Mythoanimism: An Emerging Spirituality
Every day, more people are awakening to our interconnectedness, the symbolic language of the universe and the divine, the spiritual gifts within each of us, and the importance of cultivating a strong relationship with the natural world.
Modern mystics no longer enjoy the trappings of organized religion. And they no longer can separate their spiritual practices from the earth that sustains us.
Spiritual Movements of the 20th Century
While there have always been spiritual explorers, the twentieth century catalyzed widespread radical leaps in consciousness. Largely thanks to the consciousness work of Jung and discovery of psychedelics in the first half of the century, the decades that followed saw a mass exodus from the organized religions of the West toward Eastern spiritual practices. Teachings from the worlds of yoga and meditation expanded the spiritual awareness of countless seekers.
Parallel to the influx of Eastern wisdom in the West was the rising of earth-based practices. Pagan rites and celebrations, women’s circles with witchy leanings, the Gaia hypothesis, and ecofeminist understandings of our interconnectedness, prolifically written about by Starhawk, greatly impacted mass consciousness.
It’s no wonder that Western shamanism also arose during the seventies and eighties, as shamanism involves trance states (such as those attained with psychedelics or meditation practices) and deep relationship with the earth (as was also cultivated by other earth-based spiritualities).
Looking back at spirituality in the West, it’s safe to say that between the 1940s and 2010s, massive shifts in spiritual awareness impacted our collective consciousness in profoundly beneficial ways.
2000-2022: A Time of Reckoning
Unfortunately, humanity had not yet transcended the need for intermediaries with the divine. While hippies may have turned their backs on priests, many still welcomed gurus with open arms.
In the past decades, gurus have fallen. And they’ve fallen across the board—yogis, meditation teachers, spiritual guides and healers of various sorts have all had their shadows exposed. I think of the sexual assult charges of John of God and K. Pattabhi Jois. The rise and fall of Doreen Virtue. Bizarre cults like NXIVM.
Even more recently, a growing reckoning of power dynamics and cultural appropriation has bubbled to the surface of our collective conversations, leaving many modern mystics faced with difficult questions around what elements of their spiritual practices are still welcome, and which might be inadvertently causing harm.
Current Trends in Spirituality
Today, with both religions and alternative spiritual communities dissolving, as we live in times of collective reckoning around power dynamics and the crises facing our mother earth, a few important spiritual trends are emerging:
People are seeking spiritual equality and sovereignty. They want to experience spirit directly for themselves and to know that they can trust their own intuition.
People care about our earth. The climate crisis is forefront in their minds, and forming meaningful connections with nature has taken on a sort of spiritual urgency.
People are rebelling against old power dynamics—especially patriarchal and colonial ones. Calls to end oppression and center previously marginalized voices have become intertwined with spiritual practice.
People are called to connect with their ancestry and ancestors. We’re here because of the ancestors that have survived challenging times before, and there’s a growing recognition of the wisdom we might find through ancestral work.
People are creating a psychedelic revival. The shutdown of psychedelic research in the seventies was clearly meant to cut us off from cultivating their own direct spiritual connections—and therefore our ability to think for ourselves. Now, we’re reclaiming our right to research and use psychedelics for healing and connection.
People are re-engaging with Jungian thought. More and more people are finding meaning in the transpersonal realms of archetypes, omens, symbols, mythologies, and dreams—acknowledging that the universe is always communicating with us if we’ll listen.
People are embracing animism. With the climate crisis more pronounced than ever, more and more people are recognizing the need to shift out of human-centric worldviews and into an appreciation of the inspirited nature of all things.
These trends are universal and important, yet until now, we have not had language that clearly encompasses all of these components.
Witch, priestess, animist, earth-medicine practitioner, akashic record reader, starseed, energy healer, and lightworker are bandied about—and all are lovely words. Still others, feeling the limitations inherent in any of this language use the term “spiritual”—which is still too broad to convey much meaning.
In truth, there is a deep layer of vast yet cohesive spiritual wisdom and truth that connects all the spiritual qualities listed above…
This is where mythoanimism comes in.
Mythoanimism—A Spiritual Path for These Times
Animism nods to the inspirited nature of the universe—and not only to the spirits of nature we know and love. True animist practice acknowledges that even concepts and objects can have their own vital energy.
Mythos reminds us of the poetic, non-linear, symbolic, and archetypal reality of the universe. This invites trance states, direct revelation, and ancestral wisdom into our spiritual paths. Mythos also allows space for the non-embodied dimension of spirit—deities and beings of other realms are acknowledged and brought into relationship in this non-human-centric practice.
Together, these words give us mythoanimism. Mythoanimism is contained enough to have identifying characteristics, yet broad enough that each person can walk the mythoanimist path in their own unique way.
As a universal and emerging spirituality, mythoanimism is welcoming to people of all backgrounds, and when practiced with care and intention, frees us from the trappings of outdated power dynamics, fears around cultural appropriation, and the often overly individualist qualities of the spiritualities that have come before.
As we embark on this new—yet in truth ancient—path before us, let’s look more closely at the qualities held within mythoanimism.
1. Spiritual sovereignty is our birthright.
Those on the mythoanimist path are waking up to an important truth: spirit is within. And while teachers on the path are valuable guides, we must never give over our own power and knowing.
With so many realizing their own divinity, we are experiencing a zeitgeist moment in the realm of spiritual sovereignty—the idea that we can have our own direct connection to spirit, uninhibited and uninfluenced by outside forces.
This concept has rippling effects on our lived experience: When we understand that we are divine and that we have the power of spirit within us, we realize that we must take on a new level of responsibility for our lives. We must care for our health, our communities, each other, and our great earth.
We must love life itself as much as the great spirit that created us does.
Spiritual sovereignty, which sounds quite individualistic, actually brings us into greater relationship with all that is.
2. Animism is the truth of our natural world.
We must view the earth as alive. And we must understand that all beings—from birds to trees to mountains and stones—have consciousness and are inspirited.
Our ecological crisis requires a cosmological solution.
This is a vast departure from the human-centric worldviews of the past. And, while many people are waking up to the spirits inhabiting our natural world—those found in animals and plants—mythoanimism takes this even further: All is inspirited.
We recognize the spirit of concepts—such as hope or money—as well as the spirit of objects. If you’ve ever talked to your car in a moment of desperation, you’ve tasted the relationships that are possible here. This may prove to be an essential shift for a world in which AI plays an active role.
When we truly integrate an animistic worldview into our consciousness, everything changes. We form new relationships with the land we live on, the food we eat, and the things we consume. We also become empowered to work with the energies in our lives—around wealth, habits, dreams—in new transformative ways.
3. We are a web of equality and oneness. And we are individuals, here and now.
Spiritual sovereignty tells us that spirit is within us, and animism tells us that spirit enlivens all things. This framework gives way to the universal understanding that we are all one at the most fundamental spiritual level.
Where there is oneness, there is no dualism and no hierarchy. With this understanding, no longer can we unconsciously treat that which is outside ourselves as lesser than or disposable. No longer can tribalism, us vs. them, and outdated power dynamics guide our consciousness.
Returning to regenerative living and creating circular economies become spiritual imperatives.
And at the same time we acknowledge our oneness, we also recognize that we are having individual incarnations. We are souls, with our own energy, karma, and life experiences. Holding multiple levels of seemingly conflicting awareness is a key part of the mythoanimist path.
4. The universe communicates with symbolic language and archetypes.
As mentioned earlier, Jungian psychology is undergoing something of a revival right now. Jung understood that we are all connected on subconscious levels. Interestingly, when Stanislov Groff did his LSD studies, he also found that not only did various layers of consciousness exist, but another layer not previously understood (in the West at least) revealed itself: the transpersonal.
Groff found that while in a trance state, people could experience universal symbols and archetypes—even connecting with beings and deities from cultures with which they had no previous connection or knowledge. There truly is a universal, symbolic language that we can tap into.
The universe is far more vast and interconnected than we could ever imagine—yet we’re not left in the dark. Our dreams contain important insights and revelations beyond our personal processing. Omens, often in the form of nature’s messengers, are waiting for our attention. Mythology from cultures around the world contains universal archetypes and clues for understanding our human experiences, here and now.
5. The true nature of reality is far more layered than our consensus reality.
Mythoanism pulls us out of our limited understanding of consensus 3D reality into an undefined and more expansive understanding of the true nature of reality. While you’ll find some new age teachers referring to this as “5D”, I personally find even that term too limiting.
Many layers of reality exist beyond what we can validate with our five senses. Energetic blueprints and systems underlie our physical bodies. Various disembodied beings—from deities and angels to the recently deceased and fae—exist alongside us, just on the other side of our veils of perception.
This understanding opens us to possibilities that might otherwise seem like magical thinking or miracles. We know that healing happens on energetic and spiritual levels in addition to physical, emotional, and mental ones—and we can engage in a wide variety of practices and techniques to work in partnership with the other realms and their inhabitants.
As we recognize that the “rules” we’ve been taught might not be set in stone, we can welcome energy, healing, and creation into our lives through radical new pathways.
We can also learn to communicate with the various beings who reside in slightly different dimensions from us, opening us to new empowering relationships with real impacts on our 3D existence.
This is also where altering our consciousness, or entering trans states, becomes important, as doing so can help us navigate the other dimensions of reality. While this can happen with psychedelics, there are many pathways available—breathwork, meditation, yoga nidra, music, and more.
6. Our ancestors are allies—and so are our descendents. (And our ancestry is more complicated than many people realize.)
Throughout the world and throughout history, ancestors—the well and good ones, at least—have been our primary allies. This is because of the deep care and trust built into these relationships.
As we navigate the many dimensions of reality, not all beings we encounter are trustworthy or benevolent. Our ancestors, however, always have our backs, and we can check in with them when meeting someone—or something—new.
Our ancestors have unique abilities to help us in challenging times. They knew how to survive, and they can help us do the same. Remembering ancestral skills, rituals, and ways to care for our bodies, homes, and families nourishes us on many levels.
As we engage with ancestral practices, it’s important to remember that our ancestry is much more vast than our current known DNA lines. Yes, our blood lineage is often a primary influence on our current life—but it’s not the whole story. Spirit is far too expansive to play by any set of rules we humans might like to make up…
Which also brings us to our descendants. In kairos time, we are not tied to what we view as the past—it’s likely all our lives are happening simultaneously, and we can connect with our descendents just as we connect with our ancestors.
When you think of a descendant a powerful exercise is to see if you can imagine how many different bloodlines from throughout an ever more connected world converge into that one magical being.
As a note—you do not need to know your bloodline or have your own offspring to work with ancestral and descendent energies. There’s no way for our human minds to trace all the blood connections we form throughout time, and there are universal ancestors and descendents who are also here to offer us guidance and support.
7. We are children of the earth and the cosmos.
At the heart of mythoanimist practice lies a foundational relationship of reciprocity with the Earth. We have an unshakable knowing that we are born of the earth (and the stars) and we are also caretakers of the Earth and all her inhabitants.
A deep love and reverence of the earth is perhaps the most central quality for all mythoanimist practice. This love might manifest indifferent ways for different folks—some may engage directly with the earth through with rewilding practices, herbal medicine, permaculture, and other such practices. Others may simply feel the presence of earth wherever they are, honoring her through ceremony and ritual, the arts, or advocacy.
Regardless of the particular way one engages with the earth, cultivating an ever-deepening relationship with her is of primary importance for all who walk this path—this is one of the key factors that sets mythoanimism apart from other spiritual paths.
While our deep relationship with the earth keeps us grounded, mythoanimism also invites us to expand our awareness into the cosmos. The stars, starbeings, and great mysteries of the skies are just as much a part of our consciousness as our lives here on earth. Just as we cross beyond the boundaries of human-centered cosmology, we invite ourselves to step into unknown territory beyond the world we know.
Being of Service in the Aquarian Age
By now you probably realize that mythoanimism offers us a beautiful individual path to connect with the earth, the cosmos, and spirit. Yet what’s also important to remember is that this path brings us into service, in whatever way aligns with our souls.
Perhaps this is why mythoanimism and all the trends that lead up to this path are emerging now, more strongly than ever. We are just entering the Age of Aquarius—a time of radical shifts in consciousness, more humanitarian and collectively focused service, and innovation that supports healing and equality.
“Mythoanimism offers us a beautiful individual path to connect with the earth, the cosmos, and spirit.”
Cultivating an internal spirituality rooted in mythoanimist principles gives us a profound foundation for showing up in the world. We heal ourselves, illuminate our unique gifts, and find clarity in our personal soul-led paths.
Does this resonate? Are you part of the growing number of mythoanimists who will change our world? Drop me a comment and let me know.
(And consider joining Rewilding the Spirit—a transformative course rooted in mythoanimist principles.)
An important request: Would you like to use the term mythoanimism in your own work or practice? I would love to see this term become widely used.
Since is this the first published work (other than my website content) to use and introduce this term to our collective, I would be deeply grateful if you would please reference me as originating this term.
I asked, prayed, meditated, brainstormed, journeyed, and opened myself to spirit again and again before this word arose in my consciousness. Thank you!!!
Mythoanimism—A Spiritual Path for These Times
Animism nods to the inspirited nature of the universe—and not only to the spirits of nature we know and love. True animist practice acknowledges that even concepts and objects can have their own vital energy.
Mythos reminds us of the poetic, non-linear, symbolic, and archetypal reality of the universe. This invites trance states, direct revelation, and ancestral wisdom into our spiritual paths. Mythos also allows space for the non-embodied dimension of spirit—deities and beings of other realms are acknowledged and brought into relationship in this non-human-centric practice.