Here you may find further reading material on the Hero's Journey.
The hero’s journey – an archetype of the personal development process of individuation – will serve as a frame for the congress by linking each step of the journey to the development of each individual’s potential. It is the aim of the inspiration team to present exercises, practical ideas and inspiring thoughts for all participants, to equip all involved with tools that can be transferred to everyday life may it be personal or business. We will start on Friday with a short introduction and finish on Monday with an integrational trance. In between this time over the weekend the inspiration team will guide each one of you through the following steps:
- Hearing a calling. This can be in the form of a problem, a decision or the beginning of anything new. The calling can be of any size and dimension.
- Accepting the calling and letting go of resistance. It is up to you to listen to the calling and if you decide to do so, then you are beginning on a Hero's Journey.
- Crossing a threshold. Now you are entering into new territory. It means taking a risk and facing what the world has in store for you.
- Finding a guardian or mentor. You are not alone on your journey as we know from the ancient myths where a guardian comes to your assistance in whatever form, as a wise person or an animal guide.
- Facing a challenge. This may also be called "Facing A Demon or the Dragon." There is no journey without a kind of testing. This challenge might show itself in many ways as a shortcoming, a disadvantage, a problem, an adversary (who becomes the teacher), or a lack of knowledge.
- Transforming the demon. In this step you have the chance to transform the “demon” into a resource or advisor by either: developing a special skill, or discovering a special resource or tool.
- Completing the task for which you have been called. Now the journey is coming to completing your quest. Success does not necessarily look the way you thought it might be as all the other steps towards completion might have transformed the outcome. Shaped and re-shaped.
- Finding the way back home. This last step is very important. Now is the time to take what you have learned, gained, and accomplished back to integrate what you have gained. This means sharing what you learned by assisting others. That way, your success becomes everyone's success.
This version of the Hero’s journey is based on the work of Joseph Campbell and Carol Pearson adapted by Robert Dilts.
For further reading:
The Hero's Journey: Joseph Campbell on His Life and Work (The Collected Works of Joseph Campbell)
The Hero with a Thousand Faces (The Collected Works of Joseph Campbell)
You may find here an article by the Inspirator Andrea Mills. She wrote her Master (in Literature) thesis on Joseph Conrad’s “Heart of Darkness” – a Hero’s Journey- and wrote with this background the article for the Hero’s Journey.
General Information:
Video: The Hero's Journey/Monomyth. The Hero's Journey explained with examples from various famous movies
