the heroes journey and the difficult horse

The Hero's Journey & The Difficult Horse

The Hero's Journey is a narrative pattern identified by mythologist Joseph Campbell in his book "The Hero with a Thousand Faces." It describes a common sequence of stages that a hero goes through in various myths, legends, and stories across cultures and eras. The Hero's Journey can be summarised in the following stages:

The Ordinary World: The hero's normal life before the story begins.

The Call to Adventure: The initiating incident of the story.

Refusal of the Call: The hero feels the fear of the unknown and tries to avoid the adventure.

Meeting the Mentor: The hero encounters someone who gives advice and readying the hero for the journey ahead.

Crossing the Threshold: The hero leaves the ordinary world and ventures into the unknown.

Tests, Allies, and Enemies: The hero faces challenges and makes allies.

Approach to the Inmost Cave: The hero nears the center of the story and the main challenge.

The Ordeal: A central life or death crisis, where the hero faces their biggest challenge.

The Reward: After surviving the ordeal, the hero receives a reward or power.

The Road Back: The hero begins to deal with the consequences of confronting the darkness of the ordeal.

The Resurrection: A final challenge where the hero is purified and changes in a way that prepares them for reentering the ordinary world.

Return with the Elixir: The hero returns home with something beneficial for the community.

THINK ABOUT IT….

Nothing can be more of a call for adventure and ordeal than the difficult horse that can come into your life.

If you refuse and move them on, guaranteed the horse gods will send you a similar horse not letting you avoid the challenge.

I believe this is really what sits at the heart of what is so special about horses. They take you on the hero's journey. They change you in profound ways and can be transformative in your life. They can help you find your allies, grow your skills, your resilience and makes you wise.

It is the love of the horse and the journey they take you on, that can prepare you and makes you strong in the face of the other adventures and ordeals that life throws at you