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Travel as Meditation
by Katherine Robertson
It's
June, and children are cheering because "school's out for
summer!" Travel brochures clutter dining room tables: "Where
shall we go on vacation?" So begins the high season of travel.
A travel destination shows you your fascinations, your
curiosities, even your deepest longings. But a destination alone
does not a journey make.
A Trip Becomes a Journey
Hidden in the literal experience of "getting away" lie the
challenges and opportunities of the mythological Hero's Journey.
Travel can become a meditation when you use its gifts to become
more present - with yourself, your life and your world.
Phil Cousineau, whose book The Art of Pilgrimage has been
my close companion on the road, names...
Seven Stages of the Journey
- Longing: Honor your quiet yearnings - to see, to touch, to
listen, to walk in another place.
- Call: Listen for what beckons you - a dream, a knowing, a
loss, a wake-up call.
- Departure: Let yourself go. The time has come.
- Pilgrim's Way: Surround yourself with what you do not
know, to see yourself with clearer eyes.
- Labyrinth: Welcome surprises - encounters, delays,
obstacles, weather. There is pleasure in them all.
- Arrival: Look around you. Where are you? Why are you here?
- Bringing Back the Boon: Share your treasure. Tell your
story.
Journey Stories
This time last year, I heard the call. I finished a challenging
project, put my things in storage, and embarked on what I could
only call a walkabout. I planned to be gone for a couple of
months, yet I could not see myself returning.
53 year-old Frederic Wiedemann resisted: "I refused to listen to
the call for the longest time because it scared me, because I
knew it meant leaving my partner, my work, salary, friends, a
beautiful home, everything."
For Mike Killeen, a 45 year-old Chicago business-owner, "The
idea was to get the hell out of Dodge, get away from my job,
where I felt really overwhelmed and deadened. The idea was to
escape."
Frederic finally set out alone to backpack in the Himalayas.
Mike was called with his cameras to the untamed, unfenced
landscape of his Irish ancestors. I found myself in the South of
France in the middle of September, and never left.
It is not, however, necessary to close your doors for
Transformation. For Diane Doe, 55 year-old writer and owner of
Boulder import store Worldly Goods, her buying trips to Bali are
her way to go deeper: "I meet people and get into the families
and get into the deeper culture and slowly shed my belief
systems and open up to other belief systems. I travel to stay
open."
Letting Go of the Shore
Being present in travel means opening yourself to what surrounds
you - immersion. But leaving the familiar first takes you into
what Cousineau calls the Labyrinth. Diane calls it the Dark
Night of the Soul:
"For the first two weeks, I am working but I'm still getting
more and more immersed in the culture; and shedding, shedding,
shedding as I do business, because I do business with families.
Then I'm immersed and open, but there's always an initiation to
reach that place - the feelings, the heart stuff."
When Mike first reached Ireland, he was paralyzed with fear:
"For the first couple of weeks, I couldn't get out of bed. It
took time to shift. Once we got settled, all that stuff started
falling away and I could then turn my thoughts to where I was,
what I was doing, what the sky looked like."
When the fog clears at last, pay attention. This is what you
came for - the treasure you seek.
Returning with Treasure
Mike brought home his wild Irish garden in black and white,
along with a new sense of himself and humanity. "I learned how
alive I could be. I learned that fear had shut me down from
experiencing the world. And there wasn't much to be afraid of."
Frederic is trekking still, and dancing his story in wonder:
"When I've just woken up and the sky's a little gray, the test
is how present I can be to the wonder and the beauty that is the
miracle and the magic of the Universe."
Diane continues learning the language of the heart: "In the more
formal structures of meditation, we're taught that it's an
opening to an experience bigger than what is locked in our
bodies. I find that traveling is really a living, breathing
meditation in all its aliveness."
And I am trying to paint with words the qualité de vie I
am learning in France.
If you listen, how you travel can show you how you live. As you
contemplate destinations, consider the spiritual journey ahead
as well.
Tips for the Road
- State Your Intentions. Before you leave.
Knowing why you're going is as important as knowing where.
- Choose Your Companions.
 | A Talisman: Keep a symbol of your intention with you.
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| A Journal: Create something special. Record your
thoughts and feelings. Join each scene through sketching.
Collect mementoes for pasting. |
| A Camera: Notice what attracts you. Focus on details.
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Go Deep. Choose one or two destinations.
Adopt the customs. Develop a routine. Get to know people.
Plan and Let Go. Leave enough space in
your plans to be surprised.
Use your Body. When you lose your way,
get physical. Take a walk. Dance. Swim. Practice Yoga.
Take Risks. Do one thing each day you're
afraid to do - for fun.
About the Author:
Katherine Robertson
Katherine Robertson is a freelance writer living in Los
Angeles, California. Her work has appeared on ABC, PBS, The
Discovery Channel, The Learning Channel and the Web.
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