The Hat&Cauldron: “A journey of a thousand miles begins with the ﬁrst step,

Sunday, July 19, 2015

“A journey of a thousand miles begins with the ﬁrst step,

Lao Tzu, traditionally the author of the Tao Te Ching (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

“A journey of a thousand miles begins with the ﬁrst step,”
wrote the Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu, as sage advice to
fellow travelers on the Taoist path. The renowned mythologist Joseph Campbell often referred to the ﬁrst stage of
“the Hero’s Journey” as “the call to adventure,” a step that
all of us must take, many times in the course of our lives.
The cautious first step into the unknown, however, is
typically accompanied by fear—so much so, that it can
immobilize us, make us want to refuse the call, rather than
answer it. This part highlights our departure from the
known into the unknown, from the familiar to the unbalanced brave new world we now ﬁnd ourselves in, and the
common dangers of getting stuck or lost on the way.