As I was flying out of this quaint mountain town, I could see a herd of elk making their way through the valley, a nice departure gift making me wish I had more time to live and breathe the mountain dream. I arrived back in Toronto to a different type of herd, the human animal, making its way along the busy 400 highway series, a herd on the move, but for entirely different reasons.
We are born into the world a natural animal. We have no beliefs, no systems, only instinct and needs. But unlike the elk, from our very first breath we are being formed into man made beings, perhaps following a religion, perhaps even belonging to a rigorous belief system that will simulate belonging whilst clouding our natural judgement for the rest of our lives.
A friend and I were discussing Buddhism the other day; it is a religion that stands out for me. Although I have never considered myself a Buddhist, my friend advises me that I already am a Buddhist, I don’t have to declare myself one. But, if I’m a Buddhist, then I must also be a Native Canadian, and a Pagan and a Witch. I am at the same time all of these things and none of these things, because I don’t allow any of them to define me, I absorb what resonates with me, what is true to me.
The pure joy of being human today is having this plethora of philosophy and wisdom at our disposal. We are all in need of answers to the mystical, answers to our very purpose of being, but in lusting after definitive answers and making solemn commitments to one dogma, we cut ourselves off from the experience of exploration. Granted, not too long ago you could be killed for such atrocities as stepping away, and indeed there are areas on this great earth today where people are living within the confines of forced religion still. One day, I trust it will be safe to just be. But it’s apparent; this is alarmingly something we need to fight for.
If we found the inner Da Vinci within ourselves, we’d see the correlation between the elk and the human tribe, between the air and the trees, between greed and destruction, love and hate. If we pulled upon our inner most wisdom, the wisdom we were born with, before someone started to tell us how to believe, we might just start to think... hold on a second here, I think we took a wrong turn somewhere.
When it comes to being human, only you know what’s best for you. If you’re trying to find that, I suggest you step away from the herd, find yourself a quaint little town somewhere, grab yourself a good cup of tea, and watch the world go by for a while. What kind of people would we be if it were entirely up to us? My guess is, pretty awesome.
Wishing you a magical week.