This episode follows the path of an old tale in which youth and elders have to solve seemingly impossible tasks, outwit a power-driven ruler and help create a more welcoming, wise and just society.   Traditional tales from many cultures show how youth and elders are opposite sides of a psychic pairing in which each is necessary to understand the other. Despite cultural gaps between them, youth and elders are secretly connected, and each holds an essential piece of the human inheritance. The eternal youth in each soul carries the original dream of our life, while the old sage in each heart has the wisdom needed to find and follow paths of meaning and purpose.   Elders can carry a greater vision because they have developed insight into their own lives, they have faced up to whatever fate has handed them and found ways not simply to survive, but also to understand the struggles and the suffering that are part of each human life. As those who become truly old enough to know better, they also become living depositories of wisdom for the next generation to draw upon. And in that sense, they develop inner authority and authority that knows what needs to be preserved and be remembered in order for human life to be noble and meaningful and properly in tune with nature.   When the world becomes increasingly divided, the challenge involves redeeming positive views of both the elder and the youth, and thereby rediscovering how each can help envision a more creative and inclusive world. When enough people can become vessels through which the eternal youth and the wise old sage can enter the world, then there can be an awakening of the collective soul that can turn things around, even in the midst of a period of great conflicts and loss. Human culture is intended to be continuously remade through the genius of youth and the wisdom of elders acting in concert with the capacity of nature and the earth to repeatedly renew life at all levels.   Thank you for listening to and supporting Living Myth. You can hear Michael Meade live by joining his new online workshop “Facing Fate, Finding Destiny” on Saturday, May 11. 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 625 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 this podcast, we appreciate you leaving a review wherever you listen and sharing it with your friends. On behalf of Michael Meade and the whole Mosaic staff, we wish you well and thank you for your support of our work.

<description>&lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"&gt;This episode follows the path of an old tale in which youth and elders have to solve seemingly impossible tasks, outwit a power-driven ruler and help create a more welcoming, wise and just society.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt;  &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"&gt;Traditional tales from many cultures show how youth and elders are opposite sides of a psychic pairing in which each is necessary to understand the other. Despite cultural gaps between them, youth and elders are secretly connected, and each holds an essential piece of the human inheritance. The eternal youth in each soul carries the original dream of our life, while the old sage in each heart has the wisdom needed to find and follow paths of meaning and purpose.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt;  &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"&gt;Elders can carry a greater vision because they have developed insight into their own lives, they have faced up to whatever fate has handed them and found ways not simply to survive, but also to understand the struggles and the suffering that are part of each human life. As those who become truly old enough to know better, they also become living depositories of wisdom for the next generation to draw upon. And in that sense, they develop inner authority and authority that knows what needs to be preserved and be remembered in order for human life to be noble and meaningful and properly in tune with nature.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt;  &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"&gt;When the world becomes increasingly divided, the challenge involves redeeming positive views of both the elder and the youth, and thereby rediscovering how each can help envision a more creative and inclusive world. When enough people can become vessels through which the eternal youth and the wise old sage can enter the world, then there can be an awakening of the collective soul that can turn things around, even in the midst of a period of great conflicts and loss. Human culture is intended to be continuously remade through the genius of youth and the wisdom of elders acting in concert with the capacity of nature and the earth to repeatedly renew life at all levels.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt;  &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"&gt;Thank you for listening to and supporting &lt;em&gt;Living Myth&lt;/em&gt;. You can hear Michael Meade live by joining his new online workshop “Facing Fate, Finding Destiny” on Saturday, May 11. Register and learn more at mosaicvoices.org/events.&lt;span style= "mso-spacerun: yes;"&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt;  &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"&gt;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 625 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.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt;  &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style= "mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; color: #222222;"&gt; If you enjoy this podcast, we appreciate you leaving a review wherever you listen and sharing it with your friends. On behalf of Michael Meade and the whole Mosaic staff, we wish you well and thank you for your support of our work.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</description>

This episode follows the path of an old tale in which youth and elders have to solve seemingly impossible tasks, outwit a power-driven ruler and help create a more welcoming, wise and just society.     Traditional tales from many cultures show...

Episode 380 - Elders and Youth on Paths of Healing

On this Earth Day podcast, Michael Meade begins by looking at the Gaia Hypothesis published 50 years ago and then explores the older roots of the name Gaia, which can be traced back to ancient India where Gaya or Gayatri appears as the ancient goddess of creation. Gaya appears in the Vedas or sacred texts as the source of all knowledge and wisdom. As the “mother of all,” she also had the power to heal all ills and nurture all of life, so that the wellbeing of the planet depended upon the presence and support of Gaya. Originally, the Vedas existed in the form of chants and hymns with the root sound Om being the original tone emitted from the womb of the cosmos. The potent chant known as the Gayatri Mantra was considered the first hymn to come forth from the root sound Om. Thus, Gaya or Gaia whether in sound, in image or in name brings a long lineage that echoes back to the origins of life and resonates with the hidden unity of the world.    In that sense, there was something truly intuitive in the idea of using the name Gaia in a modern attempt to revive the sense of the world being a living entity and all of life being secretly interconnected. Thank you for listening to and supporting Living Myth. You can hear Michael Meade live by joining his new online workshop “Facing Fate, Finding Destiny” on Saturday, May 11. 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 625 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 this podcast, we appreciate you leaving a review wherever you listen and sharing it with your friends. On behalf of Michael Meade and the whole Mosaic staff, we wish you well and thank you for your support of our work.

<description>&lt;div&gt;On this Earth Day podcast, Michael Meade begins by looking at the Gaia Hypothesis published 50 years ago and then explores the older roots of the name Gaia, which can be traced back to ancient India where Gaya or Gayatri appears as the ancient goddess of creation. Gaya appears in the Vedas or sacred texts as the source of all knowledge and wisdom. As the “mother of all,” she also had the power to heal all ills and nurture all of life, so that the wellbeing of the planet depended upon the presence and support of Gaya.&lt;/div&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;br /&gt; Originally, the Vedas existed in the form of chants and hymns with the root sound Om being the original tone emitted from the womb of the cosmos. The potent chant known as the Gayatri Mantra was considered the first hymn to come forth from the root sound Om. Thus, Gaya or Gaia whether in sound, in image or in name brings a long lineage that echoes back to the origins of life and resonates with the hidden unity of the world. &lt;/p&gt; &lt;div&gt; &lt;/div&gt; &lt;div&gt;In that sense, there was something truly intuitive in the idea of using the name Gaia in a modern attempt to revive the sense of the world being a living entity and all of life being secretly interconnected.&lt;/div&gt; &lt;div&gt;&lt;br /&gt; Thank you for listening to and supporting Living Myth. You can hear Michael Meade live by joining his new online workshop “Facing Fate, Finding Destiny” on Saturday, May 11. Register and learn more at mosaicvoices.org/events.&lt;br /&gt; &lt;br /&gt; 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 625 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.&lt;br /&gt; &lt;br /&gt; If you enjoy this podcast, we appreciate you leaving a review wherever you listen and sharing it with your friends. On behalf of Michael Meade and the whole Mosaic staff, we wish you well and thank you for your support of our work.&lt;/div&gt;</description>

On this Earth Day podcast, Michael Meade begins by looking at the Gaia Hypothesis published 50 years ago and then explores the older roots of the name Gaia, which can be traced back to ancient India where Gaya or Gayatri appears as the ancient goddess...

Episode 379 - Earth Day and the Origins of Gaia

Michael Meade tells an old story from India about the creation of the world.  In it, an ancient sage named Markandeya is caught in the tension between creation and wonder, despair and loss.  His existential crisis speaks to the world we live in now with its increasing levels of fear and despair.  Addressing the two great fears - fear of abandonment and the fear of being overwhelmed – Meade talks about how easily we can get lost in despair if we don’t know there is something essential in the ground of our being.  He suggests that this story, and all the old stories, remind us that every soul born comes in with genius capacities, natural gifts and a unique way of being – a fundamental quality that serves as medicine and antidote to feelings of discouragement, fear and anxiety.     Thank you for listening to and supporting Living Myth. You can hear Michael Meade live by joining his new online workshop “Facing Fate, Finding Destiny” on Saturday, May 11. 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 625 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 this podcast, we appreciate you leaving a review wherever you listen and sharing it with your friends. On behalf of Michael Meade and the whole Mosaic staff, we wish you well and thank you for your support of our work.

<description>&lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"&gt;Michael Meade tells an old story from India about the creation of the world.&lt;span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"&gt; &lt;/span&gt; In it, an ancient sage named Markandeya is caught in the tension between creation and wonder, despair and loss.&lt;span style= "mso-spacerun: yes;"&gt; &lt;/span&gt; His existential crisis speaks to the world we live in now with its increasing levels of fear and despair.&lt;span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"&gt; &lt;/span&gt; Addressing the two great fears - fear of abandonment and the fear of being overwhelmed – Meade talks about how easily we can get lost in despair if we don’t know there is something essential in the ground of our being.&lt;span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"&gt; &lt;/span&gt; He suggests that this story, and all the old stories, remind us that every soul born comes in with genius capacities, natural gifts and a unique way of being – a fundamental quality that serves as medicine and antidote to feelings of discouragement, fear and anxiety.&lt;span style= "mso-spacerun: yes;"&gt;  &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style= "mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; color: #222222;"&gt;  &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"&gt;Thank you for listening to and supporting &lt;em&gt;Living Myth&lt;/em&gt;. You can hear Michael Meade live by joining his new online workshop “Facing Fate, Finding Destiny” on Saturday, May 11. Register and learn more at mosaicvoices.org/events.&lt;span style= "mso-spacerun: yes;"&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt;  &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"&gt;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 625 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.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt;  &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style= "mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; color: #222222;"&gt; If you enjoy this podcast, we appreciate you leaving a review wherever you listen and sharing it with your friends. On behalf of Michael Meade and the whole Mosaic staff, we wish you well and thank you for your support of our work.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</description>

Michael Meade tells an old story from India about the creation of the world.  In it, an ancient sage named Markandeya is caught in the tension between creation and wonder, despair and loss.  His existential crisis speaks to the world we live...

Episode 378 - Mythic Medicine

This episode of Living Myth considers how a total solar eclipse can have the effect of reinforcing the now common idea that we are each but a mere speck on a small planet orbiting a relatively unimportant star within a random and meaningless universe. Or it can be a revelation that reassures our souls that we are secretly connected to the whole living cosmos.   A total solar eclipse has the paradoxical quality of hiding the sun, while also revealing aspects of its true nature. At totality, the sun appears as it truly is, a star amongst the other stars. At totality, it looks more like a living, breathing thing, rather than a bright, solid orb.   Despite the increase of cynicism, and the rise of nihilism, our souls have an inborn expectation to have profound experiences of luminosity and the hidden unity of life. The numinous appears as something uncanny and mysterious that gives us a sense of the presence of the Divine and awakens a deeply felt intuition of the rightness of a situation or an event. Within such a moment, the habitual distinction that we make between inner and outer, between subjective and objective, between dream and reality breaks down to reveal the living cosmos and our own lives under one eclipsed light.   For a moment of indefinite duration, our attention is pulled away from the increasingly divided and polarized state in which we live, and the world suddenly makes sense. On one level, we barely matter. On another level, what matters most to us turns out to matter to the world as well.   Epiphanies are occasions of unexpected benediction and blessing during which meaning can flood us with a felt sense of the wholeness and the holiness of life. As wise people used to say, the whole world reveals itself to be a form of living truth. An eclipse of the sun can be seen as a gift, as a collective moment of eternity waiting and wanting to be seen by the inner eyes trying to open from within each and all of our souls.   Thank you for listening to and supporting Living Myth. You can hear Michael Meade live by joining his new online workshop “Facing Fate, Finding Destiny” on Saturday, May 11. 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 625 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 this podcast, we appreciate you leaving a review wherever you listen and sharing it with your friends. On behalf of Michael Meade and the whole Mosaic staff, we wish you well during this challenging and uncertain times and thank you for your support of our work.

<description>&lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"&gt;This episode of Living Myth considers how a total solar eclipse can have the effect of reinforcing the now common idea that we are each but a mere speck on a small planet orbiting a relatively unimportant star within a random and meaningless universe. Or it can be a revelation that reassures our souls that we are secretly connected to the whole living cosmos.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt;  &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"&gt;A total solar eclipse has the paradoxical quality of hiding the sun, while also revealing aspects of its true nature. At totality, the sun appears as it truly is, a star amongst the other stars. At totality, it looks more like a living, breathing thing, rather than a bright, solid orb.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt;  &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"&gt;Despite the increase of cynicism, and the rise of nihilism, our souls have an inborn expectation to have profound experiences of luminosity and the hidden unity of life. The numinous appears as something uncanny and mysterious that gives us a sense of the presence of the Divine and awakens a deeply felt intuition of the rightness of a situation or an event. Within such a moment, the habitual distinction that we make between inner and outer, between subjective and objective, between dream and reality breaks down to reveal the living cosmos and our own lives under one eclipsed light.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt;  &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"&gt;For a moment of indefinite duration, our attention is pulled away from the increasingly divided and polarized state in which we live, and the world suddenly makes sense. On one level, we barely matter. On another level, what matters most to us turns out to matter to the world as well.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt;  &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"&gt;Epiphanies are occasions of unexpected benediction and blessing during which meaning can flood us with a felt sense of the wholeness and the holiness of life. As wise people used to say, the whole world reveals itself to be a form of living truth. An eclipse of the sun can be seen as a gift, as a collective moment of eternity waiting and wanting to be seen by the inner eyes trying to open from within each and all of our souls.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style= "mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; color: #222222;"&gt;  &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"&gt;Thank you for listening to and supporting &lt;em&gt;Living Myth&lt;/em&gt;. You can hear Michael Meade live by joining his new online workshop “Facing Fate, Finding Destiny” on Saturday, May 11.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"&gt;Register and learn more at mosaicvoices.org/events.&lt;span style= "mso-spacerun: yes;"&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt;  &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"&gt;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 625 episodes and a 30% discount on all events, courses and book and audio titles.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"&gt;Learn more and join this community of listeners at patreon.com/livingmyth.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt;  &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style= "mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; color: #222222;"&gt; If you enjoy this podcast, we appreciate you leaving a review wherever you listen and sharing it with your friends. On behalf of Michael Meade and the whole Mosaic staff, we wish you well during this challenging and uncertain times and thank you for your support of our work.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</description>

This episode of Living Myth considers how a total solar eclipse can have the effect of reinforcing the now common idea that we are each but a mere speck on a small planet orbiting a relatively unimportant star within a random and meaningless universe....

Episode 377 - Eclipses and Epiphanies

On this episode of Living Myth, Michael Meade contrasts two creation myths that feature the original division that becomes the source of all subsequent divisions in life. One ancient tale makes clear that healing and transformation are the secret aims of the tension of opposites that exist inside each person, inside each society and inside life itself.   “At critical moments in the life of individuals and societies, the basic elements and energies of existence polarize. While the two poles of a polarity seem to be irreconcilable opposites, they are secretly one. In a true polarity, one side cannot exist without the other; for existence itself is an essential unity appearing as a duality. Yet, at the level of pre-systemic thought, the mystery of totality underlies all the conflicts and divisions in life, both personal and collective. We suffer what divides us in order to find ways back to the wholeness before all the dividing began.   Something ancient in us bends us towards the origins of the whole thing, so that what troubles us takes us down to the bottom of what troubles us and back to the beginning before the original unity was divided. The word healing means “to make whole again.” Healing, health, wealth, wholeness all hail from the same etymological roots. To heal is to make whole and what continually requires healing is the original split. No healing without a return to origins, no healing that does not in some way touch the original split.   Without stories that remind us of the hidden wholeness and the hidden holiness of the world, all that is left are the pressing problems and threatening divisions that seem increasingly impossible to solve.”   Thank you for listening to and supporting Living Myth. You can hear Michael Meade live by joining his new online series “The Creative Middle Way” beginning on Thursday, March 28.   Register and learn more at mosaicvoices.org/events.    You can save 30% on this new course 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 600 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 this podcast, we appreciate you leaving a review wherever you listen and sharing it with your friends. On behalf of Michael Meade and the whole Mosaic staff, we wish you well during this challenging and uncertain times and thank you for your support of our work.

<description>&lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"&gt;On this episode of Living Myth, Michael Meade contrasts two creation myths that feature the original division that becomes the source of all subsequent divisions in life. One ancient tale makes clear that healing and transformation are the secret aims of the tension of opposites that exist inside each person, inside each society and inside life itself.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt;  &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"&gt;“At critical moments in the life of individuals and societies, the basic elements and energies of existence polarize. While the two poles of a polarity seem to be irreconcilable opposites, they are secretly one. In a true polarity, one side cannot exist without the other; for existence itself is an essential unity appearing as a duality. Yet, at the level of pre-systemic thought, the mystery of totality underlies all the conflicts and divisions in life, both personal and collective. We suffer what divides us in order to find ways back to the wholeness before all the dividing began.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt;  &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"&gt;Something ancient in us bends us towards the origins of the whole thing, so that what troubles us takes us down to the bottom of what troubles us and back to the beginning before the original unity was divided. The word healing means “to make whole again.” Healing, health, wealth, wholeness all hail from the same etymological roots. To heal is to make whole and what continually requires healing is the original split. No healing without a return to origins, no healing that does not in some way touch the original split.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt;  &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"&gt;Without stories that remind us of the hidden wholeness and the hidden holiness of the world, all that is left are the pressing problems and threatening divisions that seem increasingly impossible to solve.”&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style= "mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; color: #222222;"&gt;  &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"&gt;Thank you for listening to and supporting &lt;em&gt;Living Myth&lt;/em&gt;. You can hear Michael Meade live by joining his new online series “The Creative Middle Way” beginning on Thursday, March 28.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt;  &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"&gt;Register and learn more at mosaicvoices.org/events.&lt;span style= "mso-spacerun: yes;"&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt;  &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"&gt;You can save 30% on this new course 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 600 episodes and a 30% discount on all events, courses and book and audio titles.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt;  &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"&gt;Learn more and join this community of listeners at patreon.com/livingmyth.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt;  &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class="MsoNormal" style= "margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal; background: white;"&gt; &lt;span style= "mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; color: #222222;"&gt; If you enjoy this podcast, we appreciate you leaving a review wherever you listen and sharing it with your friends. On behalf of Michael Meade and the whole Mosaic staff, we wish you well during this challenging and uncertain times and thank you for your support of our work.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</description>

On this episode of Living Myth, Michael Meade contrasts two creation myths that feature the original division that becomes the source of all subsequent divisions in life. One ancient tale makes clear that healing and transformation are the secret aims...

Episode 376 - A Divided World, A Hidden Unity

Mosaic presents Living Myth, a podcast with Michael Meade, renowned mythologist and storyteller. Meade presents mythic stories that offer uniquely insightful and wise ways of understanding the current dilemmas of the world we live in. Living Myth proposes that genuine solutions to the complex and intractable problems of our world require both transcendent imagination and cohering, transformative narratives.

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