“The material of myth is the material of our life, the material of our body, and the material of our environment. A living, vital mythology deals with these”. During the final years of his life, Joseph Campbell embarked on a lecture tour in which he drew together all that he had learned about what he called the “one great story” of humanity. These remarkable talks were filmed and are presented here in the order and manner in which Campbell himself intended: 1. Psyche and Symbol: the psychological impulse for and response to myth; 2. The Spirit Land: how myths awakened American Indians to the mystery of life; 3. On Being Human: the emergence of myth in early hunter-gatherer societies; 4. From Goddess to God: the gradual shift from the Goddess to male, warlike deities; 5. The Mystical Life: non-biblical mythic strains that helped shape the Western spirit.

“Myth comes from the same zone as dream... from the great biological ground whatever it may be. They are energies and they are matters of consciousness”.

Sunset at Christmas, one man finds someone to talk to. 6th Independent Vídeo & Interactive Phenomena Show

The Sures, Brooklyn New York. A solitary Puerto Rican preacher: "out vile demon! demon from hell abandon this body! Bless the good mother, Father baptise with fire, fire, fire!". Soundtrack: Barbara Held.

Serpent Mother is about devotion to the Goddess of Snakes and the importance of divine female power in West Bengal Indian life. The film's focus is the Jhapan Festival, the great celebration of snakes. It shows the festival preparations, the role of traditional arts and crafts in the worship of the Goddess, devotional singing, and a demonstration of ritual action.

A sustained attempt to film a four-day ceremony concerned with the worship of Shiva. We are shown devotees of the God Shiva from the initial taking of the Sacred Thread through gradually intensifying action to the culmination in a variety of ascetic and self-denying practices. Devotees are also shown engaging in informal activities such as preparing food and listening to recitals of devotional songs by the famous mendicant Bauls of Bengal.

“We're in a free fall into future. We don't know where we're going. Things are changing so fast. And always when you're going through a long tunnel, anxiety comes along. But all you have to do to transform your hell into a paradise is to turn your fall into a voluntary act. It's a very interesting shift of perspective... Joyfully participate in the sorrows of the world and everything changes.” Joseph Campbell takes us on a journey of transcendence and illumination, a trip through the mythological symbols and sagas left by our ancient forebears.