Category Archives: Mythology

Taking Names

Posted on November 5, 2014 by Michael J. Melville

The indigenous practice of getting and being given new names after a transformation of character is ancient. The birth name no longer seems appropriate when the child’s growth and development moves in a different direction. We like to honor those … Continue reading →

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Naked we came into this world and naked we depart

Posted on January 10, 2014 by Michael J. Melville

One of the main problems of the post World War II era is the emergence of narcissists.  Babies didn’t get the nurturing care they needed during the war.  They didn’t get the reflection from their caregiver(s) which is required during … Continue reading →

Posted in Child/Parent Relationship, Family patterns, homosexuality, Individuation, Movie Reviews, Mythology, Psychology | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

The Bed Dream

Posted on September 29, 2013 by Michael J. Melville

The Man’s Dream A young couple, whom I know, are laying on a bed. She’s wearing a short white satin dress, he’s wearing white silk, shorts or pajamas. There’s also a younger man, perhaps in his teens, laying on the … Continue reading →

Posted in Balancing male/female energy, Child/Parent Relationship, Christianity, Dream Interpretation, Individuation, Mythology, Psychology, Trickster energy | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Chemically Dependent Memory and Emotional Growth

Posted on August 19, 2013 by Michael J. Melville

The first time I was told “we stop growing emotionally when we start using substances” was in 1997.  My marriage of 30 years was dissolving and I knew the patterns I learned in childhood were the root of it all.  … Continue reading →

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Confronting the Dark Lord

Posted on July 19, 2013 by Michael J. Melville

We opened our private sharing of ayahuasca in the Santo Daime style with prayers.  I called down the Holy Spirit, prayed for illumination, for clarity, that the sacred medicine would show me whatever I needed to see so that I … Continue reading →

Posted in Ayahuasca, Child/Parent Relationship, I Ching, Individuation, Mythology, Philosophy, Psychology, Santo Daime, Trickster energy | Tagged , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Waking up in bed with her Dad?

Posted on May 7, 2013 by Michael J. Melville

We all have noticed how psychic patterns show up in the relationships of people.  A young woman or man notices that their lover has a strangely familiar feel about him.  After a while when the love affair hasn’t worked out, … Continue reading →

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Hermes Again

Posted on October 27, 2012 by Michael J. Melville

Dreams give us symbolic images of our present spiritual situation.  Taking dreams literally is dangerous, especially if we act out the dream situation or act on the dream’s advice as if it came as a Divine directive.  We need to … Continue reading →

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The Cherokee Trickster and his Shadow, the Rabbit and the Tar Baby

Posted on November 12, 2010 by Michael J. Melville

I was walking through the redwood forest with my friend, a young father and Gestalt therapist.  He was looking for teaching stories, ones an eight or nine year-old would enjoy. He had grown up on the Atlantic Coast of the … Continue reading →

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