SOURCE: Campbell, Joseph, and Michael Toms. “Myth as Metaphor.” In An Open Life, edited by John M. Maher and Dennie Briggs, pp. 21-53. New York: Harper & Row, 1989.

In the following interview, Campbell discusses various elements of mythology, the role of the shaman and the court jester, and Aztec and Mayan societies.

[Toms]: We tend to use the word “myth” to mean something that is untrue or an erroneously held belief. Why is that?

[Campbell]: I can understand why that idea arose. Myth is metaphor. The imagery of mythology is symbolic of spiritual powers within us: when these are interpreted as referring to historical or natural events which science in turn shows could not have occurred, then you throw the whole thing out. You see, myths do not come from a concept system; they come from a life system; they come out of a deeper center. We must not...