Traveling light...

Travel only with thy equals or thy betters; if there are none, travel alone.
-The Dhammapada-

I sent this saying to a friend because of his misadventure while traveling with wrongly chosen mates, but I got to thinking that maybe the Dhammapada was talking about more than a trip to Europe, Asia or Latin America. Maybe The Dhammapada was referring to the Ultimate travel. And I got to thinking, how many time I have journeyed through life with inappropriate traveling partners rather than trekking alone, weighing myself down and adding baggage. I suppose there is such a thing as traveling light. They say show me your friends and I’ll tell you who you are, umm, who was I? Something else interesting to ponder.

I am not a fan of words like better, as it presupposes, class, distinction and judgment on worth. Nobody is better or less than anybody else, this, I truly believe. That being said, I do believe that some people are better aligned with who we are and who we aspire to become, and others head in a slightly different direction. Not a better or less than direction, just a different one. Traveling alongside people who are on a different journey can only lead to one of two things, or both. The first is that you will be swayed off course and the second is that the journey will be much more difficult and painful than it was ever meant to be, kind of like hiking the mountains of California wearing flip flops, been there done that, not my most enlightened decision or the most pleasant way to experience the beauty of nature.

Today, my traveling companions can be counted on the fingers of one or two hands. There are many out there who are my equal and more, I have simply yet to meet them. And so equals and betters I hope our path cross someday so that we may travel together at least part of the way. Until then…

This brings me back to you, who have you been traveling with and are they equal to or better than your best self? If not or when in doubt, don’t forget, that keeping it light, at least for part of the way, is always an option.
Happy journey,
Live fully, live kindly,
IVC