-Buddha https://www.brainyquote.com/topics/path
What road are you travelling on to this destination you headed for? Are you travelling the road of "More", the road of "Attachment", the road of "Resistance" , the road of "Distraction" or the road of "Endurance" like so many of us are?
Huh?
The Road of "More"
So many of us take this road. The road of more is a road that never ends. You know this is the road you are on when you get to the "Welcome to..." sign that was your goal, to find that it says, "...now go to the next sign for more."
It is like you set out with a mini destination in mind. You are so hopeful that it is the destination that makes everything right...the place where you will find peace, joy and happiness. When you get there, however, you realize you have to go on further. It is not the end of the road. It in itself is not enough.
The place with its sign might be a job you strived to get, a certain income, a certain relationship, a certain amount of recognition or praise. You stepped and stepped and stepped, strived and strived and strived to reach this point, only to find that it is not the 'special place' you were hoping it would be. When you, exhausted and out of breath, reach one sign after another...you are just told to go on further. You have to work longer, harder and do more to find that happiness you are looking for.
The thing is...on this road to more, you will never get "there'. You will never get to that 'special place' by striving, and doing. You may get a momentary sense of peace, of joy and of the happiness you are looking for as you stand huffing and puffing below each road sign (below each achieved goal, accomplishment or attainment)...but it will not last. You will realize you have not yet reached your destination. So you will seek more and feel the need to keep travelling along the road you are on no matter how tired you are getting.
The Road of Attachment
The road of attachment is like walking on a magnetic field. We become magnetic and cling to everything we encounter along the way. Stories, ideas, and beliefs stick to us. We cling to the things of this world we feel we've earned on these journeys or what we have been told is necessary to carry. We carry with us many things to explain who we are and where we have been.
Needless to say, this road is a challenging one. It is painful. The more that we have stuck to us, the heavier our loads are. Our vision also becomes blurred by the physical world things that are stuck to our eyes. When things are pulled from us, we feel the sting and the pain of separation and loss. So we are either gasping for breath under the heavy loads we are carrying or feeling the sting of loss. Yes it is a difficult road that many of us insist on taking.
The Road of Resistance
Or maybe you are taking the road of resistance? If you find yourself having to thrash away at whatever is in front of you...clearing away all the unpleasant brush of life that springs up on the path before you with your mental and emotional machetes , this is the road you are on.
"No! No! No!" is the swooshing noise your cutting instrument makes as it thrashes away at everything each moment of your journey offers. "I have to get up there so get out of my way!" is the mantra.
Everything before you becomes something you have to clear a path through and with the blind momentum of a seasoned thrasher, you see nothing but that which has to be cleared away. The purpose of each moment is just to get it out of the way so you can get to some moment you mistakenly believe is up ahead.
This is exhausting!!! The machetes are heavy to carry and the work required to cut away the moments of your life drains the body and the mind.
The Road of Distraction
Awe, are you on this road? This is road that is full of distractions. With these distractions all around we do not have to feel the pain of each step. It is a path that offers numbing pain relief for the blisters and bruises we have earned in the past. It also blurs what is up ahead.
It is an enjoyable path to be on at first but eventually the distractions begin to overwhelm and over take us. We can get lost very easily. It is path that takes us around in circles, exhausting and painful circles. Addiction can become the only thing earned on this road
The Road of Endurance
Many of us are on this road. This is a very long and painful road. It is a dark and narrow one as well. On this path we choose, on some level, to endure the darkness and pain without hope of experiencing light and relief. It is a road many martyrs travel on carrying with them the false notion that the willingness to travel such a way will bring recognition and reward. It is also the road those who feel unworthy for more or those who feel they deserve punishment travel on.
It is a long road and a very sad one.
So what road are you taking? So what road are you on now?
Some times we go from one road to another in an attempt to get to the special place. I have travelled on everyone of those roads for at least a bit until I ended up here in front of this wall. Hmmm! We learn a lot about our destination when we realize what road we have chosen.
First determine what road you are taking and then you will have a better idea about where you are intending to go.
It is all good.
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