Title with apologies to Stephen Sondheim . . . 😉
Why do stories matter? Why do archetypal patterns MATTER?
The stories we have in our culture (any culture) teach us about reality. They teach us how we’re “supposed” to be, what our culture considers “true” and “right.” And when you consider that our thoughts create our reality, you start to realize that the things we think are universal are often in fact, collective manifestations of specific beliefs.
Think of as this story: we’re all sitting around a fire in the dark. Out in the distance are the woods, the forest, the unknown. Out in the dark are things we hear but don’t see. If you decide to venture out (to “pick up your bed and walk,” as the Bible puts it), your tribe around the fire will discourage you – they’ll tell you they’re worried for your safety, there are monsters in the dark. (Think of the old maps marked “here there be monsters.”)
And your tribe will believe that’s true – that they’re concerned for your safety and well-being.. But the REALITY is that a society only works as long as a certain number of people agree to believe in the existing paradigm. Once a critical mass of people believe something else, the society has to shift – and most people think change is scary and don’t WANT to shift.
But the journey into the woods is the quintessential journey of humanity. It’s the Hero’s Journey in myths and legends, our religious figures undertake it (Jesus in the desert, Moses listening to the burning bush, Buddha under the bodhi tree), even humanity ITSELF expanded across the globe because every few years people struck out in search of new land to live on.
Why does it matter? Because ignoring the call of the woods – ignoring the call of your spirit that there is “something more” – leads to what Thoreau called the “life of quiet desperation.”
And many, MANY people live that life. They’re afraid to strike out into the dark, so they sit around the fire, feeling unfulfilled and resigned. And then they look around the fire at each other, and see the commonality of “unfulfilled and resigned,” and they start to think that’s just how the world is. Unfulfilled and resigned.
And that group, that tribe, that culture, by BELIEVING that phenomenon is real, MANIFESTS it. It becomes a reality they’ve CREATED, and they don’t even know they’ve done it. Put another way, what they believe is reality, is simply a lie of the mind.
The origin of that lie? FEAR. When we choose to live in “reality,” we choose to stay by the fire and ignore the call of our spirits. At that point it’s easier to say, “that’s just how it is,” than to say, “I’m too afraid to move forward or do things differently.”
Until you face that fear, you are stopping yourself from your greatness.