Wise Quotes by Joseph Campbell, American Author and Mythologist

Joseph Campbell was an American author and mythologist, best known for his work in comparative mythology and comparative religion. Born in 1904 in New York City, Campbell had a lifelong fascination with the power of myth and its ability to provide meaning and direction in people's lives.

Campbell's early education was steeped in Catholicism, but he was exposed to a variety of religious and philosophical traditions while studying at Columbia University. After graduating in 1925, he traveled to Europe, where he studied the works of Carl Jung and Sigmund Freud. He also visited India, where he encountered the Hindu and Buddhist traditions that would later influence his work.

Campbell's most famous book is "The Hero with a Thousand Faces," published in 1949. The book draws on the stories of mythic heroes from cultures around the world to explore the common themes and patterns that underlie all mythic narratives. Campbell argues that all stories of heroism follow a basic pattern, which he calls the "hero's journey." The hero's journey involves leaving the familiar world, undergoing a series of trials and challenges, and returning home transformed.

"The Hero with a Thousand Faces" has been widely influential in a variety of fields, from literature to psychology to film. George Lucas, the creator of the "Star Wars" series, has credited Campbell's work with inspiring the story and characters of the films. Campbell himself later appeared in a documentary about the films, called "The Power of Myth."

In addition to his work on mythology, Campbell was a prolific writer on a variety of topics, including art, literature, and spirituality. He believed that mythology was not only a reflection of the human psyche, but also a guide for how to live a meaningful and fulfilling life. He encouraged people to find their own personal mythologies, the stories that give their lives purpose and direction.

Joseph Campbell died in 1987 at the age of 83. His legacy continues to inspire people around the world, who see in his work a powerful reminder of the enduring importance of myth and storytelling. His ideas about the hero's journey, in particular, have become a staple of popular culture, and his work continues to be studied and celebrated by scholars and enthusiasts alike.

 

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Quotes by Joseph Campbell

• Love is a friendship set to music.
• I don't have to have faith, I have experience.
• The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are.
• Myths are public dreams, dreams are private myths.
• Your sacred space is where you can find yourself again and again.
• Computers are like Old Testament gods; lots of rules and no mercy.
• Find a place inside where there's joy, and the joy will burn out the pain.
• Follow your bliss and the universe will open doors where there were only walls.
• Your life is the fruit of your own doing. You have no one to blame but yourself.
• A hero is someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than oneself.
• We must let go of the life we have planned, so as to accept the one that is waiting for us.
• The big question is whether you are going to be able to say a hearty yes to your adventure.
• Opportunities to find deeper powers within ourselves come when life seems most challenging.
• God is a metaphor for that which transcends all levels of intellectual thought. It's as simple as that.
• The goal of life is to make your heartbeat match the beat of the universe, to match your nature with Nature.
• When you make the sacrifice in marriage, you're sacrificing not to each other but to unity in a relationship.
• It is by going down into the abyss that we recover the treasures of life. Where you stumble, there lies your treasure.
• I think the person who takes a job in order to live - that is to say, for the money - has turned himself into a slave.
• Participate joyfully in the sorrows of the world. We cannot cure the world of sorrows, but we can choose to live in joy.
• I don't believe people are looking for the meaning of life as much as they are looking for the experience of being alive.

 

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