It took us 12.5 hours to drive from Sunnyvale California to Portland Oregon.
So often we drive to a destination, wanting to get to it as fast as possible and so we miss the chances of discovery, of the things we can learn from the journey itself.And as you know, I am more interested in self discovery, the study of the mind.
After about 2 hours of driving, I was experiencing back aches. Then shifting to the driver seat, the pain was less noticeable. The mind was now concentrated on driving and so, the suffering disappeared. The mind is the cause of our suffering, once we stop having an aversion toward a physically unpleasant sensation, then it starts to fade away.
At some point on our way, we got an alert of a crash on I-5. My first reaction was, oh no, now it will take even longer to reach home. Observing my mind I realize what a selfish thought it was. How could I even think on my own needs when people could be injured or even dead. The moment I became aware of this unwholesome thought, a change was possible. Then I could pray for the safety of the people involved in the crash and send blessings to them. Then I could feel grateful for just being alive and safe
“Yoga is the journey of the self, through the self to the Self” (The Bhagavad Gita)
