From Travel to Absolute Travel: The Inner Experience

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Travel, and the immersion into its inner experience, begets more and more—and more—travel. It’s not an addiction. Nor is it a habit of escapism. It is a transformation of lifestyles. True travel is a place of opening your self to the processes of inner journeying. It is a lying down of the arms of ordinary life and undertaking a new style wholly involving oneself and the world abroad. Absolute travel is a return to recognition of who you are, where you came from and where you’re going within the mass of global evolution.

Number One…Or Number Two?

You’re at home. Priorities, concerns, handling of money and dealing with the collection of physical accoutrements are placed before you. You observe life, you fall into it, and then the choice presents itself. Inside, you feel a desire to leave it all behind as an opening within work, relationships, ideas and possibilities creates this option. It is a moment of choice: the same rigorous routine, or a whole new dream, unknown and only imagined. Which will you push aside?

There was the time in my life when the choice arose. I remember it specifically: I could shrug my shoulders and agree, and assume it was what had to be done in order to align with the role I had been selected to play; or I could either drop everything and disregard the responsibilities beckoning me into a deepening well.

The space between school, relationships, the ideas and possibilities about a profession, and a desire to change what was unfolding before me was there. I saw it. I regarded the two choices (go with it or change it) with all my senses, and then I threw them aside. I decided to follow only one, one choice presenting the illimitable possibilities within this world: I listened to my heart and soul and disregarded the insignificant. I dreamed of travel. I yearned for the freedom of exploration. My heart and soul whispered of tales abroad among a new life of transformation.

The Dead-Ahead Rail & You

In all, it was simple. I packed the few possessions I thought I needed and left with a flexible ticket to the Orient. There, I realized I didn’t need anything in which I first suspected, and so I emptied my sack of all the perceived necessities and gave myself over to my new environment within the hands of travel.

With the heaviness within my mind lightened, and my worries about necessities eased, my awareness expanded into not what was in the pack upon my shoulders, but to the surroundings around me. This observance immediately came full circle, returning me to an original recognition of what lied within me. Suddenly, traveling became an immersion into inner experience. My lifestyle transformed from the ordinary, societal-entranced railway line sent dead-ahead on tracks that began with my birth (ending with my inevitable death) to that of something entirely different.

A Journey of Joy

Prior to my transition while traveling, I tried to see as far ahead into the future as possible. From as early as I can remember to as recent as the present day, society told me what to do, where to go and what to aspire towards. I was assured through this dependence that the highest education and the most respected career would bring me happiness. I sincerely believed it.

Through the conviction in my goals and desires, the future was what I needed: that was where my happiness lied, and subsequently, would forever be. But then there was the transformation as my lifestyle became an inner journey. I no longer viewed as remote into the future as possible, but stopped far short and inhaled. I breathed in the present moment and realized that at this very slice of existence—right before me, existing nowhere else—happiness prevailed and awaited me.

I was traveling and this was my dream. I reclaimed my own destiny on life and suddenly, with this simple decision to follow my heart, my life transformed into that inner journey of the self. Without it I was not myself, and with it I could do anything. My life in total became a spiritual journey.

This article was originally written for and posted on Brave New Traveler

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Photos

Bibelot en Francais
Sapin, sapin, oh sapin!

Comments

[katydid]

Great article!
I loved the article you wrote. It sums up so many things for me. You're pictures are amazing! Happy Travels.

[anonymous]

Well written
Like the article dude - articulate and flowing, not to mention inspring. Hope your travels bring you to ever greater levels of self-realization; they certainly have for me :)

[iva doll]

Yes, that's it.
You summed up why I have tried to give up everything in order to travel. It is hard to tell people why you want to travel for months or years at a time, or forever. Why its not enough for me just go somewhere for a few months, have a good time and come home. My first solo 9 month travel experience in Europe was in the moment all the time and every experience, good and bad, was equally amazing and the whole thing changed me. I crashed in squats, swam naked in the ocean with travelling circus performers in Italy, had midnight climbs through haunted graveyards in Edinburgh, hitchiked throughout the tuscan country side, weaseled my way into parties in Ibiza and so on. There were no rules and life consisted only of possibility, the now, and of my own core as a human being which flowed effortlessly the current of life. Transition to socialization and daily routine when I came home was tough to say the least, and for the 5 years I did it to pay off my collective debts land to make enough money to leave again, I longed for release back into that realm of the spontaneous that made up my heart and deepest spiritual self after travelling. Finally I paid off my debts and by selling everything I owned I was able to go to Japan where I spent six months doing some pretty cool stuff (see ivadoll travelblog) and then jaunted off to Thailand and Laos for some relaxing during the cold Japanese winter). Unfortunately I got sick on that trip in such a way that may make independent travel abroad very difficult in the future. I had to abruptly return home when I had planned not to return for atleast 3 years. The shock has been terrible. Although seeing old friends is wonderful, I now have to worry about car insurance, what I am going to eventually study, future careers, where am I going to live in a few years, which city will I pick to settle down in, and all that bladdy blah. I am obsessed with the future because my society's now is all about planning for the future. I swear it is giving me an ulcer. I want to check out of this paradigm, of stuff, and invisible ropes as soon as I can, and perhaps never come back to it. Maybe if the universe smiles my way it will happen soon and I'll see you on the road somewhere, ivadoll.

[Pheeleepa]

photos
I really like the photos you have taken. You have a great eye for composition.