Effortless Swimming

The following is another musing I wrote in a moment of clarity somewhere along the path:

"Tao is forever flowing."
-Lao Tzu

Comforting words from a wise man. The water we travel upon will not evaporate, yet we dare not stick our hand over the side. We fear that which lies below the surface.

For the few swimmers that have braved the waters of the Tao, the rewards have been many. They have taken that leap of faith in a quest to understand their souls. However, everything come with a price. Karma exists to maintain the balance.

There is no turning back when one has take the 'plunge'. To do so would result in a life of unfullfillment. We can only swim forward to better our lives and awaken our spirits. What we leave behind we don't really need. Ignorance, lies, anger and fear are manifestations of the conscious mind that exist only to weigh us down.

To swim in the Tao is to swim in purity.

"What we leave behind we don't really need." Obviously if we really needed it, I'd suppose we'd take it with us. I wonder, though, how much is really necessary to carry us through this world and how much is just excessive baggage we cling to for comfort. Many people own a vast amount of DVD's, yet only ever watch a handful of them more than once. The rest take up space as a physical representation of a memory of feeling once experienced. Is not the memory or feeling enough? Why do we burden ourselves so, when in the end we all know it turns to dust?

It's okay to let go. One swims faster and further with less to carry.