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...Mythology

From Ritual to Romance

Jessie L. Weston

From Ritual to Romance is a landmark study of anthropology and folklore that examines the roots of the King Arthur-Holy Grail legends.
Jessie L. Weston's revolutionary theory holds that most elements of the Grail story are actually the remnants of incredibly old fertility rites -- with the lance and the cup serving as sexual symbols. Drawing on James George Frazer's seminal works on folklore, magic, and religion, Weston seeks to make connections between the legend's early pagan elements and its later Christian influences, uniting the quest for fertility with the striving for mystical oneness with God. T.S. Elliot cited this work as a major influence for his famous epic poem, "The Waste Land."
Healing the Wounded King: Soul Work and the Quest for the Grail (Earth Quest)

John Matthews

The tale of the quest for the Holy Grail is more than a story and a spiritual mystery; it also has a part to play in enhancing the modern reader's psychological, emotional, and spiritual well-being. This book includes well-known and well-loved stories, including the tale of the Wounded King, which have the ability to promote inner change, to heal, and to reawaken us to life.
Rosslyn: Guardian of the Secrets of the Holy Grail

Tim Wallace-Murphy, Marilyn Hopkins

"Rosslyn" takes the reader on a voyage of discovery into the world of the Druids, Templars, and Christian mystics, shedding light on the origins and development of the belief systems of our modern world.
The Return of King Arthur: Finishing the Quest for Wholeness, Inner Strength, and Self-Knowledge

Diana Durham

An elegant, sweeping, modern-day Jungian interpretation of the two strands of Arthurian myth: the Round Table, Camelot, and King Arthur on one side and the Grail quest on the other.

The quest for the Holy Grail is, in a larger sense, the story of the individual's path to wholeness, while the King Arthur legends represent a collective narrative of humanity.

In The Return of King Arthur, Diana Durham analyzes the key symbols from the intertwined Arthurian myths. Woven through the narrative are discoveries from her personal search for wholeness while she was living in association with a spiritual community and fully embracing a shared lifestyle. Her exploration of the individual path-the Grail quest, and the collective process-the court of King Arthur, eventually resolves itself as one story, offering the reader insights into how they can have a more satisfying existence.

Durham has deciphered the deepest meaning of the Arthurian myths as they relate to our modern lives, and, in the process, uncovered the reasons why they have held our fascination for so long.
The Elements of the Grail Tradition ("Elements of ... " Series)

John Matthews
Mystic Grail: The Challenge of the Arthurian Quest

John Matthews
The Grail: The Celtic Origins of the Sacred Icon

Jean Markale

A comprehensive look at the Grail that reveals its fundamentally Celtic nature beneath layers of Christian interpretations

• Emphasizes the significance of the Quest as an archetype of spiritual seeking

• By the world's preeminent authority on Celtic civilization

The Grail has long excited the imaginations of those seeking to see beyond the world of appearances. No other sacred object has inspired such longing or such dread. The Grail is the archetype of the marvelous object in which each individual can enclose the goal of his own personal quest. For some the goal of this quest has been divine grace or the Philosophers' Stone, for others it is simply a treasure that connects various episodes of the King Arthur legend.

Yet the Grail, as an object that is both close and unapproachable, was not the original focus of these stories. The Celtic tales on which the Grail legend is based emphasize the theme of the Quest. Through his exploration of several versions of this myth that appeared in the Middle Ages, Jean Markale digs deep beneath the Christian veneer of these tales, allowing us to penetrate to the true meaning of the Grail and its Quest, legacies of a rich Celtic spirituality that has nourished the Western psyche for centuries. He also examines how these myths were later used by the Knights Templar, as well as how their links with Alchemy and Catharism played a decisive role in the shaping of Western Hermetic thought.