The Hero’s Journey
Exploring the hero archetype through various lenses.
Greetings Soul’s Journey Family!
This past week I’ve had so many nudges about heroes and the Hero’s Journey cross my path, it was pretty obvious what todays topic would be.
Let’s go exploring! ⚔️
~Suzanne
From Wikipedia: A hero (feminine: heroine) is a real person or a main fictional character who, in the face of danger, combats adversity through feats of ingenuity, courage, or strength. The original hero type of classical epics did such things for the sake of glory and honor. Post-classical and modern heroes, on the other hand, perform great deeds or selfless acts for the common good instead of the classical goal of wealth, pride, and fame.
The hero’s journey has a certain predictable timeline:
An ordinary person receives a call to adventure, refuses the calling, meets a mentor who convinces him to go forth anyway. During the adventure he is met with trials and ultimately, after facing his own darkness, a transformation occurs and he returns to his ordinary life but with the secret or power to help others with his new found strength.
The hero archetype represents courage and selflessness. The hero offers stability in a world of chaos (think Superman or Wonder Woman). However, the shadow of the hero, that we see often in these “superheros”, is the need for trauma or conflict. Who are they without the chaos? There is a sense of identity crisis. To create the need for a hero, they may become the bully, the antagonizer. (Using Spider-Man as an example, Peter Parker went from bullied teenager to superhero who often taunts and teases his foes, turning the tables from victim to tormentor).
Through the Lense of the Gene Keys:
Gene Key 34: Force —> Strength —> Majesty
Force is primal, unconscious bullying and aggression, unaware of others’ feelings or existence
Strength is bravery without intention, also unaware, it is natural force without awareness of self (non ego)
Majesty is pure awareness, not awareness of something or someone, simply pure actions and movements as a being who is one with the universe.
Through the Lense of Human Design:
The 5/2 Profile, sometimes referred to as the self-motivated hero, most embodies the hero archetype. That’s not to say that only 5/2s are heroes, or that all 5/2s portray the hero, but when we break down the nature of the 5/2 profile, you will see how it mirrors the hero archetype like none of the other profiles.
A person with a conscious line 5 has a charisma and magnetism that attracts others. This person is designed to be of service to the world. They are helpers and have solutions. The unconscious line 2 has innate talents that even they don’t often recognize, yet these talents are often recognized and called out by others.
While the 5/2 has abilities and a selfless drive, they need to be discerning and are not designed to help everyone nor are they designed to offer their help continuously. Either of these may result in burnout.
The Hero’s Journey through the Tarot
The Hero’s journey begins with the Fools Journey (read more about the Fools Journey here). As we progress through the major arcana, you will see the hero’s journey unfold. Beginning with the Fool, our hero sets out on his adventure. The Magician and High Priestess may represent his newfound power or the mentor who encourages him on. The Chariot represents the obstacles he must overcome and the Tower and the Death card show him facing of his own darkness and transformation. The World is his return with his new powers to help all of humanity.
Walking your hero’s journey is a walk into your Self and discovering not just who you are, but who you are with and for others.
In the journey of discovering our own inner strength and experiencing our own transformation we need to face our shadow side and face the survival fears that pop up for us. We also need to move past our idea of strength as bullying or manipulative and discover inner courage and selflessness. Being a hero has less to do with our needs and more to do with who and what we are for others. However, this isn’t a conscious “Hey, here’s what I can give you”, it’s simply “This is who I am”.
Exploring Human Design is the journey of moving into alignment who you are at your essence. When you remember who you are and how you are designed to operate in the world, decisions come more easily and life opens up to you, revealing the opportunities you may have overlooked. Life simply flows. For your free Human Design chart and a brief reading, drop me a line!