Follow Your Bliss, was the mantra often used by one of my favorite historians, Joseph Campbell. In his early life, he proclaimed to be an atheist, and perhaps he was until he died but his writings are a profound treaty on mankind, the myths that we create, the stories that describe God and the evolution of heroes in our society. At one point, people criticized this “Follow Your Bliss,” concept because they said that it encouraged hedonism. To this, Joseph Campbell said, well I should have said: “Follow Your Blisters.”
If you do not know Joseph Campbell, then I will point you to the story for which we are all familiar. Star Wars. The original 1980 version of Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, and Han Solo. George Lucas, as brilliant as he was, actually built the entire story based on the Hero Myth that was created by Joseph Campbell. The two became great friends and spend many a evening together and George incorporated the concepts into his first movie script. The Star Wars movie is a perfect example of the Hero Myth, and is quite possibly one of the greatest stories ever told.
Joseph Cambell would argue, most likely, that Star Wars is good because it encapsulates life, the journey of all mankind. You see, Campbell offered the theory of the monomyth, which is to say that all stories, religious context are all attempting to describe the same thing. This explains all the similarities. I have read a lot of his work, and to be honest, the more I realized how similar cultural traditions are, the more I started to consider a single source such as a God. I suppose, Joseph Campbell may have remained an atheist, because he might have explained this phenomena as the root of consciousness, or the way mankind actually came to be. That distinction seems irrelevant to me, but that is the pragmatic side of me and with that pragmatism I accept the notion that it is important to Follow Your Own Bliss.
This concept is not to suddenly go out and commit every guilty pleasure act that comes to mind, following your bliss is something entirely different. It means that, there is and always has been a way to live your life waiting for. A path if you will, that if you were to follow it would find that there would be a harmony in your life and you would find continuous refreshment in your pursuits. Coming into this path, requires acceptance. Much like the heroes of our stories and myth, we must accept our quest and exercise faith and step into the dark and unknown.
Sad to think that many of us never find out that path. I think we all understand that it is there, probably agonize over finding it as young people. However, I am becoming increasingly convinced it is not something that you will truly find until you have significant life experience behind you. Finding this path, is the key to becoming awake or alert in life. Campbell thought that the greatest sin, was to live life in darkness, drifting aimlessly with no sense of purpose. Being asleep while stumbling through life, doing lots of work, but with no destiny in mind.
Campbell gave many tips for finding and following your bliss. One of the key ones, was what he said that every major religion has a primary tenant. An ever repeating story, of a sacred space. A place where you can go to find yourself uninterrupted and able to focus on being creative. This space is needed to allow yourself the freedom to just experience things and bring forth who you are and who you might be. This was probably one of his core tenants of the perfect routine for us to consider, dare even ponder as a daily requirement. I read one quote where he said, if you have a sacred space, use it and something will happen.
This is absolutely true and throughout my life, I have always had a sacred space somewhere nearby my house. A place where I could visit and just think and be me. I highly recommend such a concept, in whatever form it may take. A place where you can be free from giving or taking demands from others. A place where you can truly go to find and potentially even follow your bliss. I could go on forever, Joseph Campbell was a treasure trove of amazing concepts. Regarding this concept of finding a sacred space to follow your bliss, I will leave you with a couple of Joseph Campbell quotes:
“Our life has become so economic and practical in its orientation that, as you get older, the claims of the moment upon you are so great, you hardly know where the hell you are, or what it is you intended. You are always doing something that is required of you. Where is your bliss station? You have to try to find it.”
“If you follow your bliss, you put yourself on a kind of track that has been there all the while, waiting for you, and the life that you ought to be living is the one you are living. Wherever you are — if you are following your bliss, you are enjoying that refreshment, that life within you, all the time.”
Guy Reams
