The Mindful traveler- paths to a more fulfilling journey

 

Many of us are currently making plans for travel during the summer. But…have you ever come home from travel and felt strangely empty and unsatisfied? A disquieting sense that you’ve missed something, didn’t get what you were truly looking for?

One way to plan the best experience of any excursion, whether it’s a quiet evening walk around your neighborhood or halfway around the globe- is to know what you are truthfully seeking. This is revealed by knowledge of your soul path.

There are three essential Soul paths and therefore three kinds of awarenesses and three kinds of fulfilling experiences. After reading the description below, see if you can determine which is your dominate soul aspect. Let me know if you are uncertain. I can help you discover your Soul path with a few questions.

For more in-depth exploration of the three main soul paths, check out the first River Book:

The River Books- Three Soul Paths: Inner Awakening to Outer Becoming

https://www.amazon.ca/River-Books-Three-Soul-Paths/dp/B0GCDMWVV7/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0

 

The soul paths are named after basic elements of our world-Earth, Air and Water. Each soul path represents aspect of the Self. We have all three aspects within, and to bring these parts into brings inner peace and fulfillment.

Earth: the doing aspect, the producer, the manager of finances, security, hierarchies that support order and survival, often depicted as the male part or the father archetype. The perspective of “I”, taking care of the needs of the individual. Focuses on action, productivity, and survival through individual will and discipline. In its immature expression, this aspect leans towards grabbing control and power over people, situations and the environment.

Air: the relational aspect, the lover, the manager of emotions, connections, developing relationships that are harmonious, compassionate, often depicted as the female part or mother archetype. Perspective of “we”, signified by compassion, love and the caring builder of communities and families. In its immature or imbalanced expression, this aspect will be undecided, easily manipulated by others, unable to set healthy boundaries, provider of malicious gossip and toxic involvement in other’s lives, often under the guise of helper.

Water: the spiritual aspect, the part that interprets experience in a big picture context. The part that integrates trauma, gives meaning to life, sees deeper meaning in life events, reveals interconnections, the knowledge and experience of unity, embodiment of oneness, often depicted as the wise elder, crone, magician, the archetype of the wise child. The view of all that is, the protector of oceanic knowledge of oneness. Centers on intuition, and holistic vision through wisdom and numinous knowledge. In its immature expression, this part can be the ineffective day dreamer, the spiritual by passer, a spiritual manipulator, the venomous religieuse.

We are predominately of one soul paths. We each have a home path that determines basic qualities of our personality, life goals and perspectives. Then we have a secondary path and finally the least expressed aspect is the third path. Our life goals are interwoven with seeking to experience life from all viewpoints of the soul paths, offering a full experience of production combined with compassion and a vision of the whole.

 

The next session with the channeled fellowship called the River took place shortly after I had returned from a four-month journey to Asia. I came back feeling disappointed. I was hoping for more meaningful spiritual experiences, and although I visited many temples, and met with spiritual teachers of many different traditions, no one was able to give me any wisdom or guidance that was valuable. I was awed, certainly, by the antiquity of many sacred sites but they left me untouched at a deeper level. I was a tourist, a player in ancient cultures, but no wisdom was transmitted.

When I came back home, exhausted and recovering from an illness that stayed with me for most of my travels, I visited the River with my questions about world travel. Their answers surprised me.

 

River: Any awareness is influenced by a myriad of factors- going deep into the genetics of your being, lifetime experiences, past lives, ancestral themes and so forth.

The three styles of learning are based on soul paths. The first is the Earth Way which is the worldly experience, an appreciation of making, producing and creating systems and hierarchies.

The second learning style is in the Water Way, a style of learning through spiritual experiences. This is an appreciation of archetypes, sacred places, big picture thinking, a search for meaning and the significance of the individual within universal themes and lenses.

 The third kind of learning experience is the Aire Way with attention to arts and beauty. This style of learning will appreciate architecture, art galleries, beautiful gardens, attending dances and other dramatic presentations.

These styles of learning say it all and says nothing. They are ways of turning the key in the door, you may turn it one way or the other. For example, the Earth Way worldly types learn by physically analyzing the world, using diagrams, charts, and machines that measure materials. That is their key, with this perspective, they have glimpsed one way of understanding.

(The Water Way traveler will look for sacred places, sit in spiritual sites and contemplate the deeper meaning of their travels. The Air Way journeyer will want to connect with people by chatting to strangers, attending dramatic performances, and will be intrigued by emotional stories and dramatic presentations of love, betrayal, family and community.)

Remember there is always the interplay of intentionality versus thought. One must have one with the other! If you have one, then you have only half the experience. Then you are only mentally engaging with your travels as an observer. Without engagement in action of some kind during your journeys, your experience becomes cold and meaningless. You are not satisfied because you have not caught Soul, you have not feed that part of yourself that wants to grow, evolve and experience deeply.

When you are both parts of full experience, intention and active engagement, then you grab Soul and take the next step which is always action. If you are only listening to the bird’s song, then you are only getting one half of the message. One half of the message is “I notice bird song!” Then with further reflection ask -what else is in the Bird’s song? Maybe the message is “I sing too”, then simply holding the experience as “singing!” , the unity experience that is wordless and profound.

It is not necessary to teach others this technique in a formal way. There are many ways to communicate how to teach others. Where to start? Take notes with the eyes of a hunter. Reflect on the prey, what does this experience, site, event, mean? Go hunting with no intentions, no expectations, interpreting in a myriad of ways that are all appropriate. Then your spiritual practice is to ask! Then return to quietness, the route back into the self and home.

You are coming home every day from your travels with an enhanced experience of Soul!