Freedom is a deep core value in us all. At our hearts, we yearn to experience pure life, the eternal essence that lies under our daily routine. Men especially desire to feel the emptiness of life, the beautiful core, the sacred silence.
The four levels of freedom:
World: Our modern world presents many complications and distractions that can pull us away from our true essence as animals on this planet. We are more and more distanced from the outdoors and our roots in the wilderness. Taking ourselves away from modern comforts frees us from dependence on cars, electricity, computers, phones, etc. We can remove ourselves from the daily distractions of news, politics, wars, entertainment, and T.V. In the wilderness, we become more present to the subtle simplicity of life—we feel more relaxed, open, and in touch with natural order and balance.
Society: The next level of freedom relates to the complications of living in varied and complex societal constructs. We can get trapped by the rules, customs, laws and structure of life. We think of ourselves as American, Californian, middle class, etc. We are labeled by others as White, Republican, poor, important. Rather than feel our true selves and discover our own essence, we fall blindly into categories. Further, we subject ourselves to the rules and standards of our society. Of course society and its rules and customs has an important role in our lives to give us structure and organization. When we travel deep into nature, we can see what lies below.
Peers: Surrounded by our peers, we perceive ourselves through the eyes of others. We look to our family and friends for acceptance and trust while closing off our own inner voice and guidance. Rather than cultivate our personality through connection to spirit, we often take on qualities that get us love from others. We might think of ourselves as funny or smart or clever because we can gain acceptance through these qualities. The level of freedom missing is the unearthing of our personality through experience, growth, challenge and introspection. In nature we get a huge mirror in which to look out ourselves without the influence of others.
Self: The deepest level of freedom is felt when we transcend even our own notions of self. As we grow up, we learn quickly to separate ourselves from our surroundings. We develop an ego, a personality, a sense of being different. In our lives, we dissociate the physical world from the mental world, often living in our minds and not in our bodies. Most of our time is spent thinking and planning. On a spiritual journey into nature, we can easily and powerfully realize the interconnection of all things. We can lose our own sense of self and open into the vast purity of oneness.
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