Personal Myths

In the previous article, I introduced myths as expressions from our unconscious (hidden) psychologies. Since both myths and dreams are expressions from the unconscious, providing us with meanings, it is very important to understand that each expression is critical for the development of the individual and the human species. Understanding that myths are personal expressions in our lives, however, is not easy to grasp.

Actually, myths are not just expressions in our lives. Instead, myths are our lives! Each of us is a living myth! But what does this mean?

Well, just as dreams fill our sleeping experiences, myths fill our waking experiences. We live our dreams while we sleep and we live our myths while we are awake. Although we are conscious during our daily lives, we don't realize that we are living our personal myths.

A personal myth is a story in which you and I are the main characters, similar to the main character in a theatrical performance. The theatrical performance is full of events and characters, interactions and more. This is how we experience life as well. The theatrical performance begins with a script writer, who writes the story, followed by characters performing the written script. Similarly, we perform many roles and engage many characters and events in our lives that are inspired from the Self (the central element in our unconscious -- the script writer of our myths).

Our personal myths express the meanings of our lives but this doesn't mean that our lives are predestined or fated to be one particular way. This would eliminate the idea of fee will and choice. We can express free will, which is not the case in a theatrical performance where the script is being followed to the letter by the characters. We, on the other hand, can make choices that influence our lives but underlying our lives is a myth with a direction and flow that moves us along in life, like the current in a river. When we make choices that are in-line with our underlying directions and meanings, our lives move a bit more easily and are more satisfying. This is similar to a person swimming with the current of the river versus against the current.

When you and I begin to recognize our myths and make choices that are in-line with our meanings and directions, we begin to understand our myths as never before. Knowing our myths is essential to living our lives with less effort and more fully, but more importantly, you and I can then begin to see our meanings. When we know the meaning of our lives, we know what we can do with our lives, as opposed to what we want to do with our lives.