The Wandering Mind!!

How many lives.... how many times.... how many dreams, have I seen myself wake up in the middle of nowhere to behold the  infinite mountains and valleys that stretched out in my view? 

The pristine valleys lazing in the early morning haze, the fresh mornings sparkling with the dew dripping from the leaves, the sunlight peeping out of the clouds and from behind the peaks, the crisp morning air that I feel within my lungs, filling my mind with myriad possibilities and thoughts.

Quoting the words of Marcus Aurelius - "When you arise in the morning, think of what a precious privilege it is to be alive – to breathe, to think, to enjoy, to love."

Men have always been wanderers and adventure seekers since eternity, but with advancement of society and changes in lifestyle, this aspect of life is now more an aberration rather than the norm.

I am not a follower of religious scriptures by any means but merely interested in it from a historical perspective. Often mythologies and religious scripts offer a vision into the past; about the ordinary people, their environment &  and the thought processes that shaped the destinies of the era when they were documented.  

Wonder why many of the mythological protagonists were men who traveled far in pursuit of knowledge, wisdom or other material gains??

The search of unknown and exotic lands and exquisite adventures have many examples scattered through time;

- Hieun Tsang traveled from China to various corners of Ancient India in pursuit of Buddhist knowledge and took back the Buddhist Preaching and Scriptures to China.

- Christopher Columbus went looking for India and found the North American continent instead. Even a missed turn can have significant historical consequences.

- Vasco Da Gama found the trade route to India from the west and ended up opening it to European (Portuguese, French & British) invaders which in hindsight proved to be of immense benefit to the sub-continent and the root cause of today's "Outsourcing". Karma is really a bitch - Isn't it!!

The passion for adventure has ended up shaping the contemporary world into what it is today! Adventure travel is the fulcrum around which the history of the world pivots.

Now let us forget mankind for a moment. If you take the dominant animal species who live in herds as humans do, the males particularly are excluded from the group when they reach a certain maturity. These male groups then usually wander over territories forging for food and gain experience. This helps them during drought situations. The Alpha males survive and thrive from the experience gained. They use this to win over herds and lead them.

Imagine a world without boundaries and fences. I know, I know... It's utopia and we are not ready for it yet, but just imagine for a sec. And imagine a world where every young individual coming out of college spends a year travelling the world and living within and understanding other cultures. Well!!! THERE is your solution to a Jerk Free World!!

So once you ditch those text books, swing on that backpack and set sail for those unknown lands... Enrich your lives!!

Travel is Rebellion in its purest form. 

We follow our hearts and free ourselves of labels, 

We lose control willingly, We trade a role for reality, 

We love the unfamiliar, We trust strangers, 

We own only what we can carry, 

We search for better Questions and not Answers, 

We truly Graduate.