Follow the Mythological Path in Life

Our lives become a part of mythology when we pursue personal transformation through primordial patterns in the human psyche. We follow the hardwired path to arrive at superior versions of ourselves. The stories which have recurred with the greatest longevity in our cultures are those which appeal most profoundly to our underlying program for progression through life. They begin to form a map for how we can transform, a map which has been tested countless times over the years. They can be a light to show the way or a warning against failure.

With any great personal change, you follow the pattern of myth, as it reflects the underlying program of your mind. Different myths will have their own appeal at different stages of your journey. It will depend on the trials you have already passed and the knowledge you have acquired. Work past yesterday’s lessons to receive what comes next in the progression. Without mythological progress, people spend years stuck in a contained narrative loop, never learning the lessons of their trials. On the mythological path, you move as efficiently as you can from one escalating problem to the next. You take on what you are ready for as soon as you are ready. If your problems aren’t progressing, you aren’t ready for them to do so.

You’ll recognize where you are in the process by what mythological structures you find appealing. Stories of redemption remind us that we have something to redeem within ourselves. We revere parental relationships in fiction due to our primordial programming toward our own imperfect parents. When a mythological structure holds power in your life, pay it close attention. Look for the lesson that is waiting to seep into your mind. The most powerful hero myths persist across generations because they remind us of our potential to evolve and overcome. When you are ready, you will stop telling the myth and start living it.

You leave the comfort of your starting conditions. You enter the strange new world and discover something meaningful there. You take this discovery back home with you, altering your original conditions to match you. Every tale of character development, no matter the details, holds this at its core. From comfort, we go to discomfort, until it becomes a comfortable part of our new selves. The myth is cyclical, repeating on a larger scale with each return to normality.

Only a person operating authentically can follow the mythological path in life. They are the only ones who can learn the lessons each trial presents to them. Some people have so little self-worth that it destroys their ability to act at all. Others pursue external validation to fill the hole inside. They need to show themselves off, make themselves as big and important as they can in the narrative of the world. But their presence, however large, is not real. When this happens, they’ve trapped themselves in a prison of their own false self. Every action becomes about maintaining the illusion out of which they have built their armored cell.

Where they fail, you will succeed. Your great actions will not be demonstrating anything in the eyes of others. You will not work to conform your identity to the prevailing social narrative. You will only follow the logical thread of your authentic identity. The recurring themes in your life will be the mirrors that show you who you really are and where you currently are in the progression. Your repeated conflicts are the weaknesses you have yet to overcome. Your dragon is the great obstacle you cannot accept in the world. Your princess is your reward: the thing which is, ultimately, more important to you than any other achievement. You can learn from the many myths of heroes who came before you, fictitious or real. Use their lessons to find your own mythological path in life.

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Gregory Diehl left California at 18 to explore our world and find himself. He has lived and worked in 45 countries so far, offering straightforward solutions to seekers of honest advice and compassionate support in the development of their identities. His first book, Brand Identity Breakthrough, is an Amazon business bestseller. His new book, Travel As Transformation, chronicles the personal evolution worldwide exploration has brought to him and others. Find him at: http://gregorydiehl.net/