Now launching a gathering of mind- and myth-steeped conversations for learning to work with the archetypes already living inside you.
This is the home of Mythic Hearth, a gathering of mind- and myth-steeped conversations for learning to work with the archetypal images already living inside you. In particular, we explore the timeless wisdom of ancient mythology and apply lessons in depth, archetypal, and polytheistic psychology plus ritual to transform lives in the modern era.
The Power of Archetypes and Depth Psychology
Psychologists like Carl Jung and James Hillman argued that the human psyche isn’t a single, unified “self” but something closer to a cast of characters — recurring patterns of thought, emotion, and behavior known as archetypes. Think of the caregiver who can’t stop giving, the creator who can’t rest, the explorer who can’t sit still. Naming these patterns is a key to understanding our inner world. Once you can see which archetype is driving a decision or a mood, you gain something practical: a little more control, a little more choice. Whether you want to call it depth psychology or archetypal psychology, it gives us a language for the parts of ourselves that we usually aren’t aware of – and naming those archetypes is the first step toward actually working with them.
The Power of Polytheistic Psychology
Psychologist James Hillman took archetypal psychology and pushed the core ideas into a novel new direction: viewing the many archetypes of the mind through the lens of Greek mythology, lending the various deity’s names to the different archetypes that work within us every day. Not to be confused with polytheistic religion, this framing of the mind helps us name and work with the archetypes in a new yet familiar way.
The Power of Ritual
Psychology has discovered that the human mind needs boundaries to make sense of experience. Ritual provides exactly that. A specific action, repeated with intention, draws a line around a moment and says: this part of my day, or my life, is different from the rest. It’s not superstition or magic or anything else paranormal. It’s structure that our mind craves. Lighting a candle before you sit down to think, or setting aside five minutes to name what you’re grateful for, can give your mind a signal that it’s safe to shift gears, from scattered to focused, from reactive to reflective. Exploring rituals is a great way to tend to your inner self in ways often missing from our modern lives.
The Plans for Mythic Hearth
To help spread these powers into the world, I’ve decided to launch a Mythic Hearth podcast in the near future. Featuring monthly or twice-a-month episodes, this project will let us explore timely and timeless topics that nurture the soul and psyche. I’m excited to see what the podcast – and other projects – will bring!
