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PODCAST

Living Myth

Mosaic presents Living Myth, a podcast with Michael Meade, renowned mythologist and storyteller. Meade presents mythic stories that offer uniquely insightful and wise ways of understanding the current dilemmas of the world we live in. Living Myth proposes that genuine solutions to the complex and intractable problems of our world require both transcendent imagination and cohering, transformative narratives.

society & culture philosophy

All Episodes

25:20

Ep. 502 - Mythic Imagination and Climate Change

Living Myth ·

2026/08/26

In this episode, Michael Meade explores how when the world seems to make no sense, myth can make the most sense. Stories of renewal of the Earth can help us see the world with different eyes and create new contexts for facing the threats of climate change and stopping ecological degradation. Myth has a redeeming function as stories become vessels of imagination and inspiration that can open new ways to see the world. Imagination has a way of lighting on truths that reason cannot find

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20:49

Ep. 501 - The Path of the Soul

Living Myth ·

2026/08/19

In this episode, Michael Meade talks about the second adventure in life and the challenges of following the path of the soul in the modern world. Touching on themes of gratitude, joy and the genius of the soul, and weaving together poetry and psychology, Meade suggests that we have little choice in the end; either we follow the dream that calls us to a greater life and become bigger and enter life more fully, or else we accept a diminished life and resign ourselves to a smaller way of being.

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27:20

Ep. 500 - Mythic by Nature

Living Myth ·

2026/08/12

"When the world seems to lose all sense and meaning, it is usually 'mythic sense' that is missing," says Michael Meade in talking about the vital language of myth. Without a sense of mythic imagination, the world can seem more random and be more overwhelming. Myth is not about the facts of the matter, but about what matters most to us. He suggests that myth is the inside story of the world we live in, and we are each and all mythic by nature. Hearing a story awakens the mythic story living

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20:10

Ep. 499 - Agents of Creation

Living Myth ·

2026/08/05

The world is so flooded with change, it becomes difficult to keep abreast of radical climate changes, shifts in technology, and all the scandals and revelations of politics. In this episode of Living Myth, Michael Meade suggests that being an "agent of change" may not be enough to affect life in meaningful ways. He proposes becoming "agents of creation" who can help tip the scales away from destruction and towards ongoing creation. Following a teaching story in which an old man reviews his life,

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26:37

Ep. 498 - The Troubled World Outside and the Knowing...

Living Myth ·

2026/07/29

The fragmentation and polarization that trouble the outside world is also felt deeply within us. Since the world will not settle soon, the unity and wholeness so sorely missing in the outer world must be found within us as well. As things fall apart the "knowing self" within moves closer to the surface, seeking to become more conscious to us. The greater the distance between the little-self and the deep self within us, the more anxiety and fear we will feel. For our lives to grow from within the

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27:28

Ep. 497 - Finding Unity in a Divided World

Living Myth ·

2026/07/22

As tensions and conflicts in the outer world continue to escalate, fears and anxieties intensify inside each of us. Increasing polarization leaves us deeply uncertain about the future as well as increasingly disoriented and further divided against each other. While the poles of a polarity appear to be irreconcilable opposites, they can also be seen as parts of a hidden unity waiting to be found. The true aim of oppositions is the revelation of a "hidden third" that not only relieves tension,

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25:33

Ep. 496 - A Feather from the Golden Self

Living Myth ·

2026/07/15

This episode begins with a fairy tale in which a wondrous tree grows in a palace garden at the center of a realm. The tree at the center produces golden fruit; but each night a golden apple mysteriously vanishes. The culprit turns out to be a golden bird that drops a shining feather before also disappearing. The rest of the tale involves searching for various elements that represent the golden self within us that is the natural inheritance of the human psyche. In the story, the connection to

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37:01

Ep. 495 - Creativity, the Muse and the Dark Times

Living Myth ·

2026/07/08

In this episode, Michael Meade talks about the various ways we can find and connect with our creative muse. He brings surprising insights into practical ways of being creative and the good news that everyone, artists and non-artists alike, has a muse. Creativity is a force larger than ourselves that wants to flow through us, be expressed by us and be given to the community around us. Meade shares myths and rituals that show how creativity is present and in abundance during the dark times of

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26:13

Ep. 494 - The Treasure Hard to Attain

Living Myth ·

2026/07/01

In this episode, Michael Meade tells an old story about a man whose dreams call for him to go on a long, challenging journey to find a hidden treasure of gold. The story suggests that the treasure we desire most hides where we would never choose to go on our own. Bringing a dream to life requires that we truly change and that can awaken our deepest fears and strongest resistance. Symbolically, gold represents all that is noble, valuable and unique in each soul. On the other hand, lead is an

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26:34

Ep. 493 - Following Pathless Paths

Living Myth ·

2026/06/24

This episode begins with the idea that each person has a unique story that seeks to unfold from within their soul. If a person is lucky or adventurous or devoted, they will typically find a path that aligns with their inside story. If they follow that path far enough, they will come to a place where there are no footsteps and the only way forward involves what is called the pathless path. Taking up the notion of a pathless path, Michael Meade follows the trail that leads to an array of dynamic

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13:13

Premium Episode 180 Excerpt - Stories of Healing and...

Living Myth ·

2026/06/23

On this excerpt from a Living Myth Premium episode, Michael Meade looks at the growing polarization, conflict and uncertainty in the world and considers how we are living within a "re-creation myth," a period resembling ancient creation stories in which darkness, division, and chaos precede renewal. Creation myths from many cultures describe the world emerging from darkness and separation, implying that periods of crisis can become opportunities for transformation. You can hear the full

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32:02

Ep. 492 - Tigers Medicine and the Soul

Living Myth ·

2026/06/17

"Regardless of the conditions of the outside world, we are each here to transform our own lives from the inside and become a full expression of our unique soul." So says Michael Meade when he talks about one of his favorite stories, The Tiger's Whisker. This episode of Living Myth includes a full telling of the famous tale of a woman who must face a living tiger in order to cure what ails her soul. What begins as a small village tale opens up to become the endless territory of the human heart that

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26:52

Ep. 491 - Two Stories that Change the World

Living Myth ·

2026/06/10

In this episode, Michael Meade considers how there are always two stories going on in life. The ongoing drama of what we call the world and the story of the individual soul trying to awaken to a life of meaning and purpose. The two stories are secretly related and become more intensely connected and dramatic during times of upheaval and radical change. When the way we have been taught to view life no longer explains the world in which we live, we are being called to awaken to a greater imagination

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27:26

Ep. 490 - Facing Fate, Finding Destiny

Living Myth ·

2026/06/03

In this episode, Michael Meade explores how each soul born bears a personal story that involves natural gifts intended to be given and an original agreement of the soul that includes an inherent sense of purpose in life. At the same time, each family has fateful issues and inherited plotlines that strongly affect the dependent and defenseless child. The good news is that at each critical time in our lives, we have opportunities to awaken to the original agreement of our soul. The more difficult

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29:00

Ep. 489 - Rituals to Transform and Renew

Living Myth ·

2026/05/27

This episode considers how until modern times, people have relied on ritual practices to heal the wounds of culture, draw upon the renewing energies of nature and rejuvenate the life of both individuals and the community. Ritual gives a place for constricting attitudes to loosen, for emotions to flow and for the reservoir of genuine hope to renew. Creative rituals can help release the burdens of our lives and can remove ego attitudes that block the flow of feelings and vital energy

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29:10

Ep. 488 - Finding Hope in Times of Despair

Living Myth ·

2026/05/20

People increasingly question whether there is any hope for the world at this time. In this episode of Living Myth, Meade suggests that it is the nature of hope to become lost, before being found at another level of life. In the myth of Pandora, hope only appears after all possible troubles have been unleashed upon the world. There is a deeper sense of hope that can arise when "all hope is lost." At critical times things must seem hopeless before the "second level of hope" can be found again

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27:39

Ep. 487 - Creativity and Resiliency in Times of Chaos

Living Myth ·

2026/05/13

This episode of explores how as the world becomes a more chaotic and conflicted place, turning to creative practices can help us find ways to settle and center and grow a greater sense of self and soul. Throughout the ages, meaningful practices have served as primary pathways for psychological and spiritual growth, as well as for finding moments of wholeness and inner unity. Traditional roads of practice typically appear as the inward path of meditation and deep reflection and the expressive

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26:32

Ep. 486 - Uncertainty, Vulnerability and Meaningful...

Living Myth ·

2026/05/06

To be alive at this time means to be present as many familiar patterns simply dissolve. One major crisis quickly replaces another, so that both collective and personal levels of uncertainty grow day by day. It turns out that uncertainty is a powerful energy that makes us feel deeply vulnerable as well as susceptible to more intense levels of anxiety. It is also true that what shatters familiar patterns can also awaken us to a greater sense of imagination and lead to more authentic ways of seeing

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24:26

Ep. 485 - Under the Spell of Power and Greed

Living Myth ·

2026/04/29

This episode begins with the ancient tale of the Titans, the mythic giants who wreaked havoc at the beginning of civilization and arise again when human cultures become power driven and chaotic. For the Titans, nothing is sacred except excess, immediate satisfaction of greed and being insatiable when it comes to power and dominance. Titans were also called the strainers, as their excess of hubris or self-importance caused them to strain to be seen as gods who had no limits and did not need to

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25:08

Episode 484 - Changing Life by Finding Spirit and...

Living Myth ·

2026/04/22

This episode of begins with the idea that the world we used to know is gone and we have not found a footing in the world that is trying to emerge. That leaves us in a state of uncertainty and in the midst of multiple levels of tragedy. In that sense, we are in a collective rite of passage that seeks to awaken the spirit of humanity and stir the creative depths of our souls. However, if we cannot sustain the vitality of our own being we become unable to change the conditions of community and

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