Click here to listen to Heroes, Buddha, and How to Read A Myth in the season 2 archives on buzzsprout
Cultural and personal transformation begins with conscious evaluation of value systems and the stories that express and perpetuate them. In the West, this includes the idea of the hero, and the mythic pattern of the hero’s journey delineated by Joseph Campbell.
A close critique of Western heroes and heroism is long overdue in my opinion, and yet the incredible popularity of this image of the individual and the road to fulfillment signals the need for careful, nuanced reflection. In truth, I am often inspired by the courage, feeling, vision, and stamina of heroes, past and present. At the same time, I’m very frustrated by the hegemony of the heroic perspective, which excludes people and experiences and most importantly, colonizes the imagination.
Campbell didn’t create the mythologies that he studied and yet, he did conceive the monomyth of the hero’s’ journey. I recently returned to “The Hero With a Thousand Faces” and I was struck by Campbell’s use of Siddhartha’s journey to enlightenment. It’s a good story, one that can help you think about the nature of heroism and the change our times demand.
Buddhism and other major philosophical and religious systems appeared during a time called “The Axial Age.” This isn’t the first time that people have felt the need for a new story, although I don’t think the longing has been expressed in these terms before. Something profound is underway. You can feel it. But I wonder how much can change, how human civilization can be retooled, if people don’t learn how to read a myth, how to live the symbolic life and see through metaphor…
The nature of Siddhartha’s story offers me a way to talk about that too.
I hope that you’re doing okay and find something helpful in this podcast.
Transcript of Heroes, Buddha, and How to Read a Myth
Hello, and welcome to Myth Matters, storytelling and conversation about mythology and why myth matters to our lives today. I’m your host and personal mythologist Dr. Catherine Svehla. Wherever you may be in this wide, beautiful, crazy world of ours, you are part of this story circle.
Well, I recently revisited a classic in comparative mythology, that is Joseph Campbell’s book, “The Hero With a Thousand Faces.” In “The Hero With a Thousand Faces,” Campbell outlines his monomyth, that is the unifying story that he believed was woven into many of the stories that people have told across time and around the world. This monomyth was the hero’s journey. In many ways, Campbell invented this idea of the hero’s journey, and this particular pattern of experience.
Now, anybody, especially those of us here in the Western culture, know that the hero’s journey has been a deeply impactful idea, both the values embedded in it, and the description of the progress of life. This has really resonated with people. And as is often the case with really impactful ideas, with theories that become as ubiquitous as the hero’s journey has, well, it simultaneously seems to explain so much about life and also limits or conceals aspects of life. This ability to reveal and conceal at the same time is not something that’s unique to the hero’s journey. It’s a function of any theory or idea, any construct that gives you a perspective on things. And the inherent danger then, is forgetting that and starting to think that everything can be viewed from that perspective, and forgetting that it is a perspective.
I think this forgetting, and the resulting hegemony of the popular image of the hero, has a lot to do with complaints and critiques of this pattern, and this perspective on life and the development of an individual. I have friends who work in the film industry, and many of them complain that it is really hard to tell an interesting story that doesn’t seem to be following this “hero’s journey” formula. And, you know, we would talk about that and kick around possibilities, how can you break out of that and get into something new. I have some thoughts about that. But the point that I want to make is that there is something very useful about Campbell’s pattern.
In the book, he outlines various and sundry things that can happen, you know, the journey could have 13 phases or 17 phases, but really, the journey is three parts. You are called away from everything that is familiar, from the life that you have been living that is, you go through an extended period of trials and suffering away from the “normal” world and have some sort of initiation. And then you must return to that normal life, to your original community, with what you have learned and share it.
Now I think this is an important time to be considering the hero’s journey, because it is so ubiquitous. And I believe that the times that we are in now, the tumult and the dissolution of so many institutions, the questioning and critique of our social contracts, our constructs, our meanings—everything is up for evaluation and transformation. And that includes this idea of how we become mature individuals. This includes the value systems that are embedded in our theories about what it means to be human, and how we become mature, fully realized, human beings. So hero’s journey is ripe for examination along with everything else in our culture right now. Well, when I went back to the book, back to the source, so to speak, there were a couple of things that I noticed. And that’s what I want to talk about today.
The first thing is that Campbell outlines this hero’s journey, and along the way he provides examples of the different stages and phases of the possible events, the things that could happen to a person as they move through the journey, and these are illustrated by examples from myths with roots in cultures all around the world. Campbell frequently turns to Eastern mythologies. He often uses myths and stories from the Hindu and Buddhist traditions. And in particular, he turns to the myth of Siddartha and how the prince became the Buddha.
Now, I’m going to tell you that story and as you’re listening, I invite you as always to pay attention to the detail or a particular moment or aspect of the story that grabs your attention. Because working with that can give you an opening into the meaning of the story for you right now. But I’d also like you to just have in the back of your mind, the realization that this story is one of the models that Campbell turned to most frequently to outline the hero’s journey. The Buddha’s journey, a journey of spiritual enlightenment, not stories of armed battle, not stories of warriors with spears, not stories about surmounting external enemies.
In the “Power of Myth,” Campbell told Bill Moyers that “a hero properly, is someone who has given his life to something bigger than himself or other than himself.” Now, this is a very broad definition, it makes room for the possibility of self sacrifice on behalf of a great many causes. But I think you will agree with me that returning this idea to the myth of the Buddha lends is a dimension that is frequently missing in popular culture. Well, let me go ahead and tell you the story and then I do have another thought that I want to share about it when we get done.
The Life of Prince Siddhartha
Siddhartha was the firstborn son of a king named Shuddonda and his wife Mahamaya. It was said that Mahamaya had a strange dream during her pregnancy, in which a baby elephant had blessed her with his trunk, and this was understood to be a very auspicious sign, to say the least. When the time came for her to give birth, she was outside in a grove of trees, and they say that the birth was nearly painless, even though the child had to be delivered from her side. Afterwards, a gentle rain fell on mother and child. It is also said that the child Siddhartha was born, fully awake, that he could speak as an infant, and that he told his mother that he had come to free all mankind from suffering. He could stand, he could walk and the lotus blossoms rose in his footsteps.
Now sadly, his mother died only a week after his birth and it may be this turn of events that motivated his father the king, to consult a well known sage concerning the future of his son. This sage told the king, that his son, the prince, would be one of two things. He could become a great king, much greater than his father, even an emperor. Or he could become a great sage. The king was very eager that his son should become a king like himself, and he determined then to shield his son from anything that might motivate him to take up the religious life.
So, Siddhartha grew up in one or another of their palaces, and he was protected from experiencing many of the things that ordinary people might consider quite commonplace. He was also prevented from seeing elderly people, sick people, and monks for sure, anyone who had dedicated themselves to spiritual practice. And he was also prevented from seeing the dead. The prince grew up in this beautiful, comfortable environment in which everything that he needed was provided. He grew up to be a very strong and handsome young man. As a member of the warrior caste, he was trained in the arts of war, and when it was time for him to marry, he won the hand of a very beautiful princess from a neighboring kingdom named Yashodhara. They were married when they were both 16 years old. Siddhartha continued living this life of luxury but he started to get restless and curious about the world beyond the palace walls. He went to his father the king, and requested permission to leave, to go and see the larger world. At a point, the king realized that he was going to have to acquiesce, and so he organized a tour for his son and ensured that only young, and healthy, and happy people would line the roadside and greet the prince.
Well, this taste of the outside world fueled prince Siddhartha’s curiosity. One day, he asked his charioteer to take him on a series of rides throughout the countryside and on these unchaperoned rides he saw the truth of life beyond his father’s script. He was shocked at the sight of aged people. He was dismayed at the sight of the sick and then the largest shock of all … he and his charioteer crossed paths with a funeral procession. He saw the people weeping and crying and he saw the corpse. He was amazed and confused. He made his charioteer follow them to find out what they were doing and who they were. It was the first time in his life that he had ever seen death.
When he got back to the palace, he asked his friend and private servant, Chandaka, the meaning of all of these things. Chandaka said, “Siddhartha, this is in fact, life. These things have been present all along. And all of us one day will get old, will get sick, and eventually, die.” Siddhartha pressured his charioteer to take him out on another ride and on this ride he saw a wandering monk in his robes carrying his bowl. The charioteer explained to the prince, that this monk was living a life of asceticism, that he had renounced the world and was seeking release from the fear of death and suffering. Siddhartha looked on this man who was living a life of relative hardship and noted the tremendous peace on his face. That peaceful look on the monk’s face would stay with Siddhartha for a long time to come.
By the time he turned 29, Siddhartha realized that he could no longer be happy living as he had. He dearly loved his wife, and in fact, they had a son. But even that couldn’t distract him from the knowledge of suffering and death. He tried to stay involved in the life of the palace. But one night, they had a big party. A big party, people danced and got quite drunk and very early in the morning, Siddhartha walked around, and he saw the revelers asleep and passed out on the couches and even lying in the dust. He knew that no matter how great their pleasure had been, they were all going to die and turn to dust.
He snuck back into his room at the palace and took a last look at his sleeping wife and child. He kissed them goodbye and slipped out of the palace on his favorite horse Kanthaka. As soon as he got to the edge of the kingdom, he stopped and gave away his horse and his rich clothes to the first people that he found. He had his hair cut and he took on the robes of a beggar, and set out on foot to find the two most famous gurus of the day to see if they would allow him to study with them. Well, this became his home and practice for a while, but after a time, he realized that these gurus were not on the right path and he left and began an extended period of wandering.
After a time, he came to a very pleasant hermitage by a little stream, where there were five other mendicants who were practicing a way of discipline based on progressively severe fasting. Siddhartha joined them. He ate a single grain of rice for each of two years and drank a single drop of water for each of the second two years. And then he took nothing at all during the last two years that he was there. By the time he got to the end of 6 years of this practice, he was nothing but skin and bones. His hair had all fallen out, his skin had become withered, and all of this was in vain. He wasn’t any closer to his goal. In fact, his body clamored for attention. He was plagued by craving for any kind of comfort or sustenance. He was even more conscious of himself than he’d ever been. And he concluded that this asceticism was not the right path. It didn’t work.
Well, he left the hermitage and the other monks and one day soon after this, he came across a peasant girl who saw him starving. She had some milk rice with her and she begged him to take some of her food, which he did. He ate and he drank, and he felt some of his strength return. He bathed in the river. Now, he felt strengthened and clear. Siddhartha was just outside the town of Bodh Gaya. He saw a fig tree on the outskirts of the town and decided that he was going to sit under that tree, as long as it took. He’s out there for many days. And he began to recall previous lives. And then he started to see everything that was going on in the entire universe. Something very profound was happening.
It is said that at that point, Mara, a demon whose name means “destruction,” appeared to Siddhartha. First he sent his three beautiful daughters to engage the Buddha. These daughters were the Future, the Present and the Past. But the Buddha had already disengaged himself from those concepts. They no longer held any meaning, and so he was unmoved by them. Then Mara the demon tried to frighten Siddhartha with storms. He sent hail and lightning and Siddhartha was unmoved beneath the tree. Finally, Mara decided to ensnare Siddhartha in his own ego by appealing to his pride. “Who are you anyway?” Mara said to Siddhartha, “why you’re just a human prince and who are you to claim any kind of spiritual powers or spiritual aspirations? I mean, look at me, Mara, I’m a demon. I am a supernatural being. If anyone should attain enlightenment, it’s me. I am the one who is worthy of such an aspiration.”
All of Mara’s soldiers were gathered around and they cried out in unison, “This is true. This is true.” Mara, looked at Siddhartha and said, “So what do you have to say for yourself? And who will speak for you?” The prince, having conquered all temptations, touched the ground with one hand and asked the earth to be his witness. The Earth itself roared, “I bear you witness.” The demon Mara disappeared. The morning star rose in the sky. And Siddhartha Gautama realized enlightenment and became a Buddha.
Siddhartha, now a Buddha, remained seated under the tree, which we now call the Bodhi tree, for many days longer. It seemed to him that this knowledge he had gained was a far too difficult to articulate, and so to communicate to others. Legend has it that Brahma, the king of the gods, finally convinced Buddha to teach. He said to the Buddha that some of us only have a little dirt in our eyes and might awaken if we only heard the Buddha’s story. And so reluctant reluctantly, the Buddha agreed to teach. And this began the final phase of his journey.
The Buddha left the bodhi tree and at a place near Benares, he came across the five monks with whom he had practiced all of those years at the hermitage. There in a deer park he preached his first sermon, where he explained the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path, and these five became his first disciples and the beginnings of the sangha or the community of monks. Some things went his way, some things were relatively easy. For example, a king granted him a monastery, and he received other generous donations that made it possible for him to offer his teachings to many people. And yet, there were also political and personal challenges. There were power struggles within the community, detractors outside the community, and at least one conspiracy to kill him.
Over time, he was approached by the members of his family, including his wife, his son, his father, and his aunt who had raised him when his mother died. The Buddha had abandoned each of them and they were all suffering in some way from this. He had to come to terms with the import of his choices, as did they. In the end, all of his family members joined the sangha. They all became followers of Buddha. And this had very important implications, especially in the case of his wife and his aunt because originally, the sangha was composed only of men and at that time, the culture rule view was such that there was no way that a woman could claim the spiritual path. It was believed that permitting women to enter the community would weaken it. But the Buddha reconsidered this and his aunt and his wife became the first Buddhist nuns. In a similar way the Buddha at various points challenged the caste system in India at the time, and he took on very important cultural forms and values in establishing the idea that any person, no matter their gender or social rank, could achieve enlightenment.
Now, the Buddha achieved his enlightenment at the age of 35 and he taught for another 45 years. When he was 80 years old, he told his friend and cousin Ananda, that he was going to be leaving them soon. And not long after that he was visiting in a neighboring kingdom, where he ate some spoiled food and became very ill. He had them take him out to a grove of trees, where he went into a deep meditation and died. And that is the story of Prince Siddhartha and his journey to enlightenment to become a Buddha.
Now, in this story, I think you can clearly hear the three stages of Campbell’s hero’s journey. There’s this call and the separation, the leaving home, the trials and initiation that leads to this awakening, and then finally, the return to share what has been gained. And this last part of the story is something that I feel is frequently left out of contemporary stories modeled on the hero’s journey. Oftentimes, as soon as the hero slays the final enemy, or that last corner is turned to the awakening, the story ends. But as Campbell noted in “The Hero With a Thousand Faces,” the return is often the most difficult part of the journey because the hero has left the normal world and learned something profound, something that transcends our daily existence, and the prospect of leaving the place of that awareness and bringing it back to people who may not understand it, may not want it, may be jealous of it—well, that can be pretty daunting.
So you see, when Campbell talks about self-sacrifice, he’s talking about a transformation of consciousness, a radical shift in one’s understanding. And from that perspective, I wonder if many of the stories that we tell and label “hero’s journey” should be properly called something else. There are many forms of hardship. There are many challenges that we face. Hereos, you may think to yourself, what’s the big deal? But I wonder what would happen if we had a more nuanced view. If we reserved the word “hero” for people who truly had undergone a transformation of consciousness, that is a radical upheaval in their self and the ego structure. If we reserved that for people who had something of value to teach us, and who were actively doing that, what might that do I wonder to our value systems, and how might that impact the stories that we tell?
Are there people among us today, maybe people in your own community, who are more deserving of the title “hero” then some of those who are currently labeled as such? Joseph Campbell himself, clearly had a very high regard for heroes and a deep admiration for the ultimate accomplishments of an individual, and so I find it interesting that when Campbell was asked if he saw himself as a hero, given his rather unconventional life choices and all that he had offered the culture, all of his profound ideas and teachings, Campbell said, “No, I’m not a hero. I see myself as a maverick, but not a hero.”
Now, I said I had a one other idea that I wanted to share with you, and that has to do with the nature of this story. In the last podcast, I deviated from our usual format and I didn’t tell you a story. Instead, I unpacked some concepts from depth psychology, in order to talk about the existence of different perspectives or points of view, specifically, that there is a literal point of view (the fact based, empirical perspective on events and information), and that there is also the mythic point of view, what I also refer to as the “soul life,” that is metaphorical, and that we’re always moving back and forth between those two. Further, the way to see through to the myth in things, in happenings in your life and in the culture, is to adopt this metaphoric perspective.
It’s important to understand this for a couple of reasons. It’s important to understand this because we are always doing it. We are always moving back and forth, and employing this metaphoric and interpretive capacity. And if you don’t know that, then you’re going to be confused about what is best understood as fact and taken literally, and what is best understood symbolically and taken as metaphor. You may end up believing in things that aren’t a matter of belief, and you may become dogmatic, even a fundamentalist about ideas and experiences that are fluid, complex or uncertain. So one thing that is interesting to me about the story of Siddharta and his journey to become a Buddha, is the nature of the story itself. It is both historical and mythologized. It is a combination of fact and symbol. And this is intentional among the teachers and others who utilize the story in the Buddhist tradition.
It is a historical fact that Siddhartha lived and that he became a Buddha.There are other parts of the story that are mythologized. For example, his precocious ability to speak as soon as he was born or the lotus that bloom from his footsteps. There are many of these elements, I mean, maybe even his mother’s dream, which may or may not have literally occurred, but is given significance and woven into the story to signify the auspiciousness of his birth. Now, you may be asking yourself, why, why would they do that? Why wouldn’t they just tell the straight history? Or why do we need the history? Why don’t we just have the symbolism, the beautiful metaphors to contemplate? Well, the combination of the two conveys the fullest truth.
It is important to know that an actual human being found a practice and achieved Buddhahood because you too, can practice and do so. And you know, Buddhism is not a religion, there’s no God, and it is dealing with the fear of death… we’re on a material, factual, empirical, plane here. At the same time, it is important to grasp that there are aspects of consciousness, of who he was and by extension of who you are, and of the experience, of this process, that can only be conveyed metaphorically. They can only be pointed at symbolically because they are beyond anything that we know in our quotidian existence.
The ability to hold both and to know when to privilege one over the other, the literal or the metaphorical, I firmly believe is one of, if not THE great lesson of this time. And I am struck, turning back to Campbell again, by the fact that the original title the working title, for “Hero With a Thousand Faces” was “How to Read a Myth.”
Okay, I’m going to stop there. I want to give a warm welcome to the new subscribers and a shout out to the new patrons, specifically Amy Kelly, who moved her monthly pledge from Bandcamp to Patreon. Thank you so much. If you are finding value here in Myth Matters and you have the means to provide some financial support to the podcast, please find me on Patreon. Other things you can do if you are loving Myth Matters, are to share the podcast with your friends, other people who might be interested, and leave a positive review for me on the platform that you use to listen to podcasts.
These are very interesting times to be alive my friend. An interesting incarnation as Ram Dass once said. Take good care of yourself. And that’s it for me, Catherine Svehla and Myth Matters. Until next time, happy myth-making and keep the mystery in your life alive.
Useful links:
The mythological traditions of East and West, how they overlapped and where they differed, is a primary theme in the work of Joseph Campbell and subsequently appears in many of his books and audio lectures. I really like listening to Campbell, and the contents of his audio lectures are easier to discern from their titles than some of his books. So here’s a link to the collection of audio lectures on the Joseph Campbell Foundation website: https://www.jcf.org/works/by-campbell/audio-lecture-downloads/.
Background on Buddhism and the life of Siddhartha from the Religious Literacy Project at Harvard University: https://rlp.hds.harvard.edu/religions/buddhism
Working at the intersection of psychology and Buddhist practice, Tara Brach offers a wide range of free talks and guided meditations. I’ve found value here numerous times, as have others in my acquaintance: https://www.tarabrach.com/talks-audio-video/
