The Belly of the Whale
In Joseph Campbell's "The Hero with a Thousand Faces," the "Belly of the Whale" represents the stage of the hero's journey where the hero is in their deepest challenge, facing a personal or existential crisis.
This phase is about the hero's symbolic death and rebirth; it's a period of darkness, disorientation, and transformation that is crucial for growth and eventual triumph. Campbell sees this as a necessary descent into the unknown, where the hero must let go of their former self and prepare for a significant transformation. Are you in the Whale now?
This metaphor mirrors the profound internal journeys many of us undertake, where chaos and confusion eventually lead to greater self-awareness and individuation.
Despite the death of leaves in autumn with rebirth in the spring, despite the entombed chrysalis as the necessary step toward becoming a butterfly, despite the nightly "little death of sleep" to make way for renewed energy the following morning, the death involved with the belly of the whale is surprising and disorienting. The life we chose and the path we took somehow leads us to a peril we cannot overcome, and we are swallowed whole.
I had attained some of my dreams: a happy marriage, four energetic children, a stable career, house etc. But my journal from that dark time contains entries like,
I'm sapped of energy,
I'm seeing only in black and white, no longer in color,
I can't seem to rise above a dull despondency.
I doubted I was enough to get out of this dark hole. The darkness lasted months - then years. Now, decades later, I can reflect back and realize there were parts of me that had to die in order to make room for a more authentic and real self.
Without conscious knowledge on my part, I had attachments, identities, and loyalties that were no longer serving my authentic self. And without that authenticity, serving others was becoming a chore with some resentment sauce poured over it.
Are you in the dark night of the soul? In the belly of the whale?
When will this end?
How will I get out?
Take heart. Others have been where you are now. They couldn’t muscle their way out either. That’s the point of the metaphor. It’s a freakin’ WHALE that ate you! Just hope like they did that when the time is right, it will spit you right out onto dry land.
Yes. I not only survived - I was transformed. And I am grateful for the transformation. It won't hurt to find someone like me to talk to. Tell them where you’re at. Maybe you feel too ashamed. Too weak. No time. Well, they probably felt the same when they were in your place. You are not alone.
