I’ve recently been thinking about the connection between Joseph Campbell’s concept of the Hero’s Journey and the path of Karma Yoga as described in the Bhagavad Gita.
Both are about stepping into the unknown, crossing thresholds, and offering oneself to a greater purpose without attachment to the outcome.
Both frameworks invite us to become participants in the unfolding of life, to act not for the promise of victory, but because the action itself is a form of devotion.
This is a form of living that asks us to give ourselves fully, even when the future is uncertain, even when the outcome is unknowable.
The Call
Every meaningful journey begins with a call.
It is the spark that awakens a sense of purpose: the moment we decide to step beyond mere survival into a deeper form of engagement.
It is the pull toward a world where all beings experience dignity, peace, and joy.
A desire not just for less suffering, but for more connection, more justice, more life.
This call is a deep knowing that something else is possible, even if we cannot yet see it clearly.
The call is the fire that ignites both the heroic journey and the path of Karma Yoga.
The Threshold
In Campbell’s work, crossing the threshold is a moment of surrender.
It is the decision to leave behind the known and step into the unknown.
In the context of Karma Yoga, this is the point at which one lets go of the ego’s need for control and outcome, embracing action for its own sake.
It is a fierce commitment to engage with the unknown, to trust that meaningful work need not have a guaranteed outcome.
This is the kind of surrender that makes space for transformation.
This space is better when more people speak up. You’re welcome to join the conversation, however big or small your thoughts feel.
The Trial
Every path of meaning involves trials.
These are not just external challenges, but opportunities to deepen our commitment, to refine our intentions, and to let go of our clinging to specific outcomes.
They strip away our illusions, revealing what truly matters.
Transformation often begins in darkness, in the messy, unfinished spaces where old forms break down and new ones begin to emerge.
Like the seed that must first crack open in the dark before it can reach for the light, this is the hard, unseen work that builds the capacity for real change.
It is the fire that purifies, the storm that clears the air.
In Karma Yoga, this is the skill in action: learning to act without clinging, to purify the mind and heart through dedicated service.
The hero’s path demands not just effort, but presence.
A willingness to stay engaged even when the outcome is unclear.
The Dark Night
Every hero faces a dark night of the soul, a period of profound doubt and isolation.
In Karma Yoga, this is the moment of equanimity—the call to remain steady, regardless of the external chaos.
It is the fierce courage to remain engaged, even when the stakes are high and the outcome uncertain.
It is a reminder that transformation is rarely clean or linear.
It is often messy, unsettling, and deeply challenging.
But this is where the work happens: in the moments when we are asked to hold our ground, to stay present, to keep moving even when the horizon disappears.
Elixir and Seva
Ultimately, every path leads back to the world, to the people and places we are called to serve.
It is not enough to find meaning or strength for ourselves alone.
The work must be shared, the insights returned to the community.
In Karma Yoga, this is Seva, or selfless service: the offering of one’s life as a gift to the world.
It is the choice to plant seeds for futures we may never see, to act not for applause, but because it is an expression of love.
In the Hero’s Journey, the return is about sharing what one has learned, bringing the “elixir” back to the community.
The Karma Yoga Hero
The journey itself becomes the practice, the path itself the goal.
To live this way is to match your heartbeat to the rhythm of the universe, to trust that the act itself is enough.
It is to act without attachment to the results, to offer yourself fully without knowing what will come of it.
This is where the hero and the yogi meet—in the space between effort and surrender, between action and letting go.
In the space where transformation is not a task to be completed, but a way of being.
This is a space for reflection, not just information. If something struck you, or you’re holding something you want to share, my inbox is open. Hit 'reply' or send me a message below.
The Call
by Oriah Mountain Dreamer
I have heard it all my life,
A voice calling a name I recognized as my own.
Sometimes it comes as a soft-bellied whisper. Sometimes it holds an edge of urgency.
But always it says: Wake up my love. You are walking asleep. There's no safety in that!
Remember what you are and let this knowing take you home to the Beloved with every breath.
Hold tenderly who you are and let a deeper knowing color the shape of your humanness.
There is no where to go. What you are looking for is right here.
Open the fist clenched in wanting and see what you already hold in your hand.
There is no waiting for something to happen,
no point in the future to get to.
All you have ever longed for is here in this moment, right now.
You are wearing yourself out with all this searching. Come home and rest.
How much longer can you live like this?
Your hungry spirit is gaunt, your heart stumbles. All this trying. Give it up!
Let yourself be one of the God-mad, faithful only to the Beauty you are.
Let the Lover pull you to your feet and hold you close, dancing even when fear urges you to sit this one out.
Remember- there is one word you are here to say with your whole being.
When it finds you, give your life to it. Don't be tight-lipped and stingy.
Spend yourself completely on the saying.
Be one word in this great love poem we are writing together.
As always, Bri, in true awe of the important concepts you hone in on so eloquently in your writing. It always seems to be just what I need to "live the path". Thank you!!!! I especially loved this line from the poem you included, I'm saving it to keep in the forefront: "There is no where to go. What you are looking for is right here." I truly believe that this is everything.❤❤❤
Try through the trials.
Pay to play, participate.
Will we heed the call?
...
Work for the we-world.
With regard, regardless, rest.
Pure peace, possible.