The Call To Adventure (Part 2)

What is this Call To Adventure? It is a personal Calling we receive
which challenges us to experience our True Path. It is the "Stuff"
that creates legends and heroes.
It is the Fantasy we wish we could experience. An irresistible
calling that tests the very limits of our mind and spirit.
An Obsession that has attracted and consumed Pilgrims and
Seekers from the Earliest Mists of Time.
Once we accept the Call to travel Our Path there is no turning back.
Nothing can discourage us. Difficulties cannot stop us. Fears cannot
stop us. We cannot stop until we solve the Mystery of who we are
and what we can become. It begins with a Stranger knocking on our
"door". This Stranger can sometimes be a real person who awakens
within us our desire to fulfill our Destiny and pursue our Dreams.
However, it is usually a nagging "feeling" within us that unsettles us,
rousts us from our laziness and comforts, and stirs us to action.
Literature and Myth tell of many Strangers who appeared in
someone's life and presented them with The Call To Adventure.
Here are just a few:
Glinda, The Good Witch Of The North, who directed Dorothy
to Oz and, eventually, back "home".
Albus Dumbledore, whose guidance enabled Harry Potter to
defeat the Dark Lord, Voldemort.
Gandalf, who knocked on Bilbo Baggins' door and changed his
life forever.
Princess Leia, who beckoned Luke Skywalker to a galaxy far, far
away to face his Destiny in a battle with Darth Vader, his father.
At some point we either embrace Our Call or we discard it forever.
Those who accept "The Call" experience the Adventure of travelling
their own Path and creating their own Destiny. Those who ignore
"The Call" will never experience the adventures of the Pilgrim and
the Seeker. To these people the Stranger may never appear again.
But, who is this Stranger? It is a Voice, a Burning Desire, a
Temptress Within that entices, inspires, and bewitches us to pursue
our own Destiny; to travel our own Path.
For the true Seeker The Call To Adventure neither disappears nor
diminishes. For this person there is only one option: accept and
embrace "The Call"; experience the Adventure.
The Great Task is our Personal Destiny. We all enter this life with
our One Great Task; the fulfillment of our very own Personal
Destiny. Either we choose to pursue it or we choose to ignore it.
The Path is our own Special Path that leads to our Personal
Destiny. It is a Path that no one has travelled before us and a
Path that no one will ever travel after us. There has never been
another's footprint on this Path. If WE do not travel Our Path it
will go untraveled for all eternity and the Destiny that lies at its
end will never be realized.
Our Enemies are our own personal fears, doubts and insecurities.
They are our Demons Within that only we can conquer. It is by
vanquishing and banishing these Demons from our Personal Kingdom
that we gain Inner Strength and experience our Full Potential.
The Guides are the many different teachers we meet along
Our Way. They provide us with all the knowledge, and teach us all
the skills, we require to defeat our Demons and complete our
Great Task.
However, these Guides can only prepare us. We must always face our
Demons, and our Final Test, alone. This is the only way it can be.
And, who knows, perhaps someday we ourselves may be a Guide
assisting another Traveller along their very own Personal Path.
Darkness, in this instance, represents Ignorance. However,
Darkness is banished by Light (Enlightenment). Enlightenment
is the acquiring of the Skills and Knowledge that enable us to
conquer Ignorance. Enlightenment is Wisdom!
When the Stranger tells us that "We are more capable than
we know", he is telling us that we have Latent Talents sleeping
within us that, once awakened, can accomplish the most
Fascinating Deeds.
The Great Darkness represents Great Failure. It is when we
"allow" our fears, doubts and insecurities (our Demons Within)
to conquer us. It is the relinquishing of our Individual Sovereignty.
It is "accepting" to be at the mercy and decisions of others; to live
someone else's life; to experience someone else's Destiny.
When we CHOOSE The Great Darkness we forfeit both our Dreams
and our Personal Destiny. We can no longer experience who we truly
are and all that we can become.
It is by accepting our Call To Adventure, travelling Our Path to
its End, vanquishing our Demons Within, and fulfilling our Destiny
that we experience The Adventure Of A Lifetime!

THE MANY EXCELLENT WRITINGS OF JOSEPH CAMPBELL
CONTAIN ADDITIONAL INSIGHTS ON MYTH AND THE CALL
TO ADVENTURE.

***If you found this article helpful or informative,
please forward it to other like-minded persons.
Thank you.***

New Age, Spirituality, Religion and Philosophy
© copyright Joseph Panek 2008