• I feel like a fraud when identifying with anything beautiful,
like the abalone shell or the yin-yang symbol.
• My back problem. When I am overloaded or feel I must
perform, I have characteristically stiffened my spine and by
now have structurally damaged myself.

The survey identifies an assortment of conflicts and provocative

issues in Meg’s life. Most people can readily list several conflicts or
concerns. If you are having difficulty finding areas that fit for you, ask
for a dream or consult your Inner Shaman. Find a setting in which
you can become deeply relaxed, and again draw upon the technique
your Shaman instructed you to use when you wish to make a visit. Ask
your Shaman to help you recognize behaviors or patterns of emo­
tional response that are self-defeating.
When you have completed your list of conflicts, put a star next to
the items you consider particularly problematic. By the end of this
chapter, you will have settled on a single concern. The following
dream suggestions and personal rituals will assist you in bringing it
into focus.

Dream Focus: A Conflict to Resolve

Scan your dream journal to see if you can identify any recent dreams
that symbolize an area of conflict for you. Examine any such dreams
using a structured dream exploration technique (such as those pre-
The First Stage: Recognizing When a Guiding Myth Is No Longer an Ally 67

sented in Appendix B). If you wish to incubate a dream that highlights

areas of conflict that might be calling for your attention, review your
Conflict Survey before you go to sleep. Then ask yourself for a dream
that reveals an area of conflict that would be a particularly useful
focus for you in this program. Repeat ten to twenty times before
falling asleep a statement such as “I will recall a dream that shows me
an area of my personal mythology that is ripe for exploration.” Have
your journal or tape recorder nearby. Use at least one dream explora­
tion method with any dream you recall, even if you are not initially
sure it relates in any way to an area of conflict. Remember also that,
whether or not you recall a dream, you may awaken with fresh in­
sights about your question.

Personal Ritual:
Finding a Symbol for Your Conflict

This guided imagery ritual is designed to transform the feelings you

have been generating about your conflicts into a single symbol. If you
are already fairly certain about the conflict on which you wish to
concentrate, the ritual will add to your understanding of its meaning
in your life. If you have not yet settled on a conflict, it will enlist your
unconscious mind to help you choose. Begin by finding a comfortable
position, closing your eyes, taking several deep breaths, and starting
to relax:

As you settle into this safe, secure spot, focus on your breathing.
Begin to release any areas of tension in your body. [Pause] Listen for
and feel each in-breath and each out-breath. [Pause] Notice your belly
and chest rising and falling. [Pause] Your breathing becomes slow
and deep as you relax more and more completely with each of your
next five breaths—ONE, TWO, THREE, FOUR, FIVE.
Think about the areas of conflict you have been surveying. [Pause]
One or two will be of particular concern. Feel your body's response
in your breathing, muscles, and temperature. Trace with your finger­
tips or in your mind the shape of the part ofyour body that responds
the most strongly. Note its color. Explore its texture. [30-second
pause] In a moment you will see or sense a symbol emerging out of
the shapes and colors.
Watch as a symbol appears that represents an inner conflict that
68 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

is pressing for resolution. [Pause] You may actually see the symbol
take form, or you may simply sense what it is. [Pause] It will further
evolve over the next few moments. Relax as it becomes increasingly
clear. You intuitively recognize the meaning of your symbol. Trust
that further exploration of the symbol's significance will be valuable.
Prepare to return to your waking consciousness. Counting from
five back to one, you will be able to recall all you need of this experi­
ence. When you hear the number 1, you will feel alert, relaxed, and
refreshed, as if waking from a wonderful nap. FIVE, move your fin­
gers and toes. FOUR, stretch your shoulders, neck, and face muscles.
THREE, take a deep breath. TWO, bring your attention back into the
room. ONE, open your eyes, feeling refreshed, alert, and fully compe­
tent to meet the requirements of your day.

Draw or describe the symbol in your journal. Record any insights

or ideas you may have about its meaning. You also might find it
valuable to use the creative projection technique to explore the mean­
ing of your symbol further. The image that came to Meg was faulty
scuba equipment that threatened her life in a dream. Frank, the in­
vestment counselor, wrote:

Thinking about my conflict brings me to the pain of not living

with more passion. The bodily sensation was a tight oblong black
area, starting in my neck where it was the widest, and going down
the center of the front of my body, perhaps 2 inches wide in most
places. When it became a picture, it was a giant jaw and a little
version of me was caught in its grip, not harmed by its teeth, but
totally pinned. That image mirrors the feelings of being stifled and
inhibited that I so long to be free of.

Personal Ritual: Finding the Roots of

Mythic Conflict in Your Past

Up to this point, you have created an overview of your personal his­

tory by means of your Shield, surveyed areas of conflict in your life,
and found a symbol for an area of mythic conflict that invites atten­
tion. You may or may not be clear about just how that conflict mani­
fests itself in your life. This personal ritual will deepen your under­
standing about the conflict that is coming into focus. In it, you will be
The First Stage: Recognizing When a Guiding Myth Is No Longer an Ally 69

guided back in time to an early experience that is related to current

difficulties in your life. By connecting present feelings to past experi­
ences, you will gain a greater appreciation of the source of underlying
conflict in your mythology. Start by finding a comfortable position,
closing your eyes, and taking several deep breaths.

As you settle into this safe, secure spot, focus on your breathing.
Begin to release any areas of tension in your body. [Pause] Listen for
and feel each in-breath and each out-breath. [Pause] Notice your belly
and chest rising and falling. [Pause] Allow your breathing to become
slow and deep as you relax more completely with each ofyour next
five breaths—ONE, TWO, THREE, FOUR, FIVE.
Recall your symbol from the previous ritual, or if you have a
different way of thinking about the conflict you wish to explore, bring
it to mind. Notice your feelings about this symbol or thought. [Pause]
If there is more than one feeling, concentrate on the feeling that is the
most dominant or uncomfortable. [Pause] Ifyou are having difficulty
tuning into a conflict, focus on any persistent troubling feeling.
Keep in your awareness the feeling you have identified and notice
the part ofyour body in which you experience it the most fully. Bring
your attention to that part ofyour body. [Pause] If the feeling is vague,
imagine yourself breathing into it and intensifying it. If the feeling is
so strong that it is distracting, imagine that your next few exhalations
are breathing out some of the intensity. As this feeling absorbs your
attention, observe the way your body reacts to it. Feel your body's
response in your breathing, your muscles, and your temperature.
[Pause] Find a word that describes the feeling.
You will use this feeling to lead you back to an earlier period of
your life. Notice the flow of sensations that make up the feeling. Now
create the image of a river as you continue to focus on your feeling.
Think ofyour feeling as the river. Imagine yourself in a boat on that
river. The river floats you back in time, safely and comfortably, to one
of the first occasions on which you experienced the feeling you just
identified.
On the bank of the river you see, as if on a stage, yourself ex­
periencing the same feeling, but in a scene that occurred very early
in your life. [Pause] Enter the scene.
How old are you in this scene? What are you doing? Where your
memory does not offer answers, your imagination will. What do you
look like? What are you wearing? Who, if anyone, is with you? Where
are you? What are the surroundings? What sights, sounds, tastes, or
70 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

smells do you experience? What, specifically, brought about the feel­

ing? Recall or imagine as many details of that earlier time as you can.
[45-second pause]
Reflect on some of the decisions you might have made as a result
of this experience and others like it. [Pause] What conclusions did you
come to about yourself and your world? What rules or codes of con­
duct did you adopt? What attitudes toward other people began to
emerge? What views of the world? What philosophy oflife? [45-second
pause]
Prepare to return to your waking consciousness. Counting from
five back to one, you will be able to recall all you need of this experi­
ence. When you hear the number 1, you will feel alert, relaxed, and
refreshed, as if waking from a wonderful nap. FIVE, move your Un­
gers and toes. FOUR, stretch your shoulders, neck, and face muscles.
THREE, take a deep breath. TWO, bring your attention back into the
room. ONE, open your eyes, feeling refreshed, alert, and fully compe­
tent to meet the requirements of your day.

Summarize this experience in your journal and reflect on the fol­

lowing:

1. What was the conflict or symbol with which you started?

2. What was the negative emotion or unpleasant feeling it
evoked in you?
3. Describe the scene you went back to in as much detail as you
can recall.
4. What rules of behavior and codes of conduct did you adopt
based on experiences such as the one to which you returned?
In what ways might such experiences have influenced your
sense of your own capabilities, limitations, and personal des­
tiny?
5. How do these rules, attitudes, and philosophy affect your life
at this time? How might they be related to your current con­
flicts? Have they become outdated for you?

The answers to these questions will reveal many qualities of a

personal myth you might have developed early in your life. For exam­
ple, some people follow the river back to memories of unpleasant
experiences with one or both of their parents. As a result of those
The First Stage: Recognizing When a Guiding Myth Is No Longer an Ally 71

experiences, they might realize they decided never again to do any­

thing that could possibly risk the loss of approval from one they love.
Others, in the same circumstances, might have decided never again to
trust their parents or other intimates.
Such attitudes and values can sometimes be condensed into brief
phrases that represent underlying themes in the person’s life, such as,
"I am a weak and dependent person”; “I must make great sacrifices
to earn love and attention”; or, “The world is a jungle and people
cannot be trusted.” It is quite probable that even if such premises
protected you at one time or solved real problems, the decisions you
identified during this particular ritual have become self-limiting. The
mythology that was shaped by those decisions comprises one side of
the underlying mythic conflict you will be exploring. On the other
side, as you will see in the following chapter, is an emerging myth that
you have been formulating, perhaps outside of your awareness, to
address the problems and limitations caused by the myth you just
identified.
Meg went back to a time that is also symbolized on her Shield,
when she was nine and had to give her mother the shot of adrenaline.
She reflected on the regulations and codes of conduct she adopted for
herself as a result of that experience and others like it:

I learned that I have to be cool, maintain myself, do that which

is repugnant to me in order to justify my existence. I have to per­
form far beyond what is reasonable to expect from one equipped
as I am equipped. But I learned that adopting this behavior could
earn genuine heartfelt praise from the most important person on
earth—my Dad—for being a “brave little soldier." I didn’t know
what to do with my panic, but I decided to hide it since it didn't fit
the program of being a “brave little soldier.”
I have learned that performance justifies existence, and I have
reached the conclusion that my own performance is always sus­
pect, at best, and hypocritical at worst. I let people think I’m brave,
while underneath there is really a scared, inadequate little kid
ashamed to admit that she’s mad as hell at being put in this position
by her parents, by the doctor, and/or by God. It doesn’t seem fair,
but she can’t admit her fears without giving up the pleasure of being
seen as a “brave little soldier.”
Some part of me believes that everyone can look right in my eye
and see that my facade of competence is constructed of words and
gestures, not of substance. Another part of me vehemently dis­
agrees because I am, authentically, a capable, good-hearted, decent
72 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

woman. I see my quest in life as someone who seeks to nurture, but

God help anyone who doesn’t appreciate and acknowledge my
"selfless” giving. If people don’t respond to me as a "brave little
soldier,” I deny them closeness and intimacy.

With these reflections, Meg was able to complete the first stage of
the program by articulating a basic conflict that seemed to be calling
for her attention. Her "brave little soldier” theme emphasized a strong
performance in the world at the expense of tenderness and intimacy
with those who might recognize her vulnerabilities and lend support.
Just as she had helped her mother, she felt compelled to nurture those
in need. But inside of her was still an "angry little girl” who wanted
to be nurtured and, at the same time, wanted to be seen as a "brave
little soldier.”
We have found this "river back in time” technique13 to be an effec­
tive way for connecting current difficulties with experiences from the
past. People quite reliably go back to a time when they were forming
attitudes, values, and codes of conduct that have come into conflict
with more recent understandings. The decisions that shaped a myth
which has become outdated can thus be identified. Regardless of how
often you use it, the "river back” technique can continue to be a useful
tool for uncovering the mythic roots of psychological conflict.

At this point, you may be wondering if you have identified the

"right” conflict or outdated myth with which to work. If you have
been straining to find the focal conflict in your life, we suggest that
you relax, let go of the pressure, and know that there is no "wrong”
way to do this. While the choice you make at this point will provide
a focus for the work that is to follow, we have found that as people
go along in the program, the issues they need to face tend to surface
anyway.
We refer to this phenomenon as the "holographic principle” of
personal mythology. Each part of a hologram contains information
from every other part. In a similar manner, whatever personal myth
you may be examining in some fundamental way embodies your
entire mythic system. Working through one area may have repercus­
sions on many areas. Therefore, it is far less important that you
select what you rationally deduce to be the "ideal” conflict than that
you select an area for which you have some feeling. Your work with
that conflict will lead to insight into other areas of your mythology
The First Stage: Recognizing When a Guiding Myth Is No Longer an Ally 73

as well. Also keep in mind that the program can be carried out more
than once, and you can focus on different issues each time.

Using Your Shield for Emotional Protection

Sometimes when you request a dream, initiate a fantasy, or attempt
some other way of contacting the unconscious mind, you will experi­
ence unsettling feelings. In addition to the instructions offered in
Appendix C for taking care of yourself if the program becomes dis­
turbing, we recommend the method illustrated in the following case
for using your Personal Shield as a resource in protecting yourself.
A woman in one of our workshops followed her conflict back in
time to a long-suppressed childhood memory involving sexual moles­
tation. It was very upsetting for her to have this memory break
through, and she was not at all prepared to address it in the workshop.
We asked her to find a symbol for the molestation experience, draw
it on the Paradise Lost portion of her Shield, and imagine sending the
intense emotions she was experiencing directly into the symbol, liter­
ally transferring the emotions from her body to the Shield. By "depos­
iting” her feelings into the Shield for safekeeping until she was ready
to work with them, she was neither denying the experience nor forc­
ing herself to work with it before she was prepared.
You may use your Shield in this manner at any point where a
dream or one of the rituals triggers an upsetting memory or any other
feeling you do not wish to work with at the time. Although it will
sometimes be necessary to draw a new symbol on your Shield, one of
the symbols that is already on the Shield will often be suitable, and
the feeling can be focused directly into it. First, draw or select the
symbol in which you will store the unpleasant feeling until you are
ready to work with it more directly. Second, hold the Shield in front
of you at eye level. Third, allow yourself to experience the feeling, and
envisage the energy of the emotion being transported from your body
into your Shield. You can imagine doing this both through your gaze
and by exhaling directly into the symbol, like a dragon snorting fire.
When you feel somewhat cleansed of the feeling (after perhaps a
minute or two), set your Shield aside, tune into your feelings, and
work with your journal. You might want to complete the process with
the progressive relaxation procedure described in Appendix A or the
stress release technique in Appendix C. You might also want to sym­
bolically “shake out” any unwanted emotional residue with rapid free
movements of your hands and body. Finally, you might consider
taking a journey to visit your Inner Shaman to discuss the experience.
74 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

On to Stage Two
At this point, some people feel discouraged, believing that the negative
behavior patterns they have just identified will be almost impossible
to change. If you are feeling that way, remember that you have been
giving yourself instructions that invite areas of conflict to reveal
themselves. You are taking an active and courageous step toward
improving your life. While it is never easy to delve into one’s own dark
side, the instructions have been formulated to elicit aspects of your
personal mythology that you are ready to deal with productively. The
process of making needed changes will be energizing and inspiring.
And, if issues emerge that you are not ready to work with, use your
Shield for protection as just described, or find other support as dis­
cussed in Appendix C.
Once you have identified an area of your mythology that is no
longer serving as an ally, and have begun to understand its roots in
your personal history, you have completed this first stage of our pro­
gram. In the second stage, you will further crystallize the outdated
prevailing myth, the emerging myth that is challenging it, and the
conflict that simmers between them.
_______________________________________ 3
The Second Stage: Bringing the Roots of
Mythic Conflict into Focus

The task is to go deeply as possible into the darkness, to name the pain
that one finds there, and the truth of one’s perceptions, and to emerge
on the other side with permission to name one’s reality from one’s own
point of view. —anthea francine1

When you come to recognize an area of your mythology that is failing

you, as you have done in the first stage of the program, you also begin
to sense that this particular myth is not the only way to organize your
life. Sometimes the failure of a long-standing myth, and even the pain
involved in that failure, opens us to glimpse the Larger Story. The
myths we follow often are challenged by perceptions and realizations
that grow out of greater maturity and more recent experiences. When
an area of your personal mythology has become outdated for your
circumstances or level of psychological development, your psyche is
likely to generate alternative mythic images, which we speak of as
“counter-myths.”
Even before you consciously recognize the shortcomings of an old
myth, your psyche is usually generating a counter-myth to compen­
sate for its limitations. Freud believed that a function of dreaming is
to gratify wishes we have been unable to satisfy in our waking life.
Counter-myths also have a “wish-fulfillment" quality. They guide us
toward meeting needs, fulfilling desires, and reaching toward pos­
sibilities where the old myth was ineffective. But like dreams, counter­
myths are often removed from the requirements of the real world.
The tension between an old myth, whose familiar but limited vision
grew out of earlier life experiences, and a counter-myth that promises
a more fertile but untried future, is a battle between the past and the
possible that is waged within each of us.

75
76 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

Your task in this second stage is to distinguish in your awareness

the old myth and the counter-myth that are at the basis of the mythic
conflict you identified in the first stage. In the previous chapter, you
began to describe the old myth in terms of attitudes, values, and codes
of conduct. The personal rituals in this chapter will help you to fur­
ther delineate the old myth and articulate the counter-myth. Because
counter-myths are formed largely in reaction to the shortcomings of
prevailing myths, they contain their own distortions, and it is inevita­
ble that conflict will exist between the two. The counter-myth is, in
fact, characterized by this intimate but oppositional relationship with
the prevailing myth.
Sometimes when people first recognize a counter-myth, they adopt
it abruptly. Nonbelievers may convert to a religious orthodoxy in
moments; college students often renounce a lifetime of religious ob­
servance in the space of a semester. Adolescent rebellion, sexual ex­
perimentation, and impulsive divorce may each be the expression of
an emerging counter-myth. In this program, you will be encouraged
to recognize the strengths and the shortcomings in both the old myth
and the counter-myth, and to patiently cultivate a third, new mythic
vision that incorporates the most vital aspects of each.
In the final ritual of the previous chapter, you identified a personal
myth that has lost its efficacy, and you traced its origins back to events
from your past. Even as the old myth is losing its hold, the experience
may have helped you to better understand the circumstances that
brought you to adopt it. Such insight into the personal, family, and
cultural forces that shaped the old myth permits you to more readily
accept the psychological death that is involved as it gives way, and to
appropriately mourn for it. It also allows you to work for change in
a more self-affirming manner, rather than to become enmeshed in
self-judgments about previous beliefs and choices. By patiently exam­
ining these processes, you engage your "inner witness" rather than a
fault-finding attitude as you come to recognize the problems the old
myth is generating.
Counter-myths may be modeled largely after the myths of others
who have an influence on you, may be rooted in a developmental
readiness to accept more advanced myths from your culture, or may
be patterned after an intuitive perception of archetypal images. Pre­
vailing myths are difficult to identify because they are the psychologi­
cal medium in which we live, as imperceptible as water must be to a
fish; counter-myths are difficult to identify because they do not enter
awareness until they have attained a certain critical mass. Still, they
may be governing our behavior before we are able to articulate them.
Bringing the Roots of Mythic Conflict into Focus
78 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

For example, a man who has been a dedicated husband and father has
an affair with a woman half his age. When he later enters psychother­
apy to try to piece together the shambles he has made of his life, he
is likely to discover that he was, with little self-awareness, acting out
a counter-myth that challenged the stifling effects of his preoccupa­
tion with achievement and responsibility. Counter-myths provide us
with an impetus to expand ourselves beyond the limitations of the
mythology we have been living. They can hasten our development or
ravage our stability, depending upon the awareness and skill with
which we receive them.
Although counter-myths often operate outside of awareness, they
break into consciousness in dreams, daydreams, art, slips of the
tongue, and other expressions of the unconscious mind. The counter­
myth is often imaginative, inspiring, and forward-thrusting—yet lack­
ing a practical realism that allows it to be lived out in the same form
in which it emerges. By focusing your attention on it, you are able to
be more readily aware of its influence and to participate in con­
sciously developing and refining it. You will find that through the use
of guided imagery, story, and focused contemplation, the personal
rituals that follow will sharpen your understanding of emerging di­
rections in your life.

STORIES THAT CONNECT US

WITH THE MYTHIC

Sam Keen and Anne Valley Fox have observed:

So long as human beings change and make history, so long as

children are born and old people die, there will be tales to ex­
plain why sorrow darkens the day and stars fill the night.
We invent stories about the origin and conclusion of life be­
cause .. . they help us find our way, our place at the heart of the
mystery.2

Parables and fairy tales are stories from which moral or spiritual
truths can be drawn. Many cultural myths are expressed as stories
that offer people guidance through imagery and metaphor. Sufi sto­
ries, Hassidic tales, biblical parables, and other spiritual literatures
are the bearers of mythological insight into the human condition.
Today, with the intricacies of individual identity and the myriad
role options allowed by complex societies, we need guidance that is
highly personal to our unique circumstances. Discussing how modern
The Second Stage: Bringing the Roots o/ Mythic Conflict into Focus 79

men and women have developed the capacity to form identities sepa­
rate from those prescribed by the tribe or nation, Anthea Francine
observed that the “revelations of the Divine . . . we once found re­
vealed only in the form of myth and fairy tale, we must now seek also
in the story of our own lives."3 Weaving your memories into a mean­
ingful sequence of stories about your past can deepen your relation­
ship with your own mythology and place your self-understanding in
a richer context.
Psychiatrist Richard Gardner has developed an approach that ap­
plies the power of storytelling for helping troubled children.4 He asks
the child to tell him a story that has a beginning, middle, end, and a
moral. As Gardner listens for the psychological themes that run
through the story, elements of unresolved conflict are revealed. Gard­
ner, in turn, tells a story to the child that also has a beginning, middle,
end, and a moral. His story is built around the psychological tensions
that were portrayed in the child’s story. In retelling the story, how­
ever, Gardner has the characters find better ways to handle the core
conflicts. By speaking to the child at this mythic level, Gardner creates
an opportunity for the child to adopt a new personal myth that may
be more effective than the one that has been operating.
Gardner describes a story told by Martin, a withdrawn seven-year-
old, with a bitter, self-indulgent mother who was sometimes warm
and loving, but at other times openly expressed her dislike for her son.
Martin’s story was about a bear who was trying in vain to get honey
from a beehive without being stung. In his response, Gardner's story
also featured a bear who craved honey. Gardner's bear knew that bees
were sometimes friendly and would give him a little bit of honey, and
he also knew that at times they were unfriendly and would sting him.
At these times, Gardner's bear would go to another part of the forest
where he could obtain maple syrup from the maple trees. In this story,
Gardner offered Martin a mythology for acquiring love from his
mother without provoking her hostilities, and for discovering alterna­
tive sources of affection to compensate for his mother’s deficiencies.
In this chapter you will learn to tell your own story and, in so
doing, to identify critical points in the development of your personal
myths. You will anticipate directions that may be emerging, and rec­
ognize areas of darkness that need to be more fully understood and
perhaps healed. Viewing yourself as the heroine or hero in your own
personal parable allows you—unlike Narcissus captivated with the
reflection of his own surfaces—to peer more deeply into your nature
and to appreciate more fully the wonder of the human drama as it
manifests in your personal story.
80 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

Periodically reviewing your actions and decisions in terms of their

mythic dimensions makes it possible for you to grasp the pattern of
the story and effect changes in its plot. Casting the development of
your own life in the form of a fairy tale is one of the primary devices
used in this chapter to help you bring into focus the prevailing myth
and the emerging counter-myth that are at the root of your conflict.

MEG’S NEXT STEP

This second stage of the program will be illustrated by returning to

Meg’s experiences as she brings her prevailing myth and an emerging
counter-myth into sharper focus. From this point onward, Meg’s ex­
periences are presented toward the beginning of each chapter to pro­
vide an overview of the personal rituals composing that stage of the
work. Following the instructions for each personal ritual, a second
person’s journal entries will illustrate that particular ritual.
The second stage of the program begins with the creation of Part
One of a three-part personal Fairy Tale. Meg reviewed her Shield and
then created this story:

Once upon a time there was an island separated from a conti­

nent by a wild strait, impassable by boat or swimstroke. A little girl,
Juanita Margaret, lived upon the island. She was busy from dawn
to dark with her tasks. Two times a day she went to watch the tides
change below the cliffs. She checked the quails’ nests for eggs and
new chicks. She monitored the polliwogs as they magically became
frogs, and she gasped in wonder as the butterfly emerged from the
cocoon and unfolded its wings. She spent time in gathering sour
grass bouquets and driftwood dragons. She ate loquats and mulber­
ries that grew on the trees, and she gathered seaweed and mussels
from the rocks by the sea.
She kept an orphaned ground squirrel, a lame coyote, and a nest
of swallows in her cave. The squirrel taught her about seeds, thrift,
industry, foresight, and planting. The coyote showed her the value
of patience, stealth, and suppleness. From the swallows she learned
of delight, nesting, and freedom. At night she slept in a hollow she’d
made in the notch of a cliff, facing the sunset, at the edge of the sea.
The moon and the storms were her nighttime companions.
Juanita Margaret did not know that she was in exile, a creature
to be pitied, remarkable, in an embarrassing way, to the people on
the mainland. They were busy, too, in hurrying from this place to
that place, talking about property and assets, arranging their
The Second Stage: Bringing the Roots of Mythic Conflict into Focus 81

clothes and their expressions, actively meeting one another in

a continuing process of confrontation, seduction, deception,
denial, torment, and illusion. Her wholesomeness offended
them.
No one remembered exactly who had put Juanita Margaret on
the island, but the truth was that they had been glad to get rid of
her. They were uncomfortable when they saw that she would rather
climb the Cyprus tree than try on a new dress. They became upset
when they saw that she was loud, demanding, curious, and unham­
pered. They were annoyed with her coarse, naturalistic behavior.
They kept sending her outside to play so that they could read their
newspapers and magazines in peace. One morning she climbed into
an old boat to play; a storm came up, carried her away, and she was
washed ashore on the island. When she never came back, everyone
seemed relieved.
One day, a man on the mainland took a telescope and looked at
Juanita Margaret’s island. He saw how many wonderful fruit trees
grew on the island, and how clear the water was on the narrow
beaches below the cliffs. He thought, "I could put a resort there and
make a million dollars.” Before long, engineers studied the strait
between the mainland and the island. They put in a bridge and a
highway. They took out the loquat and mulberry trees to build the
Orchard Motel. They put a single loquat and a lonely mulberry tree
into pots in the lobby. They cut stairs into the cliffs and made them
as permanent as possible with cement and steel handrails. The
trash cans overflowed.
Some men came and saw Juanita Margaret sitting behind the
bushes in the parking lot, eating scrap food from bags thrown out
of cars. She didn’t go with them willingly at first, but they offered
her warm socks and cinnamon rolls and, in the end, she agreed to
return to the mainland.
Juanita Margaret went to school, leaving her squirrel, coyote,
and swallow friends to save themselves if they could, because she
didn’t know what else to do. She was just a little girl. Inside, she was
furious at the changes that had come into her life, and at the people
bossing her around without asking her opinion. Now she had to
sleep in a bed, wash in a tub rather than the ocean, speak softly, be
respectful, make everyone proud, and live up to her potential. She
was told that “some things aren’t nice to talk about” and "your
temper will be the death of you.” The worst insult for a bungled job
or sloppy workmanship was to call it "womanish.” She was learn­
ing the ways of becoming a proper young lady.
82 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

Meg explored her reactions to various aspects of her story. When

she examined her bodily response to the way Juanita Margaret was
pitied, in exile, and embarrassing to the people on the mainland, she
noted:

My face feels flushed, exposing my sense of inadequacy. My eyes

want to look defiantly or challenging. I feel resentment in my
mouth: tight lips, set jaw, controlled breathing. I can identify a
smugness too, a sort of superiority. I sense these feelings in my
upper lip, with a kind of a sneer pulling at my face.

She reflected on the personal significance of these feelings:

I have always resented, intensely, any hint of mockery or patro­

nizing. I am very quick to jump to the conclusion that I am being
made fun of, and I am ruthless in defending myself. I’ve always had
a tendency to create scapegoats, generalize, and to reject anyone or
any group whom I saw as having the wherewithal to put me down.
I’ve been absolutely unwilling to be vulnerable to such groups. I’ve
been a dismal failure whenever circumstances have put me into
positions where it would have been politic for me to ask permis­
sion, give unwarranted strokes, belittle myself, or conform to stu­
pid bureaucratic rules, protocols, and standards.

When Meg considered the way Juanita Margaret was always being
“sent outside to play” because she was loud, curious, and unham­
pered, she noticed that

my stomach is tense, not upset, but muscularly tight. My breath­

ing is conscious, controlled, and slow. I feel rock-hard and unmova­
ble, rigid, unyielding, and violent in my determination to hold my
ground. I feel an “I won’t” in my neck, jaw, and eyes.

The personal meanings she attributed to these observations in­

cluded:

I never learned to give in gracefully. I’ve fantasized murder,

vandalism, and mutilations. I’ve collapsed. I've gone down fighting.
I've slammed doors. I’ve nearly suicided. I have learned how to say
“I’m sorry” sincerely, but not how to back down from a stand I see
as one of principle. I can compromise and be a team player or
partner as long as I don’t feel put down or am asked to yield a
The Second Stage: Bringing the Roots of Mythic Conflict into Focus 83

principle. I’ve been hypersensitive to insult, expecting it and often

soliciting it. What a distasteful realization! What a losing way of
doing business!

We see from these comments, and from the first segment of her
Fairy Tale, that Meg is on a highly individualistic Quest. Recall that
in her original vision of Paradise, she had been alone. You will see
that her vision of returning to Paradise Regained is also an isolated
Quest. While she does want to nurture and love, it must be on her own
terms.
Her alter ego, Juanita Margaret, did quite well when she could
nurse wounded animals and homeless birds. When placed in a social
context, however, she scavenges food from the hotel trash cans, and
meanders through life without peers, playmates, or friends. Once off
her island, there is a rebelliousness in Juanita Margaret that seems to
be dissonant with the "earth child” who had befriended the creatures
of nature.
After having created and examined Part One of your Fairy Tale,
you will explore experiences from your past that might be important
as you create Part Two. Part Two of the Fairy Tale is to represent an
idealized Quest for a return to the Paradise Lost of Part One. One of
the rituals you will use in preparing yourself to create Part Two is to
initiate the healing of an early emotional wound whose effects may
still be interfering with your life. You will focus on an area of your
old myth that you find particularly difficult to consider giving up, even
though you may see flaws in its guidance. You will be instructed on
how to identify sensations in your body that you associate with this
aspect of your mythology, and you will go back in your memory until
you identify an incident that seems related to those sensations. You
will call upon your Inner Shaman to assist you. Meg began:

I find myself with a very tight neck, so tight that I cannot turn
my head. I can only look straight ahead. To look sideways farther
than my eyes will roll, I must shift my whole body. My neck hurts!
I remember my grandfather’s hard fingers digging into the back
of my neck, hurrying me along faster than my three-year-old legs
will carry me. I stumble and he saves me from falling by tightening
his grip on my neck. The pain is terrible. I cry and am cuffed in the
face for making a racket. I can hear his voice listing my sins: I have
left a mess while playing with wood chips and sawdust in his car­
penter shop; I have lied about being there; I am disobedient and
insolent. It is clear, I deserve what I am getting because I’m so
84 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

inadequate and slovenly. I had better not cry because that will just
compound my sins by showing me to be a contemptible female
weakling.

Meg brought her Inner Shaman into her imagery:

My Inner Shaman touches my neck with fingers so soft and

warm they feel like a warm washcloth laid on the contracted tissue.
He tells me I am a normal, curious little girl; that I haven’t yet
learned the difference between imagination and lying; and that my
natural and spirited reactions to abuse and accusation are not sins,
but misjudgments about my accuser. I feel worthwhile, after all,
and I notice that there is much less tension in my neck.

After appealing to your Inner Shaman for an emotional healing,

you will take another imagery journey to the past. But this time,
rather than beginning with the unpleasant feelings you associate with
your conflict, you will begin by imagining the feelings you would have
if the conflict were magically resolved. Meg generated these feelings
by imagining the exact opposite of the emotions she associated with
her conflict:

The opposite of anger is serenity and the opposite of defiance is

acceptance. When I thought of serenity, I saw an image of my
abalone shell. I returned to the cliffs, explored the tidepools, felt
myself vigorous and reckless, unaware of my own mortality. The
sounds around me are of the water, wind, bird cries, and my own
breathing. I feel no fear, no need to achieve or compete, only to be
wholly present. I savor the feeling of discovery and freedom. I like
the sense that I am alone and there is no limit to the number of
marvels I shall experience. I have no sense of limitation.

Meg reflected upon the attitudes, beliefs, and codes of conduct that
seemed related to this memory and others like it:

It seems to me that I have sought that sense of freedom and

discovery all my life. I have been intolerant of pedestrian thinking
in myself or others, uncompromising about making my own deci­
sions (while longing for a wiser teacher). I hate to be coerced. I love
the naturally occurring things—shells, gnarled wood, sand pat-
The Second Stage: Bringing the Roots of Mythic Conflict into Focus 85

terns, clouds, bodies. I’ve resisted contrivances, strictures, conven­

tions. I do not feel at home in crowds, board meetings, political
gatherings, cocktail parties, or PTA meetings. I do feel at home out
of doors, with books, and with intimate groups of like-minded
souls. I have had to compromise all my life and I’ve been in a state
of continual rebellion. I have not been graceful in accommodating
myself to the world. I’ve thumbed my nose and had it pushed into
my own eye. I wonder how one learns to be graceful in accom­
modating to stultifying reality?

Meg drew upon this experience as she wrote Part Two of her Fairy
Tale. Part Two will reveal new solutions to the dilemmas encountered
by the hero or heroine of your Fairy Tale in Part One:

Juanita Margaret was sitting on the mainland beach one day,

looking across the raging straits that separated her from her ruined
island. She saw the harsh bridge, made of iron and asphalt, bris­
tling with cars like busy ants on their hill. She was wearing a lovely
pink ruffled dress, but she had soiled it by playing with puppies, and
there were paw marks blemishing the ruffles. Imagine her surprise
when a porpoise swam up the shallow surf and called out to her,
"Juanita Margaret! I’ve come to rescue you! Mount my back, and
I will take you on a great journey.”
He was smiling at her and his voice was as vibrant as the ruby
throat of a hummingbird. She went, of course, and climbed up on
his gray-blue back, grasping his ribs with her legs and clinging to
his dorsal fin for balance. He moved across the water in jubilant
leaps, arching his back and singing joyously as he traveled. Juanita
Margaret forgot that she was odd and foreign, riding a porpoise
across the waters wearing her dainty pink dress.
"You are learning a great lesson, Juanita Margaret, in the way
you learn best—by doing. Do not forget this lesson: Take time in
your life to be spontaneous in nature, without agenda, without time
constraints, and you will be wrested from your complaints. I am
taking you now to visit some other teachers. Fear not that harm will
come to you when I dive beneath the surface. You are equipped for
survival and your faith will protect you even in an alien environ­
ment.”
So saying, the porpoise arched high into the air and dove be­
neath the surface, Juanita Margaret safe upon his back. The world
beneath the sea was shimmering with green and golden light, the
86 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

white sand lay in gentle mounds, and a tall forest of kelp grew from
black rocks. The porpoise swam into the forest of waving plants,
each moving independently in the currents. "You see the flexibility
of these stems and leaves, responsive to the moving waters? When
mighty storms come through this part of the ocean, the kelp forest
is whipped from side to side, scourged with driven sand, tested to
its limit. Only the weary, old, or poorly rooted plants are torn loose
to be cast on the shore. The plants that have gripped the stones with
their roots, and that have put their growth into sturdy trunks, are
secure and even invigorated by the storm. You see it is possible to
be firm and still move with the currents, whether energetic or
gentle." She thought she understood what he was talking about.
He took her to a submerged reef, and she saw that it was en­
crusted with abalone. The shells were as black as the reef, domed
like oval cups and covered with volcano barnacles, hermit crabs,
and sea lettuce. If she hadn’t seen them long ago, when she had her
island to herself, she would have thought they were just bumps on
the rock. The porpoise told her to speak to the largest abalone in
the cluster. "Hello,” she said, tentatively.
"Hello, yourself," answered the abalone in a slow and draggy
voice. "What brings you here today?"
"I think you’re supposed to teach me something.”
"Do you have any idea what it is?” The abalone sounded puzzled
and a little resentful.
"Maybe if you described yourself and your life, I might get a
clue. Right now I just think you’re pretty much a dull and surly
fellow.” Juanita Margaret had the habit of saying what she thought
without much consideration of how it might feel to the person she
was talking to.
The abalone was silent and the bubbles coming from his vent
holes nearly stopped. When at last he spoke, it was with a distant
air, as if he didn’t much want to have anything to do with her but
felt obliged to answer. "I am, as you say, dull. I have been on this
spot for many years. It is a good spot because the current sweeps
a lot of plankton my way and I have flourished. It is true that I am
not a scintillating personality, that I am politically isolated, that I
am drab and lack a rapier wit. I have captured no prizes and have
never been to war. My body is muscular, my personality is a yawn,
and my attitude is tenacious. I fear only the marauding starfish who
is both tenacious and mobile, able to pry me off the rock and eat
me.
The Second Stage: Bringing the Roots oj Mythic Conflict into Focus 87

"I have a secret, though, Juanita Margaret. Under my drab and

unprepossessing exterior, I am a great artist. I go nowhere, engage
in no social activities, even family reunions, because I am at work
on the most beautiful sculpture-painting-architecture imaginable.
I am preparing the inside of my shell, hidden from sight, as a
permanent memorial to God. To learn from me, you must be less
concerned with your everyday outer shell and put your care into
making the inside as beautiful as possible. With me, my secret
beauty will be concealed until my death. With you, who knows?”
With that the abalone let loose a long spout of bubbles and Juanita
Margaret knew he had said what he had to say.
As if in a trance, Juanita Margaret pondered what she had
learned from the porpoise, kelp, and abalone. She promised herself
she would take time from her duties to find herself in Nature like
the porpoise, to flex in the currents of life while maintaining her
roots, like the kelp, and to be unbothered by the plainness of her
exterior while privately, without fanfare, enriching her interior,
like the abalone. The porpoise delivered her to shore, and she found
she had a great deal to think about and even more to do.

Part Two of Meg's Fairy Tale contains the wish-fulfilling motifs of

an androgynous Peter Pan character, who refuses to adopt a gender
role or to grow up socially, and of a “naughty little girl” who dislikes
the thought of interacting with humans for fear of being forced to
behave like a “good little soldier.” If the Fairy Tale ended with Juanita
Margaret and her porpoise sailing gleefully into the sunset, it might
have had the ring of happily-ever-after, but it would do Meg a disser­
vice, for there is still much for her to learn, as you will see later in Part
Three of her Fairy Tale.

CRYSTALLIZING YOUR OLD MYTH

AND YOUR EMERGING MYTH

We can see how Meg was able, through this series of personal rituals,
to clearly identify opposing myths competing within her, and how she
gained a perspective on the place of each in her life. Your goal in this
second stage of the program also is to articulate both sides of the
mythic conflict you identified in the previous chapter and to deepen
your understanding about each.
88 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

Personal Ritual:
Part One of Your Fairy Tale

You have already worked with many of the raw materials that you
will be weaving into your Fairy Tale. Part One will symbolize your
very personal Fall from Paradise, the way you dealt with that sudden
or progressive loss, the vision you adopted of Paradise Regained, and
the beginnings of your Quest toward it. In addition to your Shield,
features of Part One may be patterned after the early rules of conduct
and philosophy of life you identified on your journey back in time or
conflicts that have appeared in your dreams. You might want to pause
here and review your journal entries describing your Shield, conflict
symbols, dreams, and journey back in time.
The setting of your Fairy Tale can be an ancient kingdom, a futur­
istic city, a far-away galaxy, a land of elves and gnomes, a family of
deer, chipmunks, chimpanzees, or sea otters, a primitive culture, a
period of history, or any other context that might occur to you. Label
a page of your journal “Fairy Tale—Part One.’’ Compose Part One of
your Fairy Tale using one of the following approaches: Find a com­
fortable setting and allow the story to emerge in your imagination; tell
the story to another person as you are creating it; or talk it into a tape
recorder. Record or summarize the story in your journal. Before you
begin, take time to center yourself on the aims of Part One: to meta­
phorically portray an innocent and hopeful time from your child­
hood, its loss, and how you set out to make up for that loss.
We suggest you start with the words “Once upon a time” and
continue to talk or write, allowing the saga to unfold. It is not neces­
sary to rehearse. Let your spontaneity take the story wherever it will
go; editing and interpretation can come later. At this point, do not
judge what emerges. You may be surprised at unexpected twists in the
plot or at new characters that may suddenly appear on the scene. We
will follow Frank, the investment counselor, as he progresses through
the remainder of the program. Part One of Frank’s Fairy Tale read:

Once upon a time, long long ago, in a land far away, was a
Prince who lived in a beautiful castle with his mother, the Queen,
and his father, the King, and all the members of his family and the
Royal Court. The King and Queen dearly loved their son, Prince
Francisco, and spent all their free time playing with him and in­
dulging him. He was the most fun-loving boy in the Kingdom. He
felt very safe and deeply loved. One day the Queen told the Prince
The Second Stage: Bringing the Roots of Mythic Conflict into Focus 89

that something very wonderful was about to happen to him, for he

was going to begin school. This made him very happy because there
were no other boys or girls his age living in the castle, and he had
always had to play by himself when the King and Queen were off
taking care of the Kingdom.
The first day that his mother escorted him to school, Prince
Francisco was quite excited, until in one terrible moment he real­
ized that the Queen was not going to stay with him, but was going
to leave him in this strange and foreign place. There he was left, and
with more children of his own age than he had ever seen. And that
day he found out a most upsetting thing—every one of these chil­
dren had Kings and Queens for parents. If everyone was a King or
a Queen, then "King” or "Queen” must not be very important; it
must be kind of ordinary.
But what was even worse was that the teacher would tell the
class what to do and everyone would begin to do it except him.
He would hang his head in shame and confusion, for he never
seemed to understand anything the teacher said to the class un­
less she also explained it specially to him. Not surprisingly, the
other children in his class began to make fun of him and stay
away from him. So he had to realize that he was just an ordinary
boy on this first day of school, and he had to suffer the humilia­
tion of not even being very good at being an ordinary boy. The
other children wouldn’t even address him in the Royal Tone that
made him know he was Prince Francisco. They just called him
Frankie, if they used his name at all. The worst shock was the
next morning, when he found out that he had to return to this
waking nightmare called school, and that he would have to return
day after day after day. He was sure some evil spirit had placed a
terrible curse upon him.
Frankie returned to the school, and every day he was met with
mockery, criticism, and failure, until his spirit was beaten to a pulp.
Finally, when he could stand it no longer, a deep stirring in his soul
caused him to clench his teeth, control his breathing, grip his
hands, and muster every ounce of energy and courage so he could
learn the things that he must to please his teachers, impress his
peers, and most of all, to be accepted. He decided he would break
the curse through sheer power of will. While far from the most
naturally talented kid in his class, he became the most industrious
—developing himself socially, athletically, and academically. And,
to his enormous relief, he did begin to find acceptance—labored,
joyless, and stilted, but still, acceptance.
90 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

As you see, Part One begins in a Paradisiacal setting, portrays

Paradise Lost within the contour of a single incident, and reveals the
code of conduct that governed an unsuccessful Quest toward Paradise
Regained. Part One depicts a trauma, betrayal, or other tragedy that
darkens the life of the main character, and it reflects some of the
decisions he or she made to cope with these difficult conditions.
Once you have written Part One in your journal (or spoken it and
later entered it), reread it. Make whatever revisions seem necessary,
but for the most part stay with your first impulses in developing its
plot. Then reflect upon the meaning that Part One of your Fairy Tale
holds for you.
Frank used a technique called "focusing”5 to reflect upon his most
vivid reaction to the story—the ridicule he felt when the children
made fun of him for not understanding the teacher’s directions. In
focusing, you direct your attention to your bodily reactions about an
experience and then begin to sense their meaning.

My initial sensation was of a heaviness in my throat and in my

eyes, which I associated with tears and sadness. I also noticed how
I had tightened my body and was controlling my breathing. I stayed
with this awareness, and as I continued to scan my bodily sensa­
tions, I had a sense of pressure and recoil in the front of my body,
as if I’d bumped into an invisible wall and had the wind knocked
out of me. The feelings I felt were of bewilderment and a painful
emotional thud that caused me to want to put on my brakes, pull
in, hold back.
My first impulse was to call this cowardice. Then I realized that
the caution seems to have become built into my body. I automati­
cally hold back. It's like I’ve lost the choice of opening myself. With
that realization, I had the thought that maybe I could change this,
and there was an immediate, noticeable decrease in the pressure on
my chest.
I think it means that I never completely got over the shock of
being plopped out of my safe home into the terrifying jungle of
kindergarten. When I bumped so hard against that invisible wall,
I pulled into myself with all my strength because it was so danger­
ous to be out there in this new world. I do not believe I ever again
let myself be vulnerable to the degree I was when I walked into that
classroom—and I've held myself back ever since, trying to control
things instead of just allowing them to be. Although the "curse”
from my Fairy Tale seemed to have lifted by my late teens, I con­
tinue to step cautiously as if the evil spirit may be there waiting
when I turn the next corner.
The Second Stage: Bringing the Roots of Mythic Conflict into Focus 91

But however hard I would try to be in control of my life, I had

an ingrained conviction that I couldn’t influence things, and no
faith that I could make it, regardless of my determination. So, as
hard as I tried, my efforts weren’t supported by any confidence, and
therefore a good deal of my strength was not available to me, even
when I was putting out my very best. Still, I saw no alternative but
to keep trying—harder and harder.

When you reflect on this or any of the personal rituals, we encour­

age you to also begin by focusing upon your strongest feelings about
the experience and taking cues from your bodily responses as you
explore its meaning.

Personal Ritual:
Healing an Ancient Wound

Old myths that have become dysfunctional often have their roots in
early attempts to compensate for traumatic, humiliating, or other
painful conditions from childhood. We may continue to follow the old
myth’s guidance, even though it limits us, in order to uphold an un­
conscious covenant that it will protect us from feeling the pain of
early emotional wounds. “If I fully devote myself to my work, no one
will ever again think of me as a 'no-good, lazy kid.’ ” It is sometimes
possible to heal an old wound by creating a supportive and construc­
tive situation where you can reexperience the circumstances in which
the wound occurred. Such a healing can reduce the emotional charge
that keeps you attached to the old myth and open the way for a more
beneficial counter-myth. Initiating a healing of this nature is the pur­
pose of this personal ritual.
Stuart, an avocado farmer and photographer whose parents both
died during his adolescence, developed and shouldered a personal
myth that he too was destined to die before his own children were
fully grown. The untimely deaths of his parents were the last of a long
string of terror-inducing experiences from his childhood, and imagin­
ing his own early death somehow helped him to live with his un­
resolved grief and unnamed terrors. If he knew he would die young,
he did not have to worry about the uncertainty of when death would
come. But after he had children of his own, he bargained with God
to allow him to see his children reach maturity; he would then will­
ingly die whenever fate decreed. As his children approached the age
that he had been when his parents died, however, he began to feel
92 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

terrified about having made this pact. Although only in his mid-forties
and newly remarried to a woman who wanted to have a child with
him, he felt that to have another child just as the term of his bargain
was coming to a close would be a show of arrogance and an irrefuta­
ble invitation to death before the child was grown. All the positive
thinking in the world was no match for his pervasive anxiety. Chang­
ing a myth of this magnitude, so deeply entrenched in one’s posture
in the world, requires what therapists call a “working through” of
emotional wounds that are yet unhealed. This ritual will help you to
identify an area from your past that is ready for further “working
through,” and it will get you started in the process.
There are several ways that the transformation of an old myth into
a more fulfilling one may be impeded by emotional trauma that has
not been worked through. Unhealed emotional wounds tend to shape
our perceptions when there is an analogue between a situation we
encounter and the circumstances that wounded us. We will focus
more on the dangers, miss the opportunities, and be weighed down
by the emotional load we are carrying from the wound. Unhealed
wounds also tend to inhibit us from taking further emotional risks,
and abandoning a familiar though failing myth for an untried though
promising myth is almost always an emotional risk.
In Stuart’s case, he needed to work through not only the trauma
of his parents’ deaths, but also other insecurities that traced back to
his childhood. Opening yourself to the pain of your past can lead to
a healing that transforms your mythology. When the pain is over­
whelming, the process may best be assisted by outside resources.
Stuart entered psychotherapy as he began to sense how much he was
still living according to a mythology that had been built around raw
emotional wounds. Announcing to his wife that he would like to have
a child with her was a milestone as that mythology changed.
But even without outside interventions, your psyche is continually
dealing with and attempting to heal old wounds that are interfering
with your current functioning. Dreams can provide a window on this
process. You can also, with intention, direct your energies toward
healing old emotional wounds. Although the healing process may
require a long period of time, the act of initiating the process can open
you to a more creative and hope-inspiring mythology.
The following personal ritual will help you identify an emotional
wound from your past that is interfering with the resolution of your
mythic conflict, and it will show you how to bring your psychological
resources to serve in its healing. You will need one extra prop for this
ritual, a "huggable’’ pillow.
The Second Stage: Bringing the Roots of Mythic Conflict into Focus 93

Begin by reflecting on this question: Are there aspects of your old

myth that you believe will be difficult to change although their short­
comings are evident? Frank identified the following areas:

I’m not willing to part with my insistence that I give a consis­

tently optimal performance in my job, even though these standards
are very costly for my personal life and I could get away with a
great deal less.
I have no reason to trust that passion and playfulness would
suddenly appear were I to slow down and make room for them, so
I'd wind up not only without my high work standards, but also
demoralized and bored.
I am afraid that if I were to get more into my passion and to let
it show, I would be obvious and boorish and would become the
object of painful teasing to my face as well as behind my back.
If I allow myself to have more time to relax and play, I’m afraid
that my motivation to be productive would begin to erode, the
quality of my output would deteriorate with it, and I’d start to hate
having to work.

Once you have identified a few areas of continued conflict or im­

passe, record them in your journal. Then find a comfortable position
with your pillow, take a few deep breaths, close your eyes, and relax
as you allow the following instructions to guide you:

As you settle into this safe, secure spot, focus on your breathing.
Begin to release any areas of tension in your body. [Pause] Listen for
and feel each in-breath and each out-breath. [Pause] Notice your belly
and chest rising and falling. [Pause] Your breathing becomes slow
and deep as you relax more and more completely with each ofyour
next five breaths—ONE, TWO, THREE, FOUR, FIVE.
Bring to mind the areas ofyour mythology that you believe would
be difficult to modify. [Pause] Focus upon one issue which you cannot
imagine changing or strongly resist changing. [Pause] Experience a
place in your body that represents this area ofyour life. Explore the
sensations. [Pause] Identify its boundaries and draw an outline of the
area with your finger or in your mind. [Pause] Discover the weight,
size, color, and temperature of your feeling. [Pause] Breathe con­
sciously and deeply into this taut area.
You will use this feeling to lead you back to an earlier period of
your life. Notice the flow of sensations that make up the feeling. Now
create the image of a river as you continue to focus on your feeling.
94 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

Think ofyour feeling as the river. Imagine yourself in a boat on that

river. The river floats you back in time, safely and comfortably, to one
of the first occasions in which you experienced the feeling you just
identified. At the source of your feeling was an early emotional
trauma or other difficulty. The river takes you back to this source. On
the bank of the river you see, as if on a stage, the circumstances that
created a wound—an experience that involved loss, betrayal, rejec­
tion, or other emotional injury. It may be the same scene you went
to in the previous journey back in time or an entirely different one.
Enter the scene.
In this scene are the origins of a wound that is still affecting your
life. Notice who is there and what you are doing. Where your memory
doesnot offer details, your imagination will. All the colorsand sounds
ofpeople, surroundings, and actions are present. What do you smell?
What are you wearing?How old are you in this remembered or imag­
ined scene? [45-second pause]
As you recall the circumstances that caused this trauma, take the
pillow and hold it close to you, positioning it so it has some contact
with your wound. Feel the changing sensations in your wound as you
give it this contact and attention. Imagine that this pillow now
becomes the you of an earlier time, back when you were experiencing
this memory. Hug the pillow and give comfort. Experience this con­
nection with the child within you for the next several minutes as you
reconstruct the details and reexperience the event. [Ifyou are reading
these instructions into a tape, add: "Turn off the tape and take all the
time you need. ”]
Still holding this younger you represented by your pillow, imagine
that your Inner Shaman has heard about your suffering and has come
out of the depths to help you. Look at this being, taking in his or her
stature, posture, facial qualities, and expressions. [20-second pause]
This old soul is a powerful healer of body, mind, emotions, and spirit.
Feel the power ofyour Shaman s eyes as she or he looks at you with
great caring and understanding. [Pause] Notice that there is a glow
about your Shaman's head and hands. Watch this glow as it attracts
shimmering rays of energy from the atmosphere until you are also
surrounded by and bathed in a tranquil, radiant, healing, crystal light.
Your Shaman is making contact with you, placing one radiant,
healing hand directly on the child where the pain is greatest and the
other hand on your back. Feel the healing forces of the universe being
channeled from these hands and directly into your wound. [Pause]
Feel this soothing warmth entering your body as your Shaman's
breathing keeps a perfect rhythm with your breathing. Sense how
The Second Stage: Bringing the Roots of Mythic Conflict into Focus 95

with each inhalation a fresh charge of healing light enters your body.
[Pause] With each exhalation, be aware that you are releasing stale
energy and other residues as your wound begins to heal. [Pause]
Remain aware of the hands over your wound with each inhalation
and each exhalation as the healing process continues. [If you are
reading these instructions into a tape, add: "Turn off the tape and take
all the time you need.”]
Nowyour Shaman has some counsel foryou. Listen as you are told
how to better protect yourself and avoid reinjuring your wound. [60-
second pause] Once more, your Shaman lays a hand over your
wound, giving you another dose of this creative healing power.
[Pause] If you have any further questions, ask them now, and listen
for the answers. [30-second pause] When you are ready, say good-bye
to your Shaman for now.
Bring your attention to the pillow you have been holding, and
give affection and courage to the child or infant you once were. Ten­
derly comfort the child with your touch and adult experience. Give
your thoughts and kindness generously to turn hurt to useful experi­
ence. Be the adult you wish had been there for you. [60-second
pause]
Again see and feel this younger version ofyour self, hug it tightly,
and shower it with all the love you have. You may even cry together.
[Pause] As you continue this embrace, feel the child merging back into
you, returning into your present body and mind. Be aware of the ways
that healing has taken place and also feel the gifts—childish glee,
enthusiasm, creativity, anticipation—this child has for you. [Pause]
You have given your younger self the love and best advice you have
to offer. Now feel that love and wisdom come back to you as your
younger self reintegrates into your being.
With your next deep breath, come forward in time to your current
age. [Pause] Attune yourself to the part of your body that you as­
sociated with your emotional wound. Have the sensations changed?
[Pause] Know that you may repeat this healing ritual or any part of
it as many times as you would like. Make a commitment to yourself
to check in on your wound from time to time so you may provide it
with all the healing energy it needs.
Prepare to return to your waking consciousness. Counting from
five back to one, you will be able to recall all you need of this experi­
ence. When you hear the number 1, you will feel alert, relaxed, and
refreshed, as if waking from a wonderful nap. FIVE, move your fin­
gers and toes. FOUR, stretch your shoulders, neck, and face muscles.
THREE, take a deep breath. TWO, bring your attention back into the
96 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

room. ONE, open your eyes, feeling refreshed, alert, and fully compe­
tent to meet the requirements of your day.

Summarize this experience in your journal, and reflect upon its

meaning. Frank recorded the following passages in his journal:

As I thought about my strict adherence to high standards in my

work, regardless of the personal cost, I noticed that my neck felt
extremely tight and constricted. As I focused on these sensations,
my attention moved up to my jaw, which felt hard and brittle,
teeming with heavy, taut sensations that reminded me of a bicycle
inner tube that is being stretched. The closest description I could
find for the emotion I associated with these sensations was “burn­
ing determination.” I had trouble getting back to an earlier experi­
ence—I even had to turn the tape off because it got ahead of me—
but once the images came, they were very powerful.
I know that in the first weeks of my life I suffered from slight
malnutrition because my mother was determined to breast-feed me
but could not produce enough milk. After that, I was fed according
to a schedule and even held on schedule, as was the custom of the
times. My parents have reported to me how agonizing it was to hear
me scream for hours at the top of my lungs and feel they could not
go in and comfort me. I have no recollection of these times, but in
this fantasy, my imagination took me back to them in a reasonably
vivid manner. There I was in the crib, just screaming and scream­
ing my little jaw off. Finally, in utter exhaustion I quit screaming
and set my jaw to scream no more, and to contain the pain and
neediness within me.
As I hug the pillow, which is touching my jaw, the hardness
starts to melt and the tightness releases, and I begin to feel warm,
pulsating sensations through my jaw. I have the thought that if I
were still in that crib and my jaw were free like this again, I would
once more scream out with terror and with rage. But now, troubled
by neither hunger nor fear, it is only pleasant to be feeling the warm
sensations radiating through my jaw. As I hold the pillow, it feels
shaky, so I squeeze it all the more tightly, trying to give it comfort.
This time my Inner Shaman looked like a cross between Father
Time and George Burns. His advice went something like: "You
approach the world leading with your hard jaw the way an insect
leads with its antennae. The very hardness that protects you in
this world also barricades you from receiving the satisfactions
The Second Stage: Bringing the Roots of Mythic Conflict into Focus 97

you most desire. Your perfectionism is a slick shell that keeps

your inner softness from touching the world or from being
touched by it.
"I proclaim on this day that you have developed many strengths
well, and the brittleness in your jaw and in your standards are no
longer required for your protection. I invite you to beckon me to
come to you every day this week. I will come and I will focus the
strength of my healing power upon your jaw while you massage
and soothe it, bringing yourself, through the magical powers of
your imagination, back to the very crib in which your jaw and your
joy first began to harden. After seven such meetings, we shall decide
what further treatment is required. Do you accept this offer?” As I
hedged about being too busy, he sent me an amused, knowing
glance and I capitulated.
After extending my farewells to the Inner Shaman, I told the
little infant something like this: "I see that your first lesson in life
was that if things just take their natural course, you will not get
what you need. As a result, you will grow up with tremendous
determination to marshal all the powers at your command to en­
sure that your needs will be met. You will develop a refined capac­
ity for impressing others through the excellence of your work. In
some ways this will serve you well, but it also will blind you to the
simple joys and satisfactions of life. You are so certain these will
not come easily that you will not perceive them as possibilities and
you will miss them. I want you to know that the survival abilities
you will develop will be more than adequate. You may rest with
assurance about that. It is my wish that you allow yourself to relax
into the simpler joys that will come your way with no effort, if only
you let them be.”

There are several ways in which you may extend this ritual. You
can repeat it as often as you wish or invent variations or further
rituals, as Frank's Inner Shaman suggested. Sometimes this process
brings other traumatic memories to mind, and you may carry out the
same instructions to attend to whatever wounds those events may
have caused.
If, however, this experience opens old wounds that continue to
plague you even after you have completed the ritual and reflected
upon it in your journal, refer to the section toward the end of the
previous chapter that describes how to use your Shield to protect
yourself. Use that technique or any of the other suggestions provided
in Appendix C to work with the emotions you have uncovered.
98 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

Personal Ritual: Finding the Roots of

Mythic Renewal in Your Past

Your old myth helped you adjust to the Paradise Lost of separations,
betrayal, or other trauma. Yet glimmers of earlier, more innocent
times remain in your unconscious mind, and they provide a prototype
for the hopeful new directions represented by counter-myths. The
following personal ritual will renew your connection with experi­
ences from your past that gave you a reason to hope that your aspira­
tions can bring you into a better world.
The instructions here are similar to the previous journeys back
into time. Here, however, instead of starting with an uncomfortable
experience associated with a conflict, you will begin by focusing on
a positive feeling. You will follow this feeling back to events from
your past that serve as underlying models when you envision more
promising new directions. Have the instructions read to you; read
them into a tape and let the tape guide you; or familiarize yourself
with them enough to be able to lead yourself through the exercise.
Find a comfortable position, close your eyes, and take several deep
breaths:

As you settle into this safe, secure spot, focus on your breathing.
Begin to release any areas of tension in your body. [Pause] Listen for
and feel each in-breath and each out-breath. [Pause] Notice your belly
and chest rising and falling. [Pause] Your breathing becomes slow
and deep as you relax more and more completely with each of your
next five breaths—ONE, TWO, THREE, FOUR, FIVE.
Magically, the dilemmas of Part One ofyour Fairy Tale have been
resolved. You no longer feel the confusion and pain of that time.
Instead you are optimistic and refreshed. Your body is suffused with
energy and a particular good feeling that delights you.
Bask in these good feelings. Discover their colors, textures, taste,
and scent. Find a name for your feelings. Your imagination and mind
are working in perfect harmony to fix this wonderful experience in
your body and memory. You feel revitalized. [60-secondpause]
You will use these feelings to lead you back to an earlier period of
your life. Notice the flow ofsensations that make up the feelings. Now
create the image of a river as you continue to focus on the feeling.
Think ofyour feeling as the river. Imagine yourself in a boat on that
river. The river floats you back in time, safely and comfortably, to one
of the first occasions on which you experienced this affirming feeling.
The Second Stage: Bringing the Roots o/ Mythic Conflict into Focus 99

On the bank of the river you see, as if on a stage, yourself enjoying

the same feeling, but in a scene that occurred very early in your life.
Enter the scene.
How old are you in this scene? What are you doing? Where your
memory does not offer answers, your imagination will. What do you
look like? What are you wearing? Who, if anyone, is with you? Where
are you? What are the surroundings? What sights, sounds, tastes, or
smells do you experience? What, specifically, brought about the feel­
ing? Recall or imagine as many details of that earlier time as you can.
[45-second pause]
Now reflect on some of the decisions you might have made as a
result of this experience and others like it. [Pause] What conclusions
did you come to about yourself and your world? [Pause] What rules,
ethics, or codes of conduct did you adopt? [Pause] What attitudes
toward other people began to emerge? [Pause] What views of the
world? [Pause] What philosophy of life? [30-second pause]
Prepare to return to your waking consciousness. Counting from
five back to one, you will be able to recall all you need of this experi­
ence. When you hear the number 1, you will feel alert, relaxed, and
refreshed, as if waking from a wonderful nap. FIVE, move your fin­
gers and your toes. FOUR, stretch your shoulders, neck, and face
muscles. THREE, take a deep breath. TWO, bring your attention back
into the room. ONE, open your eyes, feeling refreshed, alert, and fully
competent to meet the requirements of your day.

Having completed this process, open your journal and summarize

your experience, addressing the following:

1. What was the positive feeling with which you started?

2. Describe the scene you went back to in as much detail as you
can recall.
3. What rules of behavior and ethical codes did you adopt based
on experiences like the one to which you returned?
4. What sense did you have of your destiny, capacities, and
limitations?
5. How are these codes and attitudes affecting your life?

By contrasting this ritual with the previous experiments in "time

travel," you can see how some experiences set the stage for maintain­
ing myths that are self-limiting and others provide a foundation for
100 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

more imaginative and self-affirming myths. Frank wrote that if the

problems associated with his old myth were suddenly resolved,

I would feel the passion I’ve been wanting to develop, a sense

of aliveness and tingling radiating out from my heart and filling my
body with an enthusiasm for living.
I went back to age eight. It was the first time I’d ever excelled
at anything. I’d been taking piano lessons for about a year, and
coinciding with my best week ever, the school happened to sponsor
an unannounced contest where the winner was the person who had
mastered the greatest number of pieces that week. I came in with
five new pieces and the next person came in with three, so I was
treated in front of the whole group of some 120 young musicians
with a Snickers bar for each piece and a lavishness of praise that
had me glowing with warmth and pride.
Where I had always felt inadequate around my peers, the single
experience of standing there in front of that large group and being
praised for something I had achieved left an indelible mark. I felt
worthy. As I think about it, however, I’m not sure this experience
provides the basis for the new myth I want to develop. My conclu­
sion from this episode was that if you work very very hard, fortune
will eventually smile on you, so I further mobilized my passion for
hard work. The experience helped me feel worthy for my accom­
plishments but not simply for being who I am.

Dream Focus:
A Renewed Image of Paradise Regained

When you were asked to identify or incubate a dream of Paradise in

the previous chapter, you were instructed to ask for a dream that
showed how things might once have been. This time you will be
looking for a dream that shows you how things might become. The
dream may portend the blossoming of your highest potentials and the
best possible future. It may reveal new solutions for the problems
inherent in your conflict. It may point the way for you to transcend
the dilemmas faced by the main character in Part One of your Fairy
Tale. And it may renew your Quest toward Paradise Regained.
You will be looking for an ideal solution to the problems caused
by the old myth. This solution does not need to be realistic. In fact,
it should be extravagant, even a return to a matured image of Para­
The Second Stage: Bringing the Roots of Mythic Conflict into Focus 101

dise. The dream need not offer practical instruction, only an imagina­
tive fantasy of a more satisfying future.
Scan your journal for any recent dreams that suggest positive
directions. To incubate such a dream, bring to mind the Paradise
Regained symbol from your Shield, or a positively charged image
from the previous guided fantasy, or another hopeful image you
might generate in the moment. Allow the feelings you associate with
this image to permeate your body. Before going to sleep, repeat to
yourself ten to twenty times instructions similar to the following: “I
request a dream that shows me a creative response to [describe the old
myth or the problems associated with it]. I will recall my dream as
soon as I awake.”
Immediately upon awakening, record any dreams you do recall.
If you do not remember a dream, stay attuned to your early morning
thoughts, insights, and fantasies. Use techniques such as those in
Appendix B to examine any dreams you incubate or select from your
journal. After requesting a vision of Paradise Regained on several
consecutive evenings, but having no dream memories, Frank recalled
the following:

The setting of my dream resembled ancient Greece, and I was

an Olympic wrestler. I recall my strength, my sweat, my confi­
dence, my focus on the opponent’s every move, my respect for him,
my joy in being in this event, my catlike readiness and speed. I felt
very powerful, as if all my muscles were developed to their full and
natural capacity. I felt so alive and strong that I imagined a glow
must be radiating from me. I don't even recall how the match
ended, although there was no question that I won, and suddenly I
was carrying the Olympic Torch around this massive stadium with
my gaze and energy unabashedly meeting the massive, cheering
crowd.
When I woke up, I remembered several things about the dream
that seemed related to Paradise Regained. First, I was outgoing,
enjoying getting involved with others, intimate with everything—
trees, people, everything. I wasn't my usual shy, retiring, scared
self. In addition, a wonderful energy, a joie de vivre, was surging
through me. Whatever that dream was about, I wish I could pack­
age it. It offered me a deliciously lavish image of where I want to
be headed.
102 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

Personal Ritual:
Part Two of Your Fairy Tale

In Part Two of your Fairy Tale, the hero or heroine from Part One will
go on a magical journey that reveals the creative promise of your
counter-myth. Part Two is not bound by the “reality principle.” You
may draw upon your unbridled creativity in finding the solutions to
the dilemma faced in Part One. This second part of your Fairy Tale
will, like some dreams, probably be a blend of the plausible and of
your uncurbed imagination.
Part Two will reveal a new direction. The journey back in time that
you just completed may have opened you to an intuitive sense of new
possibilities for yourself. This second segment of your Fairy Tale will
suggest an ideal resolution to the difficulties that emerged in the first
segment. The solution may be in an exaggerated and extravagant
form. That is appropriate for this ritual. The key ingredients are that
a new solution to the dilemmas of Part One will be revealed, and
instructions on how to achieve it will be offered. While Part One
probably paralleled events as they actually occurred in your life, you
will not be following your actual history in Part Two. Instead, you will
be using your ingenuity to discover an inventive solution to the origi­
nal problem.
Part Two will have the same central character seeking to solve the
problems that were introduced in Part One. In Part Two, however, the
action will occur as a drama within a drama. Rather than happening
directly within the main character's life, he or she may have a dream,
reverie, or vision, be in a play or read a story, meet a teacher, encoun­
ter the Inner Shaman, or speak with an animal, plant, or object. This
device gives you maximum poetic license. Meg took a magical ride on
her porpoise. Frank’s Part Two, as you will see, unfolded while he
gazed into a crystal ball.
Read any sections of your journal that you want to review. Take
time to center yourself on the aims of Part Two: to reveal to the hero
or heroine of your Fairy Tale a fresh solution to the dilemma that
emerged in Part One and to provide instruction on how to reach that
solution. Then compose the second part of your Fairy Tale. Find a
comfortable setting and allow the story to emerge in your imagina­
tion; tell the story to another person as you are creating it; or speak
it into a tape recorder. Record or summarize the story in your journal.
This was Frank’s Part Two:

As Frankie learned to please others and meet their expectations,

he forgot how much he enjoyed playing in the towers of the castle
The Second Stage: Bringing the Roots of Mythic Conflict into Focus 103

and swimming in the giant lake and getting all muddy on its shores.
He had no time for such foolishness. He had become a very intense,
stern, and serious, though increasingly successful, young chap. He
grew bigger, stronger, and more confident. But he had ceased to be
the fun-loving boy he once had been.
One day, in homage to dim memories of those early days from
once upon a time, he was drawn to a traveling minstrel troupe that
was passing through the Kingdom. With them was a wise and kind
old Wizard who had a crystal ball. Whoever would look in the
crystal ball could see "the future of their heart’s desire.” Frankie
never thought much about the future because he was always trying
so hard to get ahead in the present. But he became so curious to
look into the future of his heart’s desire that he gave the Wizard a
silver token he had earned that week polishing his teacher’s gilt-
edged boots.
When Frankie looked into the crystal ball, he saw himself many
years hence as King Francisco. King Francisco carried himself
with all the confidence and dignity that might be expected of one
of royal blood. He was respected throughout the land for his com­
petence in ruling the Kingdom. But he was an unusual King. He
was the most childlike person in the entire Kingdom. He was alert
to the miracles of life no matter where he was or who he was with.
He approached every situation with curiosity and a freshness of
spirit that made each moment alive and brought much laughter
from the belly. Where there were obstacles, he was moved to ele­
vate the problem into an intriguing challenge. As a result, other
people loved to be with him.
Frankie loved the images he saw, but he became very despon­
dent with the realization that he was growing up to be a very
different man from the King he saw in the crystal ball.

Whereas Meg’s porpoise ride brought her to teachers who were

very explicit in the lessons they had for her, Frank’s crystal ball pro­
vided an image of a better future but little other instruction. Review
Part Two of your own Fairy Tale and reflect upon its meaning by
reading it slowly and immersing yourself in the story. Note where
your reactions are the strongest, and focus on your bodily sensations
at those points. Consider the meaning of these feelings and describe
your reflections in your journal. Frank had a strong reaction to his
Fairy Tale:

My physical sensations while imagining the scenes in the crystal

ball included an openness and tingling in my chest, almost an
104 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

exuberance, and a sense of my breath having become very deep and

full. This feels like power. It feels like I have a lot of energy availa­
ble. I also feel anticipation, a readiness to meet, the world. What
does it all mean? If I can be feeling so much passion by just imagin­
ing a situation, then I must have a larger reservoir of passion than
I've been able to reach. My tendency has always been to pull back
because that feels much more comfortable. But the King put him­
self right out there, he engaged life, and seeing him led to wonder­
ful sensations, leaving me feeling stronger, more energized, and
more sure of myself.

Personal Ritual:
A Body Metaphor of Your Conflict

Mythic conflicts are expressed in people’s thoughts, feelings, and be­

havior, and they are also often somaticized—that is, symbolized by
conditions or events in the body. You may feel full of zest if you have
just fallen in love, but may be stricken with the flu or worse after a
significant loss or disappointment. In the following rituals, you will
be shown how to use your body to better understand a conflict that
you have already identified.
We remind you one final time that in this and in all subsequent
personal rituals that include guided imagery, you may speak the in­
structions into a tape and let that lead you, or you may have a partner
read the instructions to guide you through the exercise, or you may
make yourself familiar enough with the instructions that you can lead
yourself through the ritual unassisted. To begin, sit or recline com­
fortably and start to relax.

Close your eyes and take a few deep breaths as you settle into
this position. Feel yourself relaxing more completely with your next
five breaths: ONE, TWO, THREE, FOUR, FIVE. Place your hands in
front ofyou, extending your arms as ifyou were reaching out. Keep­
ing your palms facing each other and your hands about two feet
apart, let your elbows bend so you can relax your arms into a more
comfortable position. With your hands still facing each other, reflect
for a moment upon the myth that is guiding the main character of
Part One. [Pause] Imagine that this myth is being placed in one of
your hands. Which hand more correctly represents that myth? What
The Second Stage: Bringing the Roots of Mythic Conflict into Focus 105

does the myth feel like in this hand? Is it hot or cold? Heavy or light?
Rough or smooth? What color might it be? What other sensations do
you notice? Take a few moments to explore the ways you experience
this myth from Part One of your Fairy Tale as you represent it in
your hand.
Now reflect on the myth that is guiding the main character ofPart
Two. [Pause] Imagine that this myth is placed in your other hand.
What does this myth feel like? Is it hot or cold? Heavy or light? Rough
or smooth? What color might it be? What other sensations do you
notice? Take a few moments to explore the ways you experience this
myth as it is represented by your hand.
Now begin to notice the differences in your hands. Focus on the
skin and muscles of each hand as you attend to these differences.
Which myth is harder to hold? Which myth is easier to hold? Which
myth has a more pleasant feel? Is one harder and the other softer? Are
there differences in weight? Is one more buoyant?
Now holdyour hands so they face each other and explore the space
between them. Be aware of any attraction, any repulsion, or any
tension. [Pause] When you have completed exploring the relationship
between the two myths as symbolized by your hands, take a deep
breath, and slowly count yourself back from five to one.

In your journal, summarize the sensations you experienced, and

reflect on their significance. If one myth was harder to hold, did that
mean it is too difficult to manage, or is it so new that it will take a
while to get accustomed to? If one myth was rougher, does that mean
it is causing you trouble, or that it is trying to get you to abandon
attitudes that are soft or disempowering? If one myth was heavier,
does that mean it involves more problems or that it is more impor­
tant? If one myth was more buoyant, does that mean it is more inspi­
rational or that it is impossible to achieve?
Next, consider how you experienced the space between the two
myths. Did they repel each other? Was there an attraction between
them? Did one seem to overwhelm the other with its weight or its
power? When there is a conflict between myths, sometimes one of
them has so much force that it appears invincible. Sometimes the two
myths are so equal in strength and clash so strongly that the two
hands repel each other. In other instances, each has qualities the other
needs and the hands are magnetically drawn together. Frank reflected
in his journal:
106 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

My left arm became the old myth. Represented this way, I saw
the old myth as keeping me restricted and weak and likely to stay
that way because it didn’t give me any confidence or impetus to
push into new frontiers. That insight came when I noticed a paral­
lel between my under-used left hand and the way my old myth
keeps me from developing. My left arm is not nearly so developed
as my right arm because whenever I have a choice between hands,
I don’t use my left hand. That’s kind of how the old myth operates.
The old myth keeps me weak by not having me use all of myself,
putting great effort into things I already do well to the exclusion of
those parts of me that call for new tricks. I don’t take many emo­
tional risks, and then I wonder why my passion is dampened.
On the other hand, so to speak, my right arm felt strong and sure
of itself. It had no question of its competence. But, as I put the
counter-myth into my right hand, it did not feel right. While the
sureness and strength in my right hand accurately represented the
passionate qualities of the counter-myth, I was also aware that the
myth itself was not well developed like my right arm. The old myth
seemed to match the weakness of my left arm perfectly, but the
counter-myth was not confident and well developed like my right
arm. So, I was having two opposing and confusing feelings about
representing the counter-myth this way. In its content, the myth is
strong like my right arm; in its development, it is still weak and
immature.
It boiled down to a paradox: The old myth, which is very strong
within me, was keeping me weak; the counter-myth, which is very
weak within me, promised to make me stronger. I tried to make the
two myths merge by bringing my hands together, but I couldn’t get
it to happen. The old myth stayed with my left hand just fine, but
the counter-myth kept jumping away whenever the two hands
would come close to each other. I guess that tentative passionate
part of me doesn’t want to have much to do with the long-standing
restricted part.

On to Stage Three
Besides the structured approaches you have been using in this chapter
to cultivate a productive counter-myth, other experiences also may
point you in new directions. A version of the myth that is emerging
for you may, for instance, be found in some corner of your culture.
You might be drawn toward a novel, movie, or play in which the
characters are grappling with an issue similar to yours. You may find
that discussing the issue with someone whom you feel has something
The Second Stage: Bringing the Roots of Mythic Conflict into Focus 107

to teach you reveals new possibilities. You may come upon some
classics or inspirational writings that provide thoughtful guidance.
Remain alert for such resources. The following chapter will help you
begin to refine your counter-myth and to resolve its inevitable conflict
with the myth that has prevailed until now.
 The Third Stage:
Conceiving a Unifying Mythic Vision

Positive images of the future are a powerful and magnetic force. . . .

They draw us on and energize us, give us the courage and will to take
important initiatives. Negative images of the future also have a mag­
netism. They pull the spirit downward in the path of despair [and]
impotence. —william james

The personal myths that guide us as we are growing up usually do not

prove adequate against the realities and demands we face as adults.
Sometimes those myths become transformed, perhaps through ex­
periences that contradict their premises, and they may evolve enough
that they continue to provide valid guidance. In other cases, experi­
ences that contradict a myth may make it more rigid, and its capacity
to offer effective direction is further compromised. In any realm of
life that requires important decisions—from our behavior in relation­
ships to our career development to our spiritual aspirations—both the
tendency to find comfort in familiar myths and the impetus to dis­
cover fresh ways of understanding are in continuous play. From this
dynamic tension, we adjust and we grow.
Where your myths are rigid or outdated, your ability to adjust to
changing circumstances and to progress in your psychological devel­
opment is diminished. By formulating counter-myths, alternative
mythic structures that attempt to make better sense of the world and
help you cope in it more effectively, your unconscious mind compen­
sates for such liabilities in your mythology. The prevailing myth and
the counter-myth support partial and seemingly incompatible direc­
tions for your growth. They inevitably come into conflict with each
other.

108
The Third Stage: Conceiving a Unifying Mythic Vision 109

The process, however, can ultimately serve to expand the bounda­

ries of your sense of who you are and the options your world offers.
In depth psychology, tension between competing aspects of the
psyche is seen as a natural and unavoidable aspect of personality
development. Such tension stimulates the psyche’s energies and regu­
lates the personality. As you work with a mythic conflict, you become
increasingly capable of embracing a larger view that integrates both
of its sides. Depth psychologists believe that symbols are a primary
vehicle for helping the psyche reconcile opposing tendencies that
reside within. Jung referred to this property of symbols as their “tran­
scendent function.” Meg’s symbol of the abalone shell helped her to
reconcile the part of her represented by the shell’s drab and ordinary
exterior with the part of her represented by its iridescent interior. The
shell served as a symbol of integration for these opposing aspects of
her personality.
Counter-myths embody the novelty of imagination, the inspiration
of the fresh view, and the appeal of promised solutions to enduring
problems. Like a desert reservoir whose life-sustaining waters push
against a dam, the emerging counter-myth may finally break into
consciousness and flood parched psychological terrain with lush sym­
bols that reveal rich possibilities and offer new hope. Life does not,
however, flourish in either a desert or a deluge.
The personal rituals in this chapter are designed to guide you
toward achieving a balance. Your attention will be directed toward
integrating the old myth symbolized in Part One of your Fairy Tale
and the counter-myth symbolized in Part Two into a single myth that
inventively incorporates what is vital and beneficial from each of
them. Without such balance, the promise of the counter-myth some­
times ignites an individual into making a radical change—quitting a
job, leaving a marriage, moving to a new town, joining a cult—which,
in the long view of his or her life, proves to have been a self-defeating
choice. Changes that are rooted in an integration between the lifelong
values embodied in the old myth and the inspiration of the counter­
myth are made from a larger perspective. They are better attuned to
the meaning of the decision and its long-term consequences.
Many people report the experience of having left a dysfunctional
marriage only to select another partner with whom they created a
painfully similar relationship. At the core of the mythology keeping
the person locked in this kind of relationship may be unresolved
issues with a parent. While a counter-myth may have emerged with
enough strength to make it untenable to stay in the marriage, the old
mythology still prevailed in the selection of the next mate. When your
110 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

mythology is being challenged by a counter-myth, the possible out­

comes range from living out the conflict unconsciously, and repeat­
edly, to working it through and moving on to other developmental
tasks.
The conflict between a prevailing myth and a counter-myth was
poignantly evident in Philip, a successful young executive who sought
counseling because, in his words, “I am failing as a husband and I am
afraid that my marriage is not going to survive.” Philip’s highly reli­
gious parents had placed heavy emphasis on family loyalty, and his
father, whom he admired greatly, was almost a television caricature
of the 1950s "family man”—a dedicated, trustworthy, and quietly self­
sacrificing provider. The son not only attempted to emulate his father
in his own marriage, but upped the ante by selecting a woman who
was so insecure and demanding that no matter how hard he tried, he
continually fell short in his attempts to satisfy her. She expected his
unwavering attention during every free moment he had away from
work, and she was prone to terrible psychosomatic illnesses when he
would balk at her excessive demands. Given the structure of the per­
sonal mythology that was defining Philip's role as a husband, he could
only sympathize with her illnesses, take extra special care of her while
she was sick, and amid great guilt and self-recrimination, pledge him­
self to show greater devotion the next time so he would in no way
disappoint her. But, of course, she was always disappointed. He was
giving her exactly the opposite of what she needed if she was ever
going to develop beyond the dependency-engendering mythology to
which the marriage helped her cling.
As is often the case, when Philip came for help, he was scrutinizing
the problem through the lens of the old myth. He believed that the
marital difficulties were caused primarily by his failure to live up to
the image he held of his father, whom he saw as being so patient and
giving that he could make anyone happy. Just beyond his awareness,
however, another vision of the role of a marriage partner was being
kindled, and it was fanned as he witnessed successful relationships
through the media and the lives of acquaintances. In attempting to
make sense of the contradiction that although he was trying so hard
to fulfill the role of husband as his mythology dictated, his wife was
still unhappy and resentful, he began at some level to generate an­
other view of what was required in a marriage. This counter-myth
held that both partners are equally responsible in making a marriage
work, and it gave credence to his needs as an individual, separate
from the marriage. But these ideas seemed extremely self-indulgent
to him, and he rejected them as unworthy of serious consideration.
Conceiving a Unifying Mythic Vision
112 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

The inclination to attend more to his own needs, however, and to

expect more from his wife kept cropping up in subtle ways and be­
came increasingly difficult for him to ignore. While this emerging
myth was at first outside of his conscious awareness, it was reflected
in his growing anger and resentment. Sometimes, after feeling quite
satisfied with the marriage, Philip would suddenly swing pendulum­
like to an extreme of the usually repressed counter-myth, behaving
spitefully and with an emphatic dose of selfishness. Then, as if the
counter-myth were eclipsed by a revival of the old myth, he would
again find himself in the grips of guilt and remorse. When he dis­
cussed his marriage during a therapy session, shades of anger, of
which he was unaware, were conveyed through his voice and facial
expressions. After seeing a videotape of a session that made these
deeper feelings visible, he began to probe his anger. Philip was chal­
lenged to find a larger mythic vision that would retain the wholesome
family values from his old mythology while supporting a more vital
personal life for himself and a more realistic relationship with his
wife.
The personal myths you hold are continually being challenged as
you are exposed to new information and experiences. When your
experiences are incompatible with the mythology you have been liv­
ing out, you will at some level feel tension. The inconsistency becomes
a disturbing element in your psyche, and stress is created. Two basic
outcomes are possible. Your mythology may itself be modified to
incorporate the new information, or the new information may be­
come distorted so it can be force-fit into the existing mythic structure.
If you believe yourself to be an effective sales manager and are fired
from your job, and then turned away after each of eight promising job
interviews, your self-image may be challenged, or you may blame
your string of misfortunes on bad luck, incompetent interviewers, or
an impossible job market. While personal myths are capable of ongo­
ing adjustments to new circumstances, you can also unconsciously
ignore or distort disagreeable experiences in order to retain the famil­
iar myth. Some people have hardly adjusted their mythologies for
decades.
However dysfunctional a long-standing myth may have become, to
abandon it is often a difficult transition from the familiar into the
unknown. When young children lose a parent, they go through several
predictable stages. First they protest, then despair, and finally, if the
parent does not return, the child will take a defensive stance against
the pain of future longing and feelings of abandonment.1 The protest
stage is analogous to the way we sometimes cling desperately to the
The Third Stage: Conceiving a Unifying Mythic Vision 113

familiarity of a failing myth. The despair is akin to the uncertainty we

feel when we are between myths—when the one we have been living
out has undeniably proven its unworthiness but a new one to replace
it has not emerged. The defensive stance resembles the way we rnay
finally reject everything we can about the old myth. Ken Wilber has
spoken of the supreme law of mythological development: in each
newly achieved stage of consciousness, the distinguishing features of
the previous stage, which were once worshipped and revered, are
"now looked upon as something to struggle against, to subdue, even
to scorn."2
Extreme fluctuations are inevitably painful, and they often result
in a defensive and self-limiting posture. One way to make the fluctua­
tions less extreme is by bringing your awareness to the process. If you
can grasp the bigger picture, the mythic proportions of your discom­
fort, you are less likely to cling so hard to the old myth. Then you do
not later have to vehemently reject it to distinguish yourself from it.
According to Wilber, each stage in the evolution of consciousness
"goes beyond its predecessors but must nevertheless include and inte­
grate them into its own higher order."3 By dealing with the transition
in a more conscious manner, you increase the likelihood that the
experience will lead you toward more flexible and effective guiding
myths.
Mythological development proceeds as a dialectic in which the old
myth is the thesis, the counter-myth is the antithesis, and a new myth
that represents the resolution of the two is the synthesis. As a counter­
myth develops, it competes with the prevailing myth to dominate
perceptions and to guide behavior. Their dialectical struggle may re­
semble a sort of “natural selection" within the psyche, a "survival of
the fittest” elements of each myth for optimal growth and adjustment.
This may be a confusing period. You might think that you could just
climb out of the old myth and into a new one. But the new one is
limited in ways you have not yet encountered, and the old one still
tugs at you with its familiar rules and promises. We all are embedded
in our old myths. Before we make lasting changes in fundamental
beliefs, there usually is an inner struggle between those beliefs and
new directions we have envisioned but that have yet to go through the
mill of our experience.
Many techniques are available for bringing about a more con­
scious and constructive resolution of this conflict. Before you go
through this chapter, however, we want to emphasize that a dialectic
between your competing myths occurs naturally, whether you assist
or not. The psyche thinks in myth, and as "mythical thought moves
114 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

from an awareness of contradictions towards their resolution, [it

attempts] to mediate opposites and resolve them."4 The choice facing
us is whether or not to engage consciously and willfully in the process.
The consequences of that decision may be immense. In William
Blake’s analysis, we have the option to fight mentally within ourselves
or physically between ourselves.5 In this chapter, you will facilitate a
creative interchange between your old myth and the emerging
counter-myth.
To summarize, sacrificing the familiarity, self-understand!ng, and
world view associated with a prevailing though outdated myth can be
so painful that we fight dearly to reject the emerging myth. On the
other hand, we may be so distressed with the problems the old myth
creates for us that we attempt to sever ourselves from it and clutch
at the counter-myth. But the counter-myth, which was in part devel­
oped to compensate for the old myth, will have its own distortions and
limitations. Understanding these polarities can help you achieve a
balance when you find yourself on a seesaw between the old and the
emerging. Paradoxically, in order to grow beyond an old myth, it is
often necessary to accept the role it played in your life, understand the
reasons you at one time needed it, and appreciate the valid messages
it still holds. The old myth and the emerging myth will naturally, and
often outside of your awareness, engage in a dialectical process as
they compete to influence the way you make sense of your world. By
focusing your awareness on the inner struggle in this third stage of
the program, you will be increasing the likelihood of a more construc­
tive outcome. We once again follow Meg as she moves through this
stage of her work.

MEG’S NEXT STEP

In the opening ritual of this chapter, you will be asked to create a chart
that contrasts the old myth and the counter-myth and that lists a
motto for each. Meg reflected on her contrasting mottoes:

Old Myth Motto: Adult life is a spoiler. I think I discovered when

I was called to help my mother in her illnesses that much of life was
distasteful and difficult. The only reward that seemed worth having
was the approval of my father, who saw me in terms of being a
"brave little soldier.” This was not only defeminizing, but put an
expectation of stalwart courage and ability to rise to tasks both
frightening and inappropriate. I think that my Paradise was so
lovely because I was part of something unspoiled, healthy, natural,
free of demands, rich in discovery. Paradise was lost with outside
The Third Stage: Conceiving a Unifying Mythic Vision 115

demands, standards, requirements, coercion. Beauty was sacrificed

to expediency.
Counter-myth Motto: Life is juicy all the way through. By trans­
lating the lessons from nature into a self-appropriated set of stan­
dards and values, a sense of purpose emerges and guides. Hope,
action, and discovery make an internal life of value and purity a
worthy goal, devoid of excess concern for outside validation.
What seems to be needed in my life is tempering the delight,
freedom, and exploration of Paradise with an adaptability that
permits me to yield, understand, and adjust to the requirements of
everyday life. Defiance has served me poorly, and I’m ready to test
out flexibility and acceptance of my place in the world.

Next, you will personify your conflicting myths, giving each a

character, a posture, and a voice. After reviewing the contrasting
mottoes that summarized her mythic conflict ("Adult life is a spoiler”
versus "Life is juicy all the way through”), Meg chose the name
"Proper Young Lady” for the character who represented her old myth
and "Born-Again Child” for her emerging myth. She had the two
characters engage in a dialogue and later transcribed for us a tape of
their conversation:

Proper Young Lady (scolding, shaking finger).

* Look at yourself!
You’re a disgrace to me and everyone around you.

Born-Again Child (puzzled): What are you talking about?

Proper Young Lady (pointing): Your clothes are worn, and they
have stains and loose buttons. Your hair is unkempt, and (con­
demning, censuring tone) you’re barefooted.
Born-Again Child (defensively): I’m playing.
Proper Young Lady (sighing with exasperation, shaking head,
tightening mouth): Yes, I know. You play entirely too much. Life
is serious; life is demanding. And you are missing the point.
Born-Again Child (on the attack): You just want me to be like
you . . . neat, tidy, and emotionally constipated. Never a hair out
of place or an original thought. Your idea of an adventure is to ride
the city bus. You’ve got too many rules, too many resented duties,
too little imagination. You’re scared of making mistakes.
Proper Young Lady (shocked and insulted): How dare you! You
who won’t do a moment’s work unless you’re having fun doing it!
You who have no responsibilities! You who have no sense of history
116 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

or future! You dare to mock me? I’ve lived and I’ve suffered. I know
ten times as much about life as you. Do you dare reject what I have
to say?
Born-Again Child (rolling down a long hill slope, getting grass
stains on her jeans): Yep. I don’t need what you’ve got to teach.
Proper Young Lady (frustrated): Sit down and listen to me. It’s
not polite to talk back to your betters. And look at how disheveled
you’ve gotten yourself!
Born-Again Child (laughing): I’m never going to be polite. I’m
going to be honest instead. I’ll say what I think and feel and I’ll do
what feels good. Like this (throws an imaginary water-balloon at
the conservatively dressed Proper Young Lady).
Proper Young Lady (drenched and acting outraged): You miser­
able brat! You self-indulgent, inconsiderate, rotten child! I’ll show
you (starts toward Born-Again Child, who skips away, just out of
reach).

As you see, this dialogue allowed Meg to externalize her mythic

conflict and also to have some fun with it. In her journal, she reflected:

I had a good time with this one. People sometimes comment that
I am “strong” or “sure of myself,” and they are accurate to a degree.
I often, however, feel stuck in the nonconforming posture of the
child—as if that stance were a mold of its own and I were not truly
free. And I choose my ground carefully, avoiding social settings
where I will be in contact with traditional, conservative, establish­
ment types because I feel so unequipped to deal on that level. I do
kind of wish I could “pass” as a normal person when I want to, just
as black people who were light-skinned used to try to “pass” as
whites. But that never worked very well, and I don’t suppose it
would work for me. Maybe what I need to do is accept myself as
a slightly out-of-step person, be grateful for the love I get as an
eccentric, and stop worrying about making myself fit in.

The next task is to identify a personal quality that is hindering a

resolution between the competing characters. You will call upon your
Inner Shaman to perform a ritual transformation of this trait. The
ritual is designed to reveal the quality’s underlying virtues and to help
you embrace its virtues while transforming its liabilities. Meg per­
formed this ritual twice, first focusing on the self-righteousness of the
The Third Stage: Conceiving a Unifying Mythic Vision 117

Proper Young Lady and then on the defiance of the Born-Again Child.
With these rituals, she had the experience of seeing her self-righteous­
ness begin to shed its rigidity and her defiance begin to lose its anger.
Later, reflecting on these two qualities in her journal, she noted: "They
seem like perversions of two positive aspects of my personality—
self-assurance and individualism.”
In the next personal ritual, you will again use a body metaphor to
represent your conflict, and you will transform the bodily imagery
into other symbolism as you examine the conflict further. Meg re­
ported:

I imagined my left hand (Born-Again Child) playing with my

dog (Gud Dawg), fooling around with his muzzle, letting him
mouth my hand with his potentially destructive but oh-so-gentle
jaw and teeth, feeling his glove-leather ears, scratching under his
chin. The energy between us was just lovely.
My right hand (Proper Young Lady) held a leash attached to a
collar. It was smooth and strong, with a pivot attachment and a
heavy hand grip. My hand felt occupied and useful but limited.
It’s laughably simple to see the symbolism in this fantasy. Gud
Dawg is utterly trusting, has great yet gentle strength, and is the
epitome of innocence and charm. He is also lacking in judgment
in the ways of the world and would quickly be hurt or killed with­
out the limits I put on his freedom. I love him and in many ways
he is a teacher for me, but I must look out for his in-the-world
welfare, providing him with proper food, shelter, and fences in
order to keep him safe. In return he shows me pure joy, forgiveness,
generosity of spirit, and nobility of character.
The leash is an instrument that limits the activities and distance
Gud Dawg can move. While it is effective and life-preserving, any
time I can, in my responsible judgment, leave it off him, I do. I let
him run freely in the forest. I restrict him in the city. I could punish
him by use of the leash and sometimes he reacts as if I had. It is
important that I keep it clear in my mind what my motive is when
I use it—if I am controlling for the sake of control, that’s wrong and
an insult to his character. If I use it to protect him from pain or
confusion, then I am justified, whether he understands or not.

Next, you will work toward finding a single image of the old myth,
a single image of the emerging myth, and you will create a fantasy or
daydream that symbolizes an integration of the two. Meg wrote:
118 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

Image of the Old Myth: An Italian leather leash with a heavy

braided hand grip.
Image of the Counter-myth: Gud Dawg romping on the beach,
free and joyous.
Integration Fantasy: I am skipping and turning, running in bro­
ken circles on the beach. Gud Dawg is leaping and frolicking beside
me. The wind is crisp but without chill, the waves are beautiful, not
stormy. He takes the leash I’m carrying and tugs on it with his
mouth, inciting me to pull back, to whip him around before he
drags the leather out of my hand. I have a good grip and know he
can't take it from me, but neither can I pull the other end out of his
mouth. We are both enjoying the contest.
It occurs to me that if I can use the leash playfully and responsi­
bly, it will become a valuable part of my life, saving me endless
grief and difficulty. The innocent part of me needs the experienced
part, and vice versa—I'm not so much at war as I was.

In reviewing Meg's development, we can appreciate her efforts to

break loose from her earlier conditioning. This struggle has been
private and individualistic for Meg, perhaps because she lacked sensi­
tive understanding and support from other people as she grew up. But
missing from Meg's mythology are images that help her to incorpo­
rate significant relationships with other people and with social institu­
tions into her own process. One of the purposes of classical mythology
is to keep people attuned to the Larger Story as they move through
their personal developmental crises—which you see Meg reaching
toward in an exemplary manner. But another purpose is to facilitate
relationships with social institutions and other members of society.
Up to now, Meg’s journey has been decidedly solitary.

TOWARD A RESOLUTION
OF YOUR MYTHIC CONFLICT

In the following personal rituals, you will be directing your efforts

toward resolving the struggle between the old myth and the counter­
myth. If you can work the conflict through in your inner life, you will
be less compelled to play it out in your outer life. In addition, by
applying the methods offered here, you will increase the chances of
coming to a resolution that embodies the best qualities of both of
these prevailing and emerging aspects of your personal mythology.
The Third Stage: Conceiving a Unifying Mythic Vision 119

Personal Ritual: Charting the Effects

of Your Conflicting Myths

In this ritual, you will create a chart of the thoughts, feelings, and
behaviors that are consistent with the old myth and with the counter­
myth. From this understanding of how the old myth and the counter­
myth operate in your life, you will be more able to recognize when
each is dominating in a given situation. You will continue to refer to
this chart as you work toward resolving your mythic conflict.

1. Review your journal to crystallize your understanding of the

prevailing myth and the counter-myth.
2. Draw a line down the center of a blank sheet of your journal
so that there are two columns. Label these columns “Old
Myth” and “Counter-myth.”
3. (Optional). You may wish to take a journey to your Inner
Shaman at this point in order to request that new light be shed
upon your understanding of the old myth or the counter­
myth. Use the method you were given in chapter 1 to begin
your visit. Bring with you any questions about your old myth
or counter-myth that you might wish your Shaman to con­
sider.
4. Write a motto that characterizes the old myth toward the top
of the first column and a motto that characterizes the emerg­
ing counter-myth in the other column. You may create your
mottoes on the spot or adapt a phrase from a piece of litera­
ture, a song, a proverb, or your Fairy Tale. If the motto for
one or the other does not come to you easily, remain alert for
it as you proceed with the instructions that follow.
5. Reflect upon your actions, thoughts, and feelings during the
past several hours. In the appropriate column, record which
feelings, statements, or behaviors were guided primarily by
one or the other of these myths. Next, reflect upon the past
couple of days. Then consider patterns of thought, feeling, or
behavior that characterize the past year or two.

Some people find it quite difficult to make these connections. If the

connections between your experiences and your myths do not readily
appear to you, don’t press yourself after giving it a fair try. Instead,
carry your journal with you for two or three days, making new entries
120 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

as they occur to you, or reflecting each evening on your actions during

that day.
Your chart will describe specific thoughts, feelings, and actions
that are connected with long-standing as well as emerging patterns in
your life. One woman sadly had to admit that the motto of her old
myth could have been the Country and Western lyric, “If You Won’t
Leave Me, I’ll Find Somebody Who Will.” A middle-aged minister
chose as his counter-myth motto, “We shall be called to account for
all pleasures we failed to enjoy.” The motto of Frank’s old myth was
“Be careful, try hard, look out.” In its column he described his fears,
his uncertainties, and his cautious approach to life. The motto of his
counter-myth was "Follow the Scent,” and in its column he described
the feelings and actions he associated with passion. He closed with the
following thought:

Every situation in my life is an opportunity to feel and express

more passion than I might have. I’ve become more aware of when
I’m holding back or distracting myself with nonessential, spirit­
deadening pursuits. Even if I still hold back, just being aware of it
changes the experience. And when I do smell excitement, I will
allow myself to follow that scent.

Personal Ritual: Bringing

Your Conflicting Myths into Dialogue

This ritual involves an enactment in which you will create a dialogue

similar to Meg’s for examining the two sides of your mythic conflict.
Characters personifying old myths or counter-myths can be thought
of as subpersonalities.6 A sub personality is an aspect of the self that
is governed by a particular personal myth. Choose a name for the
subpersonality that is associated with the prevailing myth and a name
for the subpersonality associated with the counter-myth, as Meg did
with “Proper Young Lady” and “Born-Again Child.” Todd, a forty-
four-year-old community college instructor, named his old myth
“Altar Boy” and his counter-myth “Pioneer.” A twenty-eight-year-old
computer engineer used the names “Robot-Woman” and “Flash
Dancer.” Allow yourself to participate fully in this exercise, using
appropriate gestures, and wholeheartedly dramatizing the dialogue.
The Third Stage: Conceiving a Unifying Mythic Vision 121

This will engage not only your intellect but also your intuition and
your feelings about these competing myths. It also will attune you to
relevant "body memories” and other physical aspects of the prevailing
and emerging mythic themes. Draw upon your sense of humor in
emphasizing and appreciating the differences between the characters.
If you are not working with a partner, use a tape recorder both for
leading you through the instructions, and also as a sort of witness.
New insights about the relationship between the opposing myths
often emerge from reviewing the exchange. You will need a blank
tape, as well as a tape on which you have recorded the instructions.
The instructions will indicate when to use the blank tape.

Find a physical posture that portrays your old myth. What facial
appearance is most fitting? Should you smile, grimace, scowl, laugh,
frown, stare, twitch? What kind ofgestures would be most appropri­
ate for this character? Will you point? Put your hands in your pocket?
Hugyourself? Shake nervously? Dance? Applaud? Jump? Pray? Cra wl?
[60-second pause]
Once having found this first posture, step out of that spot, face the
"person," and assume a posture that represents your counter-myth.
You might start by finding the posture and gestures that are the oppo­
site of your old myth. Give yourself enough time to work your way
into this role. Try out a few different postures so you may feel your
way into the one best suited for this subpersonality. Note what is
happening to your muscles and your sense of balance. Once you have
found the postures and facial expressions that best represent each
character, go back and forth a few times between them, and ha ve each
one begin to look at and size up the other. Either figure may evolve
beyond its initial identity. This can be a valuable development—just
keep the character consistent with the myth it represents. [2-minute
pause]
Begin the dialogue. One of the parts of you speaks to the other.
Alternate. In each role, assume the characteristic posture and say the
words that express your feelings and thoughts while looking at and
reacting to the other character. You are conscious of using a fitting
tone of voice. As is appropriate for your character, your speech may
be smooth or raspy, loud or soft, high or low, rapid or slow, guttural
or nasal, fluid or stuttering.
After one of the characters offers some initial comments, move
over to the other character's spot, assume the appropriate posture,
and answer. Again find a fitting voice quality. Continue to move physi­
cally between the two characters as you let the dialogue develop.
122 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

As these characters encounter each other, allow the words to flow

out. Keep the dialogue going without long pauses or planning. Be
spontaneous. Simply move into one of the positions and assume the
appropriate posture as that character is speaking, and move out of
that position and into a facing position whenever the second charac­
ter responds. Keep your facial expressions, posture, gestures, and
tones appropriate to the character you are portraying.
In the early part of the dialogue, the emphasis is to be on the
conflict and to establish the differences between the two sides. As you
continue the discussion, however, bring the focus toward establishing
improved communication between the characters. A good way to
start, or to proceed from any point where the dialogue gets bogged
down, is to have one side ask the other, “What do you want from me?"
[Ifyou are taping these instructions, add: “Now stop this tape, replace
it with a blank tape, set the machine to ‘record, ’ and proceed with the
dialogue.”]

After completing the dialogue, re-create or summarize it in your

journal. As you reflect in your journal, consider how the old myth and
the counter-myth were expressed. Were some feelings or ideas dis­
closed that you did not know you held? Because it engages you at
bodily as well as verbal levels, this exercise often reveals aspects of the
conflict that were previously outside of awareness. Besides having a
special name for each character, you also may want to draw simple
figures that portray these subpersonalities and can remind you of the
qualities each represents in your inner life.
Frank used the names "Earnest” and "Jolly Green Giant.” Here is
an excerpt from his dialogue:

Earnest: If you’re not careful, you’re going to get both of us hurt.

Jolly Green Giant: You little wimp! If I was as careful as you,

we'd never get out of bed! You work so hard on the dumbest things
so that you don’t ever have to risk that there’d be a moment you
might have to enjoy. It would make you feel too guilty!

Earnest: You are going to get us in a lot of trouble. Consider the

industrious ant who builds a giant hill despite his tiny size.

Jolly Green Giant: That’s terrific if building anthills is your

The Third Stage: Conceiving a Unifying Mythic Vision 123

mission in life. Besides, if we go at your pace, rigor mortis will set

in by April.
Earnest: Well, what do you want me to do?
Jolly Green Giant: You might try smilin’ sometimes. Or laughin’.
Or playin’. Maybe just start with breathing fully, you constricted
little worm!
Earnest (haughtily): Fiddlesticks! All that nonsense is hardly
necessary for a mature person.
Jolly Green Giant: That’s the funniest thing I’ve ever heard!
Your image of “maturity” is of a dried-up, convoluted, scared old
bullfrog. The reason for life is to live! And with zest and vigor and
joy.
Earnest: I’d be embarrassed to be as audacious and brazen and
vain as you, exuding all over the place.
Jolly Green Giant: Embarrassed, eh? I think you have exposed
the chains that are binding you to your dreary, colorless existence.
Earnest: Well, it’s not just embarrassment. What people think
matters for many reasons. It even holds consequences for my pro­
fession.

Jolly Green Giant: It’s your profession you’re worrying about?

Let me tell you somethin’ about what your profession’s doin’ for
you. It’s not only making you dead while you’re still alive; it’s gonna
have you dead before the retirement years for which you think
you’re living.
Earnest (befuddled): So you’re trying to tell me that if I stop
worrying about being embarrassed, I’m going to live longer?
Jolly Green Giant: Why, Earnest, I believe I finally have your
attention.
Earnest: Well, I’m not sure I believe you, but I must admit I’ve
been feeling less than sensational lately. Maybe there is something
to what you’re saying.
Jolly Green Giant: Less than sensational, eh? You do flatter
yourself with understatement. Listen, pal, you come along with me
on my path. You’re gonna like walking the first mile so well that
you’re never gonna wanna go back to your old ways.
124 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

Earnest: Did you say come with you on your path? You, sir, are
out of your mind! You are of the vulgar and unrefined sort whose
sensibilities are barbaric. You’d zip me along into your uncouth
ways so fast and blatantly that I’d be humiliated in a thousand
ways. Besides, I’d be so terrified that I wouldn’t enjoy a thing.
Forget it!

As is evident, Earnest and the Giant still have some distance to

cover before a constructive resolution is likely to occur. The remain­
ing rituals in this chapter are designed to further such synthesis. We
suggest that, as you proceed through the chapter, you have your
characters engage in additional dialogue. You may find that after each
of the rituals, their ability to communicate has been somewhat en­
hanced. Use the physical posturings as you extend the dialogue during
at least two 10-minute sessions over the next few days. Record the
highlights in your journal.

Dream Focus:
Identifying Obstacles to Resolution

In the same way that you have focused on specific dream themes in
previous chapters, scan your journal or incubate a dream that gives
you insight into the roadblocks that lie on the path toward resolution.
Such a dream would serve to help you identify obstacles that prevent
an integration between the old myth and the counter-myth. To request
such a dream, reflect on where the two characters in your dialogue
continued to disagree and, before going to sleep, picture them walking
down separate paths that are destined to meet at a common point.
Imagine the roadblocks each encounters on this path toward resolu­
tion. Before falling asleep, and while keeping in touch with this fan­
tasy, ask several times for a dream that reveals the obstacles that are
keeping you from reaching greater resolution between these opposing
aspects of your inner life.
The Third Stage: Conceiving a Unifying Mythic Vision 125

Personal Ritual:
Transforming Obstacles into Opportunities

The procedures that medieval alchemists used for attempting to trans­

form base metals into gold have been studied in the past century by
such thinkers as Carl Jung and Mircea Eliade. These methods have
been recognized as the outer expression of a profoundly sophisticated
transformative spiritual discipline. According to Ralph Metzner,
“chemical experimentation was like tantric yoga ritual: slow, deliber­
ate, with a maximum of empathic awareness and sensitivity to the
changes in matter. . . . The science of consciousness transformation
was practiced simultaneously and synchronistically with the science
of metallic or chemical transmutation.’’7
Part of the challenge in this third stage of working with your own
personal mythology involves transforming the base qualities of the
old myth into the gold of new energy and resources. In this ritual, you
will identify an obstacle to the resolution of your mythic conflict and
attempt to transform it into a condition that promotes your develop­
ment.
Most of us have certain personal qualities that we feel are liabili­
ties—perhaps an oversensitivity to criticism, a fear of authority, or a
tendency to intellectualize. Such qualities are usually supported, at
least in part, by old mythic structures. If you have been shy all of your
life, your mythology may justify or rationalize solitude. Often, such
qualities, rooted in the old myth, interfere with the expression of the
emerging myth. If your counter-myth requires that you become more
socially involved, you may have to conclude that your shyness is
holding you back. Frank identified his drivenness as a quality that was
interfering with a more dynamic relationship with his passion.
Often the elements that people like least about themselves, or re­
press completely, contain qualities that must be recognized and em­
braced for mature personality development. Discussing the Jungian
concept of the shadow, Erich Neumann observed: “At first, the figure
of the shadow is experienced externally as an alien and an enemy,
but in the course of its progressive realization in consciousness it
is . . . recognized as a component of one's own personality.”8 The
shadow is "the paradoxical secret of transformation itself, since it is
in fact in and through the shadow that the lead is transformed into
its gold.”9 A disowned element of an individual’s psychological
makeup may push for expression, fiercely disrupting all equilibrium.
But the shadow can also be incorporated into the person’s mythoi-
126 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

ogy in a way that results in an expanded self-identity, as we see in the

following case:

Mary Beth was forty-six when her husband died, suddenly and
tragically. Their youngest child had left home a year earlier, and
they were looking forward to peaceful years of retirement. Mary
Beth had been an exemplary mother and homemaker, but she had
never developed skills that could earn an income. She had enough
savings and insurance benefits to carry her for about a year. After
that, she would have to figure out how to support herself. About six
months after her husband died, just as she was starting to panic
about her financial predicament, she had the first of a series of
dreams.
She dreamed she was at home sleeping in bed. It wasn’t her
actual home, yet she felt she was at home. She dreamed she was
awakened by the sound of pounding. She was petrified. Suddenly,
a masked man jumped through the window. He was a burglar with
a burglar's sack. When he saw her in bed, he approached her omi­
nously. She woke up screaming as he began to mercilessly rape her.
Mary Beth had difficulty sleeping after this dream. Her sleep­
lessness led her into psychotherapy. About that time, she also came
to a decision about how she would support herself. She enrolled in
an intensive 10-week course that taught basic secretarial skills. She
did well in the course and easily found a job in a small law firm.
To her great relief, she was not fired during her probationary pe­
riod. In fact, she had a sense that she was well liked. And she loved
cashing her paycheck.
About then, Mary Beth had a second dream. She was again in
the same bed in the same room, sleeping. This time, she was awak­
ened by a knocking on the door. She timidly opened the door, and
the same masked man pushed his way in. This time, however, she
did not sense that he meant to harm her. He did not. He seduced
her. She woke up with a sense of excitement.
About four months later, she had her final dream in this series.
She had been flourishing in her work. Not only were her basic
secretarial skills more than adequate, she found that underneath
her shy, self-effacing public self was a witty, good-natured woman
who was able to understand others extremely well, and to convey
both empathy and good advice. To her amazement, she was made
office manager. In that position, she started to enjoy a kind of
power that she had never even conceived of, and she was gaining
increasing respect from the staff. In the third dream, she was in the
The Third Stage: Conceiving a Unifying Mythic Vision 127

same bed and the same room. But this time she had left the door
ajar for her lover. In he comes ... the same masked man, now with
flowers and charm. She embraces him. As they begin to make
passionate love, she looks at his mask, grabs it, and peels it off.
There she sees her own face looking back at her.

The last dream is a vivid illustration of what we mean by an

"integration dream” (see the next dream focus instruction). The
dream series shows how undeveloped qualities may demand expres­
sion, particularly when circumstances beckon to them. Until these
latent potentials are acknowledged, they are more likely to be detri­
mental. This is especially evident with powerful emotions like anger
and resentment, but we see here with Mary Beth that even characteris­
tics that might seem quite positive may, unacknowledged, play havoc
in your inner life. Her identity was so removed from the competencies
and independence that her society associated with the male role (Jung
referred to this constellation of qualities as the “animus”) that radical
adjustments had to occur if she were going to mobilize herself to
become a breadwinner.
In this ritual, you will identify a quality in yourself that you believe
interferes with the resolution of your mythic conflict, and you will
call upon your Inner Shaman to help you transform that obstacle into
an asset.
Select a personal quality that you feel may be keeping you trapped
in your conflict. Perhaps your impulsiveness prevents you from creat­
ing a more stable life-style, your compulsiveness prevents you from
enjoying the stable life-style you have established, your fearfulness
interferes with your ability to take risks that are required for profes­
sional success, or your insecurity causes you to push away relation­
ships by clinging to them. Meg went through the ritual twice, once
focusing on the self-righteousness of the Proper Young Lady and a
second time on the defiance of the Born-Again Child. Frank, as you
will see, worked with his compulsion to achieve. Choose a quality you
wish to transform.
In the following instructions, you will be doing a ritual dance with
your Inner Shaman to transform this quality into a resource. You may
physically do the dance, which we recommend, or simply do it as a
fantasy. You will need a single sunflower seed, almond, or similar
food. Leave the seed where you can reach it easily. During the part of
the ritual where you are doing the dance, you also may wish to have
tribal music with drumming playing in the background. A fast, steady
beat is best.
128 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

Standing where you have some room to move, take a few deep
breaths, plant your feet on the ground, and prepare to invite your
Shaman to visit you in the Outer World. Recall what your Shaman
looks like. [Pause] Now, watch as, standing before you, your Shaman
starts to materialize. [Pause] You will be able to sense your Shaman’s
presence, and in your mind's eye you may even be able to see shades
of your Shaman standing before you.
As you look at your Shaman, sense how you feel about offering up
the quality you wish to transform. [Pause] An imaginary bundle ap­
pears before you, and you begin to hold it with both your hands. You
know that the quality you wish to change is inside the bundle. Exam­
ine the bundle. What color is it? Is it heavy?Does it have an odor?Are
there sounds coming from within it? [Pause] Present the bundle to
your Shaman. Explain the quality. Maintain your self-respect by de­
scribing the quality with dignity and compassion for yourself. Estab­
lish what it is about the quality that is not working for you. [60-second
pause] Now consider the ways in which you hope to transform the
quality. Stubbornness may become a balanced determination. A
quick temper may provide the zest for passionate involvement. Lazi­
ness may be the safeguard against frenzied overinvolvement. Find in
the quality you wish to transform the kernels of a quality you would
like to acquire. Once you have described the change you are request­
ing, listen for your Shaman's response. [60-secondpause]
Your Shaman faces you and places his or her hands on the bundle.
The bundle is between you, and both ofyou are holding it. Now your
Shaman starts to move. You realize that you are to move in synch as
you both hold the bundle. Begin to move, keeping a harmony with
your Shaman. [Pause] The movement begins to gain speed. [Pause]
The rhythms change. [Pause] Soon it is a free form of dance with the
bundle held between you. Your Shaman begins to chant: "Let the
change begin!" You chant along. [Pause] Now you notice that the
bundle is surrounded by a luminescent color, a bright light that al­
most obscures it. You begin to feel that a change is indeed occurring.
You continue to chant. The movement becomes centered on the lu­
minescent bundle you are both holding. You begin moving it high and
low, to and fro. [Pause] It becomes brighter with each additional
motion. The dance continues and works up to a frenzy. You are chant­
ingasfast as you can now: "Let the change begin!” [60-secondpause]
Finally, you stop and look your Shaman in the eye. Both ofyou still
have your hands on the bundle, which continues to glow. Your Sha­
man tells you that the quality in the bundle is being transformed, just
as you requested. You are told to place the bundle onto the spot where
The Third Stage: Conceiving a Unifying Mythic Vision 129

you have stored your seed. As you do so, the bundle suddenly disap­
pears, and your Shaman tells you that all the energy ofits bright light
has gone into the seed. As you look at the seed, you begin to sense
more deeplyjust what this new quality is and how you would feel if
it were fully developed within you. The Shaman tells you to pick up
the seed and slowly chew and swallow it. Put the seed into your mouth
and slowly begin to chew. With each bite and each swallow, you feel
yourselfingesting the new quality that has been transformed from the
old. You recall the color from before, and you begin to feel the energy
of that color filling your body with each motion ofyour mouth. You
know that the quality you had asked for is contained in the energy of
this seed and that you are now taking it into yourself
As you finish this sacred morsel, you savor the taste andyou savor
the knowledge that a seed has just been planted for an important
change in your life. [Pause] You realize that from this moment on,
whenever the old quality might get in your way, you can have access
to the feelingyou received from the seed. By evoking this feeling, you
will begin to take actions that are in concert with the transformed
quality, and as you do, that quality will gain strength within you.
This ritual marks a turn in your path. While the changes may not
be immediate or radical, the shift in direction at this point will make
an increasing difference as you go further down the road. Say good­
bye to your Shaman, and watch as he or she fades back into the Other
World.

Frank wanted to identify what was making it so difficult for him

to do something as simple as being more relaxed and peaceful.
“Surely it couldn’t be my persistence and willingness to try hard? I’ve
always thought those were virtues.” The problem, he realized, was
that he applied his diligence to areas of his life that gave him external
rewards and the satisfaction of achievement, but not much happiness.
It was his compulsion to achieve that was keeping his life out of
balance. This was what he offered to his Inner Shaman.

I told the Shaman that I want to transform my compulsion to

achieve into confidence that I don’t have to worry about achieve­
ment. I explained that I already get things done so habitually and
effectively that my internal push to do more and better, which costs
me my tranquility, is really just so much overkill. I have reason to
feel confident that my world isn’t going to fall down around me if
130 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

I were to take a nap, but I am driven mercilessly from within. I

speculated that if this burden were lifted, I could relax into my true
nature. The Shaman replied: “You have chosen well. A former
compulsion in a given realm of life can indeed be transformed into
confidence within that realm. Making that transformation will
truly free you.”
I thought all the gestures and dancing were a bit silly, but I did
get up and do them. At first I felt like I was just going through the
motions, but it suddenly hit me that I could sense a blue energy
around the “bundle.” With that, I really got into it. We were dancing
all over the room chanting, “Let the change begin!” When we finally
stopped, I felt an immediate sense of peace, and by God, I believed
the quality in that bundle had gone through some real transforma­
tive process. When the Shaman condensed the energy into a seed,
I believed that the seed had real power. I hadn’t bothered to get a
seed or nut, and I regretted that I didn’t have one at that moment
because the ritual was feeling so real to me. Still, when I ate the
seed in my imagination, I could sense an energy of confidence
coming into me.

At any point when you notice the old quality getting in your way,
you may, in your imagination, again take the seed into your mouth,
and as you ingest it, feel the energy of the transformed quality infused
into your being. Because Meg had selected two qualities that she
wished to transform, she performed the ritual twice. Consider for a
moment if you, too, wish to repeat this ritual, concentrating on an­
other characteristic. The transformation of such obstacles is a step
toward the integration of your old myth and your counter-myth. The
remaining three rituals in this chapter, and the dream focus instruc­
tions, are oriented toward furthering that resolution.

Personal Ritual: A Resolution Fantasy

Having earlier represented the mythic conflict in your body, you will
now create a fantasy—a symbolic journey—whose purpose is to fur­
ther the integration between the old myth and the counter-myth. You
will seek a unifying symbol that assists in resolving their discord.
Many depth psychologists see such symbols as powerful allies. Liliane
Frey-Rohn noted: “Inasmuch as the conscious experience of life de­
manded an always new balance of opposites, a constantly renewed
bridging of the powers of drive and spirit, the unifying symbol really
The Third Stage: Conceiving a Unifying Mythic Vision 131

had a creative function in guiding the individual to a deeper psycho­

logical truth.”10 To begin, find a comfortable position and start to
relax.
Close your eyes and take a few deep breaths as you settle into this
position. Feel yourself relaxing more completely with your next five
breaths: ONE, TWO, THREE, FOUR, FIVE. Recall the feelings you
were having as you explored the different sensations in your hands.
Starting with the hand that represented the old myth, bring back the
experience of these sensations. [Pause] Now, re-create the sensations
in your other hand.
Tune into the energy and sensations ofthe hand that represents the
old myth. [Pause] An inner image of this hand develops—perhaps it
is only vague and shadowy or perhaps it is rich with color and distinct
shapes. As you watch this image, you have an increasingly certain
sense of a symbol that represents your old myth. [30-second pause]
Once this symbol has become clear to you, tune into the energy and
sensations of the hand that represents the counter-myth. [Pause] An
inner image of this hand develops. This image becomes a symbol that
represents your counter-myth. [30-second pause]
Now you have identified the two symbols and can imagine a set­
ting. The light, colors, textures, and forms become vividly clear.
[Pause] Next, place the two symbols into the setting. [Pause] The two
symbols are about to become animated. They are going to be the
characters in a fantasy. This fantasy will have a beginning, a middle,
and an end. The fantasy will bring the symbols closer to each other.
Their relationship and their understanding of each other will have
improved. The fantasy will lead to an integration, a blending of the
two sides.
Begin your fantasy now. Watch as the two symbols begin to inter­
act. Allow their interactions to unfold into a story or dialogue that
dramatizes a settling oftheir differences. [60-second pause] When you
have completed your fantasy, count yourself back from five to one,
take a deep breath, and open your eyes.

Immediately record the fantasy in your journal. Do not at this

point analyze or judge it. Then, again assuming a relaxed position,
move directly into the following instructions:

Take a few moments to relax again, breathing deeply. [Pause] You

will be taking your fantasy a step further now. Begin by replaying it
in your imagination, once more experiencing the symbols and the
setting, and going through the sequence ofevents. This time, however,
132 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

stop the action at points where your fantasy starts to resolve your
conflict, where the old and the emerging are the most integrated,
where there is the greatest synthesis between them. „
Make a "stillphotograph" in your mind or a short "film clip" of
such scenes. Do not be concerned ifyour fantasy tries to take a slightly
different direction during this rerun; simply follow its lead. Begin
now to reexperience your fantasy, this time stopping where there is
the most integration or resolution. [60-secondpause] When you have
reached the end of your fantasy, extend it. Add a final scene that
carries it further and in the direction of even greater resolution or
integration. [30-second pause] When you are ready, count yourself
back from five to one, take a deep breath, and open your eyes.

Once you have completed this experience, draw or describe the

scenes you mentally photographed in your journal, and record your
associations to them. From Frank’s journal:

This time, as if to show how confused I am about which myth is

stronger, my right arm became the old myth, I see it as a massive,
cold stone wall. My left arm is also a wall. But this wall seems
ethereal and is very fragile. Next, I see a knight on a horse. The
knight has incredible muscles, kind of like the strong man in a
circus. I see him reaching across so he is touching both walls, and
he is going to pull them together. I see him struggling to pull them
closer together, but something is stopping him. It seems he is realiz­
ing that the fragile wall will just crumble when it meets the stone
wall, and that is not what he wants. So he builds a latticework
structure into it so that even if it does crumble, it will still retain
its character. And then, through some magic spell, he brings heat
to the other wall, and it begins to soften. It becomes transformed
from cold blocks of stone into mounds of some warm, inviting,
doughlike substance. Then, as he pulls the two sides together, the
fragile wall does indeed crumble, but that’s okay because the lat­
ticework and the ethereal quality remain. When the two walls have
merged, the lattice framework brings a magnificent sculpted form,
to the dough, which remains warm and soft. It was like I was being
shown that for my two myths to come together, I have to soften the
structure of the old myth and give more structure to the new myth.
When I took the fantasy further, the new wall came to life and
became animated. It actually became like a cartoon character of a
mammoth elephant with the lattice becoming its skeletal structure
The Third Stage: Conceiving a Unifying Mythic Vision 133

and the doughlike substance its massive flesh. It started to walk

around and do little dance steps and sing and play. The creature
was very funny as it hobbled around, but then it caught my eye and
knowingly winked at me, and it suddenly struck me that this colos­
sal, playful creature was somehow very wise.

Dream Focus: An Integration Dream

If you felt that your resolution fantasy did not go far enough, did not
adequately point the way toward resolving the conflict, or if you
simply want to request further inner instruction about resolving your
conflict, you may find it valuable to scan your journal for a dream that
pointed toward resolution or to ask for an integration dream. To
incubate such a dream, bring to mind the points in your fantasy of
greatest integration between the two myths. If there were none, reflect
again on the conflict and ask for a dream that provides further guid­
ance about finding a resolution to it. Immediately upon waking, re­
cord any dreams or insights you may recall. Explore the dream using
the technique you used with your resolution fantasy, where you re­
created the fantasy to explore it. Redream your dream in your imagi­
nation and find the points of maximum integration.

Personal Ritual:
A Body Metaphor of Resolution

This chapter closes with a ritual for further deepening the integration
you have already attained between the old myth and the counter­
myth. Just as you’ve seen how your body may be a battlefield for the
conflicts in your personal mythology, it may also be a temple for the
resolution of those conflicts. It is possible to use bodily imagery to
help resolve the discord. You have already been identifying your old
myth with one hand and your counter-myth with the other hand as
a way of symbolizing the conflict. In the following ritual, you will also
begin by representing your mythic conflict with your hands, but this
time you will wind up with a feeling in your body that serves as a
sensation-based symbol of resolution.
Begin by reviewing the entries in your journal that describe the
134 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

resolution symbols, fantasies, or dreams emerging from the last sev­

eral sets of instructions. Next, find a comfortable position and begin
to relax.

Close your eyes and take a few deep breaths as you settle into this
position. Feel yourself relaxing more completely with your next five
breaths: ONE, TWO, THREE, FOUR, FIVE. Sense one more time
which hand you associate more with the old myth and which hand
you associate with the counter-myth. [Pause] Are these myths still
represented on the same sides as they were earlier? Focus now on the
hand that represents the old myth. Notice the sensations in this side
ofyour body. [Pause] Now focus on the other side ofyour body and
notice the sensations. [Pause] Is one side warmer than the other?
Lighter? Heavier? Darker? [Pause] Notice where the two sides meet.
Is that line jagged or straight? Do the energies of the two myths repel
each other along this boundary line? Do the energies blend? Is one
side reaching or pushing over into the other side?
Mentally communicate with both sides, telling them that just as
they are each part of the same body, it is in the best interest ofyour
total being that they learn to live together in harmony, or even to
integrate with each other.
Again place your hands so your palms face each other, about two
feet apart, and let your elbows bend so you can relax your arms in a
comfortable position. First explore the hand that represents the old
myth. [Pause] Now focus on the hand that represents the counter­
myth. [Pause] Can you feel any sensations in the space between your
hands? Just as opposites attract, sense that there is an energy pulling
your hands together. This energy increases with every breath. [20-
second pause] Slowly, allow your hands to be drawn together. Know
that the instant they touch, you will feel a merging of the energies
between the two sides and a single, unified feeling will encompass
your hands and permeate your body. [30-second pause]
As the energies ofyour hands and the two sides ofyour body blend
and integrate with one another, feelings of harmony fill you. [Pause]
Sense the spirit of the old myth and the counter-myth mingling, syn­
thesizing, integrating, becoming a single energy that retains the most
vital qualities of both. Merge the old myth and the counter-myth with
every breath.
As the mingling of the two myths permeates your body, you have
stronger and stronger feelings of resolution and of a new direction.
Reflect on any thoughts or images that come to you in the next few
The Third Stage: Conceiving a Unifying Mythic Vision 135

moments which might represent a new direction for you as the inte­
gration between the old myth and the counter-myth deepens. [30-
second pause]
Find an image, phrase, or thought that for you represents this
integration. It becomes vivid and memorable. [20-secondpause] You
may affirm this feeling of integration any time you wish by taking
three deep breaths, bringing your hands together, and squeezing them
as you recall this image, phrase, or thought. Do this now. Lower your
hands. Take three deep breaths as you recall your image, phrase, or
thought. [30-second pause] Bring your hands together and squeeze
them. [Pause] Sense the charge of integration and wholeness shoot
through your body. You may repeat this sequence any time you wish.
Now, as you count yourself back from five to one, the feelings of
resolution completely permeate your body and your spirit. FIVE,
coming back now. FOUR. THREE. TWO. And ONE. Eyes open,
relaxed, and refreshed.

Describe this experience in your journal. In what ways did you feel
an integration between the two sides? Of what obstacles were you
aware? What new directions seemed to emerge for you? What was
your image, phrase, or thought? Be sure to describe the steps you can
take (three breaths, bring hands together, and squeeze while recalling
the image, phrase, or thought) any time you need to deepen the inte­
gration between your conflicting myths. This procedure can serve you
much like the action of a positive posthypnotic suggestion. When
Frank’s hands met,

the ethereal wall started to move in ripples and kind of undulate

against the hard wall, almost as if it were massaging it. It was quite
enticing in its slithery, snakelike, almost sexual dance. Its ardor
and playfulness were trying to have some effect on the brittle wall,
and my sense was that they were going to.

Continuing the Dialogue

At this point, Frank returned to the dialogue between the characters
representing the two sides of his mythic conflict. The personal rituals
from this chapter opened a few doors of communication for them,
and we invite you at this point to extend your dialogue as well.
Jolly Green Giant (responding to Earnest’s last outburst after
the invitation that he try Giant’s path).
* Calm down, little man. I
136 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

can understand that you’re scared. Maybe we can find a pace that
will keep me feelin’ like we’re still alive without scarin’ you to
death.
Earnest: Well, you talk like I wouldn’t have anything to offer
even if I wanted to do something with you.
Jolly Green Giant: One thing you certainly know how to do is
to apply yourself, although you generally have the imagination of
a goldfish in the choices you make for those precious efforts. I
propose that you apply yourself to some of the things I might get
a kick out of too.
Earnest: Such as?
Jolly Green Giant: I thought we might try downhill skiing this
month and white-water rafting in the summer.
Earnest: That does it! You go your way and I'll go mine. I find
your proposed endeavors totally terrifying, and I find you, sir, to
be an insensitive, reckless boor.
Jolly Green Giant: Your oversensitivity certainly balances any
insensitivity in me, but I guess I can understand your fears. What
if we start with your takin’ some time off to go cross-country skiing?
You enjoy that, much as you hate to admit it.
Earnest: But before we can go off on this wildly irresponsible
odyssey of passion and flight, we must be sure that someone is
minding the store.
Jolly Green Giant: I don’t mind bein’ sure the store is minded,
but if we must be certain that no speck of dust that lands may light
in its resting place for more than seventeen seconds, such as is your
custom, we shall have precious little time for anything else.
Earnest: But if I do not attend to the store in the exquisite man­
ner to which I, along with anyone with any class, am accustomed,
two complications may be foreseen. First, all our excess and idle
time might soon become dreadfully boring unless your program is
quite magnificent. Second, I would surely lose the opportunity of
being this year’s recipient of the National Broom Society’s Best
Kept Shop Award. If I am to forgo that honor, then this trip had
better, pardon the expression, be damned good.
Jolly Green Giant: Trust me, Earnest. Take a deep breath, lean
back, and enjoy the ride.
The Third Stage: Conceiving a Unifying Mythic Vision 137

Earnest: I think this is rather insane, but I shall retain an open

mind about your idiotic scheme.

If you have not yet had the two characters from your dialogue
meet for a second or third encounter, do so now, creating another
“face-to-face" dramatization, and summarizing the dialogue in your
journal.

On to Stage Four
It is entirely possible that rather than leading to resolution, your
imagery and dialogues showed that the two myths are not yet ripe for
integration. Some people find this very frustrating and want to push
toward a resolution for which they are not ready. Regardless of the
obstacles you may be encountering, you will be able to adapt the
remaining personal rituals to your own pace and readiness. Even if
you were unable to attain any sense of resolution in the exercises to
this point, the following chapter will show you ways to draw on the
careful and penetrating work you have been doing in order to create
a closing to your Fairy Tale that points toward constructive new
directions in your life.
______________________ 5
The Fourth Stage:
From Vision to Commitment

Like a lure-casting fisherman, man seems to cast a fantasy far in front

of him and then slowly reel himself into it.
—WILLIAM IRWIN THOMPSON1

The rituals presented in this chapter are designed to further the inte­
gration between your old myth and your counter-myth. As the resolu­
tion of their conflict becomes more complete, you will be able to
articulate and examine a new direction, and you will be drawn toward
committing yourself to it.
Where there is conflict in your personal mythology, several sce­
narios are possible. Consciously or unconsciously, you may: (1) iden­
tify primarily with the old myth, (2) identify primarily with the
counter-myth, (3) become increasingly torn or confused, or (4) work
out a compromise that sacrifices some desirable elements of each. Or,
as the inner resolution becomes more complete, a new myth may
emerge that incorporates the best qualities of both. Further directing
your efforts toward this last prospect is the goal of this chapter.
While it is necessary to allow certain conflicts to take their course,
there is truth in the ancient proverb, “If you don’t change your direc­
tion, you may wind up where you are headed.” Outmoded myths
distract you from the "path with heart.” The conflicts they cause are
painful. But that pain also shows you where your mythology is ready
for change. As Marcel Proust tartly observed, “Illness is the most
heeded of doctors: to goodness and wisdom we only make promises;
we obey pain.” Formulating the most worthwhile mythic guidance
within your reach, and committing yourself to it, is a way of heeding
the call of goodness and wisdom before pain demands your attention.

138
The Fourth Stage: From Vision to Commitment 139

In this fourth stage of the program, you will envision a new direction
for your life, conceived of the creative tension between your old myth
and counter-myth. The personal rituals will guide you toward a single
mythic image which holds enough promise that you will be moved,
in the final stage of the program, to commit yourself toward weaving
it into your life.
Innovative possibilities may already be occurring to you. Experi­
ences that bring you outside the normal realms of space and time can
generate further insight. The rituals in this chapter are designed to
lead you into such altered states of consciousness. They will bring you
within listening range of the voice of your innermost wisdom as you
take this next step in formulating a creative resolution of your mythic
conflict.

MEG’S NEXT STEP

In the personal ritual that introduces this stage of the program, you
will return to the dialogue between the characters representing your
old myth and your counter-myth, but this time you will ask your Inner
Shaman to mediate. Meg taped her dialogue and later transcribed it
for us:

Proper Young Lady (yelling to Born-Again Child who has just

gotten away); Your obstinacy is going to keep you from becoming
a mature and responsible adult!

Born-Again Child: Seems to me that the people who you call

“mature and responsible” are just bored, and they are certainly
boring. They think that now that they are mature, everything is all
settled, finished, with nothing new to learn. I am happy that I’m
always growing and learning new things.

Proper Young Lady: Well, I was taught all I need to know by my

parents and my Sunday School teachers. But sometimes I do ask
if I’m being the full person I was meant to be.

Inner Shaman: Good question. I want to congratulate you on

asking one of the seminal questions of all time.

Born-Again Child: Hey, I can ask that same question! I’m the
most curious of the lot.
Proper Young Lady: I never thought I’d hear you admit to being
anything but completely satisfied with your total self-indulgence.
140 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

Born-Again Child: I hate giving in to the stuffy likes of you, but

the fact is I am somewhat attracted to pretty clothes and would like
to learn how to earn a living. I would even like it, I think, if some­
one courted me.
Proper Young Lady: Fat chance.
Inner Shaman: Now, now . . . see what you can do to behave
like loving sisters. Otherwise, you are each always going to feel
incomplete.
Born-Again Child: Oh my! I don't want that.
Proper Young Lady: Me neither! Let me, since I’m the more
mature, make the first concession. I would like you to teach me to
build a sandcastle. Some I’ve seen are very pretty.
Born-Again Child: You’d get all sandy and feel like you’d low­
ered yourself. . .
Inner Shaman: You must give each other the benefit of the
doubt. If you do that, you are much more likely to be believed
yourself.
Born-Again Child (enthusiastically): You’re really willing to
learn from me, Proper Young Lady? No kidding? Wow! I do much
better when I’m treated like an equal rather than a defective piece
of machinery.
Proper Young Lady (looking old and tired); I need you because
maybe you can help me to feel alive, robust, excited. Without you,
I get caught up in competition, sickness in my spirit and my body.
I bog down, feel heavy, on the brink of death. Can you teach me to
play again?
Born-Again Child: I will teach you all about sandcastles and
dams! How's that?
Proper Young Lady: And I will give you the pink dress with the
lace collar I've seen you looking at enviously. I'll even throw in
some satin hair ribbons. But you’re sure you can teach me how to
play?
Born-Again Child (taking her hand); Hey, it’s just like riding a
bicycle. Come on, I’ve got a golden retriever puppy I want you to
meet.
Inner Shaman: I’m pleased with both of you. I think it is time
now to consider how you are going to work out living together.
From Vision to Commitment
142 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

Proper Young Lady: I think it makes sense for me to be in

charge during the school and business day. Maybe when we’re out
in public, too. And I hope you, Born-Again Child, will be in charge
of our free time when we can have sensations, be loud, ask ques­
tions, and be free of constraints.

Born-Again Child: You bet. Good plan. Could I wear your eyelet
petticoat with the pink dress, too?

In the next ritual, you will find an object from nature and reflect
upon it as you consider several questions related to your mythic con­
flict. Meg chose a geode (a stone that has a cavity lined with crystals),
which she had treasured for a long time. From her journal reflections:

My power object is my geode. It has been cut in half and the cut
surface has been polished. The outside is rough and looks un­
promising. The cut surface has many shades of cream, gold, and
honey in frozen rings. At the center is a literal heart of crystal. The
crystal catches and refracts the light with its tiny prisms. The whole
thing is wonderfully complex and beautiful.
I see that it took a major change—cutting the geode in half—to
expose the magnificent center. I realize that the process must have
been violent and intrusive to the raw stone. I see that the polishing
has exposed remarkable intricacy and subtle beauty. I imagine that
the crystal center is grateful to be exposed, after millennia, to the
light.
I think the lesson for me is that I can trust that if I move deeper,
beyond my mundane surface, I will expose the valuable and pleas­
ing potentials hidden within me.

Based on the variety of resolution experiences that grew out of

your work in the previous chapter, and your explorations in this
chapter, you will next write Part Three of your Fairy Tale. This task
calls upon you to symbolically formulate a mythic image to cast to­
ward the future. Part Three of Meg’s Fairy Tale reads:

After the porpoise delivered Juanita Margaret to shore, the first

thing she saw was a broken Annie Green Springs wine bottle bounc­
ing in the surf. The second thing to happen was that her caretaker,
Prudent, was appalled at the condition of her clothes and hair. The
third thing was that her schoolteacher, Rational, heaped contempt
upon her wild story that she had ridden a porpoise to the depths of
the sea.
The Fourth Stage: From Vision to Commitment 143

Juanita Margaret decided that the first lesson she could practice
was retreat to Nature, and this she did until her head and heart
settled down and even ceased to ache. "Ah ha,” she thought. “It
works! When I am hassled, a retreat to a peaceful, timeless space
is indeed healing. I will remember that.”
Being as flexible as the kelp had never been easy for her. She
was undoubtedly a stubborn, even rigid child, in that she usually
could see only one way to accomplish anything. That lesson came
one day when she, a devoted health-food nut, was offered a hot
chocolate fudge sundae with whipped cream, three cherries,
chopped pecans, and a little American flag on the summit. Her
conflict was truly epic. "I want it! I want it! I want it!” cried her
impulsive, reckless part, with visions of sweet shudders passing
through her mouth and limbs. "Oh no, never ever under any cir­
cumstances!” proclaimed her righteous, rigid self, snapping her
mouth closed, tight as an abalone on the reef. Fortunately, at that
moment a vision of the flexible kelp came to Juanita Margaret. "I
will stay rooted in my beliefs, but I do think I will eat this sundae.
After all, it’s only six weeks until my birthday!”
Being secret about her good works had never been Juanita Mar­
garet’s way. Keeping silent about her talents was not her strong
suit. It is true that she often did genuinely good things for high
motives. She had many skills and assets. But there is just no nice
way to deny that she was a big mouth, often blowing her own horn
in the town square. It wasn’t so much that she was full of herself;
it was more that she was actually rather empty inside, having been
sent out to play so often. One day, while she was caroling her own
virtues, she saw someone yawn. "Oh my,” thought Juanita Marga­
ret, "I am becoming the worst sort of a bore. Even I am bored.
Boredom is a dreadful sign; it means I am sick of my own company.
What to do?” She thought of the abalone with his boring exterior
and palace of lights interior. She thought, "I believe I should pay
attention. It seems to me that if I save some of my good stuff, my
very best good stuff, and keep it inside, silently, it may serve me
better. I will have to wait for someone to notice me to have the
attention I love so much, but I can be occupied with adding lovely
nacre designs to my interior canvas. I believe I will try this as a cure
for boredom.” It worked so well that no one ever yawned in her
face again, and the people she invited in to see her mother-of-pearl
and rainbow painting came to love her deeply.

Next, you will project your new myth five years into the future.
Meg wrote:
144 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

I’m sitting at my word processor, writing a book, smiling. No

one is with me physically, but I am very conscious that loved ones
are within reach. I take time out every day to go out of my house,
into the woods, to be in the forest and by the creek. I have found
the theme and the method to communicate my ideas about Nature
and life effectively, and I feel useful and competent. I’m very aware
of a growing edge of freshness and novelty and discovery in my life.
But I’m not so subject to the storms and the emotional violence that
once plagued me constantly. My relationships with people are deep
and real and enduring. I’m contented with the direction of my
growth and my changes, and I don’t see any end to them.

In the next personal ritual, you will beckon the most highly
spiritual feelings you can attain. After invoking that state, Meg sum­
marized her new myth in a single, guiding sentence: “Serenity is
gained through loving, thoughtful action.” She described the essence
of the myth as: “I am part of Creation. I, and all my relationships, are,
just like Creation, continually evolving and growing more intercon­
nected through the forces of Love.” As Meg comes to identify herself
with larger spheres than her isolated inner world, we sense that the
self-centeredness that characterized her earlier mythology (partially
the product of needing so early to be self-reliant, and partially a
product of being an only child) is changing. Up to now, the collective
“other” had seemed so oppressive to Meg that she could only come as
far as allowing it to serve as an object of her love, with little room for
the intermingling of the other’s wants, needs, and myths with her
own. Now, as she is beginning to integrate opposing elements of her
inner being, she seems better able and more willing to engage in the
give and take of interpersonal relationships as well. She also is begin­
ning to appreciate that her need to be alone in nature provides a
balance to social life rather than only an escape from it.
When, in the early part of the program, you constructed your
Personal Shield, the last section, "A Renewed Vision,” was left blank.
Your final task in this fourth stage of the program will be to complete
that section, drawing upon all your experiences since first construct­
ing your Shield. Guided imagery instructions designed to help you
find a renewed, more matured image of Paradise Regained will be
offered.
For Meg, the abalone shell from her first Paradise Regained image
returned as an element of her new image. But, rather than an isolated
piece, it became part of a delicate, butterfly-shaped necklace made of
silver and abalone shell, hanging from a fine chain. She drew this
The Fourth Stage: From Vision to Commitment 145

necklace on the final section of her Personal shield, and she reflected,
"I can always quietly carry this totem of my great teacher.”

CULTIVATING A RENEWED
MYTHIC VISION

To this point, you have been tilling the symbolic soil of your inner life,
finding the roots of existing mythic images, cultivating new imagery,
and experimenting with novel combinations. Through the following
personal rituals, you will attempt to reap a single guiding vision that
points you in a new and more fulfilling direction—toward a meeting
of your highest possibilities and the opportunities your world pre­
sents.

Personal Ritual: Extending Your

Dialogue with Your Shaman’s Support

The subpersonality representing your old myth will again meet with
the subpersonality representing your counter-myth so they may fur­
ther discuss their areas of disagreement. This time, however, you also
will be calling upon your Inner Shaman to help you find creative
solutions to the problems that are still of concern to each side. His or
her aid may be of special value here, as it is particularly important at
this point to reach the greatest amount of resolution possible.
In previous rituals, you have seen your Shaman’s power as a
healer, combining the strength of understanding, empathy, and love.
You sensed his or her gentleness and wisdom. Your Shaman is also
rugged and disciplined, fully recognizing that at times difficult deci­
sions, compromises, and sacrifices must be made, strength must be
developed, and in certain circumstances that strength must be crea­
tively but forcefully applied. You can expect your Shaman to be a fair
but tough moderator in this next dialogue. As in the previous dia­
logues, you may wish to have a blank tape available so you can record
the encounter.

Begin by once more Ending the stance, posture, and facial expres­
sions of the figure who represents the old myth. [Pause] Then step
back, face that character, and find the stance, posture, and facial
expressions of the figure who represents the counter-myth. [Pause]
146 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

Now step out of that role and move into the position of your Inner
Shaman, forming a triangle as you face the other two figures.
Create in yourself the sense of confidence and compassion your
Shaman exudes. [Pause] You have time to find the stance, posture,
and facial expressions that fit these feelings. [30-secondpause] Make
any further adjustments so that your stance accuratelyportrays your
Inner Shaman. [Pause] Now, as the Shaman, ask the other two figures:
“Where are you not in agreement?"
The figures representing your mythic conflict engage in a dialogue
about this question and continue until they reach an agreement or an
impasse. Whenever they reach an agreement, you will return to the
position of the Shaman, comment on the resolution they reached, and
ask: “Are there any other areas in which I may help you?”
When the two figures come to an impasse, return to the position
of the Inner Shaman, consider the desires of each and the needs of
each, and address one or both of them. Then allow them to engage
each other in further dialogue, until they reach some level of agree­
ment or need further shamanic intervention.
Continue by moving into all three of the positions as needed, until
the most important issues ha ve been addressed and the high est degree
ofresolution possible for the three ofyou, combining your resources,
has been achieved. [If you are taping these instructions, add: “Now
stop this tape, replace it with a blank tape, and record the dialogue.
When you have taken the dialogue as far as you are able, reinsert this
tape and continue with its instructions. ”]
Much has been accomplished in understanding and resolution.
Return to the position of the Inner Shaman. You are rich with com­
passion and wisdom and are pleased to share with both figures, an­
swering their questions, sensing their concerns. When you are fin­
ished, invite each figure to contact you, through imagination or
through another enactment like this one, whenever he or she needs
your help.

Re-create or summarize this discussion in your journal. At the end

of Frank’s last dialogue, the two figures had reached a tense agree­
ment about taking time off to go cross-country skiing. This segment
of the dialogue begins with Earnest having second thoughts:

Inner Shaman: With what disagreements may I help you?

Earnest (to Jolly Green Giant): I’ve been reconsidering the pru­
dence of our pact. I believe you want me to all but drop out of my
The Fourth Stage: From Vision to Commitment 147

work and all my responsibilities. I do not believe you have seen to

all the details to ensure that everything will be kept in Proper
Condition.

Jolly Green Giant: If we wait until your good time to start en­
joyin’ ourselves, we’ll still be in the office at midnight on New Year’s
Eve in the year 2020! I'm tired of waitin’ for you, and if you won’t
make some major changes right now, I’m goin’ to quit cooperatin’
with you at all. You need me in ways you don’t know about. If I
weren't taggin’ along in the dreary life you have carved out for us,
you’d have dried up and died years ago.

Earnest: You always want to move so fast! How about if we take

off to play one time this year to see if we like it? An experiment. If
we like it, maybe we’ll do it again next year.

Jolly Green Giant: One time this year—perhaps again next year!
My, you are gutsy! I don’t think this discussion is goin’ anywhere
except to bog us down in your characteristically obsessional and
boring ways. I appeal to our wise old friend here to get us out of
this endless rut you keep draggin’ us into.

Inner Shaman: I have comforting news for you, Earnest. You

truly can afford to relax. You have my assurance that you are not
going to be so powerfully swept away that you cannot return to the
ways with which you are so familiar and comfortable. Should you
stumble, you need only stand up. You can take many more risks
than you have ever imagined would be within the limits of con­
scientiousness.
And, Giant, you must be much more appreciative of the steps
Earnest does take. Rather than continually pointing out to him how
much farther he has to go, you can relax too, and immerse yourself
in the small new freedoms that are offered by the changes he has
sincerely begun to make. He will blossom only if you reward him
for what he does correctly rather than to continually criticize and
ridicule him for not doing enough. I ask each of you to alter your
attitudes in these ways, and you will reap the gifts you have for each
other more fully. You will each find the other to be less of an enemy
and more of a friend.

Earnest: Okay, Giant, I will trust you to lead me to take small

steps. That much of an invitation, I offer. But if you dare to force
me to go too fast, or say another word about downhill skiing or
white-water rafting unless I bring up these horrific subjects, it will
148 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

be seven years and seven days before I will even discuss so much
as a vacation with you again.

Jolly Green Giant: Okay, Earnest, that is fair. And I do appreci­

ate the efforts you are makin’ to increase the enjoyment each of us
has in his life, however cautious they may be.

Inner Shaman: Watch that sarcasm, Giant.

Jolly Green Giant: Okay, okay. I know that each step you take
into my territory is frightening for you, and I will acknowledge
your efforts, and yes, even your courage for takin’ them.

Inner Shaman: That’s better.

Jolly Green Giant: Well, I guess that’s about as much fun as we

can hope to have for today. Let's shake on it.

Earnest (extending his hand, playfully); Aren’t you getting to be

the gentleman!

Inner Shaman: This is a good beginning. I must warn you not

to expect too much from each other. Each of you will make mis­
takes in learning the ways of your until-now distant counterpart.
I encourage you to treat what you have agreed upon as an experi­
ment, to approach it with goodwill, and when you have difficulties,
to return to me and to continue our deliberations.

You can see that, with his Shaman’s help, Frank’s competing sub­
personalities each began to recognize the strengths of the other's posi­
tion and to find within itself more room to experiment with ways that
had seemed foreign. Use your Inner Shaman to teach the figures
representing your conflict to cooperate in a way that makes the re­
sources of each more available to you.

Personal Ritual: Your Power Object

The natural environment is rich in metaphors that can instruct you

on attaining greater rapport with your inner nature. In this ritual, you
will use a natural object as an ally to teach you about harmonies and
balance as you envision your new personal myth. Go outdoors and
find a Power Object—a stone, a flower, a milkweed pod, a piece of
The Fourth Stage: From Vision to Commitment 149

wood, a leaf—that draws you to itself, or select something you already

possess. One man found a stone near his driveway that was smooth
on one side and rough on the other side. Meg chose her geode. People
often select something that grows. After you have selected your Power
Object, find a quiet space where you will not be interrupted. Become
comfortable and begin to relax.

Sink into the stillness and concentrate on your Power Object. It

will answer questions for you about your life and about your personal
mythology. This object from nature is a teacher, a guide, a gentle
witness about life. Look closely at your Power Object and get to know
it: touch it, feel it, smell it, taste it if you like. Get to know it well,
receiving information about it from allyour senses. [60-secondpause]
Ask, "What do you have to teach me about myself?” Allow the
answer to bubble up in your mind while you are touching or gazing
at it. Perhaps you and the object are similar in some ways. Or maybe
the object holds certain qualities that you are trying to attain. Maybe
the Power Object can tell you how to overcome certain obstacles.
Discover what your Power Object has to teach you about yourself.
[2-minute pause]
Changing the focus ofyour question, ask your Power Object what
it has to teach you about formulating a new myth that resolves the
conflict between your old myth and your counter-myth. [2-minute
pause]
Now ask your Power Object what it has to teach you about life. It
will show you much about living with more vitality as you approach
the perplexities and promises of existence. [2-minute pause]
When you have examined your Power Object and learned some­
thing of what it has to teach you about yourself, your mythology, and
your life, turn to your journal and record any further reflections.

Frank’s Power Object was an intricately layered piece of bark that

came from a fire-scorched tree.

My first observation when I asked what it had to teach me about

myself was that wherever the dead bark had fallen away, the bark
underneath it was more beautiful. This suggested to me the impor­
tance of letting go of past restrictions and of trusting that my
deeper parts will have more vitality than my outer “bark.”
150 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

When I asked what it had to teach me about my new mythology,

I received the same basic message. Parts of me through which I
once made contact with the world, such as my dedication to my
work, have now become veils. I must learn to drop away what is
dead, what does not enhance life, and to trust that what is beneath
it will serve me better. I also noticed that beneath the top layer,
which the tree was so freely discarding (there were chips all over
the floor), fresh healthy bark was hidden. So when the dead bark
dropped away, new strength and beauty appeared. This suggested
that I keep cultivating the inner parts I want to develop, rather than
to get too bogged down with trying to peel off the dead bark (my
hardness and drivenness) which will fall away on its own.
When I asked the bark what it had to teach me about life, I saw
how much that death is part of life, natural and inevitable. But I
am oriented to fight death, not just with my terror when I think of
dying, but in my fear of losing whatever I have. If I am willing to
risk the death of certain habits and patterns that are very familiar
to me and very comfortable, other vital but latent inner parts will
have room to flourish.

When you have finished asking these questions of your Power

Object, keep it in a special place, perhaps near your Personal Shield,
where you may easily consult it for further guidance. Native Ameri­
cans often construct special areas for their Power Objects or put them
in a position of honor in their homes. If their Power Object is perisha­
ble or fragile, they may gently return it to the earth where it can rejoin
the cycle of change.

Dream Focus:
Dreaming Your New Myth

Review your dream journal for any dreams that provide a glimpse
into a new myth that synthesizes the most functional parts of your old
myth and of your counter-myth. Use one or more dream techniques
to work with any dreams that you identify. If you wish to incubate
such a dream, before you go to sleep, ask for a new myth that resolves
your original conflict. Such a myth would incorporate the best of your
old myth with the best of your counter-myth. Before falling asleep,
take a few deep breaths, think about your conflict, tune into your
The Fourth Stage: From Vision to Commitment 151

desire for such new direction, and repeat ten to twenty times a state­
ment such as “I request a dream that reveals to me a new, more
wholesome, guiding image.” Immediately upon waking, record and
work with your dreams or insights.

Personal Ritual:
Part Three of Your Fairy Tale

Creating Part Three of your Fairy Tale is the next step in consciously
and deliberately laying out a metaphorical image that you may then
"reel yourself into.” Prepare yourself to create Part Three by review­
ing the two sections of your Fairy Tale that are already completed.
Consider the contrasting ways each part suggests for approaching the
problems life has presented. Also review the subsequent work you
have done toward resolving the conflict between the myths that gov­
ern these differing life postures.
Approach Part Three using the techniques that were most valuable
for you in creating the first two parts of your Fairy Tale. Regardless
of which methods you use, begin with the following instructions:

Take several deep breaths and let your breathing become slow and
deep. [30-second pause] Reflect on Part One of your Fairy Tale. [20-
second pause] Find which side ofyour body best represents this seg­
ment ofyour story and the old myth whose roots it describes. [Pause]
What are the sensations in this part of your body?
Reflect on Part Two ofyour Fairy Tale. [20-secondpause] Feel how
the other side ofyour body may represent this segment ofyour story
and the emerging myth that it depicts. [Pause] What are the sensations
in this part of your body?
As before, have your palms face each other and slowly bring them
together. When they touch, the sensations in the two sides of your
body will begin to mingle. As these sensations come into contact,
notice how they blend and merge. [30-secondpause] Allow these ener­
gies to swirl around one another, until a single feeling remains that
contains the best, the most vital, the most life-affirming aspects of
each. [Pause] With every breath, allow this new, unified sense to move
throughout your body and intensify.
Remaining attuned to this feeling of wholeness, you will create
Part Three of your Fairy Tale, extending the journey of the main
152 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

character beyond the trials of Part One and the magical adventures
of Part Two. A third segment will now emerge. Begin to develop that
story in your imagination, or speak it into a tape, or write it in your
journal, or share it with your partner. The story will end with a
plausible resolution to the dilemmas that the main character faced in
Part One, attained perhaps through the lessons or inspiration of Part
Two. When you are finished, be sure that it has been adequately
recorded in your journal.

Part Three of Frank’s Fairy Tale read:

Frankie had learned by this time that he was not destined to be

a King as he had once believed, and he had learned that to continue
to wish he could be a King would bring him much unhappiness. On
the other hand, he had reason to believe that if he could accept his
own ordinariness, he would be successful as a citizen and could
have much the kind of life that he wished. What surprised Frankie
when he looked in the crystal ball was that he did not envy the King
for his crown but for his vitality.
Frankie saw that he had made many choices that led him away
from such vitality. He realized, for instance, that the only thing
requiring him to do everything Just Right was his belief that he had
to, no matter what the personal cost. He also knew he could suc­
ceed when he set his mind to something, and he decided that his
desire to regain his spontaneity should be no exception. As he went
about this, however, he found that in one sense this project was an
exception. His style of persistently pushing toward a goal actually
interfered with the goal of being free in the moment. Still, he har­
nessed his persistence even in learning how to let go.
By the time Frankie had become a grown man, he was comfort­
able living in an ordinary home in an ordinary village. He had an
ordinary wife, ordinary children, and an ordinary job. But his
favorite word was "extraordinary.” Every day he would look in
wonderment at his world. His children were miracles to him. He
would spend hours playing with them, and he would delight in
their curiosity and enthusiasm for life. He cherished his wife—so
different from him, so mysterious, so exquisite, so lovable. They
would look in each other’s eyes for eons and make up poems about
what they saw. He loved his work. He would become absorbed in
the challenge of doing things a bit differently every day, always
The Fourth Stage: From Vision to Commitment 153

finding a creative twist. For this, he was appreciated by his col­

leagues and valued by his employer. He took great satisfaction in
the job he did, and he did not confuse his work with his worth, so
when he went home, his job responsibilities stayed at the office.
Frankie did not grow up to be King, but he lived happily ever after
with the wealth and power supplied by his rich inner life.

Here we see Frank adjusting what he values, what he will pursue,

and how he will pursue it. While his insistence on relaxing and enjoy­
ing the moment may seem somewhat frivolous when you think of the
profound life choices governed by personal myths, Frank’s ability to
relax and enjoy himself affects critical issues in his life. He was partic­
ularly concerned about chest pains that had been increasing in fre­
quency in recent months, and he was allowing himself to feel his
sadness that he had grown more distant from his wife over the years.
While he was not certain that the obsessive style supported by his old
myth was responsible for either of these problems, it had clearly
dominated his life and eclipsed his vitality. He became determined to
change it.
Your Fairy Tale will also suggest a new direction for you that
draws upon the inspiration of your counter-myth in correcting at
least some of the problems inherent in your old myth. The remain­
der of this chapter will provide opportunities to review this new seg­
ment of your Fairy Tale, make appropriate adjustments, and trans­
late it into language that is directly applicable to your current life.

Dream Focus: Seeking Confirmation

from Your Dreams

Mentally review this newest section of your Fairy Tale before going
to sleep and ask for a dream that will in some way confirm its validity
for you. Immediately upon waking, record any dreams, thoughts, or
inspiration. Be prepared to edit and revise Part Three of your Fairy
Tale to bring it in line with the insights that emerge. The above version
of Frank’s Part Three is actually his second rendition. After sleeping
on his first attempt, he realized that he had become carried away with
his literary creation and the power of authorship. He had gotten to
"happily ever after” easily and quickly by giving Frankie a Kingdom
of his own where he lived in pleasure and joy. He realized that his
154 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

initial effort was really another counter-myth solution. It did not

utilize what he had learned in Part Two to work out a practical ap­
proach for resolving the conflict. With this realization, revisions and
innovations began to occur to him, such as how he could have Frankie
discover that he can use his persistence as a strength, and he rewrote
Part Three that evening.

Personal Ritual:
The Sequel to Your Fairy Tale

A sequel is a literary work, complete in itself, but continuing a preced­

ing work. In the Sequel you are about to create, the direction taken
by your Fairy Tale will intersect with the anticipated direction of your
life. Before you begin, review Part Three of your Fairy Tale. Then find
a comfortable spot, settle in, and take a few deep breaths:

Close your eyes. Allow your breathing to become slow and deep.
Feel yourself relaxing more completely with your next five breaths:
ONE, TWO, THREE, FOUR, FIVE. Bring Part Three of your Fairy
Tale back to mind. [Pause] Tune into the most dominant positive
feeling. [Pause] Locate the part of your body in which you are most
strongly aware of this emotion, and let your breathing intensify it.
[30-secondpause] Again experience the feeling as a river, and imagine
yourself in a boat on that river. This time the river takes you forward
five years into the future. [30-second pause] On the bank of the river
you see, as if on a stage, a scene five years from now in which you are
living according to the guidance ofyour new myth. Enter the scene.
Notice the sights, sounds, and smells. Where are you? What are you
doing? Who is with you? Observe the scene carefully and note what
occurs. [60-second pause] When you are ready, count yourself back
from five to one.

Under the heading “Fairy Tale—Sequel,” record this story in your

journal. Frank’s Sequel read:

The first thing I see on the shore is that there are children,
playful and full of fresh energy. As I dock my boat, the children run
up to me full of excitement and curiosity. I have no concern about
The Fourth Stage: From Vision to Commitment 155

taking the time to speak with them and play with them. Nor am I
stopped by any shyness. I know how to open my heart and let the
energy flow. Later, I am in a hut transacting some business. The
same openness and vigor are there in my dealings. I can play hard,
and I can work playfully.
Suddenly Diane [his wife] is there. We have grown closer and
have much more fun together. We take a walk in the woods. We
have learned to see and deeply feel the miracles of life that teem
in the forest. We show each other intricate root patterns and specu­
late on how they developed. She takes my hand and gently places
it on some lush moss. I take my finger, wet now with dew, and
moisten her lips. I’m very much in love.

Personal Ritual: Seeking Confirmation

from the “Powers That Be”

When people reflect upon the most far-reaching powers that human
consciousness can begin to conceive—the realm referred to by words
such as God, the Tao, or the Ground of Being—they may relate most
strongly to a picture, a concept, a voice, or even a sound (great musi­
cians have been thought of as implements for the "signature of God”).
Although it is beyond the human intellect to understand this realm,
many rites, prayers, and meditations are designed to elevate our feel­
ings to reach toward it.
In this ritual, you will be asked to open yourself to this realm—
however you conceive of it—and to submit, for confirmation or ad­
justment, the new myth you have been formulating. Your Inner Sha­
man, who dwells close to this domain, will be your guide. To begin,
find a comfortable spot, settle in, and take a few deep breaths:

Close your eyes. Allow your breathing to become slow and deep.
Feel yourself relaxing more completely with your next five breaths:
ONE, TWO, THREE, FOUR, FIVE. Carry out the method you have
been using to visit your Inner Shaman. [30-second pause] After you
have greeted your Shaman, let it be known that you wish to be tran­
sported into the Upper World. You want to enter a realm where you
will be blessed by the presence of the Divine, or the "Powers That Be. ”
Your Shaman smiles and bids you to be seated. You are given a
sacred herb. You ingest it, lie back, and relax. Soon you are entering
a powerful state of spiritual a wareness. You feel yourself entering the
156 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

realm of the Divine, the Kingdom of God. [Pause] Your sense of a

Divine presence intensifies as you continue to breathe deeply. [60-
second pause]
You remember that you have a task to perform. You are to review
your new myth. From this higher awareness, you are to consider the
worthiness of the new myth that is expressed in your Fairy Tale and
its Sequel. Sense that there are wise and benevolent forces around
you, and they bring to your a wareness the answers to your questions.
Does this guiding myth call to the best and the highest that is within
you? [Pause] Is the myth built on arrogance or grandiosity? [Pause]
Does it lack in ambition? Is it limited by your fears and apprehen­
sions? [Pause] Will it lead to problems in five years that you did not
anticipate? [Pause] Is it simply more than you are ready to attempt to
implement in your life at this time? [Pause] Should any adjustments
be made before you set your will to changing your life in the image
of this myth? [60-second pause]
Now state your new guiding myth. [Pause] Find a single sentence
or short paragraph that contains its essence. Know that you are sur­
rounded by sacred forces that will help you. Listen as this direct
statement ofyour new myth enters your awareness. [60-secondpause]
When you are finished, again bask in the high energies that sur­
round you. Be open to other visions or insight. [30-second pause]
Again find your Shaman. Describe your new myth to your Shaman.
Listen for a response. [60-second pause] When you are ready, take
leave of your Shaman and count yourself back from five to one.

Under the heading “My New Guiding Myth,” describe your new
myth, along with any other reflections on this experience. As Frank
listened to the instructions, he was flooded with the feelings of awe
and inspiration that had surprised and transported him to a sense of
religious appreciation a dozen years earlier when he had visited a
magnificent cathedral in Cologne. Describing his new myth, he
wrote:

My new myth instructs me to affirm all within me that is pas­

sionate and life-supporting—to appreciate it, attend to it, make
room for it, and enjoy it as I move through life. I am to be particu­
larly alert to my tendency to lock myself into unnecessary or high­
paced activities that crowd out spontaneity and passion. And while
I am taking the time to affirm what joy and creativity may be mine,
The Fourth Stage: From Vision to Commitment 157

I am not to judge what is not there; I am not to focus a searchlight

on every inner event and sit in judgment should it not live up to my
hopes or expectations.
I am to use this principle both in work and play. I am to use it
in looking backward and in looking forward. When I look back on
events that have occurred, I am to immerse myself in what was
life-affirming, and to align myself with such experiences. I am not
to keep focusing upon times that were limited by my obsessions
and deficiencies. Such analysis has been my pattern, based upon
the belief that I can only learn from my mistakes, but beyond a
point this has had only the effect of dragging me down. Looking in
the forward direction, I am to project this same life-affirming em­
phasis into my future. The expectations I send out for myself are
to be confident and encouraging. Specifically, my new myth as­
sures me that I will activate the more vital and passionate ways of
being I have been exploring throughout the program. I can see this;
I can expect it; I know it will come to pass.

As you can see, this statement is expressed neither in the form of

a story (as in his Fairy Tale) nor as a rule of conduct (as would be
found in ethical systems such as the Ten Commandments), but simply
as a reminder, in Frank’s own language, of how he intends to monitor
certain thoughts that affect his passion. Some people, such as Meg, use
more poetic language in stating their new myth (“I am part of Crea­
tion. . . .”), and you are encouraged to make your statement in the
language most fitting for you. You will see in the following chapter
how even an abstract or poetic statement of your new mythic vision
can be translated into concrete steps for living by its guidance.

Personal Ritual:
Completing Your Shield

When you created your Personal Shield, you did not complete the fifth
section, which is to symbolically represent your renewed vision of
Paradise Regained. Your final task in this chapter will be to formulate
an image for the Renewed Vision section of your Shield, based on all
the work you have done to this point in the program. First, review the
initial image of Paradise Regained from your Shield and any com­
ments you made about it in your journal. That image represented an
ideal you had been following before beginning the program. The work
158 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

you have done to this point has probably challenged that image. Does
a new symbol occur to you that captures the spirit of the new myth
you formulated in the previous chapter? If one comes easily and
spontaneously, or if one appeared to you during a dream or one of the
previous rituals, simply draw it on your Shield and skip over this
exercise. Otherwise, examine the original Paradise Lost and Paradise
Regained portions of your Shield. Get a mental picture of these sym­
bols that you will be able to recall as you listen to the following
instructions. Find a comfortable spot, settle in, and take a few deep
breaths:

Close your eyes. Allow your breathing to become slow and deep.
Feel yourself relaxing more completely with your next five breaths:
ONE, TWO, THREE, FOUR, FIVE. Imagine that you are in front of
a great pyramid. [Pause] Place the symbol from your Shield that
represents Paradise Lost at one corner of the base of this pyramid.
[Pause] Place the Paradise Regained symbol from your Shield at the
other corner. [Pause] Your symbols are about to rise along the sides
of the pyramid. They begin to rise now, coming closer and closer
together.
Know that when they meet at the tip of the pyramid, they will
transform into a new symbol. This new image will symbolize an
integration, a renewed image ofParadise Regained. It will account for
the realities that are part of Paradise Lost, and it will reveal new
possibilities. Allow the symbols to move up the sides of the pyramid
at their own rate. When they reach the apex, watch how they merge
into the new symbol. [60-second pause] If your symbol has not yet
appeared, watch for it during the following moments.
Study your symbol, using the power ofyour imagination. [Pause]
Step back and look at your symbol from another perspective. [Pause]
Take the symbol off the pyramid and bring it closer. Touch it and
explore it. [30-second pause] Finally, if you are willing, merge the
symbol with your body. Incorporate it into your being. Sense its
vitality as it becomes part of you. [Pause] When you are ready, count
yourself back from five to one, take a deep breath, and open your eyes.
Draw or describe the symbol on the "Renewed Vision "section ofyour
Shield and reflect on it in your journal.

Here is Frank’s description of his new Paradise Regained image:

When the symbols touched, the background was all pink and I
kind of slipped back in time to feelings from a very early age.
The Fourth Stage: From Vision to Commitment 159

Suddenly, there was this warm, pink, soft-plastic toy I haven’t

thought of since I was maybe two or three. I had deep, rich, warm
feelings as I remembered this toy (I couldn’t quite see the toy, I just
remembered its pinkness and how good I felt playing with it). It
seemed to represent a time in my life when my spontaneity was
uninhibited, my appetites were honest and unrestrained, and my
experience of the world was sensual and innocent. When I brought
the image into my body, it suddenly became my heart, pulsating,
pink, vibrant, alive. I felt myself reclaiming my childhood enthusi­
asm, happiness, and bubbling laughter, and this newly enlivened
heart was the image I drew on my Shield.

On to Stage Five
The personal rituals you have carried out to this point have focused
primarily on your inner life. The rituals in the final stage of the
program will bring your attention to the relationship between your
inner world and your environment. You will be challenged to trans­
late your new mythic vision into practical guidance for your life.
______________________ 6
The Fifth Stage: Weaving a
Renewed Mythology into Daily Life

Carefully observe what way your heart draws you and then choose that
way with all your strength. —hassidic saying

The first four stages of the program have been an exercise in carefully
observing "what way your heart draws you.” This final stage is an
exercise in choosing “that way with all your strength.” You have been
freeing yourself from limiting visions that trace back to your child­
hood and to your culture’s mythology. But even implementing
changes that are clearly desirable may require the full strength of
your will. Behavioral patterns and habits of thought that grew out of
an old myth, now consciously rejected, may tenaciously persist.
On the other hand, by bringing resolution to the mythic conflict
you identified early in the program, and formulating a new mythic
image, you have already brought fresh momentum and direction to
your inner life. A number of additional steps can be useful for inte­
grating into your world the renewed mythic guidance you have been
developing. These steps call for both an inward focus and an outward
focus. The inner focus involves additional changes in the images you
"cast” in front of yourself and changes in what you say to yourself as
you make your way through your daily experiences. The outer focus
involves practical changes in your habits and priorities.
This final phase of the program draws particularly from tech­
niques that have been developed by cognitive1 and behavioral2 psy­
chotherapists for bringing about changes in thought patterns and
behavior. You will, for instance, monitor your "self-talk”—the sub­
vocal and often subconscious speech we direct toward ourselves—
which might unwittingly promote the old myth. And you will formu­
late fresh “self-statements” that support the new myth.

160
The Fifth Stage: Weaving a Renewed Mythology into Daily Life 161

You also will carry out "behavior rehearsals,” role plays that allow
you to experience acting upon the new myth under simulated condi­
tions. You will transmute your new myth into a vivid thought form,
and you will be using bodily postures and mental imagery to internal­
ize it further. You will create “behavioral contracts” with another
person or your Inner Shaman. These contracts will focus on changes
needed in the areas of your life that still reinforce the myth you want
to move beyond, as well as on possible changes that would reinforce
the mythic image you want to pursue. You also will be invited to
inaugurate your new myth formally in a ceremony with those who are
intimate with you, to reinforce it with daily rituals that you will
design, and to maintain ongoing contact with the deeper dimensions
of your mythology. By the time you have performed the personal
rituals presented in this chapter, you will have established a frame­
work for understanding your life in a way that supports the myth you
have so conscientiously been cultivating. And you will have taken
deliberate steps to implement that new myth in your conduct and
your daily routines.

MEG’S ONGOING JOURNEY

In the first ritual of this final stage of the program, you will experi­
ment with feeling your new myth in your body and living it in your
imagination. You will see yourself carrying out the new myth flaw­
lessly. Meg used the image of her abalone necklace as a catalyst for
calling up her new myth and experiencing it in her body. Staying with
these feelings, she brought to mind a situation that she knew would
be challenging:

I have made an agreement with an acquaintance that he will do

something for me. I have made several commitments and accom­
modations based on that understanding. Then he fails to follow
through, and I am left in an awkward and compromised position.
This always has elicited feelings of abandonment, betrayal, and
anger on my part. I’ve tended to feel punished and punishing. I
would withdraw to such a degree that the person would have abso­
lutely no access to me. There would be no way he could ever have
anything from me again. I would also feel like a fool that I was
misled by the other person.
Operating from my new myth, I see myself redirecting this en­
ergy, giving the best possible interpretation I can find for under­
standing the person’s behavior. I don’t take it as a personal affront.
I stay rooted in my principles, but I also stay flexible like the kelp
162 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

and consider all that might have caused the other’s actions and all
the possible ways for me to respond other than withdrawal. I feel
good as I imagine myself operating from this position.

Your next task will be to notice the kinds of self-statements that are
maintaining your old myth, and to formulate self-statements that will
support your new myth. Meg invoked her Inner Shaman to help her
with this task. Among the inner vocalizations serving to maintain her
old myth were:

If I’m pleasant to people who don’t see things my way, I’m giving
in to the codgers and the emotionally constipated.
If I restrain an impulse in a particular situation, I will be killing
my spontaneity and my spirit.
If I carry out a task in the routine and established way, I will
be inhibiting my self-expression and stifling my growth.

Inner vocalizations that could help implant her new myth in­
cluded:

Understanding the other person’s point of view will increase my

effectiveness and equanimity.
Saying no to some impulses is in my interest and leaves energy
to invest in other ways.
Moderation allows me the self-control to develop skills and
understanding I once thought impossible.

She familiarized herself with both lists and began to recognize

when the self-statements associated with the old myth were operating.
She learned how to stop such thoughts and to replace them with
self-statements that supported her new myth. After you have done this
with your own self-statements, you will plan a series of action-
oriented rituals that further establish your new myth.
Meg designed the following ritual, which served as a daily re­
minder of her new myth:

I will get a package of colorful balloons and choose one whose

color matches a quality I want to develop. I will slowly blow it up
until it is plump and pretty, and I will write on it the name of the
quality. When there are several balloons, I will hang them carefully
from my bathroom mirror until there is a wreath of words like
patience (soft blue), kindness (warm pink), humor (red), forgive­
ness (deep blue), learning (green), and honor (white) surrounding
164 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

my face in the morning and night when I brush my hair and teeth.
I expect to enjoy this collage. If a balloon should deflate, I will
quietly replace it, with no reproach to myself.

In another ritual, she planned to make a public statement that

symbolized her intention to implement her new myth:

I will be the "balloon lady” at the next Summit Summer Festival.

I will write one nice word on each balloon and the children will be
surprised to find qualities like Love, Beauty, and Truth dancing
over their heads on a string. I will enjoy the sight very much, and
I will lovingly offer each child an understanding of their special
quality. If anyone is curious about why I did it, I will answer in a
way that reflects my new myth: "Serenity is gained through loving,
thoughtful action.”

The next task is to identify factors that are supporting or inhibiting

your intention to live according to your new myth. One resource that
was working to support Meg’s new myth was her "incredible richness
of close friends who are marvelous models of goodness.” Another
support was that she lived "in a setting that has less commotion than
most people have to endure.” She also recognized that her own hope,
insight, determination, desire, experience, and faith were all factors
that were working in favor of her new myth. Influences she identified
that were working against her new myth included old habits, fears,
spite, suspicion, jealousy, and neediness. You will be encouraged to
review your list with a partner or small group. Meg and her partner
identified several specific actions she could take to strengthen the
forces that were supporting her chosen mythology, and they found
creative ways to deal with some of those that were interfering with it.
At that point she requested another dream, this time asking for
guidance on the next steps she might take in implementing her new
myth:

I am in a little room painted jailhouse-green. The walls are

metal, the floor is cement with a drain in it, the only seats are metal
folding chairs with hard backs. I am seated in the center of a circle.
Ugly men and women with harsh voices and hateful expressions
are taking turns exposing my sins of commission and omission.
One says, “You treated your father shamefully, neglecting him in
his last days.” Another says, "You have always been self-indulgent
and sly.” Another accuses me, saying, "You stole from your
mother’s purse.” They go on and on. Some things are petty, others
momentous in my life. All are faults, inadequacies, or transgres­
The Fifth Stage: Weaving a Renewed Mythology into Daily Life 165

sions. I feel horrible. Trapped. Without resources. I long for rescue

or death. Neither happens and the voices go on and on.
I notice, in my desperation, that there is a door. I measure the
distance and decide to try for it. I make it! The door is unlocked—
I have only to go through it. I have the sense that there is a sign on
the door which reads “PAST.” Outside a colt is galloping in a
meadow under the benign and amused protection of a mare. I close
the old door behind me.
Meg reviewed her dream, her self-statements, and her analysis of
the forces that supported the new myth and those that worked against
it. Based on this review, she made a contract with her partner in
which she specified the actions she would begin to take for bringing
her life into closer harmony with her new myth. One of the items in
her contract, for instance, was:
When I hear one of those ugly, repetitious inner voices detailing
my badness, I will stop and attend to what is being said. I will then
assess if there is any proper action possible to right old wrongs or
to learn by what occurred. I will do what is proper if I can see such
a course of action. If there is nothing more to learn and no proper
action to take, I will redirect my energy to something I have done
or am doing well. I will deny energy to destructive ideas by recog­
nizing them and then starving them to death.
In her contract, Meg identified several areas of focus, including
monitoring her self-judgments, allowing more vulnerability with oth­
ers, initiating more intimate and risky conversation with her friends,
and listening patiently to other people’s points of view. When she and
her partner met a week later, Meg recounted her progress in taking
these steps and reported a welcome shift in her relationships. Meg and
her partner met each week for two months. At each meeting they
reviewed her successes, discussed areas of difficulty in carrying out
the contract, and revised the contract for the following week. By the
end of the second month, Meg felt that inner guidance in support of
her new myth—“Serenity is gained through loving, thoughtful action”
—had become conscious and accessible to her in many of the same
areas of her life in which the isolation and defensiveness of the old
myth had caused problems.

BUILDING YOUR NEW

MYTHOLOGY INTO YOUR LIFE

The rituals you will perform in this chapter are designed to increase
the harmony between your new myth and the way you live your life.
166 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

Personal Ritual: Invoking the

New Myth in Your “Subtle Body”

There is an extensive tradition in both the East and the West which
holds that each person possesses a secondary, nonphysical body, re­
ferred to variously as the “subtle body,” the "pranic body,” or the
“etheric body.”3 You can contact this "subtle body” in your imagina­
tion. Although you may prefer to think of the subtle body as a meta­
phor rather than as an actual entity, you can envision it as a bridge
between your thoughts and your behavior. By influencing your subtle
body with your thoughts, you can subdue patterns of behavior that
have been habitual and automatic.
Mental imagery is one way of affecting your subtle body and its
manifestations in the physical world. Numerous research studies
have confirmed "the fact that vividly experienced imagery, imagery
that is both seen and felt, can substantially affect brain waves, blood
flow, heart rate, skin temperature, gastric secretions, and immune
response—in fact, the total physiology.”4 The following brief exercise
provides a concrete demonstration of what we are referring to by the
term subtle body.5

Stand erect and move your head to the right as far as it will go
without straining. Measure the degree of rotation by noting precisely
where you are staring when the movement stops. Come back to center
and raise your right arm, stretching toward the sky. With your right
arm overhead, extend the fingers on your right hand and bend back
at the wrist. Now stretch all the way down your right side. Next, lower
your right arm and stretch your right leg. Extend the toes ofyour right
foot as you bend it at the ankle. Come back to center and again,
without straining, measure the degree of rotation by turning your
head to the right. You will note that your head rotated farther on the
second try, which may be readily explained by the mechanics of the
stretching exercise.
Now rotate your head to the left and observe the part of the room
you can see when the rotation stops. Come back to center. This time,
without moving a muscle, imagine that you are raising the left arm
of your subtle body overhead. Imagine that you are extending the
fingers of the left hand and bending it back at the wrist. Now imagine
you are stretching all the way down your left side: left arm, left side
of chest, stomach, left leg. Still not moving a muscle, imagine that you
are stretching your left leg, and extending the toes ofyour left foot as
The Fifth Stage: Weaving a Renewed Mythology into Daily Life 167

you bend it back at the ankle. Relax. Again, without straining, mea­
sure the degree of rotation by turning your head to the left. Most
people will report that their heads also rotated farther after this se­
quence, even though there was no physical stretching, only mental
imagery. To con vince yourself that this effect is real, you might repeat
the experiment at another time, varying the order and switching the
side ofyour body that you physically stretch and the side you stretch
only in your imagination.

Imagery that is felt in the body has been shown to be effective in

assisting people in situations ranging from recovering from an opera­
tion to preparing to compete in the Olympics: “The mental rehearsal
of a sales presentation or a marathon race evokes muscular change
and more: blood pressure goes up, brain waves change, and sweat
glands become active.”6 Imagined performance can improve actual
performance. The free-throw percentage of basketball players, for
instance, has been shown to increase after they imagined themselves
practicing perfect shots.
In this ritual, you will use imagery to align your subtle body with
your new myth. Study the "Renewed Vision” symbol on your Shield.
Find a comfortable position, close your eyes, and begin to relax.

Bring to mind your “Renewed Vision” symbol and the meaning it

holds for you. [Pause] Get a sense of what it would feel like to act
according to the myth represented by that image. [Pause] Find a
plausible situation from your life in which you might behave accord­
ing to this new myth. You might be expressing an honest opinion in
a delicate circumstance, approaching an employer with confidence,
or enjoying a quiet moment with a loved one.
Find a scene where it would be useful to act according to your new
myth. [Pause] Where are you? Who else is there? What are you doing?
[Pause] Focus now on your bodily feelings in this situation. How does
it feel to be enacting the new myth? [Pause] Imagine the gestures you
might employ and the posture you might assume. [Pause] Feel your
words forming in your throat and mouth. [Pause] Continue to “prac­
tice” living out your new myth in your subtle body for several min­
utes. When you are ready, open your eyes and describe the experience
in your journal.
168 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

Frank reflected on his relationship with his wife:

I’m much too somber, serious, and negative with Diane, and I
decided to create, in my subtle body, more feelings of joy around
her. At first, I had difficulty activating these feelings. Then I imag­
ined there was less pressure on me in other parts of my life, and
I had all sorts of extra energy. I could feel the aliveness of my new
pulsating pink heart flowing throughout my body, and the aliveness
infused my subtle body. I liked this preview of how our relationship
might change if I were less pressured and more open to that pulsat­
ing pink heart.

Mentally practice the new behavior several times each day and
imagine that as you carry it out, you are building your new mythology
into your subtle body. In the following rituals, you will be shown
additional ways of anchoring your new mythology into your subtle
body, your thoughts, and your behavior.

Personal Ritual: Cultivating Self-Statements

to Support Your New Myth

People, unlike any other creature on earth, are motivated by what

they tell themselves—whether critical or compassionate, wise or ab­
surd. Our attitudes, viewpoints, and opinions are expressed in our
self-talk, the internal, subvocal statements we say to ourselves. Conse­
quently, a powerful way to facilitate desired changes in your mythol­
ogy is to identify the self-statements or automatic thoughts associated
with the old, dysfunctional myth and to consciously replace them
with more constructive self-statements that represent the new myth.
When people change their self-statements, their feelings and
behaviors also change.7 Among the types of irrational self-statements
that people frequently use, which are expressions of dysfunctional
personal myths, are: “I need everyone to love and admire me,” "What­
ever I do, I must do perfectly,” and "I don’t deserve to enjoy myself
while others are suffering.”
Frank noted that when he thought of a creative project, or even a
feasible project, he automatically started to subvocally instruct him­
self to begin work on the project. His free time was always being
crowded out with such projects, which he initiated without consider­
ing their costs to his equanimity and personal development. In this
ritual, you will be reflecting on habitual self-statements that maintain
The Fifth Stage: Weaving a Renewed Mythology into Daily Life 169

outmoded patterns of behavior. In your journal, make a heading:

“Self-Statements That Support My Old Myth.” Find a comfortable
position, take several deep breaths, and begin to relax.

Call upon your Inner Shaman. [30-secondpause] Exchange words

ofgreeting. Observe. Listen. [Pause] Describe your old myth. Discuss
your new understandings of the role it has played in your life.
With your Shaman, identify some of the phrases that tend to main­
tain that myth. Hold them in your memory or gently rouse yourself
so you can record them in yourjournal as they come to you. List three
or four self-statements that seem pivotal in supporting your old myth.
When you have completed this task, take respectful leave of your
Shaman as you gently return to your waking consciousness.

Identify the self-statements on your list that you believe will be the
most difficult to give up. Pitting dysfunctional self-statements or auto­
matic thoughts against the test of rational analysis can help us to
distance ourselves from them. For each of the self-statements that you
feel may be difficult for you to disengage, write in your journal the
answers to these questions:8

1. What evidence supports this self-statement?

2. What evidence disputes it?
3. What would happen to me if I no longer heeded it?

Let this reasoning sink in deeply, and refer to it as you work toward
altering the automatic thoughts that are keeping you tied to your old
myth.
Frank did not think he would easily be able to ignore the inner
voice that told him that if he were to remain respectable and success­
ful in his profession, he was required to continually master the tiniest
details and exert his full effort at all times. When he challenged this
belief, he came to see that success and status were not nearly the
issues for him that they once had been. Both were well established;
he was proud of his career achievements and people consistently
responded to him with respect. He realized he had much more license
than he was using to simply "relax and enjoy the ride.”
Bring your new myth to mind. You will be identifying the kinds
of self-talk that support it. Make a heading in your journal labeled
"Self-Statements That Support My New Myth.” Find a comfortable
position, take several deep breaths, and begin to relax.
170 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

Again call upon your Inner Shaman. [30-secondpause] Exchange

words of greeting. Observe. Listen. [Pause] Use the bodily imagery
you developed in the earlier personal ritual to create in your subtle
body the feelings you associate with the new myth. Describe your new
myth. Discuss your understanding of the role it can play in your life.
With your Shaman, identify some phrases that might support that
myth. Hold them in your memory or gently rouse yourself so you can
record them in your journal as they come to you. List three or four
self-statements that would nourish your new myth. [Pause] When you
have completed this task, take leave of your Shaman as you gently
return to your waking consciousness.

Among the self-statements that could support Frank’s new myth

were: “I can always divide my work with breaks that allow me to relax
deeply and enjoy tuning into the experience of my senses.” He
adopted a simple meditation technique to use in situations where he
felt tense: “Notice breath. Soften belly. Open heart.” Other self-state­
ments included: "I am a worthy human being even if I let this project
pass by”; "When I can play, I do play”; and, "I am highly selective
about where I expend my perfectionism.”
You may feel that some of your new self-statements will be difficult
to believe or to follow. If so, adapt the three questions previously
listed for examining their validity. It may be necessary to revise some
of your self-statements to bring them in line with what you consider
reasonable and plausible.
Frank, for instance, could not rationally support one of the state­
ments on his list: “I bolster my enthusiasm for life by seeing only the
positive elements when I review a situation.” He was able to revise it,
however, to: “When I find the positive elements in a situation, I accept
them and enjoy them, and I no longer discount them by measuring
them against what might have been possible.” Continue to formulate
and revise your list until you have a set of self-statements that offers
you sensible guidance for this new direction in your mythology.
The more you can habitually and concretely build this second list
into your automatic thought patterns, the more quickly your behav­
ior will align itself with your new myth. One useful technique is to
imagine, for each statement, a situation in which you would feel
good acting in accordance with that statement. Construct the situa­
tion fully—see pictures, hear words, and feel your physical sensa­
tions in the scene. Self-statements that have been linked to images,
feelings, and sensations are more potent than thoughts alone. An­
The Fifth Stage: Weaving a Renewed Mythology into Daily Life 171

other aid is to write the list in large and colorful letters and place it
where you will regularly see it—on a mirror, on the refrigerator, on
your bedroom wall. Repetition strengthens the influence of a self­
statement. Use the list as an opportunity for frequently reviewing
your new self-statements.
We also suggest that you begin to recognize the self-statements
associated with the dysfunctional myth and use a cognitive-behav­
ioral approach called "thought-stopping” when you realize such inner
guidance is at play. In thought-stopping, you simply interrupt an ob­
jectionable self-statement as soon as you recognize it, and immedi­
ately replace it with one that is in line with your intentions. When you
recognize a habitual thought or self-statement that supports the old
myth, take a deep breath. As you exhale, imagine yourself releasing
the thought and your old myth. With the next inhalation, replace that
thought with a self-statement that supports your new myth. As you
breathe, let the statement imprint itself upon you.
Frank began to pause instances where he normally would have
reflexively told his wife he was too busy to do something they would
both enjoy. He would then note automatic thoughts that were operat­
ing to keep him bound to his work, whether the activity was essential
or not. When he identified such thoughts, he replaced them with the
self-statement, “When I can play, I do play,” and then made his deci­
sion.
He also recognized that one of the ways he cut off his passion was
by “not being fully present to what is.” He realized that he devoted a
great deal of his mental energy to ruminating about whether one
thing or another was going to go wrong. He made a commitment to
himself that whenever he recognized that his mind had drifted into
obsessive worry, he would immediately take a deep breath and say to
himself: “Notice breath. Soften belly. Open heart.” Frank found it
useful at the end of each day to log in his journal the old self-state­
ments he had recognized and the new ones with which he replaced
them.

Personal Ritual: Ceremonial

Enactments of Your New Myth

The steps you have taken to this point have prepared you to affirm and
strengthen your new myth through a series of private rituals and a
public ceremony in which you will proclaim the new mythology in the
172 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

presence of people who care about you. Begin with the following
private enactment of your new myth:

Standing with your eyes closed, once again invoke your sense of
the new myth in your subtle body. [Pause] Find the posture that
reflects this mythology—the stance, the feeling of strength, the flexi­
bility, the facial expressions. [30-secondpause] Now, recall the situa­
tion from the earlier body-imagery exercise in which you acted ac­
cording to the new myth, or make up a new scene. [Pause] Again, in
your subtle body, create a mental pantomime—mentally going
through the actions that are an expression of the new myth. [30-
second pause] Now open your eyes and "step into" your pantomime.
Physically but silently enact the pantomime. [30-secondpause] Enact
the pantomime again, this time adding words. You may wish to repeat
the pantomime a number of times, experimenting with different posi­
tions, voice tones, wording, and situations.

Describe this "behavioral rehearsal” ritual in your journal. Frank

imagined himself to be intensely involved in a project when his wife
comes up to "ask for my car keys because she has misplaced hers
again. Where I am usually irritated by such interruptions, I remind
myself, 'When I can play, I do play.’ I get up, take her by the hand,
whirl her around twice, dance her across the room, and we wind up
tickling each other and biting one another’s necks.”

Daily Personal Ritual

The next task is to invent and describe in your journal a ritual you can
perform each day that will help to establish the new myth in your life.
A daily ritual might involve meditating for a few moments before
each meal on a symbol that represents your new myth. It might mean
you ceremoniously repeat your pantomime every evening before you
retire or in some other way direct your intentions into your subtle
body. You might translate your mythic vision into a behavior you can
regularly repeat. To implement a myth that allows you to receive help
and support from others, for instance, you might each day ask a
diderent person to do a small favor for you. At the end of the day, you
could ritualistically mark on a calendar the requests you made that
day and the results of having made them.
One woman, whose new myth guided her toward becoming more
responsible, took her Power Object, a beautiful stone, and committed
The Fifth Stage: Weaving a Renewed Mythology into Daily Life 173

herself to carrying it and exploring it every time she went up or down

the stairs in her home. The stone was to come with her on every trip.
If she forgot it, she would interrupt whatever she was doing to fulfill
the rite. In so doing, she was continually renewing her commitment
toward greater responsibility, and with each trip up or down the
staircase she was communing with her Power Object as well.
A simple and effective daily ritual might be some variation on the
following: Each morning, in front of the mirror, direct the feelings
you associate with your new myth into your subtle body, assume a
posture and facial expression that represents this myth, summarize its
guidance in a single statement, and hold a one-minute discussion with
the mirror anticipating this day from the perspective of the new myth.
Frank, who found it difficult to get going in the morning, decided
to start each day by standing in front of a mirror and finding a posture
that symbolized his old myth. He would then meditate on the feelings
he associated with the new pink heart and would let those feelings
pulsate throughout his body until they filled him so completely that
he was moved to stretch his body to make room for them. He would
imagine he was stretching his whole being into harmony with his new
mythology, until he relaxed into a posture that for him was a physical
statement of that myth. Finally, he would identify one situation he
anticipated that day which was likely to trigger the old myth, and he
would envision himself handling it according to his new myth. In
your journal, design a single ritual you are willing to perform daily
until you decide it has served its purpose.

Public Ritual
You also will plan a transition ritual that marks a public declaration
of your new myth. Often, one aspect of such a ritual is to ceremoni­
ously leave the old myth behind. You could, for example, find a photo­
graph of yourself during a period when you were in the grips of the
old myth, or create a drawing representing that period. In the ritual,
you might burn the photograph or drawing with a friend there to
witness, scattering the ashes and drinking a toast to your new myth
as it is symbolized on your Shield. Frank brought a dozen pink roses
to his wife along with a letter he had just written turning down a new
account he normally would have accepted, even though it clearly
would have overtaxed him. He showed her the new enlivened pink
heart on his Shield, which happened to be the identical shade of the
roses. And he promised that he would say yes to her next three invita­
tions to do something together.
At the most basic level, your ritual could simply involve having
174 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

someone who cares about you witness your daily ritual or the behav­
ioral enactment you did earlier. In a more ambitious observance, you
might involve a number of friends, assigning each of them parts in the
behavioral enactment so that it becomes more like a skit or play. If,
for instance, your new mythology tells you to behave more asser­
tively, the enactment might have others playing your employers, un­
sympathetic coworkers, judgmental friends, or perhaps an unscrupu­
lous auto mechanic and his boss, in creating a scene in which your
interpersonal actions are more effective. Another kind of ceremony
might involve simply making a statement of your intentions at a
gathering of certain intimates, or sharing a creative expression of
your new myth, such as your Shield, a drawing, poem, or new set of
clothes. You may wish to embellish the ritual with candles, food, song,
and dance.
A poignant ritual was carried out by a woman whose mythology
had grown out of a childhood that was afflicted with molestation and
parental alcoholism. In her new mythology, she had come to an inte­
gration of toughness and compassion. She timed the ritual to coincide
with a Thanksgiving gathering in which her husband, brother, sisters,
nieces, nephews, and children were all present. After announcing, as
they gathered in the living room following dinner, that she was per­
forming a ritual to commemorate a change in the mythology she was
living out, she showed them her Shield. She used the symbolism on
her Shield in describing her life as an emerging drama whose purpose
was to teach her both the compassion and the toughness that charac­
terized her new myth. She described how the critical events of her life
opened her to the wisdom of this new mythology, and she told her
personal Fairy Tale, emphasizing how the theme of the entire adven­
ture was to help the heroine learn the new mythology.
Everyone was deeply moved, and some were stunned, as she
metaphorically disclosed family secrets that had been concealed for
decades. With everyone’s rapt attention, she potently ended the rit­
ual by presenting her eldest daughter—as a legacy for her future
offspring—with her Shield, a tape recording she made while telling
her story, and a letter to a male descendant and another to a female
descendant, four generations off, describing her new myth and how
she came to it.
Once you have designed a public ritual that seems appropriate and
pleasing to you, make plans in your journal for carrying it out. Be
aware of the mood you wish to create, design the event with that mood
in mind, and communicate to the participants the importance of the
The Fifth Stage: Weaving a Renewed Mythology into Daily Life 175

event. Also, ask one or more of the participants to serve as a partner

or support group for you in carrying out your new mythology. Select
people you perceive to be resourceful, caring, and accepting. Specific
suggestions as to how to work with your partner or support group will
be included in the final rituals in this chapter.

Personal Ritual: Creating an Ecology

that Supports Your New Myth

One of the most venerable principles in modern psychology is that

people will seek out and repeat behaviors that are rewarded and avoid
behaviors that are punished. You are more likely to change maladap­
tive behavioral patterns when they are no longer reinforced. In this
ritual, you will identify the rewards and punishments in your environ­
ment that promote or hinder behavior that is in accordance with your
new myth. By making changes that favor your new myth, you will
prepare an ecology, a balance of relationships with your environ­
ment, in which it is more likely to flourish.
Consider how the behavior of your family, friends, coworkers, or
acquaintances sustains your old myth or reinforces the desired behav­
iors associated with your new myth. Identify actions you can take so
the desired behaviors are more frequently reinforced. You might en­
courage the people whose behavior supports your new myth to keep
reinforcing it, or arrange to spend more time with them, or ask others
to provide similar support. Conversely, you might ask certain people
to stop reinforcing the behaviors that arose out of the old myth. One
woman, who wanted to change what she perceived as her “tendency
to mother other people,” asked her friends to stop praising her for
being so helpful to everyone. Frank started to form friendships with
people who knew him outside of his professional identity, hoping to
reinforce the development of other parts of his personality. Enlisting
people who care about you to support behavior that is consistent with
your new myth helps build it into your life.
A second way of changing the reinforcers acting on you is to shift
your priorities. If your new myth instructs you to make more time for
your inner development, but in addition to your work and family
responsibilities, you coach a soccer team, are organizing a recall drive
against the local mayor, sit on five community boards, and subscribe
to a dozen popular magazines, the new myth will have little chance
to thrive until your commitments change. In setting priorities, an
176 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

underlying principle is that the relative strength of a social reinforcer

is related to what you value. As your values change, you will see that
the activities you find reinforcing also change. You may spend many
hours every week happily doing tedious chores for a cause in which
you passionately believe, but then find yourself resenting the time and
effort as your dedications change. Priorities are tangible statements
in the world that reflect the myths you held when you established
them. As you evolve, however, unexamined priorities may quietly
keep you locked in a mythology you have outgrown.
A third focus is to change the reinforcers you draw to yourself.
Suppose you are hoping to become more accepting of other people,
but spend most of your spare time in a militant campaign for or
against abortion in your local community. Whatever the virtues of
your crusade, your choice of activity is decidedly not creating an
interpersonal atmosphere that is supportive of living according to
your desired myth. Changing a guiding myth often pits us against
difficult ethical choices of which we might previously have been obliv­
ious. In directing more of his energies toward his personal life, Frank
was tugged by his sense of social responsibility.

Many reinforcers and punishments are symbolic, meeting psycho­

logical rather than only practical needs. The culture teaches us to
attach our sense of adequacy or our self-esteem to particular kinds of
symbols, such as money, position, or beauty. As the qualities to which
your sense of self-worth is attached shift from those conditioned by
your culture to those chosen by a deeper voice, your life is likely to
bring you richer satisfactions. A man whose self-esteem is contingent
on the number of women he can attract may find that as he becomes
more psychologically mature, he begins to derive an unanticipated
sense of fulfillment from the depth rather than the number of his
relationships.
Frank identified several internal and external conditions that were
reinforcing his new myth:

• The playful presence of my wife

• I've distinguished myself enough so that I no longer have to
struggle for professional success
• I am increasingly restless with tasks that don’t hold meaning
for me
• I know that beneath my shyness and obsessiveness is a very
passionate and playful man
The Fifth Stage: Weaving a Renewed Mythology into Daily Life 177

Conditions that were acting to negatively reinforce the new myth

included:

• I feel I don’t have a right to enjoy my life if I’m not achieving

prodigiously
• I do receive additional recognition and commissions when I
overwork
• When I try to have fun, I usually feel awkward and the experi­
ence seems empty
• Most of my friends are also high achievers whom I know
mainly through my work, and I haven’t developed other kinds
of friendships

Use what you have learned through this program about creating
personal rituals to invent a ritual that will lead you to construct a "List
of Reinforcers.” The list will specify the rewards and punishments
that cause your life to be more or less aligned with your new myth.
Identify the positive and negative reinforcers in your environment,
and also the symbolic reinforcers that operate within you, such as
Frank’s feeling that he had to produce prodigiously to earn pleasure.
You might sit down and simply make the list, giving it a ritualistic flair
by using pleasing colors and attractive paper as you create it. You
might take an imagery journey and consult your Inner Shaman before
completing the list. Or you might get together with a friend who can
help give you perspective as you analyze the forces in your environ­
ment that are influencing your efforts to implement your new myth.
Give serious consideration to this important task of identifying the
factors that strengthen or obstruct the development of your new
myth. In the following personal ritual, you will refer to your List of
Reinforcers as you decide where to focus your conscious efforts for
effecting changes so that behavior that is in line with your chosen
myth is rewarded more and punished less.

Dream Focus: A Next-Step Dream

Review your journal to see if any of your recent dreams has suggested
a next step for implementing your new myth. If they have not, you
may attempt to incubate such a dream by first reviewing what you
have done to this point in the chapter. Then repeat ten to twenty times
178 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

before you go to sleep this statement: “I will have a dream about how
to live my myth, and I will remember my dream.” Record and work
with any dreams or early morning insights.
Frank reported a dream in which he was romantically pursuing a
woman at a drive-in fast-food restaurant, which reminded him of a
high school hangout where he recalled having had many "intense and
erotically charged adolescent-type feelings.” As he established eye
contact with the woman, he suddenly realized that she was his wife.
Their eyes met with the palpable charge that he had for the chase. He
woke up feeling confirmed in his resolve to bring greater passion to
his marriage.

Personal Ritual: A Contract for

Living Your New Mythology

Patterns that have long been part of your life do not necessarily trans­
form themselves just because you recognize that change would be
valuable. One of the most potentially reinforcing sources of support
for implementing new modes of thought and behavior is to establish
accountability with someone who cares about you. As part of the
"public ritual” you performed earlier, you were asked to select one or
more people who could provide such support. If you have not yet done
this, identify such a person or persons to help you review your prog­
ress, serve as a sounding board, and plan new actions on a continuing
basis. If there is no one available who could effectively serve you in
these ways, you can go through the following instructions by using
your Inner Shaman or your journal as a surrogate partner.
At first Frank was going to ask his wife to be his partner, but he
decided that because she was already such a key figure in the areas
he wished to change, it would be better to be accountable to someone
else. It happened that he had a colleague who had recently joined a
men’s consciousness group and who was talking about many issues
that were similar to those emerging while Frank was exploring his
personal mythology. When he asked this colleague to serve as his
partner, the man readily agreed.
"Behavioral contracts" are used to specify new behaviors that are
associated with desired goals. They are statements of intent to per­
form specific, measurable actions that are steps toward reaching a
goal. Behavioral contracts provide reinforcement for learning these
The Fifth Stage: Weaving a Renewed Mythology into Daily Life 179

behaviors and for beginning to make them habitual. In the behavioral

contract, accountability becomes a form of support. The following
ritual involves creating a behavioral contract. It gives structure to the
way you will have your partner assist you.
You are to make a contract with your partner that specifies the
actions you will take to begin to implement your new myth. Later you
will review your experiences in attempting to fulfill the contract. You
also will consider at that point what you learned from your efforts and
how you might best revise the contract. A behavioral contract should
propel you into the challenges of the new myth without overwhelming
you with unreasonable expectations.
After discussing with your partner the possible actions you might
take, label a new page of your journal "My Contract” and put the date
at the top of the page. Each point in the contract should be specific,
stating, if possible, where, how, with whom, and when you will carry
out the action: "I will have spoken with Sheldon, Constance, and the
guy from the Historical Society by Tuesday to identify at least four
potential volunteer activities that would stimulate my intellect.” Put­
ting specifics in your contract provides you and your partner with
criteria for evaluating the results of your efforts. While your behav­
ioral contract may specify any areas you choose, it is particularly
recommended that you focus on three topics already covered in this
chapter: a daily ritual; making changes so your new myth will be
reinforced more frequently; and monitoring your self-statements so
that your new myth is better supported and your old myth is less
frequently activated.
With your partner, review the experiences you have had to this
point with your daily ritual. What has been valuable and what has not
been valuable? Devise, with your partner, a personal ritual you are
willing to carry out each day that will consistently reinforce your new
myth in your subtle body and in your behavior. Frank enjoyed his
morning stretching ritual but also found that it became mechanical
when he did it every day. He decided that he would do the stretching
ritual on. his days off. On the way to work, he would contemplate his
heart image and bring its energy to the spirit of his work and to the
decisions he had to make that day.
Also review your List of Reinforcers with your partner. Assess
what you have learned from your initial attempts to shift the positive
and negative reinforcers that affect your new myth. With your part­
ner, decide what other actions would strengthen one or more of the
promoting forces and minimize or eliminate one or more of the inhib-
180 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

iting forces. Some features will seem easy to change and therefore
good targets; others, although less accessible, may still seem impor­
tant for your attention. Start with one or two areas. Describe a first
step in bringing about a change. Because the contract will be updated
on a regular basis, you need specify only initial steps that can be
accomplished within a short period of time.
One of Frank’s goals was to spend more time with his wife, whom
he saw as the single person most likely to be able to provide effective
support for his new myth. He decided his first step that week would
be to go into work late on his wife’s day off and to bring her to a
restaurant for a leisurely breakfast. Shortly afterwards, he had an
opportunity to take a more substantial action. He had been working
two years to secure an account that would be very challenging to
manage, extremely demanding, but also one that would pay well and
offer high prestige. He had been ready to jump at the opportunity for
a long time. But when he received the contract, he found that he was
reluctant to sign it. He had the feeling that he was about to sign away
all of the promises he had recently made to himself.
He decided to wait a few days and live with the implications of
taking the project. He talked the issue over with his partner, the
colleague who was in the men’s group. They came up with what
seemed to Frank to be a radical idea: He referred the account to the
most prestigious investment firm in the area. The fact that he was in
a position to be able to make that referral was a boost for his reputa­
tion and his standing in the professional community, so the move was
not without some practical benefits. More important, in terms of his
new mythology, it was a significant commitment to bringing more
peace and intimacy into his life.
In addition to your personal ritual and your analysis of reinforc­
ers, review with your partner the list of self-statements that support
your old myth. What feelings, words, and behaviors on your part can
serve as cues to signal that your old myth is operating? Write these
items under the heading “Traces of My Old Myth.” Become so familiar
with these cues that whenever they occur, you will be likely to recog­
nize them. Make a contract with your partner about what you will do
when you become aware of one of these cues at a given moment. You
might, for instance, use the thought-stopping technique described ear­
lier and replace the old self-statement with a self-statement associated
with your new myth.
Frank was determined to stop a pattern of piling one project on top
of another in a way that crowded out any sense of accomplishment
and pleasure. He identified the "endpoints” of various projects, and
The Fifth Stage: Weaving a Renewed Mythology into Daily Life 181

when he reached them, he would monitor the inner voice that auto­
matically directed him to the next task at hand. He listed several
simple rewards, ranging from taking a brief walk to watching a video
to taking a day off from work, and whenever he reached an "end­
point,” he would instruct himself to stop and treat himself to one of
the activities on that list. He also decided that he had better get his
partner’s help in monitoring the self-statements he would use to evalu­
ate his success with his behavioral contract. He agreed to measure his
progress in the first week in terms of any new experiences that felt
good to him, and he pledged to interrupt any thoughts about how
much more he might have accomplished.
By the time you and your partner have completed the ritual of
creating a contract, you will have identified several activities you plan
to initiate. Your behavioral contract will specify concrete actions you
can accomplish in the immediate future. Name names, indicate the
number of times you will carry out an action, describe anticipated
situations. Be so specific that when you and your partner review these
plans, it will be clear which goals you accomplished. In making your
contract, you and your partner should be particularly cautious about
specifying steps that are too ambitious. Anticipate obstacles to suc­
cessfully fulfilling the contract, and make plans about how to meet
those obstacles when you encounter them. Arrange to meet with your
partner again in about a week. Use the instructions in the following
personal ritual to structure the way you and your partner review your
attempts to support the new myth and to assess what can be learned
from any obstacles that emerged.

An Ongoing Ritual: Creating a

Feedback Loop as Your Mythology Evolves

In this ritual, you will create an active feedback loop as you begin to
implement the new myth you have formulated. You will be drawing
upon a technique called "action research.”9 Social scientists some­
times employ action research when helping community groups trans­
form their goals and values into effective measures. You can use some
of the basic principles contained in this method as you mobilize your
intention to implement your new myth. Action research generally
begins with a systematic assessment of a situation that needs to be
changed. The central concept in action research is that ongoing feed­
182 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

back is critical for mobilizing effective action. Constructively chang­

ing a social system is not seen as a one-shot endeavor. Even the most
carefully considered attempts are best viewed as practical research
that produces information which can be used in planning subsequent
action. After carefully defining precisely what changes are desired,
action research proceeds through five basic stages: (1) fact-finding to
assess possibilities for change and obstacles to change; (2) planning
specific actions for bringing about the desired change; (3) carrying
out this plan; (4) evaluating the results of the actions that were taken;
and (5) feeding this information back to the individuals concerned in
order to begin another round of the cycle.10
By the time you meet with your partner to review your progress,
the first three stages already will have been completed. The action
research model gives a structure for reviewing what has occurred and
what to do next. Attempts at changing an established system are not
expected to go exactly as planned, and the results of such attempts are
used to gather new information. Future attempts can thus be revised
and made more effective. In this way, an ongoing feedback loop is
established: plans are made, action is taken, results are analyzed, and
new plans are formulated. Outcomes are valued according to the
learnings they produce as well as the actual changes they accomplish.
We advise that you adopt this perspective in each of your review
sessions with your partner. One of the most informative ways to
understand your own mythic system is to make attempts to change it
and observe what takes place.
A hazard of becoming aware of your counter-myth is that the
counter-myth sometimes seems so appealing that there is a natural
desire just to live according to it. Such leaps often meet with failure
and discouragement, and when they do, they may have the paradoxi­
cal effect of strengthening the old myth. Going through the steps of
this program provides an alternative that allows you to retain some
of the promise and inspiration of the counter-myth, while integrating
it into a well-considered myth that is more attainable. As you review
your contract, you are likely to find areas in which you still have not
struck a workable balance. Consider whether parts of your contract
that you were unable to carry out were untenable because the new
myth is not quite realistic or fitting for you. It is often necessary to
make revisions in the myth from one meeting with your partner to the
next. This is a natural and expected adjustment, and the action re­
search model can help you to monitor areas where such changes are
required.
Plan your first review meeting with your partner so it will include
some ceremony and ritual—perhaps through the sharing of food or
The Fifth Stage: Weaving a Renewed Mythology into Daily Life 183

a special atmosphere. Consider which items from your contract you

attempted to carry out and what resulted. What do these results sug­
gest about future plans? How should the contract be revised? Also
review the total process. Was the contract too ambitious? Or not chal­
lenging enough? Were you able to become motivated to carry it out?
Did you and your partner correctly anticipate and plan for obstacles?
Finally, remain alert to how the old myth may have influenced even
the way you attempt to change it.

Frank’s old myth caused him to be overly ambitious in envisioning

his goals, and his contract was no exception. As he pushed toward
meeting its terms, he found himself starting to approach the activities
with a sense of drudgery. His plan to measure his progress according
to small gains got lost in the shuffle. He was gaining little creative
insight, and he was discouraged by the time of the first review. His
partner, however, pointed out the way his old myth was trapping him
and helped Frank recognize the pattern, see the irony in it, and ease
back into the program. Noting how his self-discipline was stifling his
passion even in this attempt to rekindle that passion, Frank revised
his contract. He developed an image where he would “use my mind
as a machete to carefully clear away the weeds in my life that are
crowding out my passion, but I will not get so obsessed with clearing
the weeds that there is no time to enjoy the garden.” His second
contract included fewer assignments, and required that he devote
specified periods of time to savor the successful completion of each
item.
With your partner, review your experiences in carrying out the
first contract and, based on your new insights, create a second con­
tract. Again, be as specific as possible in describing each task you
agree to do, and decide when you will hold your next meeting. The
action research model keeps your awareness attuned to your mythol­
ogy as you express it in the world, and it fosters ongoing monitoring
and adjustments. We suggest that you continue the process on a
weekly basis, with your partner or in your journal, for as long as
implementing the new myth seems important in your development.
Some people become discouraged at this point because they find
it more difficult to fulfill their contracts than they had anticipated. Ask
your partner to help you affirm the steps you have taken in expanding
your awareness, and to use the action research perspective for revis­
ing your contract so it will be in closer correspondence with what you
are actually able to accomplish. Even if you are just beginning to
184 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

achieve changes in the desired directions, you are already living with
a greater awareness of the mythic dimension of your inner life. Do not
allow the complexities of implementing mythic changes in your outer
life to obscure the importance of the inner changes you have already
made. Also keep in mind that it is easier to articulate a new myth than
it is to live it. We’ve not yet found a person who couldn’t conceptualize
a new mythology which, to some degree, resolved the underlying
mythic conflict. That is basically a mental task. Integrating the new
myth into your life, however, is a task that challenges your total
personality, may push the limits of your environment, and will re­
quire sustained effort, experimentation, and awareness.
No human growth process moves in a neat and orderly sequence,
such as the steps that can be identified for facilitating that process.
The five-stage model you are now completing has assisted a wide
range of individuals to encounter their mythic roots, but the system
is only a tool to be adapted to your own pace and direction. Some
people return to earlier stages of the program to repeat one of the
rituals, such as the “Dialogue” or “Power Object.” About six months
after completing the program, Frank felt that he had reached a pla­
teau and wanted to renew his focus. He reread his journal and decided
to make a number of adjustments. He found a new Sequel for his
Fairy Tale, and he repeated many of the subsequent rituals as well.
The excerpts from his journal presented in these chapters were the
most recent entries for each ritual.
In closing this guide to our five-stage model, we wish to emphasize
that just as the development of your personal mythology is an unend­
ing process, you may use this five-stage approach any number of
times. People who have gone through our workshops more than once
have had vastly different experiences each time. You will also find
ways to streamline and customize the approach as you become more
familiar with the methods. It is not, for instance, necessary to create
a new Personal Shield or Autobiography each time you explore a
mythic conflict. The personal rituals are simply devices for turning
inward and establishing a harmony between your efforts and the
natural five-stage process by which myths develop. The more you use
these methods, the more you will understand the principles behind
them and be able to adapt them to a regular discipline of stepping
back and focusing on how your mythology is unfolding. The follow­
ing chapter will further crystallize your understanding of those prin­
ciples. Your personal myths are an ongoing legacy from your past that
extends into your future, and the more effectively you are able to
attend to them, the richer that legacy will be for you.
 ___________ 7
Your Evolving Mythology

While in the life of the human race the mythical is an early and primi­
tive stage, in the life of the individual it is a late and mature one. What
is gained is an insight into the higher truth depicted in the actual; a
smiling knowledge of the eternal, the ever-being and authentic.
—THOMAS MANN1

In the program you have just completed, you drew upon a mythologi­
cal perspective as you reached toward a higher order of understand­
ing. By bringing the clouding effects of limiting personal myths into
your awareness, you have been increasing your power of inward
choice. You have focused your energies toward resolving emotional
conflicts that have kept you bound to outdated mythic images, and
you are envisioning new directions for your future.
In this chapter, we present a theoretical framework to supplement
the experiential understanding you developed as you worked with
your personal mythology. We want to leave you with a scientifically
informed perspective and explicit reference points as your mythology
continues to evolve. We have synthesized pertinent psychological lit­
erature in formulating an overview of the four sources of personal
myths, the four modes of myth-making, and the ways myths change
over the course of life. The chapter closes with a review of the pro­
gram from the vantage of the Inner Shaman and a synopsis of seven
principles that govern the development of a personal mythology.

THE SOURCES OF YOUR

PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

Your mythology is the product of four interacting sources. Biology,

culture, and personal history are the most obvious. A fourth source

185
186 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

is rooted in transcendent experiences—those episodes, insights,

dreams, and visions that have a numinous quality which seems to
expand our comprehension and inspire our behavior. For Philip
Wheelwright, “the very essence of myth” is “that haunting awareness
of transcendental forces peering through the cracks of the visible
universe.”2

Biological Sources
Personal myths, like all mental representations, are coded in the cere­
bral cortex. The structure of your brain evolved through the mil­
lennia, and one of nature’s greatest miracles is in the way the human
brain came to support the complex processes that allow us to form
mythological explanations of our experiences. Some researchers be­
lieve there is an area of the brain that instantly, and with no volition,
constructs explanations of why a particular event or behavior oc­
curred. According to neuropsychologist Michael S. Gazzaniga:

We seem to be endowed with an endless capacity to generate

hypotheses as to why we engage in any behavior. In short, our
species has a special brain component I will call "the inter­
preter.” Even though a behavior . . . can be expressed at any
time during our waking hours, this special interpreter accommo­
dates and instantly constructs a theory to explain why the behav­
ior occurred. . . . This special capacity, which is a brain compo­
nent found in the left dominant hemisphere of right-handed
humans, reveals how important the carrying out of behaviors is
for the formation of many theories about the self.3

Thus, the moment-by-moment creation of explanations, a rudi­

mentary form of myth-making, appears to be a natural activity of the
brain. The brain represents the world with verbal and pictorial sym­
bols and employs narrative as it expands such explanations into per­
sonal myths. The capacities for explanation, symbolism, and narra­
tive can carry you into the past or the future, transport you to nearby
or faraway locations, and deliver you to realms imaginary or real.
They are rooted in your biology and are building blocks for your
ability to think mythically.
The patterns by which children learn to speak are so universal that
a “deep structure,” which determines the rules of grammar and the
basic forms of language, is thought to be tied to the organization of
the human brain.4 Just as certain rules of grammar seem to be based
Your Evolving Mythology
188 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

on biological predispositions that make up the “deep structure” of

language, it is likely that a "deep structure” of myth-making, which
governs the patterns by which all people find guidance and meaning,
also has a biological basis. The anthropologist Claude Levi-Strauss
contended that the patterns observed in cultural myths reveal a uni­
versal logic that is literally embedded in the “structure of the mind.”5
Cultures spanning all ages and places have indeed developed
myths and rituals whose configurations are similar. Carl Jung docu­
mented universal themes both in the artistic and literary legacies of
various cultures and in the reveries and dreams of his clients.6 He
referred to these innate dispositions for specific kinds of thought and
behavior as "archetypes,” and he believed that they reflect a geneti­
cally coded maturational plan whose nature is revealed to conscious­
ness through dreams, art, and other expressions of the inner self.
Archetypes serve as the “deep structures” of personal myths. Erich
Neumann believed that archetypes are not only a “main constituent
of mythology,” but that they determine the growth and development
of the individual’s consciousness as well. “Consciousness evolves by
passing through a series of ‘eternal images,’ and the ego, transformed
in the passage, is constantly experiencing a new relationship to the
archetype.”7 Neumann proposed that an innate sequence of arche­
types unfolds to guide the psychological development of the individ­
ual from birth to maturity. As the principles of one archetype become
outmoded and ineffectual, another archetype stands ready to assume
the task of organizing experience and guiding the individual to the
next stage of maturation. The Hero archetype, for instance, propels
adolescents away from their associations with the Great Mother ar­
chetype, manifest in the home and family, and outward toward the
world of self-determination. Thus the archetype that originally
bonded the child to the mother is superseded by an archetype with the
theme of separation and autonomy.
The notion of a genetic basis to the symbols that propel personal
behavior and cultural themes has, not surprisingly, been controver­
sial. The appearance of universal symbols in cultures separated by
time and space is, nevertheless, difficult to explain, and evidence from
such diverse fields as psychiatry, anthropology, ethology, and socio­
biology has converged to lead some experts, such as psychiatrist An­
thony Stevens, to suggest that archetypes “have been subject to the
essentially biological processes of evolution no less than the anatomi­
cal and physiological structures [that] first established the truth of
Darwin’s theory.”8 Other explanations hold that archetypal images
reflect a more subtle order of reality, a “collective unconscious” that
Your Evolving Mythology 189

the human brain can access in a manner analogous to the way a radio,
depending on where it is tuned, can bring in Mozart’s “Flute and Harp
Concerto” or “Truckin’ ” by the Grateful Dead.
A more firmly established biological influence on your developing
mythology is your temperament. Individual differences in such quali­
ties as activity level, inclination toward approach or withdrawal, and
intensity of reactions are observable within weeks of birth and re­
tained into adulthood.9 A person who is by temperament attuned to'
and more trusting of thoughts will create a very different mythology
from another who is more oriented toward feelings. Mr. Spock of
“Star Trek” and jolly old St. Nick will develop vastly dissimilar myth­
ologies based on temperament alone. Temperament also influences
which societal myths you will find agreeable. If, by temperament, you
are quite introverted, you will enjoy greater serenity in a family
whose mythology supports solitude than in one that pushes you into
a high degree of social activity. The inherited effects of temperament
may be highly specific. Identical twins, separated at birth and re­
united several decades later, may find that they share the same favor­
ite foods, drive the same style of car, and have married similar
spouses.10
Physiological imbalances caused by drugs, brain injury, or hor­
monal irregularities have been implicated in depression, hyperac­
tivity, and psychosis, and they can have an obvious impact on per­
sonal myths as well. Another factor in the development of your
mythology is stress. Stress upsets the brain’s chemical balance and
may interfere with perception and thought. Because many of the
critical decisions that shape personal myths are made under condi­
tions of duress, it can be of great value to rework those decisions
under more optimal conditions, just as you have been doing in this
program.

Cultural Sources
Joseph Campbell described four basic human urges.11 The impulse to
eat (with the corresponding requirement that food must be killed
because all life feeds on life) and the impulse to procreate are the two
primal biological compulsions. A third, the motivation to conquer, “is
not of any such primal urgency, but of an impulse launched from the
eyes, not to consume, but to possess.”12 When not adequately chan­
neled by the culture’s myths and rites, these primal urges “become
terrific, horrifying, and destructive.”13 The fourth urge, compassion,
is also an impulse launched from the eyes rather than the immediate
urgency of the organs. It appeared late in the evolution of species, yet
190 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

the higher mammals already evidence compassion in their play and

in the care of their young. A primary responsibility for the myths of
a society is to direct these primal urges for the good of the community.
Campbell notes that all mythological systems direct the “expansive
faculty of the heart” toward the collective, "while deliberately direct­
ing outward every impulse toward violence.”14
Human behavior, unlike that of most species, is regulated by sym­
bols and internal speech rather than instinct. To a large extent, the
words and images people generate for themselves are reflections of
their culture’s mythology. Imagine how differently a child growing up
on the streets of the Bronx will think and feel compared to a child
growing up in a Samoan village, the Kalahari Desert, or even upstate
New York. Education, politics, business, religion, and family are
among the institutions that instill the collective mythology into the
individual's personal mythology. The family has first claim on mold­
ing the development of the individual’s guiding mythology, and it
provides a microcosm as the person unfolds into the wider commu­
nity. A commentary from the I Ching, perhaps the oldest existing book
on the planet, portrays the family as society in embryo: “It is the
native soil on which performance of moral duty is made easy through
natural affection, so that within a small circle a basis of moral prac­
tice is created, and this is later widened to include human relation­
ships in general.”15
According to Dennis Anderson and Steven Bagarozzi, who have
investigated the clinical implications of family myths, families ac­
tively select and adopt as their own "those cultural myths whose
various components and symbols have meaning and importance for
each family member.”16 Certain themes will grow out of the family’s
unique history while others will be shared by most families within a
culture. In industrialized countries, enormous emphasis has been
placed upon acquiring material goods, as satirized by the bumper
sticker "He Who Dies with the Most Toys Wins.” Progress has been
defined according to myths that emphasize the subjugation of nature,
the accumulation of power and wealth, and the invention of techno­
logical marvels.
What seems natural in one culture may seem unnatural or even
perverse to people who live by a different mythology. In the tradition
of the Lakota Sioux, for example, our wanton exploitation of the
environment is seen as a prophesied step toward the end of life as it
has been known ("a thick cloud hangs over the people ... many plants
and animals will die”).17 Before the Chinese revolution, daughters of
the noble classes had their feet bound, which ultimately rendered
Your Evolving Mythology 191

them unable to walk. The practice bestowed status because it accen­

tuated the ownership of servants, who could carry the women where
they wanted to go. Of course, it also ensured that the women were
unable to roam. In the United States, high heels and tuxedos are
required for many occasions where one expects to be served, and an
endless series of fads from "hula hoops” to "pet rocks” became, in a
brief moment of celebrity, compelling purchases for countless num­
bers of people. As a graffiti poet put it, "Culture is ubiquitous, that’s
why people act ridiculous.” Customs that seem strange to an outsider
are accepted without question within the culture and possess a sym­
bolic significance that is perfectly sensible in the logic of the local
mythology.
Anthropologist Edward Hall explains that the human nervous sys­
tem is structured in such a way that the logic which governs behavior
and perception comes into consciousness only when there is a "devia­
tion from plan.” This is why the most important "rules governing
behavior, the ones that control our lives, function below the level of
conscious awareness and are not generally available for analysis.”18
Psychologist Charles Tart uses the term consensus trance to de­
scribe the habitual, automated manner of "normal” consciousness.19
A characteristic of the consensus trance is “a retreat from ordinary
sensory/instinctual reality to abstractions about reality.”20 Although
we may like to think of ourselves as being free of automated behavior,
the consensus trance is an integral part of efficient psychological
functioning. It allows us to move through our days without the stress
and strain of having to make methodical decisions for every option
life presents. But, according to Tart, it also is a state of partially
suspended animation that "involves a loss of much of our essential
vitality.”
The consensus trance reflects the assumptions that are embedded
in the culture’s mythology. Its contour is, for each individual, shaped
by a personalized adaptation of the society’s unquestioned assump­
tions. The consensus trance is induced in part through continual expo­
sure to the mythic images reflected in the culture’s institutions, laws,
art, and folkways. It embodies the hidden assumptions that are at the
basis of our understanding of the world, and it programs much of our
behavior. Just as people who are hypnotized still can carry on a con­
versation, get a drink of water, or sing a popular song, most people
ordinarily function quite well within the restricted awareness of the
consensus trance. Members of a social group usually do not realize
the limitations of the group’s world view because it is all they have
known, and those around them operate within a similar structure. In
192 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

these ways, cultural myths serve to define the boundaries of our

awareness, often banishing novel perceptions, intuitions, and
thoughts to the far corners of the psyche.
Hall emphasizes that it is not that we should “be in synch with, or
adapt to” our culture, but that cultures “grow out of synch with” the
people they are there to serve. He targets bureaucracies as a major
“stumbling block on the road to the future.” In Hall’s view, "We have
enshrined organization at the expense of the individual, and in so
doing forced the individual into molds that are not appropriate.”21 He
suggests that the times compel us to learn to transcend our culture
and embark “on the difficult journey beyond culture.”22 He believes
that "the greatest separation feat of all is when one manages to gradu­
ally free oneself from the grip of unconscious culture.”
To accomplish this, Hall proposes that we obtain greater exposure
to other cultures in order to more fully recognize, as well as trans­
cend, our own. In fact, he tells us that to survive, all cultures need one
another. It is indeed an extraordinary turn of history that so many
cultures can cross-fertilize one another to the extent that is now possi­
ble. This, Hall believes, is the key to taking the critical step “beyond
culture.”
This book has presented another approach for freeing yourself
“from the grip of unconscious culture.” Rather than traveling to other
lands to obtain a perspective on your cultural myths, you have em­
barked upon an inner voyage with a mythic itinerary. By increasing
your familiarity with the deep world of your own mythology, you gain
a basis for making comparisons with the mythology expressed by
your culture, and thus a vantage point for attaining a new perspective
on it. While myths that have been programmed by biology, culture,
and personal experience are not easy to change, when you come to
understand the role they are playing in your life, you increase your
ability to chart your own destiny. Through the personal rituals in this
program, you have acquired a vehicle for temporarily peering be­
neath your personalized version of the consensus trance, examining
the assumptions of the mythology that shaped it, and beginning to
transform that mythology.

Personal History
From birth onward, you accumulate a legacy of experiences, some of
which are formative in your evolving mythology. Certain episodes,
such as winning a mathematics contest, being invited to the prom by
the class president, or getting fired from a job, can be pivotal to your
developing identity. Critical incidents are particularly formative in
the lives of children. The child’s identity depends on the answers given
Your Evolving Mythology 193

to such questions as “Who am I?” “What is the meaning of my early

memories?” “What is my place in the adult world?” and “What will I
do in the future?” An adolescent’s “identity crisis” reworks these an­
swers. And the adult “midlife crisis” takes the person yet further into
more refined and subtle levels of these questions.23
According to object relations theory, a contemporary revision of
Freud’s psychology, infants initially regard the world and everything
in it as a part of themselves.24 As they become able to make a distinc­
tion between themselves and the environment, the realms of “I” and
“not-I,” self-relations and object relations are created. These internal
representations of self and environment establish the core models
around which the child’s mythology will be elaborated.
Object relations theorists are particularly concerned with the rela­
tionship between the incomplete accomplishment of childhood devel­
opmental tasks and many of the psychological problems of adults.
When you are in a situation that arouses an emotionally charged
internal representation of issues from your past, your perceptions and
behavior are affected. You tend to unconsciously project certain
memories, feelings, and beliefs into such circumstances. If your
mother was extremely critical and you meet someone who reminds
you of her, the internal representations you project onto that person
may cause you to be defensive, submissive, or hostile. Your choice of
a mate may have to correspond with a certain hair coloring, voice
tone, or tendency to dominate, though the model may be outside your
awareness. We project both our internal conflicts and our fondest
dreams onto the canvas of our outer lives.
Stephen Johnson, a psychologist who integrates object relations
theory with approaches that focus on the way emotional conflicts
become lodged in the body, emphasizes the human organism’s need
for self-expression.25 Character type is related to the way parents and
other significant people in our early years support or thwart our
self-expressions: assertion of our right to exist, to satisfy our needs, to
become independent from others, and to express love. Inevitably,
there were some ways the environment suppressed our expressions of
self, and there were other ways that we were punished for what we
did express. As children, we had to cope with or attempt to evade these
constraints. Where we did not succeed, we felt threatened, rejected,
or stifled, and reacted with anger, fear, or grief. In response to these
feelings, we created compromises by suppressing our need for auton­
omy, denying our needs for nourishment and support, or holding
back our need to give and receive love. To maintain these strategies
for coping, we may have adopted illusions about the world and inte­
grated these illusions into our evolving mythology.
194 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

Many of the myths developed in childhood determine the way we

live in the world. If your accommodation to a harsh parent was to
deny your feelings, you may have unwittingly come to experience the
world through your intellect. Your internal representations would be
relatively void of the feeling dimension. If your accommodation was
to be placating or overly compliant, your internal model may portray
you as being inadequate to manage your own affairs and guide you
to live through other people. If your accommodation was to turn your
anger against yourself, you may consistently represent yourself as
unworthy and be unjustly self-punishing.
Your initial adjustment to frustrated needs and potentials is at the
core of your mythology and also reflects itself in your body. Accord­
ing to some psychotherapists, “all unresolved emotional conflicts be­
come structured in the body in the form of chronic muscular ten­
sions” that affect outlook and behavior.26 Johnson describes how in
people who were deprived of physical or emotional nourishment, the
natural rage at deprivation may be “held back, literally in the jaw,
throat and arms, while the eyes often betray the very real longing
which the person experiences unconsciously.”27 In people who were
adequately nourished but whose autonomy was thwarted—where the
parent withdraws attention, support, or approval when the child ex­
presses independence—the body is often undeveloped, undercharged,
and characterized by restricted movement and breathing. Children
whose parents expected too much of them may have been unable to
come to terms with their own limitations, resulting in a “puffed-up”
quality in the head and upper chest, as if the body were trying to live
up to the false self-image in posture and musculature.28 In people
whose will was crushed by a controlling parent, the muscles of the
face, throat, neck, thighs, and pelvic floor may be chronically con­
stricted in a manner that blocks direct assertion, while the eyes reveal
prolonged suffering.
Your personal mythology reflects the psychological adjustments
you made to adapt to the circumstances you faced in your early years,
and it is revealed in your body and your style of life. As you mature,
your mythology evolves in tandem. Your ability to successfully re­
spond to the ongoing challenges that life presents increases as your
mythology becomes more flexible, balanced, and complete.

Transcendent Experiences
Some experiences engender awesome feelings, radiant insights,
remarkable healings, or exceptional performances. They take us
Your Evolving Mythology 195

beyond our ordinary sense of existence. Such moments of transcen­

dence may occur during meditation, prayer, or intensive psycho­
therapy.29 They may result from viewing a newborn baby or an awe­
some work of art, hearing an inspirational sermon or piece of music,
or making intimate contact with one’s child or one’s beloved. A fu­
neral, a personal "near-death” episode (recall Fred’s story described
in chapter 1), or a graduation ceremony also may elicit such experi­
ences. They may occur in a dream, in a desert, or on a crowded street.
A superior performance during a sports event may accompany a sense
of transcending one’s ordinary limitations. The rapid recovery from
a disease may follow a vision that filled life with a renewed sense of
purpose.
Carl Jung emphasized that spiritual questions are especially im­
portant during the second half of a person’s life, but transcendent
experiences may have a definitive effect at any point. At least fifty
percent of those Americans surveyed have reported experiences in
which they felt a shift onto a level of reality that brought them
spiritual insights, revelations of a deeper truth, or contact with some­
thing sacred.30 Transcendent experiences vary in their strength and
significance. Their most profound form is in the full-blown mystical
or religious experience; such experiences may be described as "bliss,”
"rapture,” "ecstasy,” "satori,” “nirvana,” or "enlightenment.” William
James examined the impact of such experiences and reported that
"mystical states of a well-pronounced and emphatic sort are usually
authoritative over those who have them. . . . Mystical experiences are
as direct perceptions of fact for those who have them as any sensa­
tions ever were for us.”31 While transcendent experiences, for most
people, are not an everyday occurrence, when they do take place, they
are deeply felt and often have a significant effect on the individual’s
developing mythology.
Transcendent experiences may reveal archetypal images, and they
can shift a personal myth within moments. An atheist may become a
believer; a miser may become a humanitarian; an alcoholic may re­
nounce drinking; a misogynist may become a feminist. The new per­
sonal myth may be fragile and persist only a few days or continue
throughout a lifetime. Experiences that transcend ordinary con­
sciousness may take a violent turn and produce mass murderers who
claim their actions were "dictated by God,” or they may evoke an
outpouring of great art, music, poetry, or prose. Such experiences are
more likely to have long-lasting effects on your mythology when you
can find an explanatory framework for them within your culture or
reference group, when they are compatible with other myths you
196 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

hold, and when their guidance leads to concrete results that demon­
strate their validity.
When a transcendent episode occurs, the individual is challenged
to incorporate into his or her existing mythology the new understand­
ings or inspiration that the episode bestowed. Mother Teresa recounts
an occasion as a young nun and schoolteacher, riding on a train in
India, when she “heard God” tell her that her life’s work was to bring
love to the poorest of the poor. The basis of such experiences has been
vehemently debated. But they cannot properly be reduced to conven­
tional conceptions of biology, and they appear to transcend culture
and personal history. Mother Teresa’s experience on that train ride
was more than just a product of her upbringing and education. She
did not simply think that she should help the poor, or feel that she
should work with the impoverished. Like many saints before her, she
had an electrifying sense of spiritual guidance that dramatically set
her life on an unpaved course that has inspired millions.
A moral and spiritual realm that transcends sensory knowledge is
discernible in every human society and stands at the very heart of
each culture’s mythology. The transcendent experiences of inspired
leaders often provide a culture with its most compelling knowledge
about this realm. Buddha, Lao-tzu, and Zoroaster, the first reported
sages who claimed to attain a spiritual "oneness” with creation, lived
about six hundred years before the Christian era, but the impact of the
transcendent experiences that shaped their lives still reverberates in
cultures around the world.

Interactions Among the Sources

All four of these sources interact as your mythology evolves. Certain
biological inheritances that might be of minor consequence, such as
facial features, skin color, or breast size, may take on great signifi­
cance in your mythology if your culture defines them as either signs
of beauty or inferiority. Powerful experiences from your past may
have been etched into your physiology. A character trait such as a
highly emotional style of expression may be rewarded in some fami­
lies, leading to a strong sense of personal worth, while it may be
severely penalized in other families, resulting in a personal mythol­
ogy that is self-negating. Particular temperaments are more suited to
one economic or political system than another. Some cultures, for
instance, expect individuals to take initiative and distinguish them­
selves, while others expect each person to blend in and never call forth
"comment from his neighbors.”32 Mystical experiences, characterized
by their ineffable nature, are usually interpreted largely within the
symbolism of the person’s prior religious and cultural beliefs.
Your Evolving Mythology 197

The way that romantic love typically develops illustrates the inter­
play of the four sources of personal myths. Physiological responses to
odor, sight, touch, and sounds are strongly conditioned by the cul­
ture’s images of beauty and attractiveness. The overbearing role of
romantic considerations in an adolescent’s perceptions and interests
is fueled by a stampede of hormones. All this occurs within the cul­
ture’s implicit and explicit models of romantic love, which are con­
tinually offered, often in conflicting form, through such institutions
as school, church, screen, and song. The relationship between your
parents also provided a tangible model (or counter-model) of love.
Interactions with your opposite-sex parent further shaped your un­
derstanding of how males and females relate. Each new involvement
that had erotic overtones, and each observation of other people who
were intimately involved with one another, may have contributed to
or revised your expectations regarding romantic love.
The first experience of "falling in love” is usually rich in sensual
and emotional stimulation. It may shatter all previous images, or
raise them to a more profound level. But the contrast between the
ethereal feelings accompanying a new love relationship and the prac­
tical difficulties involved in blending your life with another’s usually
requires your mythology to undergo further and sometimes drastic
revision. In the case of romantic love, as well as life’s other adventures
and ordeals, the four sources of your myths work together, sometimes
provoking conflict and sometimes bringing harmony as your under­
standing of your self and your world progresses.

MODES OF MYTH-MAKING

The four sources also work together in establishing the dominant

modes you will use in the myths you construct. We have identified
four basic modes of myth-making, which can be called the visionary,
aesthetic, rational, and compassionate modes.33 The modes used in
creating a myth are reflected in the character of the myth. Each of us
is unique not only in the content of our personal mythology, but also
in the manner by which we create it. We each utilize a particular
combination of the four modes in formulating our myths. Myths
differ not only in the information they are conveying, but also accord­
ing to the mode by which they organize and convey it. We would go
so far as to say that it is such differences in mode that make human
communication so difficult not only among people of widely disparate
cultures but between intimates who speak the same language and
have similar backgrounds.
A given personal myth may be created through any of the modes
198 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

(visionary, aesthetic, rational, and compassionate) or any combina­

tion of them. Each mode holds potential strengths and liabilities. For
most people, one or two modes dominate in the myths they produce.
They trust these modes more, feel compatible with them, and intui­
tively know how to use them.
The visionary mode is oriented toward seeing possibilities and
envisioning how to achieve them. It is the most future-oriented mode.
Visionary myths are created around a guiding image. The image re­
flects the person's hopes, ideals, and values. It points the way to a
better future according to those values. The myth may express itself
in mental pictures, internal dialogue, or an intuitive “knowing.” It
often involves a complex scenario that determines choices and directs
passionate behavior. The kind of mythology created in this mode is
exemplified by the visionary political leader. When Martin Luther
King, Jr., announced, “I have a dream,” he was etching a social vision
that guided political change.
Most people express some degree of the visionary dimension in the
personal myths that direct their major choices about career and fam­
ily. It is through this dimension that the myth orients you to where
you are going in your life and shows you how to get there. For some,
however, this mode may be vague and indistinct, while for others it
may provide a detailed blueprint that is adhered to rigidly. When the
visionary dimension is too faint, the myth fails to direct you toward
actions that actualize your values. When it is too dominant, the myth
keeps you trapped within the limits of its vision, obscuring other
possibilities and making it difficult for you to adjust it to new informa­
tion or open yourself to the vision of others. You may have found
through your work in the program that guiding images which you
once barely perceived have become stronger and more distinct. Or
you may have found that images which once firmly governed your
choices were challenged and perhaps discredited. Your guiding im­
ages were probably strengthened by the program if you are less devel­
oped in the visionary mode, and softened if it is a more dominant
mode for you.
Myths created primarily in the aesthetic mode have an artistic
quality. They place a high value on experiences that gratify the per­
son’s sensibilities. With a strong aesthetic dimension, the myth itself
becomes a work of art that is pleasing to the myth-maker, and life, too,
is experienced as a work of art. An extreme example of this mode
would be the consummate artist Salvador Dali, who has lived each
day as if he were creating an artistic masterpiece and performed each
action as if he were in a theatrical drama. Most people who have gone
Your Evolving Mythology 199

through our program have found that the very act of examining and
working with their personal myths enhances their aesthetic apprecia­
tion of the mythology they are living out.
A mythology sparse in the aesthetic dimension doesn’t nourish
your higher sensibilities, nor does it draw upon them in providing you
with guidance. The whole enterprise of living is more drab when it is
untouched by the aesthetic realm. If this mode is too dominant, how­
ever, you may find yourself responding so strongly to what you en­
counter that the disagreeable elements are amplified many times and
you become obsessed with them. You may find it difficult to listen to
a neighbor whose voice is too shrill. You may find yourself unable to
let go of judgments against yourself or others for minor trespasses,
and you may hear devastating criticism where constructive sugges­
tions are being offered. Whatever is discordant is experienced as
acutely adversive. As you examined your mythology, you may have
found that you were able to identify ways that you characteristically
lose your direction by becoming caught in your reactions to what you
encounter. If so, a desired outcome of the program would be to bring
your aesthetic responses into a better balance with the other modes.
The rational mode brings logic to your mythology: the logic of
abstraction and generalization, classification and analysis, and cause­
effect relationships. It allows you to order your experiences and draw
conclusions. It clears a path into uncharted territory that is based
upon the knowledge that can be garnered from the terrain you and
others have already explored. The power inherent in the rational
mode has brought us to the moon and led us to the edge of nuclear
cataclysm. A mythology dominated by this mode will reach for the
most effective way to pursue whatever we desire, regardless of conse­
quences to which we may be blind. The rational mode is exemplified
by brilliant scientists, such as Linus Pauling, who applied judicious
logic to pursuits ranging from analyzing the structure of amino acids
(which led to his receiving the Nobel Prize for Chemistry) to challeng­
ing the testing of nuclear weapons (for which he won the Nobel Peace
Prize).
If your mythology is weak in the rational dimension, the conclu­
sions you derive from your experiences will be misleading. Your
desires, choices, and behaviors will be based on inaccurate generaliza­
tions, selective abstractions, and arbitrary inferences. If the rational
mode is overly dominant in your mythology, you may be so fully
absorbed in your logical construction of reality that you will miss
many other dimensions of life. A narrow rationality may eclipse the
realms of feeling and values, as can be seen at the community level
200 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

where businesses and bureaucrats have overlooked ecological issues,

traditional folkways, and the quality of life. You may also be so cer­
tain about the correctness of positions rooted in your system of logic
that you are unable to comprehend the legitimate strengths of other
positions. In examining your own mythology, you may have realized
that your logic is frequently overwhelmed by your feelings; you may
have come to understand your past in a way that contradicted some
of the premises of your guiding mythology; or you may have found
that you frequently become paralyzed in conflict between your head
and your heart. In any of these cases, you were attending to the
rational mode of your mythology.
In the compassionate mode, the mythology prompts empathy and
elevates it to a guide for action and planning. Empathy that is strongly
developed by such a mythology allows a seemingly effortless ability
to touch others in ways that matter to them. The mythology supports
wholesome relationships and makes them more probable. In their
empathy and concern for others, people whose myths are strong in
compassion instinctively seed understanding and goodwill in the
community. Saintly persons such as Florence Nightingale and Albert
Schweitzer exemplify this mode.
People whose mythologies are weak in the empathic dimension
tend to be self-absorbed and disengaged from the concerns of others.
Their plans and actions are less effective because they cannot accu­
rately assess the feelings of other people. They relate to others as
objects and are unable to enjoy the intimacy of equality in a relation­
ship. But for those whose mythology is inundated with compassion
unbalanced by the other modes, the urge to respond to other people’s
needs and pains may be overwhelming. They may be compelled to
orient their lives around the needs of others, sometimes losing them­
selves in the process. In reviewing your personal history, you may
have identified times when your mythology led you to be too empathic
or not empathic enough. Ask yourself whether your new myth at­
tempts to better attune you to others’ needs and feelings, or reminds
you to consider your own needs before responding reflexively to those
of others.
Achieving a balance among these modes is a core developmental
task of adult life. As the modes become more balanced, your mythol­
ogy becomes more versatile and reliable. The complexity of interac­
tions among the modes is complicated, however, because some modes
operate outside of awareness. Competing personal myths may also
have been constructed within different modes, perhaps at different
times of life. A prevailing myth may have been formed primarily in
Your Evolving Mythology 201

the visionary mode, while a newly spawned counter-myth, still barely

recognized, is primarily a product of the compassionate mode. As you
work through the maze of inevitable conflicts between myths with
which you identified earlier in your life and emerging myths that
pioneer less developed aspects of your personality, your effectiveness
and sense of integration will increase as well.

PERSONAL MYTHS
ACROSS THE LIFE SPAN

The nature of your personal mythology depends upon your character­

istic modes of myth-making, the influence the larger culture exerts
upon you, and your point of development in the life cycle. The central
issues of your personal myth-making activities are vastly different
when you are young than when you are older.34 Churchill is said to
have commented wryly on this subject: "The man who is not a liberal
when he is twenty has no heart, and the man who is not a conservative
when he is forty has no brain.” Just as biological development passes
through a continuous series of changes from womb to tomb, the
myths we create evolve through a succession of changes from infancy
to old age.
Freud outlined a sequence of psychosexual developments in early
life, and Erik Erikson described a subsequent progression of psy­
chosocial stages that extend into maturity and old age. Erikson
thought of development as a succession of predictable psychosocial
crises that he identified in children (trust vs. mistrust, autonomy vs.
shame, initiative vs. guilt, industry vs. inferiority), followed through
maturity (identity vs. identity confusion, intimacy vs. isolation,
generativity vs. stagnation), and ultimately into old age (integrity vs.
despair).35 The hard-earned mythic lessons accumulated during one
stage of development are often painfully inadequate and therefore
misleading in the next stage. Individuals are forced to grapple in new
ways with the requirements and the potentials of their biology, cul­
ture, and unique life circumstances.
Robert Kegan uses the symbol of a spiral in his model of "the
evolving self," portraying the way people move beyond and then re­
turn to certain core issues as they develop.36 As you go up the spiral,
you come to the same issues again and again, but from different
vantage points. If, as a child, you made an uneasy peace with people
in authority, you may well find, at different points in your life, that
you are challenged by issues related to authority, although perhaps at
increasingly subtle and refined levels. Familiar difficulties recur, but
202 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

at a higher level on the spiral. Your evolving mythology, circling from

prevailing myth to counter-myth to new myth, corresponds with this
pattern. Learning does not cease. As you look backward and detect the
spiral pattern, you will see your progress.
In Kegan’s scheme, you will for a time be psychologically embed­
ded in the issues of a particular developmental stage. When you pro­
gress beyond it, you come to a higher level on the developmental
spiral and are presented with new tasks and challenges.37 The adoles­
cent’s evolving identity is immersed in the opinions and judgments of
peers, which shape attitudes such as those toward sex, drug use, and
school. Eventually, however, teenagers must formulate personal
myths that step beyond those of their age mates and are more suited
to their unique experiences. Later, as young adults, tasks involving
family and career become the preoccupation in further developing
one’s identity. With a seasoned psychological maturity, the focus of
the personal mythology is broadened from primarily individual con­
cerns to include the wider community, responsibility to generations
yet unborn, and more comprehensive ethical considerations.
Personal myths may reach points of crisis around any of life’s
developmental junctures. While other themes are still being worked
through, the issues concerning certain developmental questions be­
come “front-page news” during a particular phase of life.38 The follow­
ing cases illustrate how one woman’s personal mythology shifted
concerning her relationship to childbearing, and another’s concern­
ing her own mortality.
The first involves an unusually dramatic episode in an extended
therapy group. Nancy, a nineteen-year-old lesbian, believed that the
transition in her identity during adolescence from heterosexual to
homosexual was essentially completed, although she wished to work
on underlying feelings of confusion and anger in relationship to her
family’s rejection of her life-style. Her overriding concerns at the time
of the group, however, focused on severe pain in the area of her right
ovary and fear of surgery because a medical examination a few days
earlier had revealed a growth at that site.
She asked for help with the intense fear she felt around the physi­
cal disruption. Initially, the group leader had no intention of explor­
ing any emotional basis of her tumor, hoping, rather, to assist her in
relieving some of the tension that seemed to be aggravating the pain.
Her presenting problem involved somatic complaints, and a body­
based therapeutic approach was used. The events of the subsequent
two and a half hours spontaneously revealed the possible involvement
of a mythic conflict in the development of her tumor and apparently
marked its reversal.
Your Evolving Mythology 203

She was asked to lie down on a mat, breathe deeply, and visualize
each inhalation traveling to the site of the pain while, with each
exhalation, the therapist’s hand exerted pressure on her diaphragm.
This is a fairly common procedure in body-oriented psychotherapy,
which establishes the support of physical contact and sometimes in­
duces a spontaneous release of chronic tension and a flooding of
feelings. She was encouraged to make a sound with each exhalation,
which was the beginning of an intensive emotional release, resem­
bling at various points an exorcism, death wails, and childbirth.
She reached a crescendo of deep convulsive screaming that was
accompanied by a long series of spasmodic movements originating in
her abdomen. As these began to subside after a substantial expendi­
ture of energy, her face spontaneously distorted, and she raised her
head, neck, and upper back. With her hands six inches from either ear
and her fingers so tightly contorted that they almost looked webbed,
she elicited a deep hissing sound, all of which was distinctly reminis­
cent of the possessed adolescent portrayed in the movie The Exorcist.
A fearsome voice that seemed incongruous with this young woman
was loudly hissing the words, “You will have your baby!”
This sort of “possession” by a repressed aspect of the personality
is not particularly unusual in such work. As the raging voice con­
tinued expressing itself, its theme never varied. The forceful expres­
sion seemed to build to the maximum her body could tolerate, finally
culminating with her vomiting into a bucket. This was followed by
deep sobbing that gradually led to a buildup of sensation in her legs
and pelvis. As her feet pushed down into the mat, her body took the
posture of a woman giving birth. She struggled with this for some
time until there was a cathartic release and she triumphantly lifted an
imaginary baby over her head. She was asked to talk with the image
and give the image a voice so a dialogue could be established. As she
began, she appeared to be increasingly identified with the baby, fi­
nally letting her hands down and "becoming” the baby, assuming a
fetal position, gurgling, and urinating.
After some time, an aura of peacefulness surrounded her as she
gradually returned to her ordinary state of consciousness. She was
asked to speak to her tumor and then give the tumor a voice and carry
on a conversation. This became a lengthy and moving process in
which she came to view her tumor as an expression of an inner desire
toward becoming a mother, a wish she had been suppressing in the
service of her homosexual identity. She attributed such statements as
"I have to be born!" and "You are my mother!” to the tumor. She
reached a point where the rage she had been feeling toward the tumor
transformed into an acceptance and even an appreciation of the infor­
204 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

mation it was providing about her deeper desires. She then felt
equipped to deal with the conflict at a conscious level.
It is interesting to compare this account with Nancy's personal
reflections on the experience in a journal entry made some time after
the group meeting:

I felt that being a heterosexual meant having babies. Having

babies meant being heterosexual. Being an adolescent and being
torn about my sexuality created what felt like a tear in my body.
A wound. The wound was in my ovary. My struggle manifested
itself in a tumor.
Part of me wanted even then to be fertile. My experience at the
workshop was a combination exorcism/birth. There was hate and
anger from years of repressing that came out in the form of a face.
A red, ugly, hideous face that appeared to me during the most
painful moments. I felt like this was my fear conjured up and
personified in an image. The image was a monster with teeth who
cut me and penetrated me. I was raped by this demon and my
rage/tumor was the outcome.
The other image I had during that time was of giving birth to
myself. I felt like this was the beginning of my being able to nurture
and love myself as a helpless child. The birth was a cleansing, a
purity.

The pain had subsided markedly by the end of the session and did
not return. Interestingly, a sonogram administered a few days after
the session revealed a three- to four-centimeter growth on the site of
the ovary, which her physician insisted was an ectopic pregnancy
until she convinced him that this was not possible. Within a few weeks
the growth had completely disappeared and a five-year follow-up
showed no recurrence.39 While it is unusual for longings that are
being repressed by a personal mythology to break through and be
integrated in so brief a period, this scenario illustrates the potent
forces that can be unleashed when a core area of one’s mythology,
such as a woman's relationship to childbearing, has, been inade­
quately resolved.
Dealing with the inevitability of death is another issue that begs for
creative attention as your mythology evolves. Particularly in a culture
that venerates youthful qualities while desperately attempting to es­
cape aging and death, the panic about approaching old age can be
overwhelming. Staying focused on the values and aspirations appro­
priate to youth does not lead to the graceful wisdom of old age seen
in cultures whose mythology supports a dignified role for the elderly.
Your Evolving Mythology 205

We are all required to live a mythology that is fitting for our stage in
life. As Jung put it, “We cannot live the afternoon of life according to
the programme of life's morning.” Meg had an experience, shortly
after completing our program, that became a dominant feature as she
worked out her own mythology concerning aging and death.

Traveling in Northern California, alone, on my birthday, filled with

reverence and awe after hiking through a redwood grove, I had a
vision of my own death. Laying face down on the cool, fragrant
humus of needles and ferns, a shaft of light penetrates the inde­
scribably sacred grove and falls on me. There is a dark square of
redwood forest with four guardian trees at the cardinal points. I
envision a grave hollowed out among the roots without disturbing
them. The roots form an angular cradle. Three men and a woman
carry me toward the cavity. One man is my husband, tender, thin,
and old. Another is a beloved friend. The third's face is an unrecog­
nizable shadow. The woman is a lovely young stranger.
I know that I am ninety-four. My hair is downy white and my
face is brown and wrinkled, like a friendly walnut. My eyes are
alert and unafraid. I am dressed in a loose nondescript gown and
I have a lemon-yellow scarf around my neck. All my fleshiness used
up, my body is light and nearly transparent. There is little of sub­
stance left of who I was. They lay me in the cradle of roots and we
smile, one at a time at one another. It is clear there is no anguish
here. I rest on my earthly cradle and look up at the splendid trunks
of the trees. I smell the pungent dampness. My breath leaves my
body for the last time. A squirrel runs out on a limb, excitedly, and
drops a cone into my bed.

She later wrote about the place that this vision came to have in her
life:

It is not clear to me how much of this mythic revelation is made

from fragments of dreams, wish-fulfillment, denial, or sacred vi­
sion and time warp. I no longer care. Having been granted such a
gratifying hallucination, delusion, holy intuition, or reverie, I find
it wisest to believe. I choose, as an educated woman, to keep that
myth out in front of me. Because I believe that I will die as envi­
sioned in the forest, I greatly enhance my opportunity to have a
good death. Even if I am wrong, I am making my present infinitely
more tolerable. If I start thinking of myself as a charred body in
Armageddon, I am certainly destroying my present, and I may be
contributing to making it happen—nothing productive comes from
206 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

it, there is no good in it. If people didn't get any more rarified than
that, than to give themselves a vision of a good death, that could
affect all kinds of things: what you eat, the kinds of stress you put
yourself under, all the things you have to do to give yourself a good
death.

New mythic issues of richer fiber and greater subtlety are poised
to arise at each succeeding stage of adult life. You are required to have
attained some level of completion with the questions of previous
stages to be able to attune yourself to the subtleties of the next. Our
program attempts to help you look in both directions, ushering fresh
effort into what is not yet completed and sensitively uncovering what
is emerging. Here we review the program and the concepts that have
been presented. First, a summary of the program is presented from
the perspective of the Inner Shaman.

RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE
INNER SHAMAN REVIEWED

Just as tribal shamans preserved, transmitted, and transformed their

cultures' myths, you have examined the historical roots of your own
mythology, learning to recognize how your myths affect your life.
From this probing, you have challenged and started to change some
of them. In chapter 1, your Inner Shaman was depicted as the per­
sonification of inner qualities that could be developed to assist in the
evolution of your personal mythology. Three basic responsibilities of
the tribal shaman, and corresponding abilities of your Inner Shaman,
were discussed. Many of the rituals in the program invoked your
Inner Shaman or addressed one of these three areas.
The tribal shaman’s first responsibility was to ensure that a con­
nection was maintained between Ordinary Reality and the sacred
realities of the Upper and Lower Worlds. Thus uncommon knowledge
and powers could be tapped for socially useful purposes. In a manner
resembling the procedures used by these shamans to obtain informa­
tion from the Other Worlds, you have learned to tap into the powers
of your unconscious mind and solicit images from the deeper recesses
of your psyche. The Paradise and Resolution fantasies, the seeking of
confirmation from the “Powers That Be,” the dreamwork, and the
hcalingjourncys resemble shamanic practices in the way they provide
a passage between your waking consciousness and the Other Worlds
of your deeper self. The rituals in which you followed a feeling to
different time periods are reminiscent of shamanic flights to other
Your Evolving Mythology 207

realms. Shamans were well aware that every vision they encountered
in an altered state of consciousness could not be trusted. Shamanic
lore emphasizes the possibility of being deceived or misled by harm­
ful or immature spirits. It counsels that critical judgment is an ally
when entering the Other Worlds. As a modern seeker who does not
answer to the external authority of a tribal shaman, you are chal­
lenged to marshal both your intuition and the power of your rational
mind to weigh your intuitive revelations.
The second responsibility of the native shaman was to lead mem­
bers of the tribe in applying the guiding mythology to new circum­
stances. You started the program by identifying guiding myths that
you could no longer productively apply to your circumstances. You
went through a series of personal rituals to systematically revise one
of those myths, and in the final stage of the program, you began to
apply that new myth to the circumstances in your life. Just as tradi­
tional shamans attempted to use their allies in the Upper and Lower
Worlds to help and heal individuals, your Inner Shaman helped you
to look within for strength in supporting your new direction. The
ceremonial enactments of your new myth, the cultivation of self­
statements to support it, and the behavioral contract to maintain it are
allies that can help empower your new myth.
The third responsibility of the shaman was to assist the tribe in
altering a guiding mythology that was failing. When the sea or river
no longer yielded fish, when dissension broke out among the people,
or when neighboring tribes posed a threat, the shaman was called
upon to journey to the Other Worlds, seeking a vision that could
revitalize the mythology where it seemed to have lost its power. The
shaman lived at the meeting point between tradition and social inven­
tions, guarding tradition but offering new mythic images to society
when necessary. The rituals that examined conflicts in your mythol­
ogy and traced them back to their sources were designed to adjust
your developing mythology to the realities of who you have become
and the circumstances you face. When you identified your counter­
myth, you performed the shamanic function of discerning a new
vision and a new direction. The dramatized dialogues allowed you to
submit your counter-myth to the lessons of the past before commit­
ting yourself to its vision. Your personal Fairy Tale also mediated
between the past and the possible, concluding with the portrayal of
a new myth that cast off self-defeating elements of the old myth and
unrealistic aspects of the counter-myth while incorporating the most
positive elements of each.
Tribal shamans, in fulfilling their responsibilities, would make
extensive use of body consciousness. In some of their visions, sha­
208 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

mans reported that the body became a battleground for the conflict
between spirits that would tear them apart and spirits that would
piece them together again. They believed that they .could transform
their bodies into animal and bird forms, and that they could rely on
bodily sensations to diagnose illness. While you have not undertaken
any task so dramatic in this program, you have identified analogues
of your mythic conflict in your body, and you have worked with your
“subtle body” in fostering your new myth.
Traditional shamans cultivated a highly disciplined attention.
Their abilities to alter their consciousness, travel to other realms of
reality, and channel spirit voices were exquisitely developed. You
were asked to develop a disciplined attention as well. This discipline
will assist you as you work with your dreams, focus upon the signifi­
cance of bodily sensations, and quiet your mind to attain a fresh
perspective that goes beyond the limitations of unexamined myths.
Your Inner Shaman can continue to serve as a wise inner witness
who, after intimate examination of the way your myths operate,
opens you to new possibilities.

PRINCIPLES OF YOUR
EVOLVING MYTHOLOGY

Throughout this book, we have offered explanations of the way your

personal mythology develops. These principles are summarized here
to reinforce your learning in the program and to leave you with a
synopsis that you can draw on as you continue to work with your
evolving mythology.

Emergence from the mythic premises in which you have been

psychologically embedded, and movement to another set of guid­
ing images, is a natural and periodic phase of personal develop­
ment. Personal myths exist within a psychological ecology of mu­
tation and selection in which even the "fittest" mythic structures must
continually evolve if they are to serve us. Not only do circumstances
continually change but new developmental tasks also appear through­
out adult life. Personal myths that were appropriate and effective
during one period of life or at one level of development become
inappropriate or dysfunctional at another. As myths grow outmoded,
they fail to support your psychological, social, and spiritual needs,
and they begin to restrict your emotional development. Psychological
growth often requires a shift to a more advanced mythology. The
surrounding culture’s attitudes regarding such changes, and the rites
Your Evolving Mythology 209

of passage it provides or fails to provide for supporting them, may

promote or inhibit your ability to successfully move through such
periods of transition.

Personal conflicts—both in your inner life and external circum­

stances—are seen as natural markers of these times of transi­
tion. When a prevailing mythic structure no longer serves your
needs, alternative structures are generated naturally and begin to be
revealed in dreams and other windows into unconscious processes.
Psychological defenses, however, may prevent you from recognizing
features of your experience that are incompatible with the dominant
myth, even as it becomes less capable of providing valid guidance. In
maintaining a myth that is failing, you will tend to experience increas­
ing conflict that permeates your feelings, thoughts, actions, dreams,
fantasies, and the circumstances you draw to yourself. If you treat
such difficulties as markers of transition, rather than simply resisting
them, you can better mobilize your energies for understanding and
resolving the underlying mythic conflict.

On one side of the underlying mythic conflict will be a self­

limiting myth rooted in past experience that is best understood
in terms of the positive purposes it once served in your life.
In the early phases of the program, we attempt to connect current
difficulties with past experiences. The old myth is examined for the
constructive role it played at an earlier time. By understanding how
the old myth developed, it becomes more possible to turn from its
guidance while affirming your strengths and embracing the valid les­
sons the myth once provided.

On the other side of the conflict will be an emerging counter­

myth that serves as a force toward expanding your personality
and prerogatives in the very areas the old myth was limiting
you. Just as your psyche may produce inspiring dreams that point
toward new directions for your development, it also creates new
mythic images whose guidance may be in direct conflict with more
limiting, prevailing myths. Latent qualities of your personality not
supported by prevailing myths will naturally push toward expression
and a corresponding counter-myth will emerge. Counter-myths are
woven from the accumulation of life experiences, from a develop­
mental readiness to accept the society’s more advanced myths, and
from an unconscious reservoir of primal impulses and archetypal
images. Counter-myths are best understood as creative leaps in the
210 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

psyche’s problem-solving activities, but, like dreams, they often serve

a wish-fulfillment function that lacks real-world utility. Still, they
serve as an impetus to integrate unrecognized impulses and images
into your personality and to recapture qualities you have repressed
under the constraints of the old myth.

This conflict between the old myth and the counter-myth will
naturally progress toward the creation of a new myth that inte­
grates the most trustworthy premises of each. The conflict may
be viewed as a subterranean struggle between alternative myths vying
to organize your perceptions, thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. Al­
though much of this process will occur outside of awareness, you will
tend consciously to identify more fully with one of the myths, or some
of its elements, than with the other. Meanwhile, also often outside of
awareness, it is the natural action of your psyche to work toward
resolving the conflict. Techniques that attune you to this process in­
crease your opportunity to participate actively and effectively in for­
mulating a new myth that provides sounder guidance than either of
the conflicting myths is able to offer.

Unresolved mythic conflicts reemerge, interfering with the reso­

lution of subsequent developmental tasks. If you were unable
at an earlier age to successfully meet the requirements of a particular
developmental task, such as resolving the need for affirmation that
was not available in your environment, that issue will play a thematic
role in your subsequent life. Certain aspects of your mythology be­
come fixated at the level of this unresolved issue and interfere with
later developmental steps. It is valuable to use imagery and imagina­
tion to enter an earlier period of life where your development was
arrested. There you can provide this younger, internalized part of
yourself with a rite of passage onto the next developmental tier and
into an expanded personal mythology.

Reconciling a carefully conceived new myth with existing atti­

tudes, goals, and life-style becomes a vital task in your ongoing
development. Historically, rites of passage provided a relatively
unambiguous direction for regulating people’s lives. For a variety of
reasons, including the increase of individualism in modern Western
cultures, this is no longer possible. The need for such direction, how­
ever, is no less pressing than in earlier eras as the available myths in
our culture are themselves in unprecedented flux. The five-stage
model presented in this book can be used at any point in your develop­
Your Evolving Mythology 211

ment. We believe it can lead you to a renewed guiding mythology that

is based upon a culturally attuned synthesis of your history, your
emerging potentials, and archetypal images that are pushing for ex­
pression. The task of weaving this renewed mythology into the fabric
of your life can add fresh meaning and purpose to your journey and
serve vital functions that cultural rites and rituals no longer ade­
quately address.

In addition, by coming to understand your own mythic processes,

you become more adept at understanding the mythology of your
society and more able to skillfully participate in its evolution. The
Epilogue elaborates on this assertion and its far-reaching implica­
tions.
__________________ Epilogue
Tending to the Mythic Vision
of Your Community

The discord and the malaise of the 20th century are reflected in our
images of who we are. The century that has shown us the ultimate
brutality and anonymity of Auschwitz and Hiroshima has produced
images of identity that are frightening and confusing, fail to affirm life,
fail to give us direction, and fail to instill within us the hope that what
we feel and believe really matters and what we do really makes a
difference. —dan p. mcadams1

We close by examining the way mythology, consciousness, and cul­

ture evolve in concert. As has been emphasized, a distinguishing fea­
ture of the modern era is that people have achieved greater autonomy
than ever before in formulating the myths that guide their lives. Here
we will outline the historical basis of that assertion and explore social
forces that are pushing the collective mythology to further unfold in
unprecedented ways. Finally, we will propose that it is possible to
become better equipped to actively and creatively participate in the
evolving mythology of your culture. Understanding your own per­
sonal mythology, as you have been learning to do through these chap­
ters, is an important part of developing that capacity. Furthermore,
the paradox that in order to fully develop yourself you must engage
with forces that are beyond yourself urges a reflective involvement
with the community in which you live.

MYTHOLOGY AND THE

EVOLUTION OF CONSCIOUSNESS

Biologist Lewis Thomas noted that "our most powerful story, equiva­
lent in its way to a universal myth, is evolution.”2 One of the most

212
Tending to the Mythic Vision of Your Community 213

provocative facts about human evolution is that while the structure

of the brain has remained essentially unchanged for at least forty
thousand years,3 consciousness has evolved dramatically. For the
human species, language and myth-making replaced genetic mutation
as the primary mechanisms by which consciousness and societal in­
novations are carried forward.

Four Epochs
Times of transformation in the nature of the myths people hold are
milestones in the evolution of human consciousness and form the
heart of human history. Ken Wilber has described four fundamental
phases in that evolution. In the current era, Wilber's fourth phase,
consciousness is dominated by the rational, self-reflecting, individual
ego.4 In the earliest period, the sense of self was wholly identified with
physical being and the primordial forces of nature. If we can think of
mythology at all in this period, we would have to think of it in terms
of a trancelike identity with the functioning of the body.
Consciousness, according to Wilber, later became separated from
the physiological life of the body, but it had not advanced beyond a
childlike sense of magically mingling in the world. In this second era,
the myths structuring reality were still bound to the body, but an
external world was recognized and responsibility for events were
magically assigned to it.
With the advent of more complex forms of language, some twelve
thousand years ago, the verbal mind climbed out of the body and into
a world of extended time. The physical world could now be repre­
sented, manipulated, and narrated through mental symbols. With an
increased capacity for accumulating and transmitting knowledge
about plants and what they required, agriculture became possible.
The hunter-gatherer learned to farm and had to sublimate body­
bound desires in order to labor for the benefit of the crop. People were
using complex, shared symbols to understand and control their im­
pulses and their world. The requirements for sophisticated myths had
all been met, and the great cultural mythologies bloomed. The hard-
earned insights of elders could be carried in detail to new generations
by mythic story and ritual. However, the mental abilities necessary
for self-reflection were not yet well developed, so the individual’s
emerging sense of self was primarily in the image of the society’s
mythology. Cultural myths reigned supreme.
As the capacities for self-reflection evolved and the individual’s
assumptions could be tested through deductive reasoning, perhaps
only as recently as three thousand years ago, a self-observing aspect
of the psyche came into being.5 This marked the beginning of Wilber’s
214 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

fourth era, which is characterized by the differentiation of the sepa­

rate, personal ego—the awesome result of the capacity to mentally
step back and observe oneself. Self-aware individuals began to live
according to increasingly personalized mythologies whose content,
once dictated by the culture’s mythology, might now be based on the
test of unique experience. Individuality became the order of the day.6
Joseph Campbell has made the distinction that in primitive times "all
meaning was in the group,” while today "all is in the individual.”7

The Hero’s Journey

Wilber suggests that close examination of the collective mythologies
at the beginning of this emergence of the individual ego unequivocally
reveals that an entirely different form of myth began to appear—the
“Hero Myth.” The true hero myths could come into being only after
the personal ego had differentiated itself from the collective. Camp­
bell observed that the principle "represented by the freely willing,
historically effective hero not only gained but held the field, and has
retained it to the present. Moreover, this victory of the principle of
free will, together with its moral corollary of individual responsi­
bility, establishes the first distinguishing characteristic” of specifically
Western myth.8 But it is also the exaggerated accent on the personal
ego, and the accompanying alienation from nature and community,
that is responsible for much of the malaise in contemporary society.
Effective solutions must take the mythic proportions of the problem
into account.
We turn to Homer's The Odyssey to compare the modern heroic
journey with a classic prototype. After fighting valiantly in the Trojan
War, Odysseus’ return is fraught both with clear hazards—the Lotus-
Eaters, the Cyclops, the Laestrygonians—and with dangerous de­
lights: the Sirens, Circe, Calypso. Through strength and cunning,
Odysseus finds his way back to his kingdom Ithaca, his wife Penelope,
and their son Telemachus. He has been away for two decades. Odys­
seus, representing the eternal quest of the male hero, has longed to
return to Penelope and his homeland throughout his journey. Homer
tells us that for Odysseus, Penelope is like “the sun-warmed earth” that
is “longed for by a swimmer spent in rough waters where his ship
went down.”
However, classic mythic images of the hero’s return do not fit the
plight of modern heroes. The individualism of the modern era has
made the heroic journey a common rather than elite path in modern
Western cultures.9 The hero’s journey has become everyone's venture.
Unlike Odysseus, contemporary heroes have lost their connection
Tending to the Mythic Vision of Your Community
216 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

with the natural order, and because their homeland is now populated
by other disconnected heroes, they are separated from community as
well. Odysseus was a singular hero, returning alone to a family who
awaited his return. In the contemporary era, many people are en­
gaged in the challenges of the personal heroic quest. The modern
Penelope, rather than waiting at home for twenty years, is likely to be
on her own heroine’s journey. The home for which the alienated hero
yearns no longer hosts a community poised to welcome the gift of his
or her leadership. So the unfulfilled hero moves on, disconnected
from the purpose of the journey, and perceiving no mission other
than to soothe a trembling ego, now so small and alone, by toiling for
fame, fortune, and other promises of redemption.

The Modern Hero’s Dilemma

As more attention was devoted to the emerging ego, the sense of self
became less identified with the life of the body or of the community.
The inability of the newly emergent ego to integrate its activities with
the prior realms of instinct, emotion, and "body-self’ is, in Wilber’s
eyes, the culture’s essential dilemma. He points out that “even [Erich]
Neumann, arch-champion of the Hero Myth, clearly recognized that
the heroic thrust went way too far, and with this, the great revaluation
of the feminine begins, its conversion into the negative, thereafter
carried to extremes in the patriarchal religions of the West.”10
Preoccupation with the self as an entity separate from both body
and reference group, necessary for the development of rational
thought and individuality, became exaggerated. These separations,
which were painstakingly achieved, are not easily transcended. The
conquering hero of the contemporary era has ripped himself away
from Mother Nature, spearheaded by a belligerent personal ego and
supported by increasingly sophisticated technology. Wilber explains
the dilemma in terms of the relationship of humanity to its biological
nature, the mythical “Great Mother”:

The ego, in the necessary course of its emergence, had to

break free of the Great Mother or biological nature embedded­
ness. That is all well and good—the ego, in fact, did manage to
break free of its attachment and subservience . . . and establish
itself as an independent, willful, and constellated center of con­
sciousness, a feat represented in the Hero Myths. But in its zeal
to assert its independence, it not only transcended the Great
Mother, which was desirable; it repressed the Great Mother,
which was disastrous. And there the ego—the Western ego—
Tending to the Mythic Vision of Your Community 217

demonstrated not just an awakened assertiveness, but a blind

arrogance ... no longer harmony with the Heavens . . . but a
technological assault on Nature. ... It is one thing to gain a
freedom from the fluctuations of nature, emotions, instincts,
and environment—it is quite another to alienate them.11

The ego, according to psychologist Anthony Greenwald, is charac­

terized by biases that are strikingly analogous to totalitarian informa­
tion-control strategies.12 Like totalitarian regimes, the ego organizes
knowledge in a way that exalts itself, distorts new information, and
revises past experiences to justify its own premises. The totalitarian
empire resembles the individual ego forged at the community level.
Its model for social organization is the “top-down hierarchy,” in
which an autocratic leader directs the activities of obedient followers,
and the strategy for success is “to win by defeating others.”13
Individual expression was first encouraged for the masses around
the fifteenth century, when “the new mood of the Renaissance pushed
individualism out into broad new areas and democratized it.”14 The
evolution of democratic empires out of autocratic rule has been a vital
response to the hero’s journey having become a quest of ordinary
people rather than only of the phenomenal individual. From a mytho­
logical perspective, democracy may be defined as a social arrange­
ment in which the group consciously and collaboratively chooses the
mythic visions that are to be collectively embraced. Democracy as a
cultural form allows a collectivity of heroes and heroines to form
communities that are attuned to the pluralistic needs of freely willing
egos. Erich Neumann emphasized that while in the past, individuals
endowed with greatness "possessed a consciousness and stood for the
collective in the role of leader,” the further course of evolution must
involve "a progressive democratization, in which a vast number of
individual consciousnesses work productively at the common human
task.”15
We are speaking of democracy here, not in a narrow political
sense, but in terms of a broad recognition of the right and ability of
individuals to participate in the decisions that affect their destinies.
No perfect democracy has ever existed. In Athens, women lacked
citizenship, and the leisure for freemen to devote themselves to public
concerns was purchased through an economy based on slavery. The
so-called "people’s democracies” in Marxist nations provide for full
employment of their citizens and guarantee basic material needs, but
they deny significant personal freedoms and political choices. West­
ern “democracies,” marred by their competitiveness and inequities,
218 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

promote an interlocking conformity and alienation.16 However,

trends toward increased participation, decentralization, and connect­
edness have also been identified in both parts of the world.17
Social developments such as the women’s movement, and the re­
sulting turbulence in gender roles and family relationships, may be
seen as self-corrections in contemporary democracies. As recently as
the 1960s, patriarchal rule was still largely unquestioned in the family
and the workplace even in Western nations that espoused the ideals
of democracy in their political system. The women’s movement has
been persistently challenging those assumptions. The mythologies
that define identity are vastly different for men and women. Whereas
male myths have typically focused upon the tasks of separation and
mastery of self over environment, female myths have typically been
more concerned with caring and connectedness,18 and they may thus
point the way for the as-yet uncharted return of the contemporary
hero.
Whether in times of stability or upheaval, the family has served as
a robust institution for comforting the patriarch who was trapped in
his alienation from the greater society. Even in his separation from
nature and the larger community, the family provided him with a
consoling sense of home and connectedness. Letty Cottin Pogrebin
has argued, however, that “the traditional patriarchal family is de­
mocracy's 'original sin’; it is the elemental flaw in an otherwise
perfectible political system. . . . Very simply, it is impossible to
achieve the exalted goals of the democratic dream and the free and
full development of every person so long as the basic unit of our
society, the family, is undemocratic and unfree.’’19 Upheavals in fam­
ily structure and gender identity are reverberations of increasingly
democratic notions in the culture’s mythology pushing their way to
the family and individual levels, where they lead to radical and unset­
tling changes.
Available evidence from studies of contemporary families does
indeed suggest that the happiest marriages are egalitarian, while mar­
riages typified by one partner’s domination are correlated with mari­
tal dissatisfaction.20 In the predemocratic marriage that was the reign­
ing model in the 1950s and earlier, each partner’s commitment was
toward fulfilling a prescribed set of gender-linked role expectations.
In the marriages that seem to be on the edge of social evolution today,
the commitment is increasingly toward the integrity of a relationship
between equals. Before the dawning of the individualized ego, auto­
cratic rule was a logical arrangement for social relationships. Al­
though the vestiges of such arrangements are still tightly gripped by
Tending to the Mythic Vision of Your Community 219

many families and in many areas of government, they are becoming

outmoded. Pogrebin has emphasized that “just as the authoritarian
family is the authoritarian state in microcosm, the democratic family
is the best training ground for life in a democracy.”21 The democrati­
zation of marriage and the equalization of gender and race relation­
ships are, from this perspective, required steps in democracy’s con­
tinued evolution.
The costs of having placed the individualism of the heroic journey
above the values of caring and connectedness continue to mount.22 A
new vision of democracy is urgently needed that can support the
individual and at the same time promote a greater sense of commu­
nity and more harmonious international relationships.23 Because it is
our myths, more than our genes, that have plunged us into our current
dilemmas, it is our potential for formulating more effective mytholo­
gies that offers us the greatest hope of not following in the wake of
the dinosaur, to be heaped upon nature’s stockpile of "discarded
models.”24

AN EPOCH IN THE MAKING

According to Jean Houston:

A new genre of myth is emerging in our time: myths of evoca­

tion and potentiation, myths of new ways of being. We must
recall the importance and power of the myth for psyche and
civilization, for the myth is . . . the coded DNA of the human
psyche calling us to reflesh the dream that has been pushed so
far away. . . . The myth is always the stimulus, the alarm clock,
the lure of becoming. It quickens the heart to its potential and
prepares the ground for society’s transformation.25

Joseph Campbell has suggested that "one cannot predict the next
mythology any more than one can predict tonight’s dream.”26 Short­
comings and conflicts in the mythology of the times do, however,
reveal the problems the next mythology is challenged to correct. The
disruption of gender roles, as we have seen, portends the need for
greater democratization in the modern hero’s mythology. The turmoil
around such issues tills the soil for new mythic visions. While no one
can reliably predict what new myths will come to dominate in the
coming decades, a remarkably diverse group of candidates, from the
"New Fundamentalism” to the "New Age,” can be seen vying for the
cultural spotlight.
220 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

Science has been the standard-bearer, the shared pathway to prog­

ress among Western cultures. Erich Jantsch noted that Prometheus,
"who stole the fire from heaven and set out to establish mankind as
a creed of counter-gods, is still the hero of the official Western ideol­
ogy of progress and dominance through technology.”27 But neither
science nor technology has provided lasting security or peace of mind.
In the failure of Promethean attempts to establish science as the
monolithic religion for a world culture, Jantsch saw another round
of frustrated labor for the Western world, taking its place alongside
such other visionary solutions as Marxism and America’s "missionary
zeal” to bring free enterprise to the world. He suggested that Sisyphus,
"who struggles to roll his fate on to a platform of eternal rest, but has
to recommence over and over again, turns out to be the involuntary
sad hero of all those frustrated attempts to create a lasting structure
somewhere, anywhere in the human world.”28
Jantsch emphasized, however, that Prometheus and Sisyphus are
not the only myths from which we can choose. They are bound to
Western culture, and he pointed to Leibnitz’s "perennial philosophy,”
the cross-cultural tradition of beliefs held by humanity's most univer­
sally respected members, as "another myth which has illuminated
human life throughout the millennia and across many cultures . . .
holding that human life is sharing integrally in a greater order of
process, that it is an aspect as well as an agent of universal evolu­
tion.”29
Wilber believes that we can identify people who are already living
according to the mythology of the coming era. He emphasizes that he
described the four epochs in the evolution of consciousness in terms
of the average person’s experiences and level of awareness. But he
also notes that there are individuals whose lives reflect "the growing
tip of human consciousness,” the most advanced level of their time.
Their lives herald stages of consciousness yet to come. The individual­
ity that has become widespread in our culture was first restricted to
sanctioned leaders. Wilber speaks of the first ones to live out the next
major structure of consciousness as the shamans, sages, and saints
who serve as prototypes of the advancing higher levels of conscious­
ness. If Wilber is correct, then the self-actualizing subjects studied by
Abraham Maslow may be examples of what is to come. They tended
to evidence greater creativity, autonomy, and ability to resolve polari­
ties than their fellows, had more democratic (as contrasted with au­
thoritarian) character structures, and were more able to transcend
the ego boundaries of a narrow sense of self. In addition, certain
universal values, such as truth, beauty, and justice were stronger in
their personal, motivational schemes.30
Tending to the Mythic Vision of Your Community 221

Such qualities may prove to be vital features in the expanded

mythic visions we are collectively challenged to pursue. Rollo May
believes that three new myths are necessary for our survival: the
“green myth," which would depict our proper relation with nature;
women s liberation, which would ensure the rights and draw upon the
talents of all people; and planetism, which would represent the world
as a place that transcends political boundaries.31 All three of these
themes can be seen as correctives pushing to change the direction of
the contemporary hero’s journey.
The women’s movement and the wanton destruction of natural
resources that has accompanied the hero's faltering Promethean
phase have already been discussed. In terms of planetism, Robert
Gilman believes we are already in the midst of a transition from an
"Empire era" to a "Planetary era.” He observes that late-twentieth-
century Western society is a strange blend of institutions and values
that clearly belong to the Empire era, and of "other features like
global electronic communications and high levels of literacy, that are
completely novel.”32 But, especially since World War II, "the contra­
dictions and tensions have grown deeper between (1) our new techno­
logical capabilities combined with the continuing spread of indi­
vidual human rights and capabilities, and (2) the old values and insti­
tutions we have inherited from the Empire period.”33
The fiercely independent Empire, the individual ego writ large, is
losing its feasibility as a social form. It is clear that the planet is
shrinking, and if we are to survive, we must be concerned with one
another’s interests. But new models have not proved viable. Odysseus’
journey was of the Empire period. Unlike the modern hero, his return
was bound to tradition and predictable forms of social organization.
But there are also lessons to be learned from The Odyssey’s finale.
Odysseus returned to find that suitors had not only laid claim to
Penelope, they had plundered his house, decimated his provisions,
disposed of his resources, and made plans to murder his son and steal
his son’s inheritance. Odysseus dramatically challenged the suitors
and reclaimed his wife, kingdom, and land. Humanity in modern
times has indiscriminately misused the earth’s resources and placed
the inheritance of future generations in jeopardy. The overriding de­
mand facing today’s returning hero requires, in the tradition of Odys­
seus, cleansing a home fouled by unrestrained avarice, putting the
household in order, and reinstating the children's birthright to the
world’s assets. The new hero’s challenge is unique in the way it re­
quires both individual ingenuity and collaborative effort.
New possibilities are supported by remarkable technology that has
evolved in this century, particularly electronic communications. Mar­
222 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

shall McLuhan claimed that the advent of electronic media has begun
to break down old allegiances as people everywhere become aware of
what is happening in other parts of the world. He predicted that
electronic media would abolish space and time insofar as communi­
cation was concerned and would enable people to live mythically in
a "global village."34 While it will take more than electronic media to
stop the territorial, religious, and racial wars that currently pockmark
the earth, the implications of electronic and satellite communication
systems for influencing people’s mythologies are dazzling.
The first U.S.-USSR "space bridge” in 1982 used a communications
satellite enabling people in Moscow and California to talk with one
another instantly on a wide variety of topics such as music, education,
and peace. This event was a stunning demonstration of how much the
world is shrinking and how citizens of the world's two superpowers
might be congenially exposed to one another’s mythologies and ob­
tain a feeling of neighborliness through electronic technology. McLu­
han correctly foresaw that any viable “global village" must be based
on a more far-reaching mythology than could have been conceived
before the age of electronic media.
Television, radio, telephone, and personal computers allow people
to experience and interact with others in spite of their physical separa­
tion. Rather than being psychologically isolated in a local town or
city, increasing numbers of people are living in an information sys­
tem that has no physical location.35 Allegiances that transcend re­
gional and cultural boundaries are created on a global scale; opinions
are instantly catalyzed and shared; beliefs and motivations are trans­
formed by new information. Important topics are examined from
many angles through increasingly sophisticated talk shows, news spe­
cials, and dramatized portrayals of contemporary issues. Never has
more information been available about the events that surround us.
A media image of ourselves is constantly being reflected back to us,
a development in myth-making worth appreciating.
In summary, the trends toward a reconciliation with natural
forces, equality in interpersonal relationships, and a global conscious­
ness all move beyond the structure of the heroic mentality. Although
robust counter-reactions to each of these trends are conspicuous,
analogous to the way your prevailing myth may have more strongly
entrenched itself when challenged by a counter-myth, a new arche­
type is coming into view. It is characterized by a transcendence of the
polarities that marked the heroic era, including instinct vs. reason,
individualism vs. community, and nature vs. technology. While the
emergence of this archetype is obscured by unprecedented anxieties
Tending to the Mythic Vision of Your Community 223

and complexities, we also have grown more capable than ever before
of mindfully participating in the evolution of the new mythologies
that will shape our collective destiny.

THE MYTHOLOGICALLY
INSTRUCTED COMMUNITY

Albert Einstein once observed that "perfection of means and confu­

sion of goals seem to characterize our age. If we desire sincerely and
passionately the safety, the welfare, and the free development of the
talents of all men, we shall not be in want of the means to approach
such a state.”36 According to Eleanor Wilner, "Myth is the necessary
first step in the realignment of social order,”37 and Joseph Campbell
spoke of the "mythologically instructed community.”38 He suggested
that it is possible to arrive scientifically at an understanding of the
life-supporting nature of myths so that, "in criticizing their archaic
features, we do not misrepresent and disqualify their necessity.”39
For Campbell, a problem with the myths of the past has been that
their authority rested almost exclusively in emotional experience,
while the needs of these times demand myths that are intellectually
sustained as well. He proposed that we may turn to depth psychology
for help in creating a more intellectually grounded mythology that is
attuned to deeper psychological processes.40 This is in counterpoint to
Erich Jantsch’s proposal that "we need, above all, ways to emancipate
our processes of model/myth formation from the rational level of
inquiry, to elevate them to the mythological level where quality and
total experience comes into focus.”41 While agreeing with Jantsch that
contemporary rationalism needs to become more mythical, Campbell
is making the complementary suggestion that for a mythology to
serve us today, it must be supported by sophisticated logic.

Science and the Mythologically Instructed Community

Depth psychologists have for a century been inventing and sharpen­
ing procedures for probing the unconscious mind. Other social scien­
tists have developed sophisticated methods for studying the sources
of the collective myths we hold and anticipating where they are lead­
ing us. The scientific method converges with electronic information
systems to make it more plausible for the myths that shape commu­
nity life to be rationally examined than ever before.
Pollster Daniel Yankelovich, for instance, was able to articulate
the culture’s ''new rules" based upon a scientific analysis of social
trends and public attitudes.42 Psychologist David McClelland has, over
224 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

the past several decades, conducted an important series of studies of

the underlying mythic forces that shape a culture’s behavior. He has
identified relationships among the imagery in popular literature (i.e.,
the operative cultural myths), motivation, and subsequent societal
events (economic output, political violence, participation in war­
fare).43 As social scientists become more able to reliably identify
specific attitudes and images that historically have preceded war
or economic collapse, they are making a potentially momentous con­
tribution to the knowledge base of a democratic society.
McClelland is discouraged, however, over the obstacles to bringing
empirical knowledge about human behavior to benefit public policy.
As Albert Einstein noted, “All of us who are concerned for peace and
the triumph of reason and justice must be keenly aware how small an
influence reason and honest good will exert upon events in the politi­
cal field.”44 Melvin Konner goes even further, cautioning that “the
political experience of this century convincingly proves that almost
any scientific theory about behavior can be bent to the purposes of
evil, and used by someone to support his wicked, selfish, occasionally
psychotic acts, up to and including wholesale slaughter.”45 History
insists that knowledge and goodwill are not enough. Humanity is
required to squarely face and more effectively deal with its dark side.

The Dark Side from a Mythological Perspective

Erich Neumann spoke of the necessity of “a creative relationship
between the dark instinctual side of man’s nature and the light side
represented by the conscious mind.” He emphasized that the shadow
side of personality is an essential component of creative vitality.46
Classically, rituals were agents for inner work that carried the psyche
through the passages of life and transformed its dark forces into
productive energies. Psychiatrist Stanislav Grof notes that senseless
tragedy can be wrought when certain archetypal themes govern a
people unchecked. He believes that the expertise is available for con­
structively teaching people to encounter the roots of their own intra­
psychic turmoil and violence. He has proposed that “the task is to
create safe and socially sanctioned situations in which certain toxic
and potentially dangerous elements of the human personality struc­
ture can be confronted and worked through without any harm or
damage to others or society as a whole.”47
The creative potential of the individual's “dark side” sometimes
foreshadows an evolutionary breakthrough in the culture’s mythol­
ogy'. Neumann observed that "not infrequently a sensitive person falls
ill because of his incapacity to deal with a problem which is not
Tending to the Mythic Vision o/ Your Community 225

recognized as such by the world in which he lives, but which is, in fact,
a future problem of humanity which has confronted him and forced
him to wrestle with it.”48 A study of humanity’s changing self-image
came to a similar conclusion: "Often those individuals who bring the
new reconceptualizations to society have had personal problems that
were similar in form or were significantly related to those of the
larger society. In resolving their own problems, they presented viable
resolutions to the problems of their culture.”49
By establishing more opportunities for sensitive people to work
out their troubles in tandem with a society that is attuned to the
mythological basis of deviant or disruptive behavior, psychological
conflict could take on constructive meaning for the society. This kind
of awareness also would sensitize people to leaders and social move­
ments that are working out archetypal themes unchecked. Grof cau­
tions against the appeal to the individual’s unresolved intrapsychic
problems by politicians who convert their own emotional turmoil
into a program of revolutionary violence. Political leaders ideally
should be those who have undergone substantial exploration of their
own unconscious motivations and have reached an advanced level of
emotional maturity. For Grof, the real problem is to raise the con­
sciousness of the general public so that it is capable of recognizing
public figures whose policies mask their own inner conflicts. From his
perspective, adequate time and space must routinely be appropriated
by the culture so that its members could be encouraged to engage in
such a process. Destructive aspects of the psyche could thus be played
out in a protected arena, and the culture could assume a mythic rather
than a mechanistic posture in confronting the developmental crisis of
its members.

The Five-Stage Model and Social Change

The program you just completed provided a model and a set of per­
sonal rituals for working through your own developmental crises
with a mythological perspective. The five-stage model can be adapted
for systematically participating in social change as well. Organiza­
tional consultant Anne Dosher has described the “reflexive relation­
ship” between the myths of individuals and the myths of organiza­
tions and community groups.50 Dosher uses a mythological frame­
work to demonstrate in a practical manner the recognized principle
that philosophy and symbol undergird organizational effectiveness.51
For instance, Dosher helps management become attuned to the
organization’s operative mythology and able to assess its conse­
quences. She uncovers organizational ties with the personal myths of
226 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

the early founders. She helps the organization’s members to acknowl­

edge and celebrate these mythic roots, and sometimes to ritualisti-
cally bid them farewell. The informal rewards and negative sanctions
that reflect the organization’s mythology are delineated, and the fit
between the organization's mythology and the personal mythologies
of its staff is examined. Dosher also identifies competing myths—both
within the organization, and between the organization’s mythology
and that of the broader culture. Such conflicts are often at the basis
of organizational crises. If the organization can grasp the mythologi­
cal dimension of the crisis and respond creatively, it is more likely to
emerge revitalized and capable of constructively adjusting its course.
Dosher’s interventions frequently include ritual, such as when "the
shadow sides of living myths are codified, recorded and ceremoni­
ously burned as a way of 'exorcising' dysfunction.”52 Her approach
parallels our five-stage model for working with the individual’s my­
thology, in that she (1) identifies the myths operating in areas of
organizational difficulty, (2) traces the historical roots of prevailing
myths and recognizes emerging myths, (3) mediates between compet­
ing mythologies, (4) delineates, and (5) implements new mythic im­
ages that can constructively move the organization forward.
To the extent that working with the individual’s mythology holds
implications for making interventions at the social level, our five-
stage model can be used as a preliminary framework. An implication
of the first phase of the model ("Recognizing When a Guiding Myth
Is No Longer an Ally”) is that where there is social conflict and unrest,
underlying discord in the culture’s mythology is frequently influenc­
ing external conditions. The different sides of the conflict are often
forcefully expressed by specific religious, ethnic, or political groups.
Tracing the historical roots of mythic conflict can reveal a great deal
about a social problem and the failing myths that are maintaining it.
The natural resistance to giving up a long-standing myth must also be
heeded. Abraham Lincoln described the essential dilemma of this first
phase when he warned, "The dogmas of the quiet past are inadequate
to the stormy present,” and he beckoned the country toward a new
mythology: "The occasion is piled high with difficulty, and we must
rise with the occasion. As our case is new, so we must think anew and
act anew.”53
Often, however, we cannot find new guiding images that promise
to remedy the chaos left in the wake of failed myths. Rollo May has
used the term mythoclasm to describe what occurs when a guiding
truth becomes bankrupt.54 At such times, people are forced to reckon
Tending to the Mythic Vision of Your Community 227

with shortcomings of principles they once venerated. They are shaken

to ease their grip on myths that no longer serve their best interests.
And they are challenged to remain alert. According to the historian
of religion Mircea Eliade, the sacred often bursts forth into the pro-
fane at the darkest hour, purifying and reordering the world.55 By
learning to sense the mythological conflicts at the basis of social
unrest, you are able to keep yourself more attuned to the deeper and
sometimes surprising forces at play.
The implication of the second phase of our program ("Bringing the
Roots of Mythic Conflict into Focus") for working with social pro-
cesses is that the mythological basis of each side of the conflict, once
identified, can be productively examined. Both an historical under-
standing and an ability to find a prototype of the conflict within
yourself are useful. As discussed earlier, social scientists have devel-
oped sophisticated procedures for analyzing the relationship between
mythic imagery and cultural trends. The willingness to find the other
side of the conflict within oneself sometimes requires coaxing. Psy-
chologist Carl Rogers has suggested that leaders in international
negotiations should not criticize an adversary's position before hav-
ing stated the opponent's view to the satisfaction of the other. Rogers
demonstrated such prospects, with impressive results, in conflict
-resolution efforts with opposing groups in some of the world's most
difficult trouble spots, such as Northern Ireland, South Africa, and
Latin America.56
Examining the forces acting upon your own mythology can
deepen your understanding of the mythological basis of conflict in
your community. For instance, where one of your long-standing per-
sonal myths is in conflict with a counter-myth, you may find within
yourself both the inclination to stay with the old and familiar and the
impetus to alter your mythology. Such inner conflict is mirrored at
the social level in the perennial tension between conservatives and
progressives. Conservatives function to defend and conserve what is
of value from the mythologies of the past, even as the forces of change
carry a society into the future. Liberals focus on change, reform, and
progressive ideals with an eye toward a better future, but sometimes
lose touch with important customs and traditions from the past. Both
leanings can be found within each of us; if we can establish a balance
between them within ourselves, we will be better able to support our
culture in its need both to conserve worthwhile practices and to inno-
vate new social forms.
Exploring your inner depths attunes you to the mythological un-
228 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

derpinnings of diverse social patterns and conditions. There is evi-

dence, for instance, that the classical hero's journey may exist in
primitive recesses of the psyche as well as in the _guiding models
provided by cultures. Joseph Campbell, who described the hero's jour-
ney based on his comparative studies of mythologies throughout his-
tory, notes his "amazement" upon reading of psychiatrist John Weir
Perry's studies of psychosis57 and discovering that sometimes "the
imagery of schizophrenic fantasy perfectly matches that of the mytho-
logical hero journey" as he had outlined it more than a decade
before.58
Because of these powerful internal mythic forces, Grof recom-
mends in-depth self-exploration on the part of leaders who would
complement what they are doing in the external world with syste-
matic inner searching.59 Policymakers could be educated to find both
sides of an ideological conflict within themselves. Even if the process
did not change their ideology, it would increase the likelihood of
empathy and respect for their opponent's position, thus enhancing
their capacity for creative collaboration.
The processes corresponding with the first two stages of our model
would include uncovering the mythological basis of a difficulty in
your community, identifying its manifestation in the myths of disso-
nant groups, tracing its history, recognizing its analogue within your-
self, and investigating the constructive impulses and destructive po-
tentials contained within each side of the conflict. The principle
corresponding with the third stage of our program ("Conceiving a
Unifying Mythic Vision") is that where there is conflict in the commu-
nity's mythology, the individuals and groups involved are served by
working toward an understanding of the deeper layers of their differ-
ences and using this understanding to expand their own positions.
Raising the level of discourse to the mythological level makes it more
likely for each side to appreciate the actions the other side has taken.
And from the perspective of this larger picture, it becomes evident
that it is in the interests of each side to be concerned with the needs
of the other. This can help conflicting groups to envision a "superordi-
nate goal"—a mutually beneficial outcome that transcends the sepa-
rate interests of either group.6°
Cooperation between opposing groups is maximized when both
recognize a superordinate goal, desirable for both groups but attaina-
ble only through cooperation. One of Einstein's cherished hopes was
for the creation of a federation of nations designed specifically for
preventing war. Such an organization would shape world politics
because this would be the only organization entitled to have an army,
Tending to the Mythic Vision of Your Community 229

and it would have jurisdiction in international disputes. Einstein did

not believe that individual countries would disarm voluntarily with-
out the sanction and protection of such a larger arbitrating author-
ity.6' Superordinate goals lead to conditions in which actions that
benefit the individual or subgroup simultaneously benefit the collec-
tive.
Superordinate goals are also at play in anthropologist Ruth Bene-
dict's important concept of synergy. 62 In cultures with a high degree
of synergy, the society is organized so that an individual, in one act,
serves his or her own advantage as well as that of the community. In
groups that are low in synergy, social arrangements create a pro-
nounced opposition between the needs of the person and the needs of
the group. Benedict found that "high synergy" societies were secure,
benevolent, and high in morale; "low synergy" societies were inse-
cure, surly, and low in morale.
Social action that produces a far-reaching beneficial impact is
often high in synergy. Clara Barton once noted that the greatest
benefits of the Red Cross, which she founded, lie not in its past ser-
vice, but "in the possibilities it has created for the future; in the les-
sons it has taught; in the avenues to humane effort it has opened,
and in the union of beneficent action between people and Govern-
ment." In promoting societal or international cooperation, the
amount of synergy embodied in a particular action—the degree to
which it is capable of promoting superordinate goals among groups
with diverse mythologies and opposing interests—is a sensible mea-
sure of its social advantage. Such a measurement could be used as a
criterion for assessing new visions as they are being translated into
action. Another imaginative criterion is the Iroquois Indian practice
of asking how a policy decision would affect the seventh generation
to come. Such perspectives increase the chances of a mythic conflict
reaching resolution.
The final two stages of our program ("From Vision to Commit-
ment" and "Weaving a Renewed Mythology into Daily Life") involve
choice and dedication to action. As you attempt to implement the new
guiding mythology that you have painstakingly crafted through this
program, you will undoubtedly run into obstacles you had not an-
ticipated. Success comes in starts and stops. Progress seems slow
because we are all constructed so that we can envision possibilities
long before we can attain them. At our best, we monitor our expecta-
tions so we won't be disenchanted in the very process of facilitating
our self-development. And this is but a microcosm of the complex
challenges faced by individuals who seek to catalyze their community
230 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

into refining and expanding its mythic vision. Planned social change
may seem excruciatingly slow, but an understanding of its mythic
dimension can provide a consoling perspective and practical knowl-
edge of the underlying forces at work.
Overpopulation, for example, is often identified as "perhaps the
gravest threat to future world peace."" Yet even where policies and
programs designed to limit population growth have enjoyed wide-
spread support, progress often falters. Successful programs can,
however, be identified and studied. In 1965, Singapore's population
growth was 22 percent more rapid than Ethiopia's; through free
family planning and various economic sanctions and incentives, the
country had slowed the rate to half of Ethiopia's within a decade."
Singapore reached zero population growth in 1986, and by 1987 the
country's leaders were calling for more children per family. To use
a mythological perspective in designing a program to limit popula-
tion growth in another country, the Singapore program could be
scrutinized for the way it managed to interface with the culture's
mythology to gain such cooperation. A local adaptation of that
model, attuned particularly to the social forces already working to
counter overpopulation, might be introduced into a new community
as a well-articulated alternative myth. The succeeding stages of con-
flict and resolution could be observed and articulated, as in the ac-
tion research model described in chapter 6. Thus, as the community
moves forward with an understanding of the mythological dimen-
sion of the task it has undertaken, it can also adjust its course with
reliable information.
The overriding mythic theme of our era is that the hero's solitary
journey has led us onto a path that can only be transversed by
heroes who cooperate in their respect for the planet and for one
another. Recognizing our interdependence with people around the
globe has become urgent both for our personal and our collective
security. This development begs for superordinate goals that inspire
us to take decisive action toward international understanding and
cooperation. In pondering the paradox that there is "so much evil in
the world, but so few evil men," Abraham Maslow observed that
"the voice of the divine within is counterposed not by the voice of
the devil within but by the voice of the timid."65 We would add that
effective work with your own myths and the myths of your society is
a skillful reply to both the voice of the devil and the voice of the
timid.
Each of us is challenged to direct our strength and wisdom toward
Tending to the Mythic Vision of Your Community 231

creating mythological harmonies within ourselves; within our fami-

lies; within our organizations; within our nation; within the world.
And as we reconcile our logic with our intuition, our egos with our
shadows, our old myths with our new ones, and our personal needs
with those of our community, we also pave the way for a world
steeped in contradictions to move forward in greater peace and crea-
tive harmony.
 Appendix A
Enhancing the Program

To participate creatively in the evolution of your personal mythology

requires time, focused concentration, and a willingness to explore
material that may be discomforting. Based on our substantial experi-
ence with the obstacles people face when they attempt to work with
their personal myths, a number of strategies are offered here to enrich
your experience in the program.

Building habit patterns that support self-exploration. Work-

ing with your personal mythology requires new habits that are similar
to those involved in establishing a regular practice of exercise, medita-
tion, yoga, or any similar discipline. Habits of thinking, such as keen
observation and patience, and habits of doing, such as reflecting in a
journal and working with dreams, can be cultivated. You may not be
able to use your willpower to achieve profound insights on command,
but you can marshal it toward creating the time and the conditions
that will support effective inner work. Stepping out of the routines
and stresses that normally occupy your mind and into protected space
permits you to connect more deeply with your inner self. Setting aside
a regular time for contemplation and self-exploration builds habitual
responses that can aid you in your intention to do this work.

Creating a special place for inner work. The place you choose
for these efforts should provide a comfortable and inspiring atmo-
sphere while protecting you from distractions such as television and
telephone. Be aware of lighting and sounds as you create your envi-
ronment. You can work in an easy chair, at a desk, or from pillows
on the floor. Some people have built altars in the corner of a crowded
living room. Native American tribes consecrate important places as
sacred, using particular sites for blessing a hunt or ceremony. We
suggest you treat your own work space with similar reverence.

233
234 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

Inspirational prompts. You can use candles, incense, objects

from nature, and inspirational works of art, literature, or music to
enhance the atmosphere of your work space. Besides setting a mood,
these may be particularly valuable to focus upon when you are feeling
resistant to continuing the work or when you need a break. Reflecting
upon inspiring materials can give you refuge if the program becomes
uncomfortably intense, yet you will still be building the habit of regu-
lar inner work. If you find yourself resisting a personal ritual, it may
be wise to take a recess and turn to one of these inspirational objects.
One client would browse through an 1893 edition of Walt Whitman's
poetry when she felt bogged down, and this frequently led to fresh
inspiration and motivation. A man who was inclined to become lost
in a welter of words that took him off on tangents found it grounding
to meditate on a beautiful polished rock his daughter had given him.
If you do not force yourself, and at the same time keep your inner life
stimulated, you are likely to be drawn effortlessly back to the pro-
gram.

Retreats. Many of the world's great religious leaders received

their inspiration while in solitude, often in the desert or mountains.
Inspiration can come when you remove yourself, psychologically as
well as physically, from ongoing workaday concerns and create a
conducive environment. A weekend retreat can provide a fertile set-
ting for engaging yourself in the program offered here.

Speaking your inner experiences. If you have trouble following

or keeping your concentration on the guided imagery journeys, you
will increase your success markedly by telling your experience as it
is occurring to a partner or speaking it into a second tape recorder.
This will not only keep you alert and on track during the experience
but will also make it easier to recall or retrieve the details of your
inner journey.

Staying physically vibrant. If you are feeling weary or run-

down, the energy available to you will not take you to your creative
edge. Rest, good nutrition, and exercise are the first order of business.
Physical exercise in particular can bypass ordinary thought patterns,
increase nonlinear thinking, alter perceptions, and open you to fresh
experience and insight (the "runner's high"). Swimming, jogging,
bouncing on a jumper, or other properly paced aerobic exercise after
a sedentary day at work can sharpen you for the mental effort re-
quired by this program.
Enhancing the Program 235

Working with others. Other people can lend a different perspec-

tive and greater objectivity. They may perceive blind spots that are
invisible to you, yet central to your development. The program may
be used alone, with a partner, as the focal point of a personal mythol-
ogy study group, under the supervision of a therapist, or as the basis
for clinicians or other qualified leaders to design their own personal
mythology classes and workshops. Working with others can help you
tap into the healing qualities of relationship and community. If you
make yourself accountable to another person, you are also more
likely to confront your resistances directly than to unknowingly allow
them to sabotage your efforts.
"Leaderless" women's groups, men's groups, adult children of al-
coholics groups, and other self-help groups can use this book to lead
their members into a productive exploration of their personal myths.
When we work with a group, we divide it into subgroups of three or
four people. Guided imagery instructions are given to the entire group
as participants go through the experience simultaneously but individ-
ually. They then discuss in their small support group what occurred
and what it means. Exploring your personal mythology with others
can intensify the potency of the techniques and provide support and
perspective.
If you work with another person, we strongly urge that you start
by reaching an agreement on ground rules, such as respecting each
other's personal defenses and honoring each other's privacy by main-
taining confidentiality. This is not a time to "play therapist" in the
sense of probing for hidden feelings or dark secrets the other may be
avoiding, offering uninvited interpretations of the meaning of the
other's experiences, or giving advice. When you challenge your estab-
lished patterns of thought and behavior, you need acceptance and
emotional support. If you are planning to conduct the program with
a partner or a group, the most sensible posture is to agree to listen
receptively to one another's experiences, offer nonjudgmental sup-
port, and provide an active sounding board. Maintaining the balance
of engaging in mutual problem solving and not becoming intrusive
can be enhanced by discussing (prior to the program) what kind of
support you will want from your partner, and building in a feedback
system so that you can let your partner know if you are getting what
you need.

Intensifying personal rituals through progressive relaxation.

Each imagery ritual begins with a brief induction for relaxing and
tuning yourself inwardly. You can deepen your experience with the
236 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

rituals by taking the time to tape and use the following longer induc-
tion,' which brings you deeper into the part of yourself usually ac-
cessed only in dreams. Begin by sitting or reclining in a safe, secluded
space where you are unlikely to be interrupted.

Settle in comfortably—feeling warm, secure, and well supported.

[Pause] Thank your body for its hard work and good service. [Pause]
Find the parts of your body that need special attention, healing or
rest. Picture a warm, wise hand filled with a fragrant ointment gently
touching and acknowledging those parts. Focus your attention and
sense the melting calming relaxation that comes into those sore and
tired places. [60-second pause]
All is well with you as you set off on this journey of self-discovery.
You are always able to move and adjust yourself, yawning and stretch-
ing, rearranging until your body is peaceful and satisfied Use any
sounds in the environment as a reminder to bring your attention back
to the instructions.
Your facial muscles—forehead, eyes, cheeks, mouth, and jaw—
yield to gravity by softening and melting. Blood flows freely through
your skin, tingling your scalp and enlivening your face. At your own
pace, breathe deeply seven times, exhaling completely. Be aware of
your entire head—face, scalp, eyes, ears, mouth, jaw. You are vitally
alive and relaxed. [60-second pause]
Your neck, the bridge between head and body, has worked very
hard and welcomes this peaceful time. The heavy load is at rest and
nothing is demanded of your neck or throat. You are grateful for all
the air and nourishment they have carried for you. The healing hand
sensitively massages around your neck and its muscles. You sigh,
content. Take seven deep breaths, at your own tempo, becoming in-
creasingly aware of softening your throat and neck. [60-second pause]
Your chest, ribs, back, spine, shoulders, lungs, and heart are work-
ing together to bring breath into you as they have all of your life.
Focus on each—ribs all the way around, back, spine, shoulders, lungs,
heart—as you find the tired places. Take seven good breaths, at your
own pace, exhaling completely and resting between inhalations. With
each breath you are increasingly aware of the healing hand, which
again finds the wounded, weary parts, nourishing them with tender
touch. Be generous with yourself, allowing time for the healing to
happen. [90-second pause]
Your pelvis, hips, buttocks, genitals, belly, muscles, and deep or-
gans deserve the attention you are giving them. Sense their needs and
strengths. Give thanks for their good service. With seven breaths, as
before, experience in sensation and visualization the wonderful, lov-
Enhancing the Program 237

ing hand healing your hurts and soothing your restlessness. [90-
second pause]
Your arms, hands, legs, and feet are ready to rest and be ap-
preciated. Move your awareness to the muscles and joints of your
arms, hands, legs, and feet, opening and freeing each in turn. One by
one, discover and thank the muscles and joints in your arms [20-
second pause]; your hands [20-second pause]; your legs [20-second
pause]; and your feet [20-second pause]. The healing hand will touch
away your pains as you take seven deep breaths, exhaling your tired-
ness, hurt, and disillusion. [60-second pause]
With each of the next ten suggestions, you will become more able
to relax and to move into the experience you have chosen. You are
always free to return to ordinary consciousness simply by opening
your eyes and exhaling deeply, and you are just as free to explore the
landscape of your unconscious. You will recall all you need of this
experience, and you will emerge from it with insight and power. This
is your mythology, entirely your own creation.
ONE, you are able fully to focus on the instructions. You are
conscious, alert, and curious.
TWO, your body remembers the healing it has received and sinks
pleasurably into full relaxation.
THREE, your breathing deepens as your lungs become quieter and
more efficient. Your chest rises and falls in gentle rhythm. The air
moves softly through your nose and throat.
FOUR, your heart pumps at a peaceful, efficient rate, sending oxy-
gen and nutrients to every part of your body. Trace this flow with a
vivid sensation of refreshment reaching every cell.
FIVE, your deep organs—heart, stomach, liver, kidneys, and the
others—have silently served you, and you are grateful as you visualize
and sense their appreciation of your attention.
SIX, your buttocks, genitals, and belly are butter-soft. Deliciously
comfortable. How good you feel!
SEVEN, your thighs, calves, ankles, and leg joints are heavy and
happy, relieved of effort and demand.
EIGHT, your head, face, neck, and shoulders are contented and
easy, feeling good.
NINE, deeply relaxed, you feel the comfortable sensations of
warmth and heavinesk• within you and a pleasant tingling on your
skin.
TEN, fully relaxed. Your body is vital and comfortable. Your
best energy is available for the journey of self-discovery you have
begun.
238 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

Progressive relaxation slows your metabolism, quiets your mind,

increases your receptivity, and deepens the guided imagery experi-
ence that will follow it. At the close of any ritual that you begin by
using this induction, count yourself out from TEN to ONE instead of
from FIVE to ONE as the text indicates. By practicing this technique
regularly, you can develop within yourself the ability to reach a
deeply relaxed and peaceful state at will.
 Appendix B
A Primer for Working
with Your Dreams

With the publication of The Interpretation of Dreams in 1899, Freud

brought the mystery of dreaming into the reach of scientific investiga-
tion. While he recognized that the meaning of a dream is often well
concealed, he considered dreams "the royal road to the unconscious."
Carl Jung insisted that the dream symbol typically reveals insights
rather than concealing information from the dreamer. As a result,
Jung went beyond Freud in having his clients write down their
dreams and in asking them to play a central role in dream interpreta-
tion.
Working with dreams can be a useful way of making contact with
underlying feelings, conflicts, and motivations because the dream, as
Freud said, is probably the most direct route to unconscious experi-
ence. A number of excellent books are available that provide detailed
guidance for examining your own dream life.' The next few pages
provide brief guidelines for working with dreams in a way that is
oriented toward understanding your personal mythology.

Myth-making Activity Through Your Dreams

Many depth psychologists believe that dreams are best understood as
an unfolding of the psyche and should not be distorted by intellectual
interpretations. In a similar manner, you can learn to sense, without
being overly intellectual, the relationship between the patterns you
find in your dreams and your developing personal myths. Dreams
serve to mediate between your daily experiences and your underlying
myths. Working with your dreams can reveal changes in your mythol-
ogy that are occurring outside your awareness.

A woman had a recurrent dream about crossing a bridge that was

in a forest. That was the only scene in the dream, but it was accom-

239
240 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

panied by a feeling of enormous frustration. She was asked to imagine

that she was having the dream again. This time, however, she was told
to aredream" the dream from the point of view of the bridge. She
closed her eyes, relaxed, imagined she was the bridge, and was soon
sobbing softly.
She explained that her initial reaction was one of great satisfaction
because she was helping people get from one part of the woods to
another. But then as people kept walking over her, she felt old and
creaky, as if she were going to collapse and break apart. Then she
realized that she really was the bridge. The bridge represented the fact
that she was always serving her husband, waiting on her children,
caring for her aged parents, and doing little for herself. She was living
according to the dictates of a personal myth that had her reflexively
serving others, underfoot, unaware, and unappreciated. She realized
that if she kept doing this, she was going to creak and fall apart.
The dream helped her to realize that a part of her was suffering
because of her unquestioned compliance to an image of the role of
wife and mother that she had held since childhood. Her dream was
telling her the importance of revising that guiding image, and it spoke
to her by dramatizing her myth in a way that led her to realize the
harm it was causing.

When the consequences of your mythology are harmful, or when

your daytime experiences are inconsistent with your mythology,
your dreams may work to adjust the mythology. Or they may rein-
terpret your circumstances or experiences to better fit existing
myths. Dreams may support or challenge an existing myth, foster or
inhibit a counter-myth, or focus upon conflict between the two.2 You
can understand your dreams better in terms of your personal my-
thology, and you can understand your personal mythology more
fully through the instruction of your dreams.

Suggestions for Remembering Your Dreams

Some people spontaneously remember a dream or two almost every
morning. Most do not. A few simple techniques can assist recall. Just
before falling asleep, breathe deeply, relax, and repeat ten to twenty
times: "I will remember a dream when I wake up." We suggest you
place a tape recorder or a pen and your journal beside the bed. Record
your dreams immediately upon waking. Dreams are often fragile and
transitory, and you may lose the dream if you wait even for a few
minutes.
If you wake up without recalling a dream, you might shift your
A Primer for Working with Your Dreams 241

body into a different position, especially a position in which you

might have had a dream. Or you might remain alert during the morn-
ing because a trivial incident or association can take you back to a
dream. Even if you can remember only a single fragment, or a fleeting
feeling with which you awaken, record it. Sometimes the process of
simply starting to write or speak the dream expands your initial
glimpse into a much more complete recollection. There is a saying
that a dream is like a tiger—if you catch even a trace of it, you have
it by the tail and can pull it into view, stripe by stripe.
It may take several days of giving yourself the recommended in-
structions before you start recalling your dreams. Do not become
discouraged. The program is designed so that your dreams are a
supplementary rather than a central focus of the work. Also, as you
repeat this process for several nights, you will be developing habit
patterns that support dream recall.
We will mention two additional methods that can help with dream
recall, although they are more intrusive. While alcohol and most
drugs tend to reduce dreaming, some people claim to have found that
their dream recall is enhanced by the ingestion of certain herbal teas
and other natural substances. Vitamin B-6, for instance, is believed to
increase dream recall. If there are no contraindications to your using
B-6, occasionally taking between 50 mg and 250 mg with dinner (do
not take more without medical supervision) may facilitate dream
recall. Another technique is to set an alarm clock to go off early so you
will be more likely to awake mid-dream and also have additional time
to work with your dream. Although these are not recommended as a
regular practice, they may on occasion be useful.
Even if you do not recall a dream on a particular morning, your
attempt promotes new insights. Often people will ask for a dream that
clarifies a certain issue, and they will wake up not with a dream but
with a new understanding of the problem. Rather than becoming
disappointed or self-critical if you do not remember your dreams,
simply set aside a few protected minutes upon awakening and remain
alert for whatever comes. Nor should you be concerned if the mean-
ing of a particular dream is not initially clear to you. Several tech-
niques for dream exploration follow, and others can be found in the
recommended books.

Ways of Working with Your Dreams

Carl Jung suggested: "If we meditate on a dream sufficiently long and
thoroughly, if we carry it around with us and turn it over and over,
something almost always comes of it."3 Keeping your attention
focused on a dream is likely to induce a greater understanding of its
242 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

meaning. The techniques offered here are, in a sense, ways of crea-

tively turning the dream "over and over." The oldest and most fre-
quently used method of working with dreams is simply to repeat the
dream to yourself or to tell it to another person. Recording dreams
in a journal serves a similar function. Five additional techniques for
working with your dreams follow.

Review via dream elements. Some researchers have identified

several categories of dream content.4 One way of attending to a dream
is to review it in terms of these categories. This process often helps the
dreamer see new relationships among parts of the dream and may
also bring additional aspects of the dream into memory. Ten possible
dream categories include: characters (friends, famous people, stran-
gers, mythical creatures); nature (trees, birds, stars, water); objects
(clothing, weapons, computers, buildings); emotions (anger, love,
fear, loneliness); sensations (warmth, pain, sound, smells, taste); set-
tings (your home, nineteenth-century France, midnight, outer space);
solitary activities (running, eating, watching TV, sewing); interactions
(having a conversation, playing Ping-Pong, making love, fighting a
duel); modifiers (small, pretty, purple, old, tall); and outcomes (fail-
ure, victory, confusion, incompleteness). While no single dream is
likely to have all ten categories represented in it, the list may remind
you of important aspects of the dream. Also, if you record your
dreams on a regular basis, you may find that certain elements regu-
larly repeat themselves, revealing patterns that you can explore just
as you would explore an individual dream symbol.

Identifying with one of the elements. Many clinicians who

work with dreams believe that each image represents an aspect of the
dreamer. The woman who "became" the bridge was using an ap-
proach to working with dreams that is based on this assumption.
In this technique, you select a tangible element from the dream—
usually one that is particularly puzzling, troubling, or ominous—and
identify with that person, place, thing, quality, or activity. One way of
identifying with the dream element is to "redream" the dream. If a
bear rug in the dream puzzles you, close your eyes and imagine that
you are having the dream again. But this time, imagine that you are
the bear rug. What is the rug thinking and feeling as the dream pro-
ceeds? Perhaps your rug will feel stepped on and ignored. Or perhaps
your rug is a resource that can transform itself into the living animal
when you have a need for strength.
A second method of identifying with the dream element is to role-
A Primer for Working with Your Dreams 243

play it, using the technique called "creative projection" introduced in

chapter 2. If you were exploring the bear rug, you would assume the
role of the rug and literally act out the dream, giving the rug a voice
and gestures and, in your imagination, interacting with other ele-
ments as the dream proceeds. As you enact the plot of the dream,
remain alert to any impulses you may have to examine other dream
elements.
After finishing the dream as you dreamed it, you can extend the
role play. The element with which you are identifying can have an
imaginary dialogue with another dream element. The bear rug, for
instance, might begin such a dialogue by asking the room in which it
is placed, "Why are you so cold?" You would then "become" the room,
answer, and proceed with a dialogue between them.

Free association to a dream element. You also can freely associ-

ate to a particular dream image, writing down everything that comes
to mind. Perhaps you dreamed about a robot. As quickly as you can,
list all of your associations with "robot"—for example, "mechanical,
efficient, futuristic, cold, programmed." You may come to understand
some of these associations in the context of the entire dream, the
context of recent events in your life, or the context of the work you
are doing with your personal mythology. If you are working with a
partner, you might have your partner ask you a series of questions as
a naive interviewer. For example, imagine that your partner has just
arrived from another culture and needs to have everything explained.
Your partner could ask such questions as "What is a robot?" If the
answer is, "A mechanical person," your partner might ask, "What do
you mean by mechanical?" Have your partner continue the process,
moving so rapidly that you will need to express yourself spontane-
ously, without the opportunity to preplan your responses.
Another variation of this approach is to imagine that you are inter-
viewing the dream element. You can ask the bear rug or the robot
what it is doing in your dream and what it is trying to tell you, and
then let the image answer.

Extending the dream. Sometimes you will wake up with a

dream that feels unfinished or in some other way seems unresolved.
With this technique, you simply redream the dream in your imagina-
tion just as you remember it, and then carry the plot beyond the
dream's actual stopping point. You extend the dream toward a new
ending. For instance, you might have the bear rug become animated,
leave the cold room, and discover what is beyond it.
244 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

Critical focus. With this technique, you again redream the dream
in your imagination, as if you were watching a motion picture. This
time, however, you "freeze" the action where the scene changes, a new
character appears, or there is a shift in the emotional tone. Examine
that scene in detail and then continue. This gives you a chance not
only to observe the action carefully at critical points but also to enter
the dream, examine its elements, and even question the elements
about their role in the drama, as if they were actors.

Your dreams can provide fresh insight into the mysterious work-
ings of your unconscious mind in an intriguing blend of literal and
symbolic language. While they may not reveal a perfectly clear pic-
ture of your personal mythology, they can provide enticing clues into
its dynamics.
 Appendix C
When the Program Becomes Unsettling

A sensitive issue in presenting some of the exercises in this program

is that any tool that is useful for psychological exploration can stir up
strong emotions or uncover dormant psychological problems. We
have made every effort to present the program in such a way that you
can pace it according to your particular needs and sensitivities. The
personal rituals presented here have been tested with more than two
thousand people in our consultations, workshops, and seminars, as
well as with the individuals who worked with earlier drafts of the
book. In no instance have serious adverse effects been reported.
Rather, we have received requests for techniques that would intensify
some of the exercises, and a few such methods were outlined in
Appendix A.
However, interpersonal support is built into face-to-face settings.
If you should feel discouraged or unsettled as you proceed through
the chapters, and if those feelings persist after you have utilized the
suggestions given below, we strongly recommend that you find appro-
priate support or professional assistance.
Some people have repressed important life issues for years. If
these issues are on the verge of breaking through one's defenses,
nearly any intense experience can trigger a reaction. For some, it
might be seeing a powerful film; for others, it might be an argument
with a loved one or a volley of criticism from a friend. What should
be done if you become too upset?
For some people, psychotherapy is long overdue. However, a num-
ber of practical "psychological first aid" procedures are available, and
in most cases one or more will suffice:

Shift your focus. Simply put the book away and shift activities.
Listen to music, work in your garden, telephone a friend, take a walk,
turn on the television.

245
246 PERSONAL MYTHOLOGY

Honor your body. Involve yourself in invigorating physical ac-

tivities such as swimming, running, dancing, jumping on a trampo-
line, cleaning your house, or waxing your car. Regularly discharging
pent-up or stagnant energies is an excellent form of emotional self-
care.

Quiet your mind. Meditate or use a relaxation technique such as

the one described in Appendix A.

Protect yourself mythically. Visualize your Inner Shaman nur-

turing you or use your Personal Shield for emotional protection, as
described at the end of chapter 2.

Find support from another person. Share intimately with some-

one who appreciates the task you have accepted and whom you can
use as a sounding board. Being valued in the darkest part of your
struggle makes that struggle more endurable.

Be kind and patient with yourself. Shift your perspective, keep

your humor, and call upon your creativity. Find the ironies and the
lessons even in memories and insights that may at first seem dismal
and upsetting. The awareness that is upsetting you is still new. The
creative responses you will engage to meet it are still being mobilized.
Remember, as Abraham Maslow used to say, "Anything worth doing
is worth doing awkwardly at first!"

Newly conceived personal myths can provoke discomfort even as

they begin to improve your life. For change to occur, the old mythic
system must destabilize. Because the program is oriented toward
identifying and changing areas of your personal mythology that are
not serving you well, you have been asked to explore memories and
feelings that may be difficult and unpleasant. It is typical, in fact, to
encounter frailties and weaknesses that were not previously recog-
nized. Although realistic adjustments to your self-concept will be valu-
able, it is equally important to attend to your self-esteem. Along with
the methods presented above, acknowledge to yourself that you have
willingly entered a realm that holds difficult as well as inspiring mate-
rial, and appreciate your own courage.

A Stress Release Technique

We also have found the following stress release technique to be help-
ful in diminishing the effects of a past emotional trauma. This tech-
nique, which is based on Chinese medicine, is being used increasingly
When the Program Becomes Unsettling 247

in settings ranging from emergency rooms to the Olympics.' Its effect

is to clear the meridians (the energy pathways on which acupuncture
points are supposedly situated) of stress-related energy blockages.
Experiment with this simple self-help procedure when working with
your personal mythology becomes overly stressful.

Keeping the troubling emotion or memory in your awareness,

place the palm of one hand across your forehead. Place your other
hand over the protrusion at the back of your head, just above the line
of your ears. Gently hold your head between your hands as you con-
tinue to experience the emotion or memory. Continue for at least a
minute. You will feel yourself beginning to relax and surrender. No-
tice how the feelings of stress gradually diminish, even as you keep
the memory in your mind. You may also feel sensations of energy
streaming through your body and down your legs. Know that your
hands are activating points that naturally defuse the stress reflex con-
ditioned to the memory.

This technique stimulates a physiological response that is believed

to neutralize some of the effects of emotional stress that can build
during a traumatic event, or in this case, a traumatic memory or
disturbing insight. The memory or insight remains, but the noxious
electrochemical consequences of post-traumatic stress that had been
associated with it may be alleviated.

While we are focusing here on the limitations and possible hazards

of self-guided exploration, we want to reemphasize the potential bene-
fits of actively working with your personal mythology. Out of the
creative chaos of examining your life story will come fresh perspec-
tives for living a more harmonious and vital existence. We believe that
such exploration is one of the most powerful, yet gentle, ways of
facilitating the development of your personality.