Myths and Heroes

Last week I returned to Ulster. Whilst exploring the dramatic coastline and the Giant’s Causeway you can’t help but feel the powerful majesty of the bays and a profound reverence for what has gone before. The National Trust has done a beautiful job in developing the visitor experience in a way that is both sensitive and safeguards this World Heritage Site for many years to come.

Mythology has it that the mighty giant, Finn McCool carved out this magical coastline with its hexagonal basalt columns. This had me call to mind the wonderful Joseph Campbell and his work with mythology and the hero’s journey, which many of you will know formed the basis for George Lucas’ ‘Star Wars’ and the Wachowski brothers’ ‘The Matrix’.

Whether we choose to take mythological stories literally or not is unimportant. What’s noteworthy is that mythology serves to promote cultural interconnectedness through its themes, which are applicable to us all and its stories help us navigate through our own life and shine a light on how to live well.

Once the hero has heeded his/her mentor, gone on his/her journey, resisted temptation from the true path, overcome the obstacles, and faced rather than fled from a brush with oblivion, the hero's reward is a magic elixir. The hero completes the journey by sharing this boon with his/her tribe, making the world a little better forever.

This is a message for us all.

It’s through facing and overcoming life’s challenges, in all their forms that we build strength and resilience, fully recognise and engage our superpowers and become a physical manifestation of the hero we truly are.