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Jean Houston on the Hero's Journey

Posted: Sun 01/13/2013 02:00 PM
Jean Houston is known as a scholar, philosopher and  visionary. A prolific writer who has transversed the globe lecturing, teaching and consulting with world leaders along the way, Jean's life has been devoted to pushing the boundaries of human potential. She possesses a true passion for what is possible.

In their first conversation, Oprah and Jean sit down to discuss her new book, The Wizard of Us. In it, Jean uses The Wizard of Oz to discuss how life's biggest lessons are often found in the most popular stories in our culture. At the heart of many stories, she says, is the idea of the hero's journey. Watch the clips below to find out more about her own spiritual path and how we all have the potential to be the hero of our own lives. 

Jean describes herself as an evocateur of the possible and a midwife of souls—and says her spiritual evolution started at age 6. After getting in trouble with the nuns at her Catholic school, Jean locked herself in a closet to cry and pray for a miracle. (She even promised to give up candy.) After she stepped out of that closet, she says the whole world shifted. Watch as she tells the story of her spiritual awakening to Oprah:


Joseph Campbell was a great American writer and mythologist who wrote about what he calls the hero's journey. From Homer's Odyssey to Luke Skywalker in Star Wars, he recognized a theme that applies to humanity—we are the heroes of our own lives. Jean was a friend and colleague of Campbell's and also believes in the hero's journey. Watch as she discusses the first step in becoming the hero of your own life and realizing the power of your own possibility—the call to adventure: 

During their conversation, Jean shares the steps of every hero's journey. Find out what they are. Then, watch as Oprah reveals the milestones of her own:

6 Strategies for Becoming Your Own Hero

Posted: Fri 01/11/2013 08:00 AM

Philosopher Jean Houston is one of the original spiritual thought leaders who believes each person has the ability to lead a life of greatness and purpose. Click here to get her thoughts on realizing the true power of your own possibility.


More on Jean

Backstage with Jean Houston and Deepak Chopra

Posted: Thu 01/10/2013 08:00 AM
They've been friends for more than 30 years and he wrote the forward for her new book, The Wizard of Us. Plus, they just happened to tape "Super Soul Sunday" on the very same day! During some downtime in filming, Jean Houston and Deepak Chopra sat down with our backstage crew to discuss their longtime friendship.

What are the greatest lessons these thought leaders have learned from one another? Watch to find out:

While reminiscing about some of their favorite stories, Jean shares a moment from Deepak's childhood that always stuck with her. Hear the story:

Finally, Deepak says there's one very good reason everyone should tune in for Jean and Oprah's conversation this Sunday. He reveals it here:

Becoming the Hero of Your Own Journey: Q&A with Jean Houston

Posted: Wed 01/09/2013 08:00 AM

According to philosopher and author Jean Houston, the greatest truths of your own life can often be found in pages of your favorite stories. Her new book, The Wizard of Us, uses the classic story as an example of how the life lessons found in the greatest myths of our time can help you become the hero of your own life—a life full of purpose, heart and courage.

Q: So what is a myth?
Jean: Well, a myth is a great story. A myth is a kind of story that puts us on the road of adventures, shows us that we are larger than we ever thought we could be. Gives us experiences that enlarge our humanity. Experiences that often begin in a call. I feel called to something—'I'm in a state of yearning.'

Just like little Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz. She feels called to move beyond an outmoded situation in dreary old Kansas, "somewhere over the rainbow." In fact, sometimes it takes a big thing to get you going, like a tornado. And she lands in Oz, where she meets the parts of herself that have been put down: Her mind, her heart, and her courage. And therein often myths are filled with these symbolic characters, as in The Wizard of Oz.

I wrote a book about this called The Wizard of Us. She meets the Scarecrow for the mind—who turns out to have a brilliant mind, though he thought he didn't have one. The Tinman, who is stuck and she helps him. She has tremendous compassion, and she helps him release and become able to move again. And he has incredible love and sympathy and gentleness. And then the Cowardly Lion, who turns out to be able to do extraordinary things.

It's like the world today. We are in teams. We are working together across the great divide of otherness. We really take on the larger venture, the larger experience of finding out what our deepest challenges are that hone our pluck and cunning, make us grow up into who and what we can be, and in our own way, save our world. That's what a myth does.

Q: Are there any telltale signs you're on the journey you're meant to be on?
Jean: Well, there are many different parts of it. You may feel called, and you don't know for what, but you know you have to get out of an outmoded situation. You may find curious allies showing up. Sometimes the book opens to the right page. Or, that telephone call, or that unexpected grace of a meeting. But mostly, it is a yearning that will not go away.

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An encore of Oprah and Jean Houston's full conversation airs Sunday at 11 a.m. ET/PT.

What The Wizard of Oz Can Teach You About Yourself

Posted: Tue 01/08/2013 08:00 AM

The Wizard of Oz is one of Oprah's favorite stories because of the wisdom she found within it. In fact, she considers Glinda the Good Witch's statement, "You had the power all along", to be one of the great spiritual teachings.

This Sunday, Oprah is sitting down with Jean Houston, one of the original thought leaders, to discuss her amazing life and her new book, The Wizard of Us. In that book, Jean says the character of Dorothy can teach us real-life lessons about our human experience. Read an excerpt of  to find out how.

Dorothy travels along the Yellow Brick Road, infused with God stuff, filled with possibilities, magical ruby slippers on her feet and the ever-enthusiastic Toto at her side. She comes to a crossroad where she pauses, having no idea which way to go. In a nearby cornfield, a funny- looking Scarecrow (played in the film by the seemingly boneless Ray Bolger) hears Dorothy wondering aloud about her direction. The Scarecrow comes to life and promptly offers her options, first pointing down one road, saying, "That's a good way," and then pointing down the other road, saying that road works just as well. Finally, he crosses his arms across his chest and points in both directions at once. Clearly, on one level, he can't make up his mind. On another level, the Scarecrow exhibits the gift of second sight and the ability to exist cheerfully in the midst of opposition.

The fork in the road is traditionally a big moment in any mythic journey because it indicates the need to see both, if not all, paths available to a life and a society. In the Hero's Journey, this critical choice point represents the separation of the hero's known world and self. It is the point in which the hero transitions between worlds and selves to see the potential for a new world and a new self. The fork in the road can be frightening—for the hero doesn't know what lies ahead—but by choosing which way on the path she will go, Dorothy also enters the stage that shows an open willingness to undergo major life change and personal transformation.

Development of the other sides of our selves in ways that allow us to be aware of them and to hold them within us simultaneously helps us navigate through a society as complex as our own in these modern times. Think of a path not taken in your life. If you had taken that "other" path, where would you be now? What would you be doing? More important, who would you be? In the Road of Trials, all roads are the right ones, even the frustrating ones, because they lead to awareness and growth of the self. If you made what you now consider to be a "wrong" turn, think of the ways that you really could have messed up on the "right" one. All roads fork. And down the path they fork again and again. Chances are your soul will lead you to the same place ultimately, regardless of which path you take. Just think about that: the fork in the road, the road not taken. What did you choose?

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