DESTINY AND THE HERO’S JOURNEY 

INCORPORATION #3A

 

“… The hero comes back from this mysterious adventure with the power to bestow boons on his fellow humans.” J. Campbell

 

“We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we give.” W. Churchill

 

There are four basic archetypes each with many diverse possibilities. These are:

Healer

Teacher

Warrior or Leader

Visionary or Elder

There are many ways to teach, heal, be a warrior or a visionary. 

The warrior-leader should be a spiritual warrior guiding the “tribe” with wisdom for the sake of the tribe and not him or herself. 

The Visionary can be a sage, elder, crone, guru, priest, shaman, poet, author, artist or musician ... One’s destiny can also be actualized through any of the other above archetypes with the vision to help others.  

 

“A vision without a task is a dream
A task without a vision is drudgery 
But a vision with a task can change the world.” 
Black Elk

 

“Where there is no vision, the people perish.” Proverbs

The insights may be very subtle but vital. They usually are not like lights blazing in the dark. It’s all well and good if they are epic but it is also wise to be careful of these, they can delude you and may arise out of grandiosity. 

If you cannot change what you do, maybe change how you do it.

"Most men (and women) live lives of quiet desperation." Thoreaux

The focus in Incorporation is how best to help others with one's vision, unlike the Warrior's journey. Helping others will helps ourselves find meaning and happiness in our existence.

“At first you must learn to do the humble things and often they are the most difficult to do. In those humble things, be busy about helping someone who has need of you ... and then only will you begin to find true happiness.

 

I do not know what your destiny will be but I know one thing, the only ones among your who will be truly happy are those who have sought and found how to serve.” A. Schweitzer

 

The Creator does not want us to be “a Jack of all trades and a master of none” - but a master of One. The power is in that “one” which will be supported by the Field, your guides and even the Great Spirit who wants a personal relationship with us all.

Seek congruence – who is the real you? The real you is likely to be the one on your hero's during the Threshold. Embracing this one can avoid returning to the old you. Many have talents in all four archetypes making it difficult to know which to choose. There is usually only one core or signature strength where your true, divinely inspired, potential and power reside. The others must serve the one.

 If you have doubts, then head in the direction of the one or ones you want to explore and rule them out by a process of elimination to find the best fit. In time you will know if this is it or not. There is no loss – you have gained knowledge and skills from the experience. 

Attend to needs not wants – simplify. 

Maintain a disciplined and enjoyable spiritual practice or practices to hold to the mission.

Are you marching to the sound of your own drum or that of someone else? Karma does not endorse a copycat destiny.

It is important to take time out and look at one’s current situation after the journey. One could also scrutinize prior warrior journeys to find the grail that may have been forgotten and left behind on the way and also use that or those for any new resolution. 

It pays to have a skillful, trusted witness or witnesses who can listen to your story, embellish and expand it to help you find your archetype. Indigenous peoples had a council of elders for this. Inner practice and group synergism or just one other person can be supportive. 

Now is the time to settle in and not take any serious risks until the experience is reintegrated back into one’s life. Eventually it may even lead to giving up a partner, one’s job or selling one’s house but the supply lines for security must be maintained. Relinquishing one’s basic needs on behalf of higher goals may put one in survival mode which will prevent one from actualizing any meaningful change. 

Many of us will have to learn to live in two worlds; the one that pays the rent and the other that is our mission. 

One may have to carry out one’s true purpose for its own sake without pay back and in one’s spare time. That is perfectly fine as well as good karma.

 If we can find a sense of flow, fluidity even superfluidity and being in the “zone” and with that unique talent, you will – as Thurman says – come alive. This happens when you are using your core or signature strength (Seligman.)

 

“Don’t ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive and then go do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”      H. Thurman

 

After the journey and the sense of knowing or the aha, walk the talk do not talk the walk. Do not put your experiences on the mantel piece for those who do not understand to invalidate or trivialize. To be polite, talk to them about context rather than content in words they can understand rather than those they want to challenge.