Chapter Nine – Final Thoughts

“A myth is a way of making sense in a senseless world. Myths are the narrative patterns that give significance to our existence. Myths are like the beams in a house: not exposed to outside view, they are the structure which holds the house together so people can live in it.”

-Psychoanalyst Rollo May, The Cry for Myth

“The person who thinks they can live without myth, or outside it, like one uprooted, has no true link either with the past, or with the ancestral life which continues within them, or yet with contemporary human society. This plaything of their reason never grips their vitals.”

-C.G. Jung

Please remember that our journey with these transformative narratives continues as long as we are alive, perhaps longer. Through myths, we are able to engage with the consciousness that is the ground of being itself. Thank you for spending time on this journey with me and with each other, and thank you for bringing your full selves to the experience as well.

I hope you will continue to engage with the folktales, myths, stories, and cultures of the living world of our ancestors. These rich narratives provide a vivid, experiential context of understanding that both honors the uniqueness of each individual and culture while simultaneously uncovering a deep human connection at the basis of all of them. The myths of our ancestors tell the stories of our shared becoming. The stories we tell today, of our struggles, our hopes, our fears, and our triumphs, will be the myths of future generations who look to us, their ancestors, for the eternal hope and spiritual grounding that only myths can provide. I pray you have enjoyed the course and our time together. I look forward to engaging you final projects.