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Joseph Campbell on the Art of Being Alive.

via on Nov 9, 2012 | 7 comments

“As you proceed through life, following your own path, birds will shit on you. Don’t bother to brush it off. Getting a comedic view of your situation gives you spiritual distance. Having a sense of humor saves you.” ~ Joseph Campbell

If there is one mentor who has helped clarify the quest for happiness like no other, for thousands of us, restless people, it’d be Joseph Campbell, without a doubt.

Best known for his works in comparative mythology and comparative religion, Campbell’s mantra Follow Your Bliss is one of the most important lessons you must learn and embed in your tired human heart—preferably before you die.

 

 

Most of us will agree that happiness is not a place or a destination—all places are temporary, situational, nearsighted, small… Happiness can only be a journey, a constant re-awakening.

Joseph Campbell takes this so-called-happiness to the next level, by transforming our tired postmodern race it into a quest back to our original version. An adventure? Sign me up, Life.

Because all discovery is really a rediscovery—of things we were born knowing but somehow managed to forget. As such, we are always students, always eager and curious and recent. Old life in young lungs, time after time. Who wouldn’t want a piece?

And here comes the most important lesson of my life.

The one thing I’d tell my children if they existed, the one meal I’d eat every day if words were food, the thought I’d get tattooed on my forehead if I dared (or on my heart—sometimes I can’t tell the difference), the single spiritual magic trick I’ve actually seen turn into flesh and make miracles.

I asked Joseph Campbell one day, “Dear Sir, what should I do? I try and try and try to change my wasteland into an oasis, and all I get is a mirage. It looks like water, but it’s not. I’m thirsty, Joseph, damn it.”

He smiled with his eyes:

“The world without spirit is a wasteland. People have the notion of saving the world by shifting things around, changing the rules, and who’s on top, and so forth. No, no! Any world is a valid world if it’s alive. The thing to do is to bring life to it, and the only way to do that is to find in your own case where the life is and become alive yourself.”

 

 

Life is a funny lady. She tries to teach you things. 

But you can only learn them after tasting.

“I don’t believe people are looking for the meaning of life as much as they are looking for the experience of being alive,” Campbell continues.

So dear You in Me in Him, Her, Them, dear Us, put this on your fridge, lest you forget. It’s your heart’s most urgent shopping list.

“Follow your bliss. If you do follow your bliss, you put yourself on a kind of track that has been there all the while waiting for you, and the life you ought to be living is the one you are living. When you can see that, you begin to meet people who are in the field of your bliss, and they open the doors to you.

 

I say, follow your bliss and don’t be afraid, and doors will open where you didn’t know they were going to be. If you follow your bliss, doors will open for you that wouldn’t have opened for anyone else.”

Once you realize that this is your only quest, your only battle worth fighting, life takes on a new meaning, lighter clothes. It reminds me of Isaiah’s biblical poetry:

“{You} will find new strength. {You} will soar high on wings like eagles. {You} will run and not grow weary. {You} will walk and not faint.”

But between soar and soaring, Joseph advises: “Find a place inside where there’s joy, and the joy will burn out the pain.”

And you’ll be home, no matter where you are.

And it’ll be a new day, everyday.

 

 

 *****

More wisdom from our Mentors & Masters: 

>> Viktor Frankl on love, success & the meaning of life.

>> Hermann Hesse on Trees, Longing & Belonging.

>> Rainer Maria Rilke on the Art of Being Alone.

>> Charles Bukowski on quitting his job & doing what he loved.

>> Henry Miller on wholeness, love & conflict.

 

 {Hurry up! Sincerely, Your Bliss.}

 

 

 

Andrea Balt
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Andrea Balt

Co-creator of Rebelle Society. Unfinished book with a love for greens, bikes and poetry. Holds a BA in Mass Communication, an MFA in Creative Writing & is an AADP certified Wellness Alchemist. Raised by wolves & adopted by people. Not trying to make art but to be art. In addition to Rebelle Society, she spills her tea over at Rebelle Époque & she is currently undergoing 365 days of Creative Rehab. Connect with her on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest & Tumblr.
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