I don't think there is any such thing as an ordinary mortal.

Joseph Campbell spoke about The Illumination with Bill Moyers in The Power of Myth.
This is what he said,



Moyers: What is the illumination?
Campbell: The illumination is the recognition of the radiance of one eternity through all things, whether in the vision of time these things are judged as good or as evil. To come to this, you must release yourself completely from desiring the goods of this world and fearing the loss. "Judge not that you be not judged," we read in the words of Jesus. "If the doors of perception were cleansed," wrote Blake, "man would see everything as it is, infinite."
Moyers: That's a rough trip.
Campbell: That's a heavenly trip.
Moyers: But is this really just for saints and monks?
Campbell: No, I think it's also for artists. The real artist is the one who has learned to recognize and to render what Joyce has called the 'radiance' of all things, as an epiphany or showing forth of their truth.
Moyers: But doesn't this leave all the rest of us ordinary mortals back on shore?



Campbell: I don't think there is any such thing as an ordinary mortal. Everybody has his own possibility of rapture in the experience of life. All he has to do is recognize it and cultivate it and get going with it. I always feel uncomfortable when people speak about ordinary mortals because I've never met an ordinary man, woman, or child.



Moyers: But is art the only way one can achieve this illumination?
Campbell: Art and religion are the two recommended ways. I don't think you get it through sheer academic philosophy, which gets all tangled up in concepts. But just living with one's heart open to others in compassion is a way wide open to all.
Moyers: So the experience of illumination is available to anyone, not just saints or artists. But if it is potentially in every one of us, deep in that unlocked memory box, how do you unlock it?
Campbell: You unlock it by getting somebody to help you unlock it. Do you have a dear friend or good teacher? It may come from an actual human being, or from an experience like an automobile accident, or from an illuminating book. In my own life, mostly it comes from books, though I have had a long series of magnificent teachers."

I love Campbell's look at this world. The best part about his words are when read as a whole, through his published works, a reoccurring theme is established.

You need others for love, support, inspiration, and teaching, but, in the end, it is loving yourself and being compassionate and patient with yourself that creates a true illuminated being.

Live and light your path.
Scatter joy.