The Hero’s Journey by Joseph Campbell

I feel I’m on my hero’s journey and having that structure mapped out by Joseph Campbell to contextualise my life experiences and the hell i’ve been through has been very helpful.

The Hero’s Journey Structure:

  1. Ordinary World
  2. The Call to Adventure
  3. Refusal of the Call
  4. Meeting the Mentor
  5. Crossing the First Threshold
  6. Tests, Allies, Enemies
  7. Approach
  8. Ordeal, death, re-birth
  9. Reward, seizing the sword
  10. The road back
  11. Resurrection
  12. Return with Elixir

The understanding of this hero’s journey map has given my suffering some meaning, and purpose, and helped guide me forward through each stage.

Each stage isn’t necessarily always in the order it’s been mapped out. I’m still at the ego death stage, but I’ve also seized the sword and started to return with the ‘elixir’.

“The things you most need, are where you least want to look.” – Carl Jung

“In the heart of the feared place, the hero discovers their wholeness.” – Unknown

this is a map for our heroic path and destiny that we are meant to take in this life if we answer the call and take the journey.

“The cave you fear to enter, holds the treasure you seek.” – Joseph Campbell

“The Hero’s Journey was his all-embracing metaphor for the deep inner journey of transformation that heroes in every time and place seem to share, a path that leads them through great movements of separation, descent, ordeal, and return.” – source