Living Myth

This episode begins with an often asked question: What is the soul? Michael Meade describes the soul as “the animating and connecting force without which we cannot live,” yet that “cannot be seen directly or simply be proven to exist.” He further describes the soul as “a betwixt and between thing, neither simply physical nor strictly spiritual,” but rather “the third element in the trinity of existence, that fills the subtle space between spirit and matter.” Soul is the connecting tissue and the hidden continuity of all of life. It is “the missing ingredient when everything seems to fall apart. When we lose our way in the world, it is the soul's way of being that has been lost. For we are most lost and truly abandoned when we have lost touch with our own soul, with our own inward style and way of being. Each person born enters the world as a unique soul on a unique life adventure. From the view of the soul, the troubles and obstacles we encounter in life are secretly intended to awaken the inner nobility

This episode of Living Myth considers the oldest versions of the tale of Pandora’s Box as a way of understanding how it is that all the ailments and troubles of the world seem to be loosed upon us again. The name Pandora is connected to the abundance of the Earth and carries meanings like “all gifted” and ‘the one who sends up gifts.” It turns out that it was not Pandora who lifted the lid and released all the anxieties, chaos and suffering that can plague life on Earth.   Pandora married Epimetheus, the brother of Prometheus who gave fire to humans and was credited with inspiring human culture. Whereas Prometheus means “far-seeing” or “one with foresight,” Epimetheus means “one who is short-sighted” and only able to see the effects of his actions after the damage has been done. In the old myths, it was the impulsive, uninformed and short-sighted brother who lifted the lid on the proverbial box and released all of the troubles of the world at the same time.   As waves of anxiety, uncertainty and panic on

This episode of Living Myth explores how as humans we live and die in the context of the stories we tell ourselves about the world and our place in it. Two great stories happen at the same time, the great drama of the world and the unique story trying to unfold from each individual soul.  At this critical time on earth, something essential to the story of the world is trying to be re-discovered and something crucial in each life story is trying to be revealed.   People are increasingly fearful about the future of the earth. Yet, people cannot simply be scared into caring for the earth. Fear can be an awakening force; yet fear over time can become a cause of further division and greater isolation. The unity of life must be found again and one challenge involves seeing how collapse and renewal can be happening at the same time. Through myths of re-creation we can touch the timeless images and archetypes from which the living world first arose and find inspiration as well as insights into collective transform

This episode begins with the idea that in traditional cultures worldwide the search for wisdom would be a necessity for developing genuine leadership. It would also be a primary practice for those who would become elders. Genuine elders were considered a valuable living resource, without whose guidance entire societies could become trapped in short term thinking, mired in materialistic aims and in danger of entirely losing their way.   Traditionally, elders lead by remembering further back than others and by seeing more clearly ahead. Although growing older can involve a loss of short term memory, elders remember the essential values and the enduring truths that people keep forgetting. Thus, they are less likely to be strictly political leaders and more likely to be cultural and spiritual guides. In this archetypal sense, elders serve as seers who can see behind and beyond the politics of the day, and perceive more accurately the needs of the future.   The passing of time makes everyone older, but not ne

This episode of Living Myth begins with an unassuming teacher finding herself in a public controversy for refusing to take down posters that state that everyone is “welcome, important, respected, encouraged, valued and equal” in her classroom.  As she said in an interview, "I would do anything to protect my students. I love all of them unconditionally, and as teachers, we protect them from danger, quite literally. This is the one small thing I can do to stand up for them, to protect them from being affected by racist sentiments that are affecting their classroom and our culture."   There's an old idea that says that at critical points in the course of life, we find ourselves in situations in which we have to become worth our salt. For, there are truths set within each soul that can become a medicine and an antidote against the rampant falsehoods and political manipulations being used to create fear, to drive divisions and to cause people to abandon their own genuine selves.   The greatest challenge has a

This episode begins by tracing the evolution of propaganda from the creation of a papal agency entitled The College of Propaganda just over 400 years ago to the current process of “flooding the zone” to gain “full spectrum dominance of the news.” What is described as “rapid fire propaganda” aims, not simply to reframe the collective narrative, but rather to drown out all other narratives.   In addition to being emotionally and psychologically exhausting, the flood of emotionally charged language, outrageous claims and crude accusations serves the goal of turning people against each other, using the age-old divisions of right vs wrong, us vs them and good vs evil.   Since there is no simple way to stop the rapid-fire propaganda project that is well underway, one question becomes, how do we find a place to stand when we find ourselves, not just in a time of increasing uncertainty, but also in a storm of unreality? Michael Meade turns further back than the origins of propaganda to the sources of universal t

At this critical time on Earth, we are caught in storms of change that involve the shattering of norms and a loss of orientation as unprecedented events tear at the heart of humanity and ravage both the body politic and the face of the earth. The sense that we might just turn away from the troubling news of the day does not simply save us, for the polarization and fragmentation that trouble the outside world are also felt deeply within us.   As the rational mind reels from the cascade of irrational events, we are thrown back upon ourselves, so that the illusion that the troubles are simply outside us can keep us from finding solutions that reside deep within ourselves. When we find ourselves on the edge of uncertainty and near the road to despair, we have an essential choice. We can succumb to anxiety and fear and become a smaller self increasingly alienated from life or we can turn inwards and find connections to a deeper sense of self that naturally resides within us.   In times of radical change and p

This episode of focuses on the dehumanizing aspects of autocratic movements. The increasing uncertainties about the future create vacuums that would be dictators and autocrats seek to fill with big lies and fraudulent claims that are presented with a false sense of certainty. The autocratic playbook that they all inevitably follow requires that they enforce forms of economic and informational isolation and instill a siege mentality that depicts the outside world as being hostile, unfair and dangerous.   Authoritarian leaders deliberately seek to polarize people and radicalize what would otherwise be civil societies. They intentionally promote divisiveness and force people to take sides, while also demanding undivided loyalty to themselves. Autocrats cannot succeed unless others in power or seeking power assist them in creating an alternative reality. Eventually, those who enable and help justify the authoritarian regime lose their own ability to resist the inevitable descent into brutality, nihilism and vi

This episode of Living Myth begins with a consideration of psychological characteristics of the archetype of the king. In its positive form the king archetype is often connected to the sun which appears as a unifying force that brings warmth and light along with generosity and life enhancing generativity. Since it is the nature of archetypes to manifest negative as well as positive energies, the shadow king manifests the dark side of power, the corrupt side of ruling and the backside of humanity that everyone else must suffer.   The dark side of the king archetype appears as the tyrant or dictator who rules by fear and force, who seeks to control everything, while growing increasingly vindictive and destructive. The old term for the kind of arrogance and psychological inflation that causes a person to run amok and violate the natural order of things was hubris. When those stricken with hubris are given power, they display a great insolence and recklessness that leads to a shattering of norms and breaking o

On this episode, Michael Meade explores the roots of wisdom and what it means to face the darkness.  The healing and transformation needed now, both individually and collectively, require going into the exact places that look darkest to us. In following this path, we encounter hidden resources and an inner gold that connects us to sources of wisdom. During this time of division and isolation, Meade suggests that whereas simple knowledge tends to divide things, genuine wisdom makes meaningful unity possible.   Thank you for listening to and supporting Living Myth. You can hear Michael Meade live by joining his new online workshop “Arts and Practices” on Saturday, March 1. Register and learn more at mosaicvoices.org/events.    You can save 30% on this new workshop and further support this podcast by becoming a member of Living Myth Premium. Members receive bonus episodes each month, access to the full archives of over 650 episodes and a 30% discount on all events, courses and book and audio titles.   L

 This episode of Living Myth begins with the idea that we are experiencing not just radical changes that happen in quick succession, but a maelstrom that threatens to upend life as we know it. The word maelstrom comes from old roots meaning, “a grinding stream or great whirlpool that sucks everything into its downward spiraling vortex.” Being alive at this radical time when extreme changes engulf most areas of life means that we repeatedly risk being overwhelmed and pulled down by events that can be disheartening and discouraging.   Faced with increasing uncertainty we must find things to hold on to that can keep us from being pulled under. We need the practices, the arts and the methods that allow us to witness the maelstrom but survive the vortex of descent and despair. People in Finland use the term “sisu” to describe an inner ability to push past usual limits when facing great adversity and survive even when the obstacles seem to be insurmountable.   Sisu involves an innate quality and latent po

This episode begins with the idea that we live in times of extreme changes and increasing chaos. When the world around us falls apart the issue becomes not simply a change in lifestyle or shift in politics, but a revelation of the core imagination and original aim hidden within each of our souls from the beginning. Michael Meade tells an old Native American myth about a youth who has a vision of a “singing stone” that gives great medicine to whoever finds it. In order to find the stone and the medicine that can help him and also serve the community, the youth must experience the four distinct quadrants that make up the earth and compose the Circle of Life. Repeatedly, the youth becomes disoriented and feels that he is being tricked. Yet, the real trick turns out to be revealing himself to himself; for the vision that drew him into the far corners of life revealed that his true name was Singing Stone. The medicine he needed to find was inside him all along. On a psychological level, we can call the combinati

This episode looks at the misuses of power, the dangers of arch narcissism and the ways that the dream of America is now being severely tested. An old proverb states that: Power lacks morals and principles, it only has interests, and the interests of the powerful are often at odds with the genuine principles and the truth and the kind of understanding needed to create community. The troubled times in which we now all find ourselves are the crucible in which we need to learn more about psychology of power in order not to become discouraged and disempowered and fall under the rule of those who only see power as a force of dominance to be used in the pursuit of personal gain at the expense of human community.   Before he was elected the first time, Donald Trump declared that he could shoot a person on Fifth Avenue and pay no consequences even for such a violent act. That was not simply an off hand statement of personal inflation, but rather a psychological revelation of an underlying sense of being above t

On this excerpt from a Living Myth Premium episode, Michael Meade explores how even in the darkest times, the inner abundance of the soul is ever nearby. The problem is that the pathways to our inner inheritance and instinctive vitality are blocked by received ideas and an over-adaptation to early life conditions. The rigid attitudes of our ego or little-self make it difficult to connect to the imagination and vitality of the greater self within us. The deeper self is our true center that can be both a place of stillness and refuge or a place of breaking open and breaking through the limitations of the little self. You can hear the full episode and receive additional podcast content by becoming a member of Living Myth Premium.  Members receive bonus episodes each month, access to the full archives of over 700 episodes and a 30% discount on all events, courses and book and audio titles.   Learn more and join this community of listeners at patreon.com/livingmyth

Michael Meade considers how as the world rattles around us and the soul trembles, balancing symbols and archetypal energies stir deep within us. If we can hold the tension of the immediate limitations, we can connect to the soul’s power of redemption and life’s natural energies of renewal.   Archetypes, like instincts, are part of our inner inheritance. They hold all the potentials of life and can initiate creative responses to the challenges and dilemmas we face. As the outside world becomes more divided, the sense of creation coming from within repeats and renews the origins of life as when the sky and earth were separated and the world began.   The archetype of creativity connects us with the deepest roots of humanity and the ancient roots of renewal. The emergence of imagination and inspiration from within is a revelation of our undaunted soul and a little redemption as each act of creativity brings something new and meaningful into the world. Thank you for listening to and supporting the Liv

Michael Meade looks at how a living system tends to be most complex in the middle or at the center, while being most open at the edges. Being at one side of a bridge of change opens possibilities of crossing over and reaching a place of greater understanding on the other side.   Yet the actual change must happen in the complicated middle which involves both loss and renewal, both chaos and creation. The creative middle way involves the power of becoming; becoming aware of new ways of being as well as coming to know ancient wisdom again.   The inner medicine of the soul is found in the moving middle where a person can truly change. An older person can be inspired by a youthful spirit, a younger person can become wiser than their age might suggest. While in touch with the golden middle way we become most aware of our true selves and more in tune with the ever renewing mysteries of life. Thank you for listening to and supporting the Living Myth Podcast. You can further support this podcast in the ne

Michael Meade recounts an ancient myth that reveals essential knowledge for navigating the turbulent time in which we all now live. The mostly forgotten tale describes the origin of the soul and explains how it is that we keep forgetting the still surprising idea that each soul brings to life a unique story and a destiny that seeks to unfold in the course of each life.   When faced with dark times and worldwide troubles, there is no formula that can save us. There is no simple fix or silver bullet, but only the possibility of turning within to connect more deeply with something already present, already knowing, just waiting to become conscious.   The ancient Greek word for truth was aletheia, which translates as “to not forget.” What seeks to be remembered by us are the core truths of life that include the underlying mystery of life, death and renewal and our innate connection to the inner genius that repeatedly tries to awaken us to the aim and purpose that originally brought us to life.   Than

Although it may often feel that we are running out of time when it comes to the great issues of the world and the struggles of daily life, Michael Meade suggests that it is not more time that we need but a stronger connection to things that are timeless, and therefore eternal.  Meade tells an ancient Bushman story from Africa that depicts the dilemma which humanity faces with each crisis that involves issues of meaning, truth and the human soul.  When great troubles abound, whether it be on the world stage or at a critical stage of life, what we need is the touch of imagination and a hint of the eternal.         Thank you for listening to and supporting Living Myth. You can further support this podcast by becoming a member of Living Myth Premium. Members receive bonus episodes each month, access to the full archives of over 700 episodes and a 30% discount on all events, courses and book and audio titles.       Learn more and join this community of listeners at: patreon.com/livingmyth       If you enjoy thi

This episode begins with an ancient myth from a tribe along the Amazon River. The story tells how the inner soul of each person travels at night all the way the center of the cosmos. Once there, the soul receives a message that is brought back and shared with the tribe as a dream.  Meade draws on this link between the individual soul and the cosmos to describe how ancient cultures imagined each person to be born with a speck of star hidden in their soul, buried in their heart, just waiting to become a person’s “guiding star.”   Each person is intended to contribute presence and meaning to the world and liberation happens each time we become conscious of the contents of our soul.  We are here to awaken and learn how to express the uniqueness of our souls, and if we do that we add presence, being and creativity to the world and we become irreplaceable. If we don’t find the meanings hidden in our souls, the world loses presence and people who have no idea who they are come to dominate society.   Rumi wrote tha

On this winter solstice episode, Michael Meade states at the beginning: “This is not just the dark time of the year, but increasingly dark times for everyone, especially for those who care for the souls of other people and for the well-being of the earth we all live on.” He goes on to describe how ancient symbols and practices at the Winter Solstice served as a reminder of the cosmological connection between the human soul and the hidden unity of life.    Symbols have the power to bring the mind and the heart together and connect us to the deepest truths of life. A Christmas tree can stand for the Tree of Life, as it represents both the still point at the center and the power of life to change and renew itself. Simply lighting a single candle in the midst of darkness can be a reminder of the eternal process of renewal and restoration that is an essential, yet easily forgotten aspect of all of life. Thank you for listening to and supporting Living Myth. You can hear Michael Meade live by joining his f