We all tell stories about who we are, where we come from, and where we are going. These personal myths in turn shape who we become and what we believe—as individuals, families, and nations. This book offers readers the tools to detect the story line in their own lives and to write and tell it to others, opening up a hidden world of self-discovery and meaning. The numerous accessible exercises are followed by examples of personal stories and inspiring quotes to stimulate the journey to the center of one's purpose. "By the art of fantasy and imagination, story and image, these authors map the ways personal stories deepen into transpersonal mythic journeys." —David Miller, Ph.D., Watson-Ledden Professor of Religion, Syracuse University

Greek gods, Norse heroes, Polynesian tricksters, and Native American warriors—they all have lessons to teach us. Since the beginning of time, human beings have relied on myths, fairy tales, and fables to explain life’s mysteries. Bringing a fresh perspective to these age-old tales, Liz Greene and Juliet Sharman-Burke reveal how seekers today can find comfort and support in the legends and lore of the past. The Mythic Journey explores the psychological themes of many mythical traditions, recounting stories from Greco-Roman, Hebraic, Egyptian, Celtic, Norse, and various Eastern civilizations. More than 50 myths are beautifully retold, and each is followed by a psychological overview explaining how we can apply the story to our own lives. The Mythic Journey is a handbook for human life, guiding readers from the conflicts of family and childhood, through problems of love, intimacy, and ambition, and ultimately to the point when we must face our own mortality. We discover that true self knowledge comes through facing life’s challenges with courage and strength; that beauty, talent, power, and wealth bring their own forms of suffering; and that in the darkness of loneliness, failure, and loss, we have always discovered new light and new hope.

The Writer's Journey is an insider's guide to how master storytellers from Hitchcock to Spielberg have used mythic structure to create powerful stories. This new edition includes analyses of latest releases such as The Full Monty.

Horses, by their very nature, are mythic creatures — they represent in our collective imagination aspects of the human journey at its greatest. In Riding into Your Mythic Life, therapeutic riding instructor Patricia Broersma invites readers on an experiential journey of transformation with these powerful creatures, offering ways to explore life’s events as part of one’s own mythic journey. Broersma has developed her theories over twenty years of working with horses and children with special needs, as well as through a twelve-year series of horse camps for teenagers and weekend workshops for adults. Riding into Your Mythic Life offers readers the opportunity to explore and expand human potential through powerful experiences with horses and mythology. These experiences teach skills for developing intuition, compassion, and leadership, and ultimately for stepping into one’s greater life.

“Sam Keen is one of the most creative, profound thinkers of our time. I personally have learned and benefited immensely from his books. He brings to the men's movement a new kind of practical wisdom that should help both men and women.”—John Bradshaw, author of Homecoming How does one become a “real man”? By joining a fraternity? Getting a letter in football? Conquering a lot of women? Making a lot of money? With traditional notions of manhood under attack, today's men (and women) are looking for a new vision of masculinity. In this groundbreaking book, Sam Keen offers an inspiring guide for men seeking new personal ideals of strength, potency, and warrior-ship in their lives. What does it really mean to be a man? Fire in the Belly answers that question by daringly confronting outdated models that impoverish, injure, and alienate men. It shows instead how men can find their own path to understanding the unique mysteries of being male and in the process rediscover a new vitality and virility that will energize every aspect of their lives. Here is a look at men at work, at play, at war, and in love, moving from brokenness to wholeness and building nurturing, satisfying relationships with one another, their mates, and their families. At no time in history have there been so many men looking for new roles, new attitudes, and new ways of being. In this powerful and empowering book, author Sam Keen retells for modern times the ancient story of the search for what it means to be a man—a man with fire in his belly and passion in his heart. “This book taught me things i didn't know, thawed out some feelings that had been frozen, and made me remember things I thought I wanted to forget. The growing men's movement has added a voice and a book that captures the problems of being male and the promises of manhood achieved. I didn't want it to end.”—John Lee, author of The Flying Boy

Beneath our conscious minds, our personal mythology directs our actions and organizes your experiences. Psychologists Feinstein and Krippner explain how our current rate of social change is outpacing our culture's capacity to renew its traditions and guiding mythsand offer a twelve-week course for each of us to understand and transform our personal mythology. In the process, we move from past influences to taking charge of our own future.

Award-winning editor Paula Guran presents a diverse reprint anthology collecting classic myths and legends, retold by today’s top fantasy writers, including Neil Gaiman and Emma and Peter Straub. The Native American trickster Coyote . . . the snake-haired Greek Gorgon Medusa, whose gaze turned men to stone . . . Kaggen, creator of the San peoples of Africa . . . the Holy Grail of Arthurian legend . . . Freyja, the Norse goddess of love and beauty . . . Ys, the mythical sunken city once built on the coast of France . . . Ragnarok, the myth of a world destroyed and reborn . . . Jason and the Argonauts, sailing in search of the Golden Fleece . . . Myths and legends are the oldest of stories, part of our collective consciousness, and the source from which all fiction flows. Full of magic, supernatural powers, monsters, heroes, epic journeys, strange worlds, and vast imagination, they are fantasies so compelling we want to believe them true. This new anthology compiles some of the best modern short mythic retellings and reinvention of legend from award-winning and bestselling authors, acclaimed storytellers, and exciting new talent, offering readers new ways to interpret and understand the world. Adventure with us on these Mythic Journeys . Stories and authors include are: “Lost Lake” – Emma Straub and Peter Straub “White Lines on a Green Field” – Catherynne M. Valente “Trickster” – Steven Barnes and Tananarive Due “Our Talons Can Crush Galaxies” – Brooke Bolander “A Memory of Wind” – Rachel Swirsky “Leda” – M. Rickert “Chivalry” – Neil Gaiman “The God of Au” – Ann Leckie “Faint Voices, Increasingly Desperate” – Anya Johanna DeNiro “Ogres of East Africa” – Sofia Samatar “Ys” – Aliette de Bodard “The Gorgon” – Tanith Lee “Merlin Dreams in the Mondream Wood” – Charles de Lint “Calypso in Berlin” – Elizabeth Hand “Seeds” – Lisa L. Hannett and Angela Slatter “Wonder-Worker-of-the-World” – Nisi Shawl “Thesea and Astaurius” – Priya Sharma “Foxfire, Foxfire” – Yoon Ha Lee “Owl vs. the Neighborhood Watch” – Darcie Little Badger “How to Survive an Epic Journey” – Tansy Rayner Roberts “Simargl and the Rowan Tree” – Ekaterina Sedia “The Ten Suns” – Ken Liu “Armless Maidens of the American West” – Genevieve Valentine “Give Her Honey When You Hear Her Scream” – Maria Dahvana Headley “Zhyuin” – John Shirley “Immortal Snake” – Rachel Pollack “A Wolf in Iceland Is the Child of a Lie” – Sonya Taaffe

What is the heart? We know it as not only the beating thing in our chests that sustains life, but as the wellspring of all faith, hope, and love. In this remarkable book, critically acclaimed author Gail Godwin takes us on a breathtaking journey that spans the history of human civilization, combining myth, art and religion to understand how humans have conceived of the heart through time. From the first valentine to the first stethoscope, from the Ancient Egyptians to the Buddha, from the heart of darkness to heart-to-heart talks, Godwin weaves her own stories of heartbreak and hope through it all. Inspired by the richest of lore, Godwin ultimately arrives at what every culture must discover anew: we cannot let the head alone rule our lives. In this colorful history of the organ of life itself, she discovers a template for a more heart-filled life.

When we live our lives consciously, universal motifs, archetypes, and timeless patterns emerge through which we discover not only who we are but also why we are deeply connected to all others. This is life's greatest adventure; it is thoroughly described in the world's wisdom traditions. *Mystic Journey* uses a multi-faith approach to reveal the path of the soul; this not a solitary quest but rather a superhighway meant for everyone. As we explore the deeper story of our soul, we also discover that we are living a lifelong process of soul-making, leading us ultimately to personal and collective transformation. Getting to the heart of your soul's story is soul-making. *Mystic Journey* guides readers to: Use their life stories to help solidify their identities, Live with an eternal perspective in mind, and Reclaim their common spiritual heritage. "This is a reminder of Keats' immortal perception that 'the world is a vale of soul making' and that the uses of psychology have to do with understanding the soul in transformation." -Stephen Larsen, Ph.D., author of *The Mythic Imagination* and *A Fire in the Mind* "Robert Atkinson's new book offers us a thoughtful and thorough guide to a new kind of heroics... This is a rich read." -Gregg Levoy, author of *Callings: Finding and Following an Authentic Life*

This volume draws upon some of the greatest tales of world mythology, from the heights of Mount Olympus to the plains of North America, and interprets their meaning and application to life in the modern age. Each section of the book focuses on a fundamental area of human experience.