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The Olympic Odyssey:
Rekindling the True Spirit of the Great Games
Phil Cousineau

176 pages
25 black & white illustrations
6" X 9 1/4"

$17.95 paper
978-0-8356-0833-6



This book was purchased by the US Olympic Committee and given to each member of the US Olympic Team of the Summer 2004 Games as well as those participating in the Special Olympics.

Nothing draws people together quite like sports. This book explores exactly why that is. In anticipation of the nostalgic return of the Games to Greece in 2004, mythologist and life-long athlete Phil Cousineau has produced a work that, unlike other titles on the subject, delves deeply into the spiritual dimension of the Olympics and potentially all athletic activity.

Reaching far back to the mythic and historic origins of the Games nearly 3,000 years ago, Cousineau examines the driving motivation behind these first ancient gatherings, which was peaceful competition in an atmosphere of fair play and brotherhood, as well as the pursuit of excellence in mind, body, and spirit. And following through to the present day, he describes how these same ideals still compel coaches, athletes, and fans to sports arenas today, despite obstacles with doping and bribery we occasionally find in the modern Games.

A collector’s dream, this book contains ancient and contemporary illustrations, historic facts, anecdotes, famous quotes, and interviews with Olympic athletes, including three-time medalist Sarunas Marciulionis of Lithuania and legendary swimmer Matt Biondi. Also featured are excerpts from Cousineau’s interviews about the cultural role of sports with mythologist Joseph Campbell and religious historian Huston Smith.

THE OLYMPIC ODYSSEY is written for all fans of the game of life who esteem true leadership, aspire to personal wholeness, and seriously question the cultural obsession with winning at all costs. Ultimately, it suggests the deepest reason we so love great athletes is for how they encourage us to achieve the highest level of being possible in our own lives, no matter what the arena in which we play.

Contents | Intro | Olympia. |
9 Suggestions to Rekindle the Spirit of the Games


Read a interview with Phil Cousineau.


Reviews

Parabola

Spirituality & Health

Book Page


ADVANCED PRAISE FOR
The Olympic Odyssey
Rekindling the True Spirit of the Great Games


Phil Cousineau has written a dramatic and inspiring book that highlights the true spirit of the Olympic Games.
—Bud Greenspan, Olympic filmmaker

With his poet’s pen and adventurer’s soul, Phil Cousineau portrays the Olympics in all of their old, noble glory. As he shows, sports are only part of it: the timeless Games are about life itself.
—Mort Rosenblum, author of Mission to Civilize and Who stole the News?

We are much indebted to Phil Cousineau for helping to relight the Olympic Flame, that symbol which holds so much promise for our fractured world. If a quarter of the world’s population witnessed on of the recent Olympics there is promise that this symbol can override the divisive elements of color, race, creed, and belief that are so virulent in our modern world.
—Robert A. Johnson, D. Hum, author of He, We, Inner Work, Transformation and Owning Your Own Shadow

THE OLYMPIC ODYSSEY is a passionate study of the ecstatic dimension of the ancient and modern Games and a fiery synthesis of mythology, religion, and sports history. In this timely book, Phil Cousineau issues a bold challenge to athletes, coaches, and fans to revive the transformative vision at the heart of the Olympic ideal—the celebration and exercise of body, mind, and spirit alike.
—Michael Murphy, Chairman and Co-founder, Esalen Institute

Phil Cousineau’s OLYMPIC ODYSSEY showed me the remarkable spiritual foundation of the Games and their strong affinity with great religious ceremonies. Cousineau does this by studding his book with vivid descriptions of climatic moments in Olympic history, drawn by his seemingly encyclopedic knowledge of the subject. This book plays poetically on the ambiguity of the word “odyssey” revealing how training for and competing in the Games is one of life’s great and mythic journeys.
—Huston Smith, professor emeritus, University of California at Berkeley, author of The World’s Religions and Why Religion Matters

In this inspiring volume, Phil Cousineau has once more shown himself worthy of his (and my) mentor, the great 20th century mythologist Joseph Campbell. It is an exquisite revelation of the timeless hero journey enacted in the life and deeds of every (Olympic) athlete.
—Stephen Larsen, author of The Mythic Imagination and A Fire in the Mind: the Life of Joseph Campbell

There have been so many books about the Olympics, but nobody until now has made the connection between the physical and the psychological, the human connection that takes place during the Games. In Phil Cousineau’s new book, he shows how deep and soulful this connection is and how much of a challenge it is for modern athletes to play for the love of the game and for the greater good.
—Sarunas Marciulionis, Lithuanian basketball player, winner of three Olympic medals, 1988, 1992, 1996, and NBA star for seven seasons




Phil Cousineau, is author of Once and Future Myths, among many other titles, and an award-winning documentary filmmaker. He lectures world-wide on mythology but still roots for his Detroit hometown teams.



Foreign Rights

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Quest Books publishes nonfiction works to facilitate spiritual growth and healing; to encourage the study of religion, philosophy, and science; and to promote fellowship among all peoples of the world. In addition to a comprehensive selection of Theosophy titles by noteworthy authors like H.P. Blavatsky, Annie Besant, C.W. Leadbeater, and others, Quest offers books on a variety of topics including alternative healing, development of creativity, transpersonal psychology, deep ecology, mythology, comparative religion, consciousness, spiritual evolution, ancient wisdom, mysticism, esoteric studies, and perennial philosophy.

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