1 hr 22 min
4: Finding Your Bliss through Ancient Mythology: The Power of Myth by Joseph Campbell Made You Think
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- Society & Culture
“Picking a path, even if it’s not the right path, will get you closer to finding the path that will work for you.”
“The Power of Myth” is a series of interviews conducted over two years between Joseph Campbell and Bill Moyers, originally meant for television, but eventually repackaged into this book covering Campbell’s lifetime of research on the power of mythology to influence our lives and thinking.
It made both of us seriously think about the value of mythology, stories, religion, and how historic lessons can be carried across time. If you’re someone who normally prefers actionable information, and reading non-fiction, The Power of Myth makes a strong case for how timeless stories can teach us more than a bulleted list ever can.
We cover a lot in the episode, including:
How mythology can influence your work and pursuing your passions Using mythology and theology as a guide for your life Finding your path to bliss and maintaining that bliss Promoting growth by welcoming your challenges and enemies Balancing the necessary sacrifices in everything that you do Gaining inspiration from ancient mythology and theology And much more. Please enjoy, and be sure to grab a copy of The Power of Myth!
If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to also listen to our launch episodes on Mastery by Robert Greene to learn how to become a master at your craft, and Letters from a Stoic by Seneca to learn ancient wisdom for a better life.
Mentioned in the show:
Skywalker Ranch [1:02] Sarah Lawrence College [1:31] Jordan Peterson’s Podcast (biblical series) [3:35] Maasai Tribe People [9:48] Tim Ferriss Podcast (dating heuristic episode) [14:57] Masculine/Feminine Personality Traits [15:43] (Three related articles: first, second, and third) Jocko Podcast [17:46] The Optionality Trap [28:29] Bonobos [29:41] Andy Dunn’s VC blog post [29:45] Zappos [35:05] Twilight Zone (episode mentioned) [35:38] Made You Think Mastery podcast episode [38:35] Nat Chat Podcast [39:48] DiscMan [41:14] Nat and Neil’s Nat Chat episode [43:46] Bitcoin [50:02] Nike [52:55] Adidas [52:56] Wall-E [57:19] Dota 2 [58:26] World of Warcraft [58:31] Starcraft [58:32] Hardcore History Podcast [1:06:10] Biblical Series Podcast on Cain and Abel [1:14:33] Made You Think Letter’s From a Stoic podcast episode [1:20:55] Made You Think Antifragile podcast episode [1:20:56] Books mentioned:
The Power of Myth (Nat’s Notes) [0:44] Harry Potter [3:51] Sapiens (Nat’s Notes) [8:32] The Way of the Superior Man (Nat’s Notes) [16:17] The Odyssey [28:02] The Alchemist (Nat’s Notes) [28:34] The Secret [28:40] Delivering Happiness (Tony Hsieh’s book) [35:07] Play It Away [38:07] The Sovereign Individual (Nat’s Notes) [40:42] The Quran [49:14] American Indian Myths and Legends [1:07:58] The Selfish Gene [1:11:48] The Bhagavad Gita (Nat’s Notes) [1:16:34] The Way of Zen [1:17:05] Words That Work (Nat’s Notes) [1:17:58] The Joseph Campbell Companion [1:19:34] People mentioned:
Joseph Campbell [0:55] Bill Moyers [0:55] George Lucas [1:36] J.K. Rowling [3:54] Yuval Noah Harari [8:35] Tim Ferriss [14:57] Jocko Willink [17:46] Plato [22:00] Andy Dunn [29:40] Tony Hsieh [35:03] Mark Cuban [38:06] Dan Carlin [1:06:10] Richard Dawkins [1:11:48] Carl Jung [1:12:02] Alan Watts [1:17:05] Nassim Nicholas Taleb [1:17:26] Frank Luntz [1:17:58] 0:00 - Introduction, some background information on The Power of Myth, and some popular modern-day mythological references.
4:26 - The ease of remembering myths and some thoughts on our memorization abilities hundreds of years ago.
6:20 - Mythology in the modern world and using mythology to steer you towards better and more authentic desires.
9:30 - Campbell’s philosophy with having to earn your adulthood and having a clear demarcation for adulthood.
13:30 - The more mythological aspect of love and lust that was more prominent in the past. Also, speaking on the dynamic of masculine and fem
“Picking a path, even if it’s not the right path, will get you closer to finding the path that will work for you.”
“The Power of Myth” is a series of interviews conducted over two years between Joseph Campbell and Bill Moyers, originally meant for television, but eventually repackaged into this book covering Campbell’s lifetime of research on the power of mythology to influence our lives and thinking.
It made both of us seriously think about the value of mythology, stories, religion, and how historic lessons can be carried across time. If you’re someone who normally prefers actionable information, and reading non-fiction, The Power of Myth makes a strong case for how timeless stories can teach us more than a bulleted list ever can.
We cover a lot in the episode, including:
How mythology can influence your work and pursuing your passions Using mythology and theology as a guide for your life Finding your path to bliss and maintaining that bliss Promoting growth by welcoming your challenges and enemies Balancing the necessary sacrifices in everything that you do Gaining inspiration from ancient mythology and theology And much more. Please enjoy, and be sure to grab a copy of The Power of Myth!
If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to also listen to our launch episodes on Mastery by Robert Greene to learn how to become a master at your craft, and Letters from a Stoic by Seneca to learn ancient wisdom for a better life.
Mentioned in the show:
Skywalker Ranch [1:02] Sarah Lawrence College [1:31] Jordan Peterson’s Podcast (biblical series) [3:35] Maasai Tribe People [9:48] Tim Ferriss Podcast (dating heuristic episode) [14:57] Masculine/Feminine Personality Traits [15:43] (Three related articles: first, second, and third) Jocko Podcast [17:46] The Optionality Trap [28:29] Bonobos [29:41] Andy Dunn’s VC blog post [29:45] Zappos [35:05] Twilight Zone (episode mentioned) [35:38] Made You Think Mastery podcast episode [38:35] Nat Chat Podcast [39:48] DiscMan [41:14] Nat and Neil’s Nat Chat episode [43:46] Bitcoin [50:02] Nike [52:55] Adidas [52:56] Wall-E [57:19] Dota 2 [58:26] World of Warcraft [58:31] Starcraft [58:32] Hardcore History Podcast [1:06:10] Biblical Series Podcast on Cain and Abel [1:14:33] Made You Think Letter’s From a Stoic podcast episode [1:20:55] Made You Think Antifragile podcast episode [1:20:56] Books mentioned:
The Power of Myth (Nat’s Notes) [0:44] Harry Potter [3:51] Sapiens (Nat’s Notes) [8:32] The Way of the Superior Man (Nat’s Notes) [16:17] The Odyssey [28:02] The Alchemist (Nat’s Notes) [28:34] The Secret [28:40] Delivering Happiness (Tony Hsieh’s book) [35:07] Play It Away [38:07] The Sovereign Individual (Nat’s Notes) [40:42] The Quran [49:14] American Indian Myths and Legends [1:07:58] The Selfish Gene [1:11:48] The Bhagavad Gita (Nat’s Notes) [1:16:34] The Way of Zen [1:17:05] Words That Work (Nat’s Notes) [1:17:58] The Joseph Campbell Companion [1:19:34] People mentioned:
Joseph Campbell [0:55] Bill Moyers [0:55] George Lucas [1:36] J.K. Rowling [3:54] Yuval Noah Harari [8:35] Tim Ferriss [14:57] Jocko Willink [17:46] Plato [22:00] Andy Dunn [29:40] Tony Hsieh [35:03] Mark Cuban [38:06] Dan Carlin [1:06:10] Richard Dawkins [1:11:48] Carl Jung [1:12:02] Alan Watts [1:17:05] Nassim Nicholas Taleb [1:17:26] Frank Luntz [1:17:58] 0:00 - Introduction, some background information on The Power of Myth, and some popular modern-day mythological references.
4:26 - The ease of remembering myths and some thoughts on our memorization abilities hundreds of years ago.
6:20 - Mythology in the modern world and using mythology to steer you towards better and more authentic desires.
9:30 - Campbell’s philosophy with having to earn your adulthood and having a clear demarcation for adulthood.
13:30 - The more mythological aspect of love and lust that was more prominent in the past. Also, speaking on the dynamic of masculine and fem
1 hr 22 min