I have been a fan of Sam Keen since I read his book "Fire in the Belly" a few years back. I have not read any of Keen's other books until this book captured my interest in the bookstore.

Keen makes the argument that love is often misunderstood by those who claim to be in the know. Keen argues that love is not the same in all situations. Their are different types of love in different types of situations. Keen uses stories from his own life and the lives of others to demonstrate his thesis. The is the love one feels for their mate, their children, their friend, and their supreme being.

Keen's explanation of marriage is what stocks out most about this book. Keen dispells the myth of soul mates. A couple does not perefectly melt into each other but is able conform to each other and understand each other's needs. We all probably don't have perfect mates, but a number of mates could complement us well.

Many readers will be disappointed to find that this book is not really related to sex. Although sex is part of love, love is what makes life worth living. Sex without love lacks substance.

I liked Sam Keen's "A Passionate Life" very much, considering it to be the best summary by one author on what we might hope for if we choose to live life more fully. This book, 10 years later, is also very rich. Sam has a wonderful way of opening himself up and sharing both his loves and his losses with the reader. This man has clearly done his work and he admits he is still learning.

I normally won't read any book that gives me a numbered list of things I'm supposed to remember or incorporate into my life. Sam has a list of 16 qualities of love (if I recall correctly) and I stayed with him through them all. The simplicity of his approach and power of his writing make it work, e.g. the first quality of love Sam describes is Attention. And guess what? I realize on reflection how little attention I give to others in my life, and how little I get back. That is a good starting place for improving my capacity as a loving person and it is easy to remember. So typical of Sam's clarity and authenticity.

I agree with the earlier review that this book should be read in bits. It took me several months (and it is a small book). The richness and the depth of this book required that I frequently stop and reflect. Highly recommended.

If you're looking for a kind book to refresh your spirits, then this is it. The tone of the book is warmth, patience, and gentle guidance. The first part of the book covers the art of being a great lover. Part II, which I found most useful, identifies the elements of love. These are best explored one chapter at a time, with plenty of time to reflect on his writings.

I have read a few of Sam Keens books up to now and I am always amazed that he can write about philosophy, psychology or mythology with such compassion. "Your Mythic Journey", on the other hand, is not so much a book, rather a guided tour. Originally published in 1973 under a different title, "Telling Your Story: A Guide to Who You Are and Who You Can Be," was changed later when mythology became the buzzword for intellectuals. Sam Keen has worked closely with mythologist Joseph Campbell in his later years in which modern psychology was married with mythology.

Keen realized the power of storytelling, not just in a mythological approach, but also in telling the stories of our own lives how we are all living the lives of the great heroes. "Your Mythic Journey" helps you to discover the story in your own life and understand it mythologically as well as practically. The book is not one to be read, but to be written. This is done through a series of writing and drawing exercises facilitated through a series of deep probing questions. These questions are designed to challenge yourself, your beliefs, your values and your identity where you plunge the depths of your unconscious and swim the currents of time past, present and future. When you finally come to the shores of waking reality, you soon have a new understanding of yourself and the world you live in.

There are a number of ways to utilize this book. The first is you can do it by yourself, and go through and answer the questions. The second is to do it with a group of friends, family or your lover. The latter approach can also be done on a silent level, where one reads the questions for all to answer, or you can read each other your answers, which I found adds a whole new dimension to the process. It can become very emotional for some, shameful for others, enlightening to most, and discouraging to few. Regardless of your response, no doubt it will be revealing. The trick is to be honest with yourself and not hide behind that social mask thinking people will look down on your for having "other" thoughts. When you do this in a group session, you realize your "other" thoughts are not so different.

The aim of "Your Mythic Journey" is to be revealing about yourself, but also to know and tell the story of your life. What Mr. Keen has always expressed in his lectures and readings is that people tend to get stuck on various stories and end up repeating them over and over like a broken record. He remarks this with the example of recovering alcoholics who continue to tell their story of being addicted and how they went to AA meetings for recovery. They go on telling the story to everyone as if they are always at a meeting. This book challenges those that are repeating stories to begin to tell new stories of their lives and experiences. We all have them it's just a matter of beginning to share them with others.

This is a brilliant book for those who believe in journalling as a therapeutic path. The authors adress life's main conflicts, and structure the basic questions to be answered by the reader in terms of Joseph Campbell's work. This book combines intellectual rigor with heartfelt warmth, in a combination so rarely seen in similar books. I love this subject and own a lot of material on it, but I find that many other volumes either fall in the sirupy, newagey category or are dry and academic. This a slim book, but it is worth every cent if you actually work with it.

I wrote an earlier review on Amazon.com about Your Mythic Journey but forgot to add my email address in case anybody wants to find out about the CD-ROM "Virtual Seminar" version of this book. I can be reached at dpmars@ix.netcom.com.

I was delighted to read, in the magazine review of the book, an opinion that 'Hymns' was a theology for the New Age. My reaction was very similar, a sudden thought crossed my mind that this was a bible for the 21st century. There have been, admittedly, a number of such bibles produced towards the end of the last century, not the least of them being the Seth books, but the fascinating aspect is that they all follow the same spiritual path and they all contain some form of Myth emphasis that dwells upom Man's pathway through life and his own personal responsibilities in following that path. It is no coincidence that Keen's message comes at the same time as Harry Potter, the Lord of the Rings, and other modern dramas bearing a powerful Myth content. The thirst of a confused Mankind for new forms of digestible myth, carrying the same ancient wisdoms but with refreshed archetypes and modern symbols, is evident. It is a thirst that has been rejected by the churches to their cost. Keen's book encapsulates the spirituality of the new century, the desperate need for balance between every aspect of Man's being and the substitution of knowledge, spiritual knowledge that is, in the place of emotion and unquestioning belief.

keen's blend of psychology and spirituality is very appealing to me.exploring the truths and mysteries of the seen and unseen where organized religion dare not go.a no nonsense book on spirituality in everdaylife.if you are one that seeks yearns and desires but are not happy with any of the already laid paths....this is a great starting point to set the mind spirit and imagination on fire!

Psycholigst and philosopher Sam Keen explores the inner depths and growth of the human consciousness and observes how we grow to love, grow to hate, or grow to become passionate about life. The book is set up where each chapter is a stage in a persons life. Where they get stuck or caught, how to grow, and the problems that arise out of each stage. Keen not only lets you explore your life, but gives his own as a testiment the problems anyone can have. From death, to seperation to rebirth. Told from a mythological point of view thanks to his good friend Joseph Campbell, Keen defines myth as "the system of basic metaphors, images, and stories that in-forms the perceptions, memories, and aspirations of a people; provides the rationale for its institutions, rituals, and power structures; and gives a map of the purpose and stages of life." This defintion is the epitomy of the entire book which also follows its own rules. What I found most influential about this book is it allowed me to examine my own life, the loves I have gaines and lost, where I have gone on my own personal journey, and who I took with me, and who I want to take with me. There are many moments which I was dumbfounded by a stroke of inspiration and enlightenment. Other times I was upset and depressed by the hard truths and realities of our world. But by the end of the book, whether I was happy or mad, I knew that my thinking had changed and allowed me to be more sensitive to others as well as myself. As a human being, there is the obligation that we must pay to enter into society and be with other fellow human beings. To co-operate with eachother, to inspire, guide, help, and trust others, companion or stranger. The passionate life is not one full of lust and sex - no, that is far from the truth. It is one who lives every moment full of breath. One who sees the mundane as divine. To experience the sensorium of our bodies. Sam Keen has done a remarkable job hitting the nail on the head seemingly every time. This book, written back in 1982 and revised in 1993 seems more relevant today than it did at the time he wrote it.

I am a glutton for the inward searching book. This one, written in the 80's, but which I only found last year, really covers all the ground in the inward, and outward, journey. Sam is something else. Highly recommended.

It took me a while, as I read this book to think of why I kept getting this warm feeling about my life as I turned the pages. . .

You have to read it! You don't have to DO it, but you have to READ IT!

I learned about myself at a whole, new level. I found out about things within myself that I really knew nothing about.

The examples of others and their experiences were often so close to some of my own feelings in similar situations, that I kept getting the feeling that the book was written just for me, right now!

Shawn Honnick

This book will change your life! What Ernest Becker has accomplished is a synthesis of the kernels of truth that lie in all psychological theories. He speaks to the reader and demonstrates, that the single overwhelming motivator of the human being is his fear of death and his subsequent denialof his impending morality. Deny your mortality, but buy this book!

All lovers of existentialism will enjoy Becker's treatment of life and death. Becker won the Pulitzer Prize for this work when it was first published in 1974. Ironically and tragically, Becker himself died of cancer that very same year. He was 50 years old. I have been unsuccessful in my efforts to find out whether or not Becker knew of his sickness when he wrote the work. He certainly writes as one who understands the darkness of human life. Becker's thesis is that human personality and behavior has its deepest roots in our denying our death (thus the title). By this he means not only our death itself, but all of the horrors associated with our mortality as human beings. Becker makes frequent reference to Otto Rank, and reiterates Rank's point that all human cultural creation is inevitably religious in nature. There is also a wonderful treatment of Freud which will be especially refreshing to all those nauseauted by modern attempts to dress up Freud's theories and make them appear more optomistic than they are, as well as a discussion of Freud's breaks with Jung and others. There is even a chapter on Kierkegaard. Becker also attempts to show that neurosis is at least in part a result of not being able to erect the 'denial of death' defense mechanisms so many do, and that those who traverse the depths of human existence cannot but go mad to some degree. He says at one point, "No wonder the road of the artist so often detous through the madhouse." Finally, Becker bashes modern psychology, which makes this book an absolute must for any deep thinker who is considering entering this field. The Denial of Death is brutally honest, scholastic, and beautiful. Best of all, Becker doesn't make the all too common mistake of attempting to provide a solution (something all lovers of Camus will appreciate). The last 10 pages alone make this book worth reading. Read it thoughtfully and you will never be quite the same

I write only because I am concerned that some of the other reviews are going to scare away those with strong religious beliefs or at least a genuine interest in life after death. No one could be more deeply steeped in the study of paranormal phenomena than myself, yet this book ranks among the most profound and wise I have ever read. Even if you have little background in psychology or philosophy, you will recognize the deep truth of what Becker has to say. If you haven't read this book, you don't understand how the world works -- it is that important.

At age 62, Sam Keen learned to fly. In 1993, he started his training
on the flying trapeze at the San Francisco School of Circus Arts. The
fact that he was the oldest student at the school did not deter Keen
from pursuing his "strange passion" (p. 15). "Over the
years," he observes," I have discovered that it is hazardous
to ignore passing fantasies and emerging passions. To begin with, in
the degree that I cease to pursue my deepest passions, I will
gradually be controlled by my deepest fears. When passion no longer
waters and nurtures the psyche, fears spring up like weeds on the
depleted soil of abandoned fields. I suspect the major cause of
depression and despair and the appetite for violence in modern life is
the result of the masses of people who are enslaved by an economic
order that rewards them for laboring at jobs that do not engage their
passion for creativity and meaning" (pp. 16-17).

Part memoir,
part metaphor, Keen's book is filled with daring leaps, midair turns,
somersaults, and catches. For Keen, the trapeze is a good teacher.
From his six-year love affair with the trapeze, he derives insights
into fear, trust, letting go, and what it means to live life
passionately. If we learn to live life as a "ten-ring
circus," he writes, in "a world ruled by enchantment--where
magic existed before morality, wonder before worship, pleasure before
piety, and amazement before practicality" (p. 24), then we will
be "transformed, changed back into children whose horizons are
open" (p. 25). "The Great Path is a spiral journey,"
Keen notes. "Every day we begin again, knowing that danger and
death may be lurking, that we will be fearful and will need to
cultivate courage. We will need to keep our balance and discern when
it is time to wait and when to act. We will take leaps of faith,
fall, and rise again. If we are diligent in our practice, there will
be unexpected moments of grace and joy and a gradual growth of mastery
in fashioning our lives into something of beauty"
(p. 241).

Keen's LEARNING TO FLY is inspirational and insightful.
Although reading it did not inspire me to attempt a triple somersault,
it did encourage me to find a flying trapeze in my own life, and then
to practice it, knowing that "practice is perfect"
(p. 237).

G. Merritt

Everyone who reads Keen knows he writes very well and from the heart. But in this book his very soul flies through the air with his words. When Sam reviewed my book, PRIMAL AWARENESS, he said it was an adventurous search for the lost ark. LEARNING TO FLY is about finding the lost ark.

I read a passage from the book at my daughter's wedding and then I wished them wings and flight. I found this book to be absolutely fascinating and, at age 57 myself, found inspiration to try new ideas. Learning to Fly is never boring. I found the chapter-beginning drawings helpful as I tried to follow Sam Keen in flight, literally as well as figuratively. A real winner!

I found the music and spoken words on the first CD slow and depressing, but it does have a lot of different spiritual views.

Maybe listening to the 2nd CD, music only, would be better.

The book has the spoken words in text form, and actually read better than they sounded.

I do not have words strong enough to express my admiration and appreciation of this CD. The music is gorgeous and the words are very spiritual. The combination is very moving and full of love. This CD has the power to transform. It would be a bargain at 4 times the price, and I do not say this lightly.

If there were only one CD in the whole world, I would want it to be this one. It is so moving; so full of LIFE and LOVE and WISDOM.

This book is too ambitious and falls flat. Had the author been content to describe how war propaganda is used to target certain emotions, this book would be an essential addition to the libraries of those who are interested in thought control by the state. However, the author overreached himself and tried to make explain all hostitilities in the world. He falls into the trap of using theory that is questionable at best to overanalyze certain forms of propaganda and extrapolates that to explain all forms of enmity. However, the author overlooks the fact that often pre-hostilities, most common people really don't have enmity towards other lands. (Is not a common lament by academics that Americans don't know of other countries unless they're attacked by them?) Thus the author's main contention falls apart.

The book also posseses many other problems such as: 1)the author thinking that war can be eliminated. Such sentiment, while admirable, is naive and dangerous. Certain problems will exist as long as humanity exists. War is one of them as is crime. There will be evil people who will resort to war like Hitler, Pol Pot, etc. The author fails to take this into account just as a hypothetical person who believes crime can be eliminated fails to take into account Jeffrey Dahmer, Albert Fish, and John Wayne Gacy. 2) the author implies there is no difference between the Nazi Reich's army and the US army in Vietnam. Furthermore, the author calls the US's war in Vietnam "immoral". Such belief is inexcusable. The US was attempting to save South Vietnam from communist takeover and, after the US pulled out, millions of lives were lost to the communists. The author briefly mentions the deaths in Cambodia but apparently misses the connection between the US's "immoral" war and the keeping of those millions alive. Also inexcusable is the author not mentioning the thousands who died taking to rickety boats fleeing from North Vietnam and those who died in "reeducation camps". 3) the author denouncing the efforts against the USSR and Sandanista Nicaragua. In both cases, the US enmity that the author decries helped end both nations and bring about freedom at least more than existed before. Eastern Europe is free as is Nicaragua which repeatedly turned away commmunist candidates. 4) the author relies on high-sounding rhetoric that doesn't stand the test of reality such as war rarely solves conflict. Tell that to the city fathers of Carthage or Hiroshima.

This book's only bright spot is its reproducing of war propaganda, much of which has gone unseen since the time it was first used.

I read this book several years ago, and a lot of it still stays with me. Reading this book had a pretty profound and, I believe, a very positive effect on me. There are not many books I would recomend higher.

Why do Creationists quote Evolutionists as saying, "Anything goes"? Why does any teacher who advocates a child-centered approach get branded with the "Montessori" label? Why is any adult who enjoys children considered a potential threat? "Faces of the Enemy" explains not only what you see in the newspaper, but what you see all around you.

The first question is of course - how does this compare with Iron John? It is not so original or deep, it is more directly helpful to men, it does at least mention women and relationships, and it shares the fault of ignoring the power problems of patriarchy and the dominance culture.

It is divided into five sections: the first is on the making of a man, the emergence from the shadow of the mother; the second is on the rites of manhood, in which he discusses initiation, the warrior, work and sex; the third is on the measure of a man, where he speaks of images and exemplars; the fourth is called a primer for now and future heroes, where he talks about quests and homecomings; and the fifth is about men and women, love, marriage and intimacy - this section also includes a long series of self-help exercises.

Sam Keen is a regular contributor to the magazine Psychology Today, has run many workshops for men and women, and has put on television series, so this is an easy-to-read book, which communicates well. It is quite freewheeling and careless at times, and there are some errors of fact in it: Unlike Iron John, it is not the product of deep study, discussion and meditation on mythic themes. It makes a distinction between prophetic feminism and ideological feminism, lauding the former and putting down the latter, which not only includes the man-haters but also the goddess-worshippers. He does at least mention patriarchy, and seems to see that it is a problem.

But when it comes to the crucial questions of how men and women are going to change society and themselves, he skates all round the question of power as if it did not exist. He does not appear to have heard of Connell, or any of the sociologists in men's studies, who make it so clear that there is a problem of unequal social power, of unequal access to resources, of unequal participation in the great power issues of our time. And so in his discussion of men and women and their relationships it is all conducted at the level of adjustment and negotiation and fair fighting as if the ground were level and the fighting could be fair. He wants women to take responsibility for their part in the problem, as if it were merely a psychological problem which could be solved at that level. For example, in an apparently fair and balanced account of feminist demands, we get this: "A feminist vision demands sexual, artistic, economic, and political equality (Military?) It further demands that men assume an equal share in the private sphere - the creation of hearth and the rearing of children." (p196)

The insertion of that one word - military - shows that he is entertaining that favourite gibe of misogynist men, that women want everything except the hard part of being a man - going to war, fighting and perhaps being killed for one's country. But the facts are, if you compare the figures, that forty times as many women die in childbirth as men die in wars. The gibe about not wanting to go to war is just that - a gibe.

So in spite of all its apparent balance and reasonableness and genuinely interesting matter about men, and despite the very nice personal touches which appear throughout the book, this one also ultimately lets us down, if we want to understand what men are and what they have to do. We still have to go to the Connells, the Segals, the Kimmels, the Brods, the Hearns, and all those less glamorous people if we want to know what is really going on and what really needs to change.

Few books allow readers the opportunity to unmask our cultural and personal belief systems about men. Sam Keen moves beyond simple explanations of what it is to be a "Man" and challenges us to re-examine the rituals of manliness and manhood (from ceremonial circumcision to sophomoric fraternity initiations); the societal expectations placed on men (i.e. War and the bloodguilt that follows); and the ever changing and expanding roles that men must adopt (as a friend, father and help-mate).

It is must read for men as well as women who wish to achieve a more thoughtful understanding of men beyond the simplistic and often times inane drivel (mis-)represented by film and television.

Sam Keens Fire in the Belly is a book every man and women should read. I love to read books written by people that are so wise. The contents have helped greatly to put the pieces of lifes puzzletogeather. I hope this message goes out to Sam. Thanks for a great book, I loved it. Jim Morris Trial B.C.