notes 10/11

• middles....going from gods/goddesses to humans. Sadness and pain generally is part of the middle. 

The Hero Pattern

This pattern is based upon The Hero: A study in Tradition, Myth and Dreams by Lord Raglan 

Incidents which occur with regularity in hero-myths of all cultures: 

1. Hero's mother is a royal virgin;
2. His father is a king, and
3. Often a near relative of his mother, but
4. The circumstances of his conception are unusual, and
5. He is also reputed to be the son of a god.
6. At birth an attempt is made, usually by his father or his maternal grand father to kill him, but
7. he is spirited away, and
8. Reared by foster -parents in a far country.
9. We are told nothing of his childhood, but
10. On reaching manhood he returns or goes to his future Kingdom.
11. After a victory over the king and/or a giant, dragon, or wild beast,
12. He marries a princess, often the daughter of his predecessor and
13. And becomes king.
14. For a time he reigns uneventfully and
15. Prescribes laws, but
16. Later he loses favor with the gods and/or his subjects, and
17. Is driven from the throne and city, after which
18. He meets with a mysterious death,
19. Often at the top of a hill,
20. His children, if any do not succeed him.
21. His body is not buried, but nevertheless
22. He has one or more holy sepulchres. 

Click on the name to see the pattern applied to the life of :

Mithradates VI of Pontus (22) / Krishna (21) / Moses (20) / Romulus (19) / King Arthur (19) / Perseus (18) / Jesus (18) / Watu Gunung of Java (18) / Heracles (17) Mohammad (17) / Beowulf (15) / Buddha (15) / Czar Nicholas II (14) / Zeus(14) / Nyikang, a cult-hero of the Shiluk tribe of the Upper Nile (14) / Samson (13) / Sunjata, the Lion-King of Ancient Mali (11) / Achilles (10) / Odysseus (8) / Harry Potter (8) 

Individuals are listed in the order in which they fit the pattern. Numbers in parentheses indicate the number of pattern points which apply.

• Oedipus fits most points in the pattern.
• In mythology we like to hear hero stories over and over again.
• middle is the muddle
• Referring  to The Magus, there seems to be something significant, but you don't know what it is. Also just referring to middle in general. 
• Initiation- basically going through pain
• A ritual is something we do
• We say, "What are we supposed to do?" because we're missing rituals from our parents, grandparents, ancestors etc.
• Iron John by Robert Bly...Der Eisenhans(probably didn't spell it right) from Brothers Grimm
• Story about pain you go through....makes it very easy to identify with the character.
• Read Taurbolium (important, in primitive to zen)
• Elusinian- something was seen, something was done, something was said.
• Dramenon- >To do something> drama
• Rituals are prescribed rules given by people in everyday life.
• Ex Jessica's ritual of leaving the house....1) brush the cat 2)check all doors and windows 3)close the door 4)check the garage 5 times
• A true baptism is death and bringing back to life > imitation of death and rebirth