Love's Journey—The Seasons and Stages of Relationship

How can a modern relationship possibly survive? By looking to the past, for the age-old mythic traditions of the world provide all the advice we need about love, according to Michael Gurian. And the wisdom they offer is strikingly similar across cultures: a relationship must ultimately look beyond itself and be consciously accepted as a spiritual path. Gurian has drawn on a range of spiritual and mythic traditions to create the new model for relationship that he presents in his popular workshops. This model, called the "Lover's Journey," consists of four distinct "seasons":

1. The Season of Enchantment: the springtime of falling in love
2. The Season of Awakening: the summertime, when the euphoria of romance is past and we learn independent co-existence
3. The Season of Partnership: the autumn of maturity, when the fruits of our joint efforts can be enjoyed
4. The Season of Nonattachment: the winter of companionship, quietude, and the letting-go of old age

Michael Gurian is the author of the New York Times best-seller The Wonder of Boys (Tarcher, 1996). He is a family therapist, corporate consultant, lecturer, and founder of the Gurian Institute. Michael has served as a consultant to families, corporations, therapists, physicians, school districts, community agencies, churches, criminal justice personnel and other professionals, traveling to approximately thirty cities per year to keynote at conferences. He is the author of twenty-five books.