Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Binding: VHS Tape
EAN: 9786303503387
Format: Box set
ISBN: 6303503381
Label: Mystic Fire Video
Manufacturer: Mystic Fire Video
Number Of Items: 6
Publisher: Mystic Fire Video
Release Date: 1998-10-27
Running Time: 360
Studio: Mystic Fire Video

Joseph Campbell and the Power of Myth is essential viewing for anyone old enough to appreciate its vital teachings. One of the greatest interviews ever recorded, this six-part, six-hour encounter between teacher- mythologist Campbell and student-journalist Bill Moyers (recorded in the two years preceding Campbell's death in 1988) covers a galaxy of topics related to Campbell's central themes: Mythology is humanity's universal method of seeking the transcendental, and "follow your bliss" is the timeless formula for spiritual satisfaction. Campbell himself is the embodiment of these themes, an erudite scholar and quintessential storyteller, recalling a wide spectrum of myths from throughout history (Japanese, Native American, Egyptian, Mayan, and many more) to illustrate humankind's eternal quest to grasp the mysteries of creation. Historical artifacts and illustrations bring these timeless stories to life.

An astute interviewer, Moyers is an acolyte in perfect harmony with Campbell-as- mentor, wording questions with penetrating perfection as their intellectual dance reaches exhilarating heights of meaning and fascination. Moyers also finds the perfect hook for a global audience, examining Campbell's admiration of George Lucas's Star Wars saga as a popular tapestry of ancient myths, and Lucas himself is interviewed in a DVD bonus segment ("I'm not creating a new myth," he says, "but telling old myths in a new way"). Campbell's seemingly endless well of knowledge reaches a simple conclusion: we need myths to survive like we need oxygen to breathe, as a life force with which to understand our existence--past, present, and future. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Rating:
Summary: NEXT TO SUSTENANCE, WE SEEK STORY ABOVE ALL ELSE
Comment: A wise mentor once said to me, "Next to sustenance, human beings crave story above all else." At first I dismissed it, but over the years I have come to believe its truth. Above all else, we seek meaning and definition to our existence. Stories -- and I include movies, books and songs -- give us that validation of universally shared experiences, fears and desires. It's the picture on the ragged tapestry of our lives that we discern when we step back far enough to see the pattern of our collective stories.

What makes this an exceptional show is Campbell has no agenda and nothing to sell. He's just sharing a fundamental truth about our collective human experience. Since our lives are filled with lies and propaganda, from politics, religion and advertisers, here is a welcome opportunity to detox.

The six episodes: "The Hero's Adventure" in which the mythical, heroic life is linked with the stages of our own mortal lives; "The Message of the Myth" is about the failure of ancient Creation stories to satisfy our modern need for scientific proof of origins; "The First Storytellers" emphasizes the need for ritual, the role of shaman in rites of passage and death as rebirth; "Sacrifice and Bliss" reveals how our contemporary needs require new concepts of the mythic modes of sacrifice; "Love and the Goddess" shows romance to be relatively new but eroticizing the female is old; "Masks of Eternity" grasps the big questions of God and spirituality as expressed by several world religions.

Take again this exhilarating journey into mind, meaning and myth as expressed by a truly extraordinary man and brilliant storyteller. Hosted by TV journalist Bill Moyers, this great show was originally seen as a highly-regarded PBS series.

Bonus features include: Never before released conversations with Campbell; selections from Moyers' interview with George Lucas; a 12 page viewer's guide; excerpts from the film SUKHAVATI and more. About 360 minutes on two discs.

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Customer Rating:
Summary: A "Must See" for Seekers.
Comment: If you consider yourself a seeker of truth, a person who is on any type of spiritual journey, a fan of history or cultures or just somebody who likes to say "I am not religious but I'm spiritual" than you really need to experience this awesome DVD. Campbell lays it all out and dares to discuss the big questions like the meaning of life, death and afterlife. Furthermore, it is entertaining and highly educational to watch. Should be required viewing for high school students.

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Customer Rating:
Summary: Power of Myth
Comment: The series, Power of Myth, is a timeless gem. I'm happy I was able to get a copy of it so quickly. Thanks.

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Customer Rating:
Summary: If you use it as a launching point for a discussion it's great but its not the be all and end all.
Comment: In high school I was turned on to Joseph Campbell by George Lucas's remarks about how he used The Hero With a Thousand Faces while working on the original Star Wars stories. Reading that book I found it was a rush to see how so many patterns were repeated in myths. It then sent me off reading the various myths and stories of various cultures and I largely left Campbell behind because the source material was better.

When PBS ran the series the Power of Myth a few years later I once again dove back into the world of Joseph Campbell only this time I was much less enamored. The trouble was that Campbell was picking and choosing the pieces of myths to show the universal nature of the points he wanted to get across, leaving out the parts of the story that kind of worked against his hypothesis. If a similar story didn't follow his pattern he left it out. I completely understand why he did that and I don't really mind except that he rallies too much a case for across the board universality when it really isn't there.

Campbell, for a brief time, became a media darling and even in colleges his take on myths and legends became the way to go. What's frustrating is that no one was really going back and reading the myths and legends he was talking about, or more importantly not talking about. If you watch the series with any critical eye you see how he tends to choose some belief systems over others.

Don't get me wrong its a very good series, but you can't just let the series be the be all and end all of your quest to know the subject. I had several college professors who handed out copies of various episodes and said this was what we had to know and that was it. It was a lazy thing to do and something that was very one sided (and it stifled what was suppose to be a discussion of religion). You have to start here and go on from it, this series doesn't have all of the answers, it only really starts asking some of the questions. If you make the effort to really go beyond the programs and look into the myths and legends he talks about and those he doesn't, I think you'll find yourself getting a better understanding of the world.

I've rated the series two stars because even though it's a good thing to get the mind going its not the be all and end all. As I've said its Campbell's view and not really the way all myths are, all you have to do is actually start reading the stories to see that.

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Customer Rating:
Summary: Above and beyond!
Comment: If everyone were to sit,listen,watch and take the time to understand what is being said in these amazing 6 episodes the world would instantly become a more perfect place we all could enjoy....But of course it isn't!!! So take my word and buy this set of episodes and let it's magic fill you up with energy and spread the word.It is the best explanation of what our world is missing I have ever watched..... It simply cuts to the heart of the matter!!!

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