The first rule for travelling in China is
“Get over yourself!”
That’s right, if you have never been to China, you are going to have to radically alter the way you view the world if you want to enjoy it.
International travel is good for just about everyone. There is nothing quite like getting on a plane and stepping off into another culture. The more alien it is, the better it is from the standpoint of personal development.
This is one of the reasons that international travel, especially to non-western nations is particularly good for those who wish to begin self-cultivation practices.
You see, to make progress in cultivation, you have to radically change your outlook on life.
Most people go through life expecting it to comport with their wants, needs, and desires. When it doesn’t they experience all sorts of mental and emotional turmoil.
From their perspective it is life, their friends, parents, boss, employees, neighbors, government, church, or puppy dog that has let them down.
In reality, the problem lies in the fact that their mind has an unreal view of reality.
We live in an illusionary world. We pursue a fantasy. We think if they could “just have this, or just do that” everything would be better.
We are wrong.
Actually, if we could get over ourselves, everything WILL be “better.”
But how do we adjust our thinking?
Meditation is one way. Having a teacher “whack you” is another. A third is to do something that forces you to change the way you see the world. The best is to do all three.
International travel will force you to challenge the way you think. And as long as you are studying Chinese culture, you might as well go to China and enjoy the double treat of China and broadening your horizons!
(To be continued in part 2)
This is a really inspirational piece Shawn wrote and I cannot agree with it more. I cannot help but identify with the intercultural experience Shawn describes since in my personal life I’ve made a similar transition except the other way around: coming from an eastern culture (Russia) and adapting to the western culture here in the U.S. In short, it was definitely an eye and mind opener, probably the most significant experience of my life, aside from Kung-Fu. In the process of making this transition I saw many of my former beliefs, habits, mannerisms, and even facial expressions disappear or change in a hurry, like the skins on a snake or the leaves of a cabbage being cast away to get to the true core. As far as I could tell, it was a genuine transformation, not just skin deep monkey see, monkey do.
The other challenge when making a permanent transition to a new culture is acquiring new beliefs, habits, etc. that are just as hard to see through as the old ones. So, I guess, the recipe would be to keep switching cultures whenever possible.
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Boris,
Thanks for your insight – what a great post. Personally, I am not well-traveled and have lived in the DC area my whole life. But, one advantage of living in this area is that I have always had many friends from abroad. They continuously expand my horizons and challenge my assumptions. So while traveling may have challenged your beliefs, etc., travellers also bring so much to those whom they visit.
Carmen
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