Occidental Mythology (The Masks of God, Volume 3)

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Occidental Mythology (The Masks of God, Volume 3)

Condition: (LN)

By Joseph Campbell (Author)

The third volume in Campbell’s monumental four-volume series, The Masks of God, traces the mythological underpinnings of Western religions: the shift from female-centered to male-dominated mythologies

Once upon a time in the West, the focal figure of all mythology and worship was the bountiful goddess Earth. She reigned supreme as the mother and nourisher of life and as the receiver of the dead for rebirth. As Joseph Campbell here elucidates, she was more than a symbol of fertility; she was “a metaphysical symbol: the arch personification of the power of Space, Time, and Matter, within whose bound all beings arise and die.”

How, when, and why did this change? Campbell shows how “the mythologies of the goddess mother were radically transformed, reinterpreted, and in large measure even suppressed by those suddenly intrusive patriarchal warrior tribesmen whose traditions have come down to us chiefly in the Old and New Testaments and in the myths of Greece.”

He goes on to describe the mythological underpinnings of Western religions — Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Zoroastrianism — and their historical influence on one another. No one who cares about history, mythology, religion, or past or current events in Western civilization can do without this venerable yet perennially fresh analysis.

Occidental Mythology (The Masks of God, Volume 3)

Condition: (LN)

By Joseph Campbell (Author)

The third volume in Campbell’s monumental four-volume series, The Masks of God, traces the mythological underpinnings of Western religions: the shift from female-centered to male-dominated mythologies

Once upon a time in the West, the focal figure of all mythology and worship was the bountiful goddess Earth. She reigned supreme as the mother and nourisher of life and as the receiver of the dead for rebirth. As Joseph Campbell here elucidates, she was more than a symbol of fertility; she was “a metaphysical symbol: the arch personification of the power of Space, Time, and Matter, within whose bound all beings arise and die.”

How, when, and why did this change? Campbell shows how “the mythologies of the goddess mother were radically transformed, reinterpreted, and in large measure even suppressed by those suddenly intrusive patriarchal warrior tribesmen whose traditions have come down to us chiefly in the Old and New Testaments and in the myths of Greece.”

He goes on to describe the mythological underpinnings of Western religions — Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Zoroastrianism — and their historical influence on one another. No one who cares about history, mythology, religion, or past or current events in Western civilization can do without this venerable yet perennially fresh analysis.

  • New World Library

    The Collected Works of Joseph Campbell

    560 pages. 

    Like New

  • (LN) Fine/Like New: No defects, little usage. May show remainder marks. Older books may show minor flaws.

    (VG) Very Good: May show some signs of wear and is no longer fresh. Attractive.

    (G) Good: The average used book with all pages present. Books with loose bindings, highlighting, cocked spine, torn dust jackets, etc.

    (F) Fair: Obviously well-worn and handled but no text pages are missing. There might be markings, but they do not interfere with readability.

    (P) Poor: All text is legible but may be soiled and have binding defects.