Adventure Quote by Joseph Campbell
““The moral, I suppose, would be that the first requirements for a heroic career are the knightly virtues of loyalty, temperance, and courage. The loyalty in this case is of two degrees or commitments: first, to the chosen adventure, but then, also, to the ideals of the order of knighthood. Now, this second commitment seems to put Gawain's way in opposition to the way of the Buddha, who when ordered by the Lord of Duty to perform the social duties proper to his caste, simply ignored the command, and that night achieved illumination as well as release from rebirth. Gawain is a European and, like Odysseus, who remained true to the earth and returned from the Island of the Sun to his marriage with Penelope, he has accepted, as the commitment of his life, not release from but loyalty to the values of life in this world. And yet, as we have just seen, whether following the middle way of the Buddha or the middle way of Gawain, the passage to fulfillment lies between the perils of desire and fear.””
About This Quote
Source Lecture: Mythology and Heroic Archetypes, 1995
Heroic life demands loyalty, temperance, courage; balancing personal duty with universal values mirrors Buddhist middle way.
In simple terms: Heroic virtues balance personal and universal duties.
Cultivate loyalty, temperance, courage.
Themes
Mood
Type
When to use this quote
- leadership training
- spiritual retreats
- literary analysis
Key Concepts
Questions to Reflect On
- What does loyalty mean to you?
- How to balance personal desire with duty?
Overemphasis on loyalty can suppress individual growth.