Men And The Life Of Desire

Album Description: A Day For Men With Poetry, Story And Lively Discussion Speaking To The Masculine Soul And Spirit Thunderous drums sound as 750 men enter the room singing. Thus begins a day of passionate, provocative and humorous dialogue with poet Robert Bly, psychologist-author James Hillman and mythologist Michael Meade. 'The Firebird' - A Russian fairy tale about power, love and danger; poems from D.H. Lawrence and W.B. Yeats to thirteenth century poet Rumi; stories and mythology from African tribal lore to Shakespeare - these and other sources are drawn upon by Bly, Hillman and Meade as they explore issues crucial to men today. Topics include: · The hunger for the father . The difference between need, want and desire . The importance of male initiation Recorded live in digital stereo at the Scottish Rite Temple in San Francisco, California on March 11, 1990. TAPE ONE Side A: Thoughts on desire with poetry from W. B. Yeats, Rumi, D. H. Lawrence, William Blake, and Etheridge Knight (Bly, Meade, and Hillman). Side B: "The Firebird, the Princess Vassalisa and the Horse of Power", part one (Meade). Discussion of the images of the horse and the firebird. "Differences Between Need, Want, and Desire - Appetite, Ambition and Imagination as Aspects of Desire" (Hillman). TAPE TWO Side A: Hillman on Need, Want and Desire, continued. "Four Ways of Descent: The Way Down and Out, The Road of Ashes, Learning to Shudder, and Moving from the Mother's World to the Father's World" (Bly). Three views on therapy as an aid to the descent into ashes (All). Side B: "Litima - Masculine Energy, and the Importance of Male Initiation "(Meade). "The Firebird", part two (Meade). TAPE THREE Side A: Discussion of the Appearance of the Princess and the walled garden of the lover (All). "The Hunger for the Father in a Time with No King; The Hunger for the King in a Time with No Father" (Bly). Side B: "Turning the Father: Moving the Imagination in Regard to the Father's Shadow" (Hillman). "Seeing the Father in Five Steps" (Meade). "Creating a Two-room Apartment for the Father" (Bly). TAPE FOUR Side A: "The Firebird", conclusion (Meade). Discussion of the role of the dress, the crab, and the dangers of gening close to the king (All). Side B: Closing thoughts on the nature of desire. Poetry of Bly, Yeats, Kabir and Rumi (All). Michael Meade on hand drum. David Whetstone, Sitar, and Marcus Wise, Tabla.