I’m pleased to share this #mini episode with Maria Souza, a Comparative Mythologist, Poet, and Educator, and founder of Women & Mythology.

As we name in the conversation, we’ve known about each other for some time and appreciated each others’ work from afar. Just as Robert Bly’s ‘Iron John’ is the book that ignited the mythopoetic men’s movement, so too, does Clarissa Pinkola Estés’s book ‘Women Who Run With The Wolves’ occupy that position for women.

Maria shares how her journey with myth began has evolved into her podcast, along with courses that bring mythopoetic depth into the lived experience of women today. We touch on iconic stories like La Loba, Seal Skin/Soul Skin, and La Llorona—each a mirror of feminine initiation, creativity, and soul recovery.

In this tradition, myth isn’t escape - it’s a way of waking up, a path to gather the scattered bones of the psyche (and culture) and sing them back to life.

LINKS

* Women & Mythology Website

* Women & Mythology on Instagram

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SHOW NOTES

* 0:00 — Ian welcomes Maria and introduces a dialogue on Women Who Run With the Wolves as a counterpart to Iron John in the mythopoetic tradition.

* 1:17 — Maria recalls her studies with Martin Shaw and her search for stories that speak directly to women’s initiatory paths.

* 2:41 — Early book study circles evolved into her first myth-based teaching course.

* 4:46 — Contextualizing Clarissa Pinkola Estés’ book: a 30-year creation published in 1990, still resonant due to its timeless archetypal themes.

* 7:13 — The book quickly became a global bestseller, sparking women’s groups and soulful discussion circles.

* 10:01 — Myth gives women a language to “wake up” to their inner and outer experiences, offering deep recognition and practical insight.

* 11:49 — Stories like Seal Skin/Soul Skin, Baba Yaga, and La Llorona reveal key initiations around creativity, intuition, and integration.

* 21:15 — Ian reflects on the power of La Loba’s “singing over the bones” as a metaphor for enlivening the psyche.

* 29:48 — Maria describes her “Year of Myths” immersion—one myth a month as a practice of ongoing maturation.

* 34:36 — She shares her next creative focus: introducing Brazilian myths and under-told folktales to her community.

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