LETTER
Greetings Jedi Poets,
I just got finished watching Joseph Campbell’s special on PBS called, “Journey of a Thousand Faces”. Here is a clip with him and Bill Moyers. George Lucas based Star Wars off of Campbell’s mythological and religious teachings about the Hero’s Journey, and I thought I should share it with you so you all see how it is relative to what we’re doing here at Haiku Photos.
When I was in high school, our theology teacher had us watch “Journey of a Thousand Faces”. The six episode series changed my life. Now that I’m homeschool my fifteen year old daughter, I wanted to share it with her. That’s when I was surprised to learn that Star Wars was based off of Joseph Campbell’s teachings because I didn’t remember that (not consciously anyways). He interprets many different types of myths, folklore, and stories in literature that deals with archetypal subject matter. So, if you’re not into Star Wars, you can still getting something out of the PBS special.
If you have Netflix, you can watch the series there. A new documentary about the series can also be found here on Youtube. It includes modern philosophers such as Deepak Chopra, Robin Sharma, and a host of professional athletes and other amazing people who’ve applied Campbell’s teachings to their lives and report how it changed their lives for the better.
Robin Sharma says to put yourself in an uncomfortable situation at least once every seven days because it’s a way to elevate your consciousness. Psychoanalysis through haiku photos is an effective way to elevate your consciousness and it also can trigger some uncomfortable feelings but, I hope you all find that it centers you. I hope it offers you peace in your lives so you act with a calm detachment and achiever your own hero’s goals.
If you’re new to Haiku Photos, or find mindfulness imagery too woo-woo for you, here is a quick description of what it is to further demystify the process:
How Mindfulness Imagery Works
Take a picture of something that interests you and meditate on it. Let go of judgment and allow your mind to relax. Silence your thoughts and command them like chattering minions to be quiet.
Once you reach an empty state of contentment, capture images that come pop into your mind while in a dream-state. Count these images on your fingers to get your muscle memory to clarify your photographic memory.
Do not judge the images. Do not react to them either. They are dream images you’ll use in the haiku. Wait for five images before writing the poem. The first images that come to mind are the ones you need to remember. If you find yourself pushing the images aside like they don’t matter, it’s important to go back and catch them if they stick. The more we try to negate our dreams, the more telling it is that they have something meaningful to share with us.
If you find that your logical mind wants to interfere during the imagery stage, take a deep breath and begin again to catch five images on five fingers.
After you write the haiku using the images you attained during meditation, form it into a story that fits into the context of the photo. As you begin the narrative journey of your meditation, remember to act as the observer, not an artist or judge. The next process requires self-psychoanalysis which is where you’ll get to apply your logic and opinions.
The third and final step is the editing process, which is where the healing magic occurs and psychoanalysis whips it into shape. It can feel uncomfortable, like stretching the imagination and uncovering sore spots.
Ask hard questions like a scientist or detective solving a mystery. Enjoy making it sound good and organizing it neatly into a haiku pattern. Write images in five syllables for the first line, seven for the second line, and five syllables in the fourth line. It’s actually very easy.
You can also do this process in reverse. If you happen to have a eureka moment or find yourself in an open state of wonder, write a haiku using the same mindfulness imagery method and go out to capture the picture that you feel connects to the narrative or context.
You don’t need to use a photograph along with this meditation, but I like to capture these moments of awareness like a photo-journal.
On November 11th, we’ll be featuring a new special edition about War and the Military. If you’d like to cover this subject, leave a comment and ask to be the lead writer on it. Otherwise, I’ll cover it myself. Feel free to submit a short story or haiku about Veteran’s Day as well if you want.
As usual, we’ll be accepting topics on nature, relationships, work, art, sports, meditation, family, and anything else that captures your imagination.
The latest special edition was on “All Saints Day”. We’re encouraging you to write haikus about your favorite saint or deceased loved one.
Also, read how the evolution of Halloween in the United States progressed to murderous lawn decorations in “Every Day is Halloween”, which captures the killer clown archetype.
Until next time…Honor your Rest and may the Force be with You.
-Eunice

