Hero's Journey Stage 9: Reward, Seizing the Prize

Stage 9: Reward: Seizing the Prize

After surviving death—or rather being reborn—our hero has a moment to rest and collect the rewards of the journey. We have overcome our greatest fears, made peace with our inner beast, and weathered our Crisis of Heart. On the other end of our Ordeal lies our prize.

In myth cycles, the prize is often tangible, like the Sword in the Stone  (Excalibur) or the Gem at the Heart of the Mountain (The Arkenstone). But, it can also be more abstract like reconciliation with a loved one or an insight into great wisdom. Either way, the hero knows the prize when they see it, as though the light of the Pole Star shines upon it, blotting out all else in their sight.

As we light the ninth flame, we consider the rewards of our work.

Guided Meditation: Seizing the Prize

In the light of the ninth flame, breathe easily.
Let your breath come in and out at a cool, easy pace.
For you have fought and won.
You have overcome and were born anew,
Clean and ready for a new set of experiences, of knowledge, of life.
Relax into yourself and sink deeper into your inner landscape.
You feel your talisman, heavy in your pocket, begin to grow warm.
You remove your talisman, glowing, pulsing with light in your palm.
It begins to lift out of your hand, and you watch it rise,
Up, and up, and up, glowing brighter and brighter,
Until it shines as though a star on its way to the heavens.
It begins to turn, slowly at first, and then more rapidly,
Sending light into the clearing where you stand and illuminating into the nearby trees.
It is so bright now that you have to shade your eyes, squint, and look next to it instead of at it.
The light from your talisman begins to shine downward, in a beam toward the ground.
Where the light strikes the earth, you see a dome of light begin to form.
It, too, grows larger and larger until a shock of energy pulses outward from the center,
Causing everything it touches to shake in its wake.
The talisman stops spinning and gently falls to the Earth, next to another object,
Both still shimmering faintly.
You approach the object and smile as you recognize it.
This is what you have been seeking.
This is your reason for undertaking this work.
This is your reward.
You place your talisman back into your pocket, and then slowly, gently,
You place your hand upon the object.
Look at it closely, marveling in its shape and size.
Understand fully what this object means.
Rest in your reward, let your joy rise from your heart to your lips,
And smile at the completion of such an important task.
You have done well, and this is the well-deserved fruit of your labor.

As you open your eyes, hold a vision of your reward, and consider a journal entry for your thoughts.