Follow Your Bliss

I’ve been amusing myself lately by having DVD marathons of the Mythos series of lectures by Joseph Campbell. It may not be quite as addictive as 24, but there’s a lot more food for thought. His breadth of understanding and insight into world cultures and mythologies is breathtaking, but above all he’s just a great storyteller. It’s no surprise that his work influenced George Lucas, the creator of Star Wars, to develop Luke Skywalker’s tale into a modern myth – or that his exhortation to ‘follow your bliss’ became the spiritual byword for life purpose. As he explains, “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.”

The simplicity of the bliss motto can be deceiving. As much as we’d like to think it’s a carte blanche for self-indulgence, it’s really a calling to a deeper sense of authenticity and purpose that lies within us. We have our own story that we’re here to embody and that can only emerge from our own self-knowledge and wisdom. According to Campbell, “There’s nothing you can do that’s more important than being fulfilled. You become a sign, you become a signal … in this way, you will find, live and become a realisation of your own personal myth.” Walking your own path then liberates others to do the same.

We see ourselves in stories. As human beings, storytelling is hardwired into our nature. That’s why we love movies, soaps, novels and fairy tales – they connect with the universal part of whowe are. In story we touch possibilities that are beyond what’s on offer in our own lives and try on different experiences for size. Imagination and creativity run riot and we return from the tale deeply touched, wiser or more inspired. Not only that, but we have fun doing it. In story we learn through joy.

In Joy Is My Compass, inspirational author Alan Cohen writes that following joy has been the most direct way to fulfilling his life purpose. He says “You, too, have a purpose. There’s something that you believe in, a vision that stimulates you, a function that makes your heart content as you full it … The important element of our life is the spirit with which we do what we do. Our acts are valuable not because of the way they appear, but for the depth of spirit that we bring to what we create.”

Instead of looking outside yourself for some new job, project or grand plan to give your life a sense of purpose, start remembering what brings you joy. If the last time you had fun was so long ago you can’t even remember the meaning of the word, your childhood pleasures can be a fertile hunting ground for clues to your bliss. The philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer, whose work greatly influenced Campbell, saw the experiences of childhood as setting the standards and patterns for all later knowledge and experience, noting “in our childhood years the foundation is laid of our later view of the world, and there with as well, of its superficiality or depth: it will be in later years unfolded and fulfilled, not essentially changed.”

Those early dreams, joys and favourite stories are all clues to finding your passion and unfolding the purpose of your life. We don’t become different people as we follow our bliss, we just become more of who we really are. The stories you love now are also hints to what brings you joy. What are your favourite films, TV shows, plays or novels? What do those characters have in common? What is it that they do that strikes a chord in you?

Sex And The City gave us a perfect example of how we could see ourselves in the show’s leading ladies – for both their flaws and their fabulousness – which was a major contributor to its huge popularity. If Carrie was your number one character, did you like her for her writing skills, fashion sense or for being a free spirit? Or was the high-octane, totally liberated Samantha more your style? The things we love tell us who we are.

This week’s I Am Fab challenge is to do at least three things that bring you joy. It’s not a big ask and it could help you uncover a little more about the personal mystery that is your life purpose. Try re-reading some beloved fairy tales, look up someone fun that you’ve lost touch with, update an old skill or try something completely new that you’ve always wanted to do. Just get busy getting blissed out - it’s the fabulous thing to do!

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All material © 2006 Alison Porter. No article may be reproduced in full or in part without the express permission of the author. (Originally posted 2o Feb 06)