Exploring the Road Less Traveled

by Brett Jones

“We all face death. Few face life.”

Exploring introspection can be somewhat enlightening: It’s easy to see the futile efforts of the many who run their lives on automatic and keep getting the same results over and over again. Equally, it’s also easy to see the upward climb of those who align with the divine nature that exists in the universe and how their lives are rewarded for doing so.

 
Exploring the Road of Awareness

That road of awareness is becoming more popular and in fact, it’s becoming obligatory. We all can see that our planet is sick if not dying. We can all see that our political system fails to deliver a healthy food or medical system that is not profit driven. So a moment of awareness leads to one conclusion. There must be more than accepting the status quo as an individual, if we are to see global change.

Once that awareness dawns and we begin our ascent on the path, it’s obvious that to change the world I must be the change, to paraphrase Gandhi. My own personal journey to wake up was one that caused turmoil; at times the progress was slow but it’s a bit like peeling an onion. If you accept that there will be times when you wish you had stayed asleep, then you can keep moving forward. The alternative is to accept the ego’s solution, which is what got us into trouble in the first place. So at an individual level, what do you need to do to awaken?

The Tao Te Ching, the ancient 3500-year-old sacred document, has some advice:

Tao exists in one’s own true self. It cannot be found outside of one’s true nature.

Hence, there is no need to leave the house to take journey in order to know the world.

The Tao is the real self within, as distinct to the ego, which also exists within you. The essence of awakening is to bring the real self to the fore, rather than remain unconscious and allow the ego to determine what you will do.