I can't remember exactly how long ago it was that I first came across and read Joseph Campbell's books 'The Hero with a Thousand Faces' and 'Pathways to Bliss', but it was years ago. And the idea of following one's bliss seemed instincitvely appealing....and also practically unlikely.
I've been re-visitng this idea recently. Having worked as a Lightning Process practitioner for 3 years, I started noticing that, for me, there was a degree of unease about my role delivering, essentially, someone else's versions of how we move forward with our lives, and what needs to be in place to do that. As I continued to tune into this feeling and the possibility that it might be time for me to move on, I began to consider what I truly wanted to do with my life. What, indeed, constituted my bliss...and was it practically possible for me to follow it?
What happened when I started flirting with the idea of doing something else was interesting. First of all a couple of opportunities arose for me to work in a more spiritual context, which seemed to be a lovely way of amalgamating two aspects of me. Then I started finding myself becoming more creative and productive. Excitement began to grow....
When the decision to move on was finally made, I had already begun a journey of creativity and possibility. And this has continued and been blessed (yes, I use a spiritual word deliberately) by chance meetings with people, collaborative meetings, and what I might describe as an explosion of possibility.
The experience I wrote about in my last blog has been another milestone on the journey forwards, bringing an even greater awareness of love and compassion into the work I do and reminding me of the close links between mind, music and spirituality.
So, in some ways I am able to regard myself as an a experiment. What happens when we follow our bliss? At this stage in the experiment I can report that good things happen.
I think Joseph Campbell would approve......
As Richard Wiseman has described, luck (or 'good things happening') is as much a question of the attitude you bring to the stuff that happens to you, as it is from actual good fortune. That is, two people can have very similar experiences following their bliss, but one will reflect on the 'good' coincidences, and one on the 'bad' ones. Bearing both in mind, but focusing more on the 'good' ones, is perhaps the wisest path.
ReplyDeleteI wonder what exactly happens when we change our attitude and direction; if we are all connected to each other and the rest of the universe, then it is not surprising that one change somewhere effects other changes elsewhere. If I focus on and follow my own bliss, it changes things. I think this is far more than just seeing the positive events rather than the less-positive ones. Mirror neurons would be an example of how this process might work out in one context. It's fascinating!
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