Wednesday, April 16, 2014

The Tao of Distance Running - #48





In the practice of the Tao,
every day something is dropped.
Less and less do you need to force things,
until finally you arrive at non-action.
                                                                            *



~
There is a pureness to running - and a grace in steps let go. Through miles we are
stripped to the bareness of the self. Pure and with the graceful stride of
our devotion we are simply runners now - motion given
temporary form. We leave behind thoughts that
bind us to the urge of more, faster, better.
Miles accumulate of their own accord and the speed of
our arrival is not of our concern.


In the flow of all things - nothing essential is left behind.
We give ourselves away.




  • Through distance we are stripped to essentials - physically, emotionally and spiritually. The need beyond the basics of the run are left at home.The weight of thought and opinion falls easily. Spirit is all we perceive. Running is the primordial expression of our being - stillness lent to motion for a moment of its grace. To experience the bare essences of the self we simply let go of all things we are not - from thought to form we drop all conceptions. What is left is beyond concept and can't be described - but we know it - we recognize it - it's who we are. Through distance we are stripped of all things but one - the spaciousness of our true nature.


Peace,
Eric




*Portion of the Tao Te Ching translated by Stephen Mitchell 










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