How To Buy Enlightenment
The wonder of travel
I am triumphant, sitting alone at metal table under red umbrella and basking in the glow of a mission well-accomplished. It’s just started to rain, so I’m trapped here, but the street guitarist I tipped keeps playing, and I have nowhere to be and nothing to do. I smile (and take a selfie and post it to my instagram story, because of course).
I’ve just found and eaten the most delightful tacos of my life after a whirlwind journey to find an ATM, buy water to get change, and walk 30 minutes in the dark across a foreign city. I was aided by Google maps, the recesses of my memory trove of Spanish lessons, and one line in an email from a former colleague who is from Mexico City, where I have just arrived:
“Tacos al carbon. Los Picudos. (By far one of my favorite taco places, they only take cash, ask for a volcan with costilla and salsa especial, downside is that it is in a non-touristy area).
Buying tacos might not sound like an epic journey, but I was traveling.
No one I encountered spoke English. I was staying in a residential condo far from the assistance of any hotel staff. A neighbor let me in and gave me a house key as planned, but the building fob that was supposed to be inside was nowhere to be found. No one was responding to my texts, so in order to leave (or rather, to get back in) I’d stolen my host’s car keys, found the car, and mercifully located the fob after rummaging through it.
It definitely felt like the beginning of a quest.
The meaning of life
Whatever your best guess at the meaning of life is, I’m willing to bet that traveling can bring you closer to it.
Want to get to know yourself (and any companions) on a deeper level? Travel.
Face - and overcome - obstacles and anxiety, thereby cultivating confidence and competence? Travel.
Broaden your perspective beyond your own culture and economy, realize we’re all connected and fundamentally the same, and develop genuine empathy and gratitude for humanity and our world? Travel.
Gleefully enjoy all the decadence and beauty this world has to offer? You guessed it - travel wins again.
Decision Mode
My morning routine was out the window. There’s no gliding around like a zombie on autopilot when traveling, especially when you’re staying in someone’s home and not the familiar blueprint of a Western hotel. And when her five cats, three of which you were not aware of, are clamoring for breakfast.
My first order of business was to find coffee, but there were multiple decisions to be made before this typically basic start to the day. Where to buy it, what to wear, what to carry on my first day exploring a new city? (Journal and sunscreen - yes; ipad and backup credit card - no.)
Unless you book a guided tour - which I’d attempted but abandoned after being asked to send advance payment via an app I’d never heard of to a personal checking account (to avoid credit card fees and business taxes) - decisions must be made constantly when you’re traveling.
Strangely though, I didn’t suffer from decision fatigue. Making choices has a way of fostering a sense of autonomy. You feel in control, proactive. And when you have to pivot, like when the breakfast spot you Googled looks a little too local for your gut biome, you reinforce your resilience.
Navigating a complex situation - which can include getting yourself fed when navigating a foreign country - is psychologically akin to achieving a goal. And achieving goals alleviates anxiety and boosts self-worth.
You don’t have to travel to travel
Of course, you don’t have to leave your hometown to overcome obstacles, meet someone who challenges your assumptions, or test your relationship.
There are other ways to learn and grow. Reading is an especially handy way to hallucinate nearly anything, and it’s infinitely less taxing on your body and wallet.
But travel is a reliable shortcut. There’s a reason it’s a core component of advanced education programs across the globe and of our most enduring religious and literary stories. A hero isn’t a hero without a journey.
Plus, unless you live in a very large multicultural city, it’s the only way to experience the full authentic flavor and aroma of all kinds of cuisine.
Journey to yourself - and beyond the self
When new experiences and observations pummel you unrelentingly, it overwhelms the normal (and useful) human tendency to compartmentalize and dissociate. You’re immersed, all senses heightened - whether you like it or not.
Traveling yanks you firmly into the present - no meditation app required!
It also strips away your ego.
No one knows or cares who you are, where you live, what your job is, or how much money you make. With your identity fungible, buried or unexplored parts of your self can start to emerge - your true self, safely distanced from others’ expectations, your roles and obligations, and the image you’ve established.
Efforts to fit in or feel important can be released. There’s no need for emotional reactivity or defense mechanisms if someone affronts you: you have nothing to prove.
It’s not just an intellectual exercise - enlightenment is a state of being.
And it’s a lot easier to perceive, even for a fleeting instance, when you’re traveling.