Myths to Live By by Joseph Campbell
|
List Price: Our Price: $9.08 You Save: $6.92 (43%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $2.91 (click here) Category: Book See more book details and other editions |
|---|
Book Reviews of Myths to Live By
Book Review: Our own, and the world's, divine ground
Summary: 5 Stars
I am glad that I finally got around to reading this collection of Campbell's lectures delivered between 1958 and 1971. Since they deal with eternal subject matter there is little chance of them being "dated." The common theme running through them all is the deep power of myth on the inner, spiritual lives of human beings throughout the ages. This includes our own age, whether we personally want to admit or recognize it.
The Lectures include:
1) The Impact of Science on Myth (1961),
2) The Emergence of Mankind (1966),
3) The Importance of Rites (1964),
4) The Separation of East and West (1961),
5) The Confrontation of East and West in Religion (1970)
6) The Inspiration of Oriental Art (1958),
7) Zen (1969),
8) The Mythology of Love (1967),
9) Mythologies of War and Peace (1967),
10) Schizophrenia- the Inward Journey (1970),
11) The Moon Walk- The Outer Journey (1970),
12) Envoy: No More Horizons (1971),
The reader will recognize much of the subject matter from the later talks with Bill Moyers in the "Power of Myth" series. All in all there is enough material covered to make this an excellent introduction to myth, true spirituality, and depth psychology.
One of the topics that stuck with me was the fundamental difference in the nature of religion in the East, the Near East, and the West. Traditional Eastern societies were seen as governed by one great cosmic law through which all members were seen to draw their purpose, their worth, their meaning. God was in all things and the divine spark was in all individuals. Union with the divine was possible to those that transcended their ego. In the Near-East human beings (including the King) were seen as the groveling "tenant-farmers" of God. Men were the slaves of the Gods and could only beg and sacrifice to obtain boons. Man was in no way a part of God- matter and spirit were artificially split (mythic dissociation.) Finally, there was the Greek model- mankind as the rivals and competitors of the Gods. The Greek had turned ego into God, laying the foundation for the total denial of the very existence of spirit. That is, except for the initiates of the Mysteries....
There is a section of reference notes citing sources in the back of the book, as well as, a full index for quick reference.
Book Review: Womb with a view....
Summary: 5 Stars
MYTHS TO LIVE BY consists of a dozen essays/talks Joseph Campbell prepared between 1961 and 1971. He described the period as a "new age" where "..we are...participating in one of the very greatest leaps of the human spirit to a knowledge not only of outside nature but also of our own deep inward mystery." At the time he wrote these essays, Campbell was a professor on a campus, surrounded by young people whom he found hard to understand at times. For example, in his essay "The Moon Walk--the Outward Journey" he relates his own feelings of awe on viewing the Apollo moon landing and contrasts them with the reaction of a student who wrote "So What" on a photo of the moon landing posted on a campus bulletin board. In another essay "Schizophrenia--the Inward Journey" he contrasts the use of mind-altering drugs by shamans and psychotics (including the LSD induced version) as the difference between divers and non-swimmers in "the waters of the unviersal archetypes of mythology."
I find Campbell's essays are very relevant, 30 years later. The most obvious example is "Mythologies of War and Peace" which addresses the underlying belief systems of participants in the Mideast crises. Campbell says the cruel fact is that "killing is the precondition of all living whatsoever: life lives on life, eats life, and would not otherwise exist...it is the nations, tribes, and peoples bred to mythologies of war that have survived to communicate their life-supporting mythic lore to descendents." He suggests that "we" in the West "have been bred to one of the most brutal war mythologies of all time." He then goes on to cite Deuteronomy and Isaiah and follows with excerpts from the Koran such as Sura 2, verse 216.."Fighting is prescribed for you."
Campbell does not condemn myths nor does he say myths are not literally true. He suggests creation myths and myths about love and war and peace contain the essence of the truth. Myths are to humans what kangaroo pouches are to baby kangaroos, they provide a "womb with a view." Being born simply isn't enough. We need myths to help us organize and guide our lives. However, our current myths arose in another era and were shaped by tribal mentalities that sustain the notion of GROUP differences. We need new myths for the journey of life.
Book Review: Campbell's Ancient Themes Live Here and Now
Summary: 5 Stars
Campbell selected and compiled a selection of a talks on mythology from a series of discussions that he delivered between 1958 and 1971. There is an academic quality about his style, but this will not be a barrier to most people who enjoying thinking and reflecting about what humans share in beliefs. The ancient mythic themes come alive as he weaves the observations of 20th Century everyday living with flashbacks of times ago. He storytells and teaches using 13 broad topics such as love, the beginnings of Humankind, War and Peace, schizophrenia, and the moon walk. Campbell's text reads as if he is in your home; quite possibly having a glass of wine; discussing love relationships in the theater of Life; balancing the ideas of such people as St. Paul, Shaw, Sarte, Persian poets, Buddha, and Lord Krishna. He is at his strongest in his chapters on journeys: inward and outward. A word of caution: Your mind's ear will be listening to a Master Teacher. If you liked Bill Moyer's interview with Campbell, you will appreciate Campbell's theme choices and style. His art of making sense of human potential and challenging its boundaries is a stimulating reflective exercise.Book Review: A fantastic book...
Summary: 5 Stars
Joseph Campbell was obviously a special person with a deep and profound interest in mythology, and reading this small sampling of his speeches and papers was a treat. I wasn't expecting to find myself so interested in what he had to say regarding the world's various myths, but Mr. Campbell's insights into human nature and religion compelled me to crack a smile numerous times as I was reading this book. Revelations abound in these pages, but be warned: if you are a fundamentalist adherent to one of the Abrahamic religions, you probably won't enjoy it nearly as much as someone with an open mind will. Campbell makes the case that religions and mythologies are merely reflections of the hidden human psyche, and he makes his case well. Anyone interested in theology (from an academic standpoint) would be doing themselves a disservice by not reading what Campbell had to say about mythology and it's role in society.Book Review: Instant Enlightenment? Not really, but damn close...
Summary: 5 Stars
Myths to Live By is, I believe, Joseph Campbell's finest single volume book for the lay public. Dr. Campbell's comparative study of mythologies/religions/cultures both of the east and west is revealing, instructive, compelling and ultimately devastating. Devastating because (almost forty years ago) I discovered in this little book the intellectual catapult I needed to liberate myself and forever abandon the trappings of Judeo/Christian/Islamic 'baggage' for the greener shores of Buddhism and zen. For me this book was pivotal as it clearly pointed me towards the works of D.T. Suzuki and subsequently to those of Paul Reps, Nyogen Senzaki, Nakagawa Soen, Thomas Cleary and R.H. Blyth. I am deeply grateful to all (deep gassho). Is it possible to reach enlightenment by reading the works of others? I have pointed you in the direction of these Buddhas. Now you add your forty years and let's see...