Lessons from Joseph Campbell

Joseph Campbell, an American mythologist, writer, and lecturer, left an indelible mark on our understanding of mythology and the human experience. His work, most notably "The Hero with a Thousand Faces" and the interview series "The Power of Myth," has inspired countless individuals to explore their own inner worlds and find their unique paths. Campbell's teachings distill the wisdom of ancient myths into practical guidance for modern life.

Key Learnings from Joseph Campbell

Joseph Campbell's work revolves around several core concepts that offer a framework for personal growth and understanding one's place in the world.

The Hero's Journey (The Monomyth): Campbell's most famous contribution is the concept of the monomyth, or the hero's journey. He discovered that myths from all over the world share a fundamental structure: a hero is called to an adventure, faces trials and tribulations, achieves a victory, and returns home transformed. [1][2] This journey is not just a narrative pattern but a metaphor for the process of personal transformation that each individual can undertake. [3][4]
Follow Your Bliss: This is perhaps Campbell's most celebrated piece of advice. He urged individuals to identify and pursue what they are truly passionate about. [5][6] Following your bliss, according to Campbell, puts you on a track that has been waiting for you, and the life you ought to be living is the one you are living. [6][7] This pursuit is not about seeking pleasure, but about aligning with one's authentic self and purpose.
Myth as a Guide to Life: Campbell believed that myths are not mere stories but are essential guides to navigating the stages and challenges of life. [8][9] They provide a map of the human psyche and offer wisdom on how to live in harmony with oneself and the world. [10] Myths serve four functions: the mystical (awakening a sense of awe), the cosmological (explaining the universe), the sociological (validating the social order), and the pedagogical (guiding individuals through life's stages). [4][11]
The Inner World: A central theme in Campbell's work is the idea that the divine, the heavens, and the hells are all within us. [5][7] The journey to the outer world is a reflection of the journey into our own inner depths. By confronting our inner demons and treasures, we can achieve self-realization. [2][12]
Experience over Belief: Campbell emphasized the importance of direct experience over blind faith. [7][13] He believed that the goal of life is not to find a meaning but to have an experience of being alive, to feel the rapture of being. [13][14]

Top Quotes from Joseph Campbell

"Follow your bliss and the universe will open doors for you where there were only walls." [5] - Attributed to his lectures and popularized in The Power of Myth.
"The cave you fear to enter holds the treasure you seek." [5] - From A Joseph Campbell Companion: Reflections on the Art of Living.
"People say that what we're all seeking is a meaning for life. I don't think that's what we're really seeking. I think that what we're seeking is an experience of being alive." [7][14] - From The Power of Myth.
"We must be willing to let go of the life we planned so as to have the life that is waiting for us." [5][15] - Widely attributed to Campbell.
"The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are." [5][15] - From A Joseph Campbell Companion: Reflections on the Art of Living.
"Myths are public dreams, dreams are private myths." [5][13] - From The Hero with a Thousand Faces.
"All the gods, all the heavens, all the hells, are within you." [5][13] - From The Power of Myth.
"If the path before you is clear, you're probably on someone else's." [5][15] - Widely attributed to Campbell.
"The goal of life is to make your heartbeat match the beat of the universe, to match your nature with Nature." [5][16] - From A Joseph Campbell Companion: Reflections on the Art of Living.
"Your sacred space is where you can find yourself over and over again." [5] - From The Power of Myth.
"We're not on our journey to save the world but to save ourselves. But in doing that you save the world." [5] - Widely attributed to Campbell.
"Life has no meaning. Each of us has meaning and we bring it to life. It is a waste to be asking the question when you are the answer." [5][13] - From A Joseph Campbell Companion: Reflections on the Art of Living.
"The hero’s journey is a symbol of the spiritual journey that we all must take." [2] - A central theme in The Hero with a Thousand Faces.
"The agony of breaking through personal limitations is the agony of spiritual growth." [3] - From The Hero with a Thousand Faces.
"It is by going down into the abyss that we recover the treasures of life. Where you stumble, there lies your treasure." [13] - From A Joseph Campbell Companion: Reflections on the Art of Living.
"Regrets are illuminations come too late." [5][17] - Widely attributed to Campbell.
"The psychotic drowns in the same waters in which the mystic swims with delight." [5] - From The Hero with a Thousand Faces.
"Find a place inside where there's joy, and the joy will burn out the pain." [5][13] - From A Joseph Campbell Companion: Reflections on the Art of Living.
"The warrior's approach is to say 'yes' to life: 'yea' to it all." [1] - From The Hero with a Thousand Faces.
"Participate joyfully in the sorrows of the world. We cannot cure the world of sorrows, but we can choose to live in joy." [1] - From The Hero with a Thousand Faces.
"The hero of yesterday becomes the tyrant of tomorrow, unless he crucifies himself today." [1] - From The Hero with a Thousand Faces.
"A hero is someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than oneself." [13] - From The Hero's Journey: Joseph Campbell on His Life and Work.
"Myth is much more important and true than history. History is just journalism and you know how reliable that is." [5][13] - Widely attributed to Campbell.
"All religions are true but none are literal." [5][13] - Widely attributed to Campbell.
"God is a metaphor for that which transcends all levels of intellectual thought. It's as simple as that." [13][15] - From The Power of Myth.
"The demon that you can swallow gives you its power." [7][17] - From The Power of Myth.
"We must be willing to get rid of the life we've planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us." [5][15] - A common variation of a widely attributed quote.
"Your life is the fruit of your own doing. You have no one to blame but yourself." - A sentiment expressed throughout his works.
"The function of the artist is the mythologization of the environment and the world." [9] - From The Power of Myth.
"The big question is whether you are going to be able to say a hearty yes to your adventure." - A central theme in his teachings on the hero's journey.
"When you make the sacrifice in marriage, you're sacrificing not to each other but to unity in a relationship." [17] - From The Power of Myth.
"The best things in life are nearest: Breath in your nostrils, light in your eyes, flowers at your feet, duties at your hand, the path of God just before you." - A sentiment reflecting his emphasis on the present moment.
"It is only when a man tames his own demons that he becomes the king of himself if not of the world." [1][3] - From The Hero with a Thousand Faces.
"The usual hero adventure begins with someone from whom something has been taken, or who feels there is something lacking in the normal experience." [1] - From The Hero with a Thousand Faces.
"The fates lead him who will; him who won't they drag." [17] - A quote Campbell was fond of, originally from Seneca.
"You enter the forest at the darkest point, where there is no path." [17] - A metaphor for the hero's journey.
"He who thinks he knows, doesn't know. He who knows that he doesn't know, knows." [13] - A sentiment reflecting the Socratic paradox, often cited by Campbell.
"I don't have to have faith, I have experience." [7][13] - From The Power of Myth.
"The old skin has to be shed before the new one can come." - A metaphor for transformation used in his lectures.
"Myths are clues to the spiritual potentialities of the human life." - A core tenet of his work.
"The hero is the one who has found or achieved or done something beyond the normal range of achievement and experience." - A definition of the hero from his teachings.
"What we're seeking is an experience of being alive, so that our life experiences on the purely physical plane will have resonances within our own innermost being and reality." [7][14] - An elaboration on the theme of experiencing life from The Power of Myth.
"The labyrinth is thoroughly known; we have only to follow the thread of the hero-path." [2] - From The Hero with a Thousand Faces.
"The end of the hero's journey is not the end of the world, but the beginning of a new one." - Reflecting the cyclical nature of the monomyth.
"The experience of the sacred is mystical." - A recurring idea in his discussions on religion.
"Computers are like Old Testament gods; lots of rules and no mercy." [13] - A humorous observation from his later years.
"Sit in a room and read--and read and read. And read the right books by the right people." [5][14] - From The Power of Myth.
"The world is a mess. It has always been a mess. We are not going to change it. Our job is to straighten out our own lives." - A pragmatic approach to personal responsibility.
"The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are." [5][15] - From A Joseph Campbell Companion: Reflections on the Art of Living.
"Follow your bliss. If you do, you'll be a hero." - A concise summary of his central message.

Learn more:

Lessons from Joseph Campbell

Key Learnings from Joseph Campbell

Top Quotes from Joseph Campbell

Written by Antoine Buteau

Lessons from James Carse

Lessons from Jim Rohn