The hero's journey

2. Refusal of the Call
3. Supernatural Aid
4. The Crossing of the First Threshold
5. Belly of the Whale
2. Initiation of the hero-child
3. Withdrawal from family or community for meditation and preparation
2. Call to adventure
3. Refusal of the call
4. Meeting with the mentor
 II. Initiation
2. The Meeting with the Goddess
3. Woman as the Temptress
4. Atonement with the Father
5. Apotheosis
6. The Ultimate Boon
2. Death
3. Descent into the underworld
2. The vision quest
3. The meeting with the goddess
4. The boon
2. Approach to the inmost cave
3. The ordeal
 III. Return
2. The Magic Flight
3. Rescue from Without
4. The Crossing of the Return Threshold
5. Master of the Two Worlds
6. Freedom to Live
2. Ascension, apotheosis, and atonement
2. The return threshold
3. The master of two worlds
2. The resurrection
3. Return with the elixir

#### The Call to Adventure[edit]

The hero begins in a situation of normality from which some information is received that acts as a call to head off into the unknown. According to Campbell, this region is represented by

#### Refusal of the Call[edit]

Often when the call is given, the future hero first refuses to heed it. This may be from a sense of duty or obligation, fear, insecurity, a sense of inadequacy, or any of a range of reasons that work to hold the person in his current circumstances. Campbell says that

#### Supernatural Aid[edit]

Once the hero has committed to the quest, consciously or unconsciously, his guide and magical helper appears or becomes known. More often than not, this supernatural mentor will present the hero with one or more talismans or artifacts that will aid him later in his quest. Campbell writes:

#### The Crossing of the First Threshold[edit]

This is the point where the hero actually crosses into the field of adventure, leaving the known limits of his world and venturing into an unknown and dangerous realm where the rules and limits are unknown. Campbell tells us,

#### Belly of the Whale[edit]

The belly of the whale represents the final separation from the hero's known world and self. By entering this stage, the person shows a willingness to undergo a metamorphosis. When first entering the stage the hero may encounter a minor danger or setback. According to Campbell,

In the exemplary Book of Jonah, the eponymous Israelite refuses God's command to prophesy the destruction of Nineveh and attempts to flee by sailing to Tarshish. A storm arises, and the sailors cast lots to determine that Jonah is to blame. He allows himself to be thrown overboard to calm the storm, and is saved from drowning by being swallowed by a "great fish". Over three days, Jonah commits to God's will, and he is vomited safely onto the shore. He subsequently goes to Nineveh and preaches to its inhabitants. Jonah's passage through the belly of the whale can be viewed as a symbolic death and rebirth in Jungian analysis.

### Initiation[edit]

#### The Road of Trials[edit]

The road of trials is a series of tests that the hero must undergo to begin the transformation. Often the hero fails one or more of these tests, which often occur in threes. Eventually, the hero will overcome these trials and move on to the next step. Campbell explains that

#### The Meeting with the Goddess[edit]

This is where the hero gains items given to him that will help him in the future. Campbell proposes that

#### Woman as the Temptress[edit]

In this step, the hero faces those temptations, often of a physical or pleasurable nature, that may lead him to abandon or stray from his quest, which does not necessarily have to be represented by a woman. A woman is a metaphor for the physical or material temptations of life since the hero-knight was often tempted by lust from his spiritual journey. Campbell relates that

#### Atonement with the Father/Abyss[edit]

In this step, the hero must confront and be initiated by whatever holds the ultimate power in his life. In many myths and stories, this is the father or a father figure who has life and death power. This is the center point of the journey. All the previous steps have been moving into this place, all that follow will move out from it. Although this step is most frequently symbolized by an encounter with a male entity, it does not have to be a male—just someone or something with incredible power. Per Campbell,

Campbell later expounds:

#### Apotheosis[edit]

Further information: Apotheosis

This is the point of realization in which a greater understanding is achieved. Armed with this new knowledge and perception, the hero is resolved and ready for the more difficult part of the adventure. Campbell discloses that

#### The Ultimate Boon[edit]

The ultimate boon is the achievement of the goal of the quest. It is what the hero went on the journey to get. All the previous steps serve to prepare and purify the hero for this step since in many myths the boon is something transcendent like the elixir of life itself, or a plant that supplies immortality, or the holy grail. Campbell confers that

### Return[edit]

#### Refusal of the Return[edit]

Having found bliss and enlightenment in the other world, the hero may not want to return to the ordinary world to bestow the boon onto his fellow man. Campbell continues:

#### The Magic Flight[edit]

Sometimes the hero must escape with the boon if it is something that the gods have been jealously guarding. It can be just as adventurous and dangerous returning from the journey as it was to go on it. Campbell reveals that

#### Rescue from Without[edit]

Just as the hero may need guides and assistants to set out on the quest, often he must have powerful guides and rescuers to bring them back to everyday life, especially if the person has been wounded or weakened by the experience. Campbell elucidates,

#### The Crossing of the Return Threshold[edit]

Campbell says in *The Hero with a Thousand Faces* that "The returning hero, to complete his adventure, must survive the impact of the world." The trick in returning is to retain the wisdom gained on the quest, to integrate that wisdom into human life, and then maybe figure out how to share the wisdom with the rest of the world. Earlier in the book, Campbell says,

#### Master of the Two Worlds[edit]

For a human hero, it may mean achieving a balance between the material and spiritual. The person has become comfortable and competent in both the inner and outer worlds. Campbell demonstrates that

#### Freedom to Live[edit]

In this step, mastery leads to freedom from the fear of death, which in turn is the freedom to live. This is sometimes referred to as living in the moment, neither anticipating the future nor regretting the past. Campbell declares,