The Mythic Masculine #41 | The Journey of Soul Initiation - Bill Plotkin (Soulcraft)
20 snips
Jun 11, 2021 
Bill Plotkin, depth psychologist, wilderness guide, and founder of the Animas Valley Institute, explores soul initiation and ecological belonging. He describes the five phases of descent to soul, contrasts them with Joseph Campbell’s Hero’s Journey, and examines why many remain stuck in adolescence. The conversation turns to men, emotion, the wild indigenous facet, vocation, individuation, and humanity’s planetary initiation.
AI Snips
Chapters
Books
Transcript
Episode notes
The Butterfly That Named Plotkin’s Ecological Role
- During a 1980 solo fast, Bill Plotkin encountered a yellow butterfly that called him “cocoon weaver.”
- Terror and joy then revealed a possible ecological role, which he spent years learning to embody.
Soul Initiation Is More Than A Rite Of Passage
- A rite of passage supports movement between life stages, while soul initiation unfolds over several years and reveals a person’s cultural contribution.
- Marriage ceremonies change social status; true rites mainly help individuals and communities adjust.
Childhood Requires Belonging To The Wild World
- Plotkin’s eight life stages use cardinal directions, seasons, and times of day as a nature-based developmental template.
- Childhood must include learning enchantment and kinship with the more-than-human world, or people carry a lasting sense of not belonging.
