Tag Archives: pilgrimage

If You … Don’t Quote Me on This

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I don’t remember when I began to collect quotes; my early teens I think. I just started making notes of quotes from books (even comics in those far off younger days), from conversations overheard. Then, later, little excerpts from my own journals and other writings. Even slogans I’d see on t-shirts, billboards, or wherever else.

This doesn’t mean much in these times when you can type in a search for quotes on any subject, for any occasion, by anyone from anytime in history. But, in those long ago days before computers were in our hands, and certainly way before the Internet, it wasn’t so quick and easy.

Anyway, fast forward to the not so distant past;One day I sat at the computer (it was time for computers, thank goodness) and typed up all those collected quotes stored in several boxes full of little notebooks and scraps of paper.

The result is literally hundreds of pages of tightly typed quotes. That typing (which in fact took me quite a bit longer than one day) was in fact the genesis of a book that has remains half written.

You see, as I typed I saw so many great words of wisdom that I just felt compelled to put some of them together somehow.
Ive now been at that task for many years: its a very intense process and takes so much energy and, as any writer will tell you, the muse has to strike before we can begin to strike those keyboard keys! Anyway, it will be done when its done; the very notion of presence, of there only being now, is actually one of the major themes of the book.

As I got to the end of that original typing marathon, I noticed that, strangely, the very last quote in that long long list reads simply, If you. Clearly a sentence begun but left hanging. Who will ever know what would or should or could have come next but never did?

Some time ago I remembered that interesting little fact and began to think about its meaning. I decided to do a quick search of the whole collection for that little conditional phrase. The search revealed that there are 139 instances of quotes beginning with If you.

So, dear readers, dear friends and fellow travellers on life’s journey, here are eight (why pick ten like everyone else would?) of those quotes, chosen at random (is there such a thing really?).

No commentary or comment from me; you, the reader, can do very nicely without my two cents worth thrown in. Well, okay, just 2c worth: I have often learned a lot from quotes such as these (not necessarily these ones specifically); sometimes a simple quote has led to a healing or an important insight.

So, I thought it would be a great idea to share some of my collection with you and perhaps there will be one or more that strikes a chord:

If You …

  • If you allow things to surprise you, you will get easily confused.
  • If you always do your best, you will be free from regrets.
  • If you follow the eternal law, you can understand how to love.
  • When you forget who you are, and dont know what to do, act the way you would if you did.
  • If you really dont care, you arent going to know if something is wrong. The thought would never occur to you. The act of pronouncing something wrong is a form of caring.
  • If you have to ask questions all the time, you never get time to just know.
  • If you are not interested in this, then why are you here?
  • If you deny even one person entrance to your life, youll never get their uniqueness from anyone else.

So, there you are. Theres much to reflect on here. Lots to focus on, to meditate on, and contemplate.

Love and blessings from me to you

I love the Now. When else is there?

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Over the last couple of months or so I’ve been listening on and off to Jimmy Buffett. I like Jimmy’s music, and I have liked it since the late 70s. I have at least ten of his albums in my Music folder.

Anyway, Buffett is an American singer/songwriter who writes and performs songs about beach life, sailing, exotic island paradises, and generally having a good time down at the beach and in and on the water. And preferably in sunny climes.

Yes. Hedonistic is a word that’s been used to describe his music and the lifestyle he celebrates. Still, I’ve liked him for a very long while now, and every so often I get into his ‘escapism’ and his relaxing in paradise kind of vibe.

Something a little rebellious about many of his lyrics too. But let’s not go there just now. What I want to talk about is a song I’ve listened to dozens of times, but when I played it again the other night, it got my attention in a way it never had before.

What I mean to say, is that for the first time I actually heard the song (Love the Now. Have a listen, you won’t regret it). I got what the writer was saying with his lyrics.

All the pain and the pleasure
I love the now
All the blood and the treasure

Then another verse:

The whole damn world’s gone crazy
The moon is jumping over the cow
How can you help
But not love the now?

It’s like he’s saying, ‘yeah, it’s all good.’ Not just hedonistic but nihilistic as well. Like he doesn’t care, doesn’t want to know. But, then, in another verse he writes:

It’s the only place I’ve ever been
It’s the only way that I know how

It is. That’s what he’s saying. ‘All the ranting and Ravin’ and ‘All the cussin’ and cravin’‘ are there for sure. Or, rather, they are all here. And now. But, dig a little deeper, read between the lines (so to speak).

Listen to this:

Don’t talk about your superstitions
Don’t talk about your cats meow
But don’t talk about tomorrow tonight
I Love The Now

You see? He doesn’t want to hear about your belief systems imposed on you by others. He doesn’t want to hear about your fears that have been manufactured by someone else to keep you in line. And he is not the slightest bit interested in your fancy material toys and other stuff (cat’s meow: a great expression coined in the 1920s meaning fancy, flashy, cool, awesome and other similar epiphets).

And don’t talk about some far off distant future (okay tomorrow night may sometimes seem awfully close to now, but you get the meaning).

The bottom line (literally and figuratively): he loves the now. And that’s because that’s all there is: the now.

So, on the face of it hedonistic, nihilistic even, as if he’s shrugging his shoulders in a ‘so what?’ kind of way. But he’s not doing that at all; he’s actually offering a solution to the overwhelming tidal wave of ‘things that are wrong with the world’, and about which many of us feel helpless and sometimes even hopeless.
The Now. It really is the only thing you’ve ever known, the only time and place you can ever hope to be. So why not love it? Why not just live it?

This is not resignation; it is not fatalism or a giving up (or in). In fact it is a courageous engagement with the total reality of life as it is right now.
Jimmy writes that:

Tomorrow’s right around the corner
I’ll get there somehow
But I’m stuck in [the] meantime

And, then, most importantly he says:

And I Love The Now

The Pilgrims’ Way

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It is an old belief, and it is a good belief, that our life is a pilgrims progress.

Vincent Van Gogh

The usual definition of a pilgrim is a person who goes on a journey to a special place, a place that has significance for them, often as a spiritual exercise or quest. Sometimes the journey can be over long distances and a difficult road.

The key characteristic of a pilgrimage is that it is to be undertaken on foot, or put another way, a pilgrimage is a journey we (as the pilgrim) travel on by our own efforts, under our own steam as they say.

In this quote Vincent is talking about that other pilgrimage: the one that goes on on the inside. It’s referring to the idea that our lives can be an inner spiritual journey (or pilgrimage) from our present imperfect condition to a place or state of beatitude. Or as some might say Heaven or Nirvana. Others call it Self or God Realisation. And some other people call it Enlightenment.

You could say that Vincent is suggesting that a pilgrim is one who goes on a special quest to find the answers to life’s big questions; a pilgrim is a person who travels (either out there in the world, or inside on a journey of the heart, mind, and soul) to see, to learn, to do and to grow as a human being.

And, if all goes well, we end up in Nirvana, or a state of spiritual advancement as a kind of nice bonus at the end of the road

Spiritual for me in this context refers to the things that affect or relate to the human spirit or soul and might not be concerned simply with the physical or material aspects of life.

But here is the funny paradox about this kind of inner spiritual pilgrimage: as we learn, as we discover new ways of being and relating to people; as we find answers for ourselves and as we grow as people, we find that changes start to take place in our physical world.


From simply directing the wheres and whens of our activities in the material world, to pushing us in a direction of study, to influencing what people we meet, to the type of work we end up doing and to the actual state of our mental and physical health. It’s that inner pilgrimage that really is running the show of our lives.

So, as we travel the long road of our lives, let’s continue to learn. Let’s keep alert for those insights that come with a desire to grow and to work out what our lives and the world are all about. Above all, let’s keep on pilgriming down that road, and allowing ourselves to be open to new experience, new people, new ways of being.

Another quote from Vincent that I particularly resonate with. This time from a letter to his brother Theo and talking about the lot of the pilgrim:

We must continue quietly on our way.

Vincent Van Gogh
Photo by Elle Lumière on Unsplash

Thank you Vincent for the pictures you gave us; thank you for the words you wrote; thank you for being you.

With These Words … Part 4

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Welcome back to my little mini-series With These Words … , my reflections on how well my way of living measures up to the vows taken by many spiritual seekers, either in a community setting, or as a spiritually oriented hermit, or an individual ‘monk in the world‘ (and monk here has no gender specific meaning. A monk is a monk). Do these concepts work as a kind of philosophy of life for me?

Funny I used the expression measure up just now: You see, we’re at Part 4 which is Accountability. So, measuring up is the very thing we will be talking about right now! Oh, one thing: If you missed any of those earlier Parts to this series, you’ll find links in the PS at the bottom.

Accountability

It goes without saying that we are always accountable for the consequences of our actions, decisions, behaviours, and way of being in the world. Of course there is a deep mystical concept that it is only our material nature that carries out actions in the physical world and that the doer is actually the source of that material nature: God, Self, Brahman. Or you could say the Universe. As in I am a child of the Universe kind of thing.

But, you know, putting all that aside, we are actually living a physical life, and the truth is we are accountable for anything we do in this material world. And that means literally everything: thought, word, deed; the whole deal.

So, the question is not whether or not we are accountable: we just are. The real question is whether I myself acknowledge that accountability and act accordingly to change behaviours or whatever might be necessary.

To be honest, I truly feel that we all very often fail, sometimes even refuse, to even see the consequences of our actions, and therefore fail to make those necessary corrections or changes. Certainly you can put me high up on that list.

So, the big question: Do I feel ‘obligated to explain, justify and take responsibility for [our] actions and to answer to someone [for the consequences of those actions]? (Thanks Dictionary.com for the help here) That someone is very often yourself, or a partner, family member, work colleague, friend. You get it.

Personally, I would say definitely yes, sort of, sometimes. The problem comes up on those occasions when I fail to see, as I noted above. Now, again being very truthful about myself, I would say that most of the time I am aware of my actions, even when I’m not able to control them. But, still being truthful, I am often guilty of picking on the wrong stuff I do and end up blaming myself for innocent actions, and blissfully ignoring the other kind.

I am very big on taking responsibility once I’m aware of a not so good consequence or behaviour, or whatever. Of course like everyone else I do at times defend the indefensible. I’m particularly good with that sort of thing: it often takes me a long time to wake up. Not as long as it once did, but still.

In my attempts to live an authentic hermit life, I think naturally and, through my spiritual practice, meditation, study, and contemplation, not to mention self enquiry and heart level honesty, steadily making progress.

Like I said, being accountable is not the question. It’s about realising that I’m accountable and that I am thus responsible for taking whatever remedial action necessary. And it goes without saying I am also accountable for the consequences of those actions too.

Phew. That’s quite enough of this particular little episode of self enquiry. Okay. Just one more thought:

Remember my last post (I Think, Therefore I suffer. Sometimes) ? About how I was able to divert the ‘poor me’ thought train, to let the ‘I’m really and truly blessed’ express to roll on through? Well it occurred to me that this is a terrific example of accountability. Remember thoughts count as actions too.

I had the negative thoughts, which lead to the consequence of an onslaught of maudlin self-pity. and even in that sad state I realized that there could only be bad stuff come from that self-pity if left to fester – and it might not just be me who gets entangled: self-pity makes vibes, an atmosphere, and that affects everyone.

No, that was not going to happen, so other thoughts kicked in. In other words, I made changes: my thoughts of ‘woe is me’ transformed into ones of gratitude and acknowledgement of my true position.

Essentially I saw the consequences of my actions (or thoughts), realized at some level I was accountable to myself and others for those consequences (actual and potential), and I took action. As I said, this all was going on inside and happened in a flash really. Still, I am still witnessing the consequences of that little incident of being accountable for my actions and acting accordingly.

Enough I think I said? I realise that I have gone on and on and not given thought to the consequences to you, the suffering reader stuck with said verbosity. So, as a responsible hermit who has taken a vow to be a bit more silent at least sometimes, I will stop this post without further ado.

PS Just in case you’ve missed the previous posts in this series:
Part 1 The Introduction and overview
Part 2 Simplicity
Part 3 Purity

With These Words … Part 3

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Well here we are at Part 3 of the mini series in which we’re looking at whether or not my ‘philosophy of life’ might be well described by living according to the vows used by many contemporary nuns and monks and that are a reinterpretation or evolution of the traditional vows.

As I’ve mentioned, I haven’t taken these vows, but when I learned about them (Simplicity, Purity, Accountability, and for some, Presence.) I thought I’d look at how well I live up to the life they dictate.

So, welcome. And if you haven’t yet seen the first two parts, please feel free to have a look at them. Part 1 is a sort of introduction and overview, while in Part 2 I asked whether or not I actually do manage to live a simple life.

Well, do I? To be honest, it was a nice challenge looking at that question; I mean it got me thinking about the reality of my life (like the rest of these posts will as well, obviously) and I would say yes, I think I do live a quite simple life, especially in the context of the dominant culture we live in, and society’s demands and pressures.

Anyway, time to get on with the next part of our little exploration.

Purity

Purity. It’s one of those words isn’t it? I mean, probably all of us think we know what it means, but it’s not a word we use on a day-to-basis is it? It’s a word we’d use rarely if ever to describe our behaviour or approach to life. So, what words do I use then?

Which reminds me: purity gets a bit of a bad rap I think. It’s often used to describe standards imposed by some group, or authority, a moral code thrust upon us, from someone or something outside of ourselves.

For me, Purity is really about my approach to life, to myself and other living beings, to the world, to everything actually.

So, with your permission I will try for the rest of this post to use words and ideas that actually mean something to me in my daily life and in the way I try to live.

Clean is a word that comes to mind. It sounds strange (and redundent) to say, but I try to live a clean life. Obviously I bathe regularly, wear clean cloths and try to not spill stuff too often. But, you might not know this, but clumsy is my middle name, so, yes spilling stuff is a curse I live with! (I just had an orange and I think more juice ended up on my shirt than in my mouth).

Now, actually that’s a good start: I mean to say, we’re all fallible beings; we all have things we can’t quite get right all the time: Pu … oops … the P word is a concept to hold on to in an aspirational way; it’s not a hard and fast set of rules or standards where I’m in a I am either, or I am not, scenario. Actually it’s very much to do with the present, but that literally is a story for another day isn’t it?

How else do I try to live clean? Thinking. I try, consciously, and all the time, to practise clean or we can say right thinking. Right thoughts about others, whether I like what they do or not. Right attitudes to others too are important aspirations for me as well.

To be truthful I’m not yet at the stage where I could say that having right attitudes to others has freed me to neither like or dislike people, situations, or whatever. Perhaps now and again, but certainly not all the time. Like everyone else I’m attached to my likes and dislikes, to my prejudices, and biases. As I said, it’s aspirational, something to work on continually.

Part of that right attitude, as well as living clean, is having a compassionate approach to other living beings. Meaning that with my actions, thoughts or behaviour I try to do as little harm as possible. Actually, it’s more than that: compassion for me must be an active thing, not just a vague feeling or intention informing my life.

In other words, I have designed my life (diet, clothing, transport, thinking, and the rest) so that I cause no more death or harm to any living thing than I can possibly manage.

Of course I realise we human beings are simply one more species among the many millions sharing this planet. Nothing any of us do in any sphere of life (our actions in the world, our thinking) can be accomplished without an impact on our fellow dwellers on Earth. All we can do is what we can do.

Aspiration. That’s what it boils down to for me. Did I mention it (you know … P) isn’t a you are or you are not kind of thing? Like the other P word, presence, it has at its main characteristic an ongoingness; there is no time when we can say I am P … .

Nor will there ever be a time when we can say in a way that that’s actually truth, ‘I give up, It’s too hard. I’m never going to be P… .

Which leads very nicely to Accountability, the next of our words to live by. But let’s get into that next time! Thank you sharing this time with me.

Peace and love

Lighting Candles, Learning Lessons

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Not many people know this, but I’m a big fan of clichés. Not always, only when they serve a purpose, make a point, illustrate an idea, or have some other relevance or meaning. I remember an occasion when I witnessed a perfect illustration of a favourite cliché.

Once, many years ago I was sitting in a café in the Himalayas on a late monsoon afternoon when the clouds hung low and the lights were on so people could see. Suddenly, the lights went out.

A collective groan from the full café: people writing in journals, reading books and so on (no smartphones or laptops in those days), had to stop what they were doing. Although not an uncommon occurrence in those parts, lights going off was a bit of a pain for us spoiled tourists.

Anyway, one of the waiters fetched some candles, and began lighting one on each table. I think there were perhaps ten tables. I watched him as he moved slowly around the packed, but tiny café. As he lit the candle on the very last table, the electricity came back on.

Again the collective sighed, this time in relief, as light flooded the café. I heard one voice say something to the effect of: ‘he shouldnt have bothered, I mean the lights came on eventually’ .

‘Well, you know, if he hadn’t made the effort to make some light for us, maybe the power wouldn’t have come back so quickly’, I commented casually.

Another collective sigh and murmurs of, ‘Yes true’, and ‘far out’, ‘never thought of that’ and ‘so profound’. All this as response to some off the cuff, random remark by me.

And the cliché?

Its better to light a candle than to curse the darkness.

This cliché goes so well with something I like to say that has become a bit of cliché in itself (because I say it so often):

Just look at what you can do, not what you can’t do.

Of course, I didn’t invent this one, but still, to me it makes sense. For example, In the little scene described above, we couldn’t do anything to turn the electricity back on, but one of us (the waiter) could fetch and light some candles.

At Dictionary.com, it tells me that a cliché is:

a trite, stereotyped expression; … usually expressing a popular or common thought or idea, that has lost originality, ingenuity, and impact by long overuse.


Rubbish I say! Overuse? Why does using something a lot make it bad? Why should an idea or thought be robbed of its meaning or power, simply because its been around for a long time? There’s no need to overthink the topic; I’m not saying we should always use clichés. But at the same time, clichés have usually become clichés because they are true, or say something in a succinct and accessible way.

Anyway, this post isn’t about grammar, it’s about lighting candles and looking at and realising what you can do, and not cursing the darkness and being pulled down by thinking about what you can’t do.

Does it help? The lighting of candles? The realising of what you can do? Sometimes yes, sometimes no. Nothing, not even a cliché, is perfect.

Love and blessing from me to you.

With These Words … Part 2

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Namaste and Welcome to Part 2 of this little miniseries in which I hope to tell you some more about my ‘philosophy of life’. So before we get underway with Part 2, bear with me as I quote for you the last couple of paragraphs from Part 1.  (If you missed that part, you can find it here.)

After describing the vows traditionally taken by monks and nuns of various traditions (poverty, chastity, obedience, and in the case of monks and nuns committing to a specific place for life, stability).

I explained that I recently discovered how these vows have evolved for many individuals and intentional communities, and how I thought that newer interpretation summed up really nicely the way in which I aspire to live.

One renewed version [of the vows] is: Simplicity, Purity, and Accountability. In the place of Stability, there is now Presence.
While I can’t say I have taken these vows myself, it’s occurred to me that, put together, they do make a fairly precise set of principles that could be said to apply already as I attempt to live authentically as a hermit.

My idea was to look at the vows one at a time to test whether they do in fact represent the way of living I aspire to. Anyway here in Part 2 we will begin with Simplicity

Simplicity

Fingers poised. A whole lot of thinking going on. What to say about simplicity? It’s not as simple as it sounds; actually it’s quite a complicated concept. Certainly it seems that way as I begin to try and define what it means to me.

At its core it really means I live as simply as I can in a world not designed for simple living. Friends of mine have a motto: ‘Simple Living, High Thinking’, which I like a lot, and which fits with my own life.

Of course a simple life starts with looking at what one needs to live a good life which would be defined by one’s own unique needs, occupation, health, age, and all kinds of other personal factors.

For me I’ve found  that it’s not really that much. Over the years I have more and more pared down material possessions; I’ve become adaptable in terms of living in small spaces (and now actually prefer it); my diet, while extremely healthy and interesting, is very simple as I’m not always always looking for variety or new ‘taste sensations’.

I buy very few clothes; again I’m not interested in having a lot of new stuff all the time, I’m very practical and just buy what I need and I am always neat and tidy (well most of the time!), and adequately clothed.

I don’t have a car, though I have in the past. Lots of reasons for this, but essentially it’s a much simpler way to live, even if sometimes I might think it’s complicated not being able to just jump in and drive anywhere you want. A car can be a big responsibility, expensive, and a pain to take care of. Certainly for me it’s been a relief, not owning cars.

My entertainments are also simple. I don’t watch TV because it’s a terrible distraction and I’ve found it’s mostly a tool for marketing of all kinds, with very little of any real value to offer.

Of course, we all know how big a distraction the Internet can be, and I’m just like you: I get sucked into scrolling and into mindless videos and the rest. I’ve found it’s a case of self discipline: sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. I try to use it as the wonderful tool it can be.

I think I mentioned somewhere else that I haven’t been to a cafe or restaurant for several years. They just don’t seem to hold any attraction anymore.

I guess this could go on and on, but basically living in simplicity is an attitude thing. And for me it’s been very much an evolutionary thing too. I try not to draw up pros and cons lists and analyse to death decisions on what to do, buy, eat, and so on. I don’t always succeed naturally!

Simplicity exists alongside the other topics we’re discussing here: they somehow work together to make a whole life. Going for the simple things sort of becomes natural to some degree. I hope that becomes clearer as we go along.

Another thing I will say about simplicity is that it’s a less impactful way of living, both personally and for the world as a whole.

Of course there are quite a few things that can’t be avoided in a world designed to make everything as multi-layered, material thing and fashion obsessed, and as profitable and ‘productive’ as possible. And simple doesn’t always mean cheap, though it has to be said that I live on quite a small income by our culture’s standards, but I would also have to say I don’t think I lack anything materially.


Actually another factor in this simplicity discussion is time. And I see now I’m using a lot of your time with this ever-lengthening post. So, before I go and get ready for Part 3, let me just say something quickly about Time and Simplicity.

For many years my health, my inclination to travel, my aversions to ‘the ways of the world’, and my tendencies to want to create, have meant I haven’t spent a lot of time in the mainstream of working life. And now I am retired.

So I believe I’ve long been given gifts of time in one way or another. But of course, just like everyone else, I can be quite good at putting the words time and pressure together. Again it’s an attitude thing that we’ll most likely talk about when we get into Presence later on. Which sounds like an oxymoron.

So, until next time

Peace and Love from me to you.

Controlling the Mind: It ‘Ain’t Easy

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Namaste friends

It’s so true isn’t it? The second you sit down, close your eyes and try to relax (or sleep, meditate, or just to get a little quiet) your mind jumps into high gear and suddenly there are all kinds of thoughts zapping all over.

Well, of course it is perfectly normal and nothing to become frustrated or annoyed about. Certainly you shouldn’t go thinking you’ve failed or are ‘doing it wrong’.

That’s been my trouble for a long time: if I wasn’t able to ’empty’ my mind then obviously it was something about the way I was going about it. I was the one making a mess of it.

In the last while I’ve started to realize that it’s the mind’s job to keep itself busy. In other words you’re never going to stop it thinking.

The best we can hope for, I’m learning, is that we come to the point where we see where the thoughts are headed, and we’re able to gently, kindly and without fuss, refocus attention back onto our breath or whatever aid we use to help us focus. It’s not so much about pushing the thoughts away or trying to stop thinking. It’s really about putting our attention somewhere else

And then what might happen every so often is a time, usually only a few moments, when you’ve reached beyond your mind’s reach.

Meanwhile, don’t worry about where you are headed. I can’t find the exact quote, but Swami Ramdas also said something to the effect of

Once you set your feet upon the path you are already at your goal

Like most things in life, the journey itself is where it’s really at.

Pouring tea can help focus the attention

With These Words … Part 1

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Namaste friends

At this early stage in the life of this blog, no doubt most visitors will really have only seen the Welcome and the About Me pages. The question I’m asking myself is what else can I tell you about myself and my life that you can’t see for yourself on those pages?

Well, I realized that I’d already, on another blog, shared some insights in a kind of miniseries of posts that speak about my philosophy of life as I call it. So, join me as I get into Part 1.

By now you probably worked out that I call myself a hermit. Perhaps I have explained what I mean by this somewhere else on this blog, but in a nutshell being a hermit to me means living a quiet life, without a lot of physical contact with other people; I visit shops and other businesses and so on, as little as I can manage. For example, I haven’t been to a cafe, restaurant, or other social gatherings for several years.

Just one of many hermitages we’ve found by the side of the road. This one way out in the desert country in Australia’s Outback
(Painting by my partner hermit Pauline)

Of course there are more esoteric or spiritual aspects to being a hermit, and I’m very much aware that it’s this spiritual quest side of things that is really the driver for the way I live. A quiet life lived apart from the world, means less distractions, more quiet, more time. All are great helps.

Obviously given the times we are living in right now, I’m far from the only one living a hermit life. At least I am blessed in that my way of living is by choice. At the same time, I’m actually quite excited to watch as the people of the world begin to slowly get back out there and into life again.

As no doubt I’m mentioned somewhere else, I was born with a nomadic nature and soul. So in a real sense it’s a pilgrimage I’ve always been on anyway. So perhaps I might be back out there on the road sometime soon

In the truest sense of the word, I aspire to live like a monk: A monk in (sort of), but not of the world you might say. However monks (and nuns) usually live in community, in a monastery or convent. It’s true to say that life with my partner has me living in community, though it’s only the two of us. Then there are the few places in cyberspace where I encounter and interact with others.

It’s well known that many monks and nuns take a number of vows when they join their communities. Traditionally these vows are: Poverty, Chastity, and Obedience. In many cases the additional vow of Stability is added, binding the monk or nun to a particular community in a particular place.

I’ve never been comfortable with those vows, so I’ve never made them. But as I have progressed in my spiritual journey, I have taken vows of various kinds. Mind you my vow to silence is having a hard time of it with me! As for the love part of this vow: well, that’s also a work in progress.

Anyway, recently I’ve been reading about communities (some religious, some secular, but always made up of people sharing the same or similar values, goals, and missions) who, also uncomfortable with those traditional vows, have reinterpreted them in a way that sits more comfortably.

That renewed version is : Simplicity, Purity, and Accountability. In the place of the vow to stability, there is now what you could say is a more precise concept: Presence.

While I can’t say I have formally taken these vows, it has occurred to me that, put together, they do make up a fairly precise set of principles that could be said to apply already as I attempt to live authentically as hermit, monk, and pilgrim!

Please join me in Part 2 (appearing soon) when I will put this theory to the test.

Peace and love from me to you