Why These Walks? (ramblings...)

A question I'm being asked is, "Where did the idea for these FNM Awareness Walkabouts come from...?"

For 15 years now I've been the caretaker of Fear-No-More Zoo in Northern California. It's a relatively modest facility and probably always will be. Fear-No-More Zoo, to date, gains most of its support from the smallish group of devotees of Adi Da Samraj. The Zoo continues to need more support in order to realize its potential, so we have a strong need to outreach to others... among other things these walks, and this blog, help promote that need.

Part of my responsibility is to grow the Zoo, build it up and maintain it as an integral part of the nascent spiritual culture of Adidam. Adi Da wants Fear-No-More Zoo to be a different kind of thing than the zoos we are accustomed to. He wants it to be "not merely an animal zoo" where people visit and just look at animals. Adi Da holds animals in high regard as profound spiritual contemplatives, and he wants FNMZoo to be developed as a means for the integration of human and non-human cultures, resulting in one diverse sacred culture where beings and life forms of every kind are recognized as equals, at heart... this recognition of all beings as a broadly diverse and single cultural process is the future (and present time) potential of "Earthkind", seeded here in the form and process of Fear-No-More.

This vision and responsibility is given into a culture of spiritual beginners, most of whom grew up in cities of the western world without generally much contact with animals and nature beyond domestic pets and vacations into the mountains... so part of the challenge in my service is how to support the integration of Adi Da's Vision of Fear-No-More into the human culture of the gathering around him... and out beyond... how to bring this into peoples' lives and how to foster the emergence of, ultimately, a one-world, many species, culture.

I've employed writing as one tool to serve this process. Photo images and video is another vehicle being further developed, thanks to Andrea Schwab. In the future we'll be conducting presentations and weekend retreats about the Zoo, the camels and the walks. And these new Awareness Walks are another avenue to bring Fear-No-More out into peoples' homes, out into the streets and parks, giving anyone the opportunity to actively participate with the Vision of Fear-No-More no matter where they are.

The Walks are also an attempt to simply raise awareness and financial support for the Zoo and animals directly. This is an important focus of the Awareness Walks -- honoring the source through tangible support.

My initial foray into these walks took the form of a first attempt walk of about 1500 miles up into Montana... an impulsive gesture just to kick things into gear. Somewhat humorously, I returned after just a day of hiking as the zoo, and I, were unprepared for such a long walk.

The walking momentum was soon converted into a process of monthly walks, involving more people, walks that virtually anyone can participate in, that one can tailor to one's level of interest, fitness and schedule. It's evolving organically and, on the first weekend of each month, we've now got people around the world getting involved in these walks... some walking for a whole day or two and others walking for maybe an hour or two... to bring the Vision of Fear-No-More alive in our lives and in the world, one step at a time.

There have been heroic awareness walkers in this country and abroad. People like the Peace Pilgrim, Shivapuri Baba, Mahatma Gandhi and others. Incredible achievements by incredible individuals, but few others were able to participate with them at those levels, without also giving away their entire lives -- something not everyone is ready for!

The Fear-No-More Awareness Walks allow anyone who can walk, or roll :) , to participate in some way. Rather than merely watching, inspired, as Peace Pilgrim criss-crossed North America, we can all get out and walk together, inspiring others to do likewise.

Our inspiration for doing this is the advancement of a world where all unnecessary fear is minimized and even, perhaps, eliminated. This sounds naive and idealistic because we have no real experience of such a world. We've all tasted it, smelled it and wanted it. But it can't happen unless we all participate. This is not about the elimination of all fear... some fear has a useful place in active life, a healthy function. Fear-No-More addresses the chronic fear that cripples an otherwise free life. This is both a spiritual and practical issue... and a lot of such fear can be handled and eliminated even just on a practical level.

As a kid I had elaborate plans and maps made up for a walk I was going to do around the globe. Over the years I've had a recurring impulse to do something like these current walks in relationship to Fear-No-More Zoo... but I never felt ready... so I'd keep putting the impulse away...

Recently, a friend unknowingly touched me deeply in a certain way. Soon after I knew I could now begin walking for Fear-No-More with a clarity and simplicity not possible before... & gratitude.

I hope these walks for Fear-No-More will be taken seriously by others and gain a momentum beyond my own. These walks are for all of us... for the non-humans, the rivers, mountains, trees, birds, horses, spiders, the moss... and for rocks, earth and sky.... they are not for me, they are for you, us, all of us, as one culture of the Earth.

We can put aside race, culture, religion, gender and species differences. As Adi Da says, "These are man-made, I say." We are Earthlings... one diverse, inter-related, process... family. Will we ever live together intelligently, harmoniously, cooperatively, and in a manner that liberates the world from the crunch of unnecessary fear.....?

A tree can do it... grass can do it... some people can.... so why not all of us? why not me? or you?

The results of not doing so, or not even trying, might be sad...

stuart