"The Lead Goat Veered Off"

A Bicycling Adventure
on Sardinia
by Neil Anderson

From the Publisher

The Lead Goat Veered Off is a travelogue that humorously describes a three month portion of the Anderson's European bicycle tour. The author's engaging narrative whisks the reader along as a silent third party to intimately experience Sardinia, Italy. This personal narrative is a joy to read, not only for cycle tourists, but, indeed, anyone who enjoys the thrill of vicarious travel.

Meaningful Quotes:

These people had something more precious than running water. They had 'time'. And they used that time to interact with others, to share the joys of small events, to be civil, and ultimately human. I saw people who still talked 'with' each other. They still had time to share. They still had time to laugh. They still had time to 'live'. They were living life in the slow lane. And it didn't look all that bad.

To end our enchanted day, the glowing orb plummeted into the sea as if to wash itself. I had to chuckle, with thoughts like that, maybe I too had gone too long without a shower?

The Lead Goat Veered Off available at Amazon.com

"Meeting the Buddha"

On Pilgrimage in Buddhist India
by Molly Emma Aitken

From Booklist

The earliest Buddhists were wanderers or "spiritual goers-forth," as Andrew Schelling writes in his engaging introduction to this unique collection of Buddhist pilgrimage literature. India is inlaid with holy places, from mountains, caves, and rivers to gardens, temples, and monasteries, and has long been a mecca for spiritual seekers of many persuasions. Buddhists and kindred spirits attracted to Buddhist teachings and practice find that traveling, especially walking, is a form of knowing, so journeying to such sacred sites as Lumbini, Buddha's birthplace; Bodh Gaya, where he attained enlightenment; Sarnath, where he first taught; and Sravasti and Sankasya, places of miracles and the commitment to spreading the dharma, are invaluable steps along the path to wisdom. Vivid and revelatory writings of pilgrims both historic and modern are gathered together in this handsomely designed and quite engrossing volume. This blend of the past with the present, the outer with the inner, reflects Buddhism's vitality. Modern writers include the Dalai Lama, Walter del Mare, Allen Ginsberg, Peter Matthiessen, Gary Snyder, Anne Waldman, and Kate Wheeler. Donna Seaman

Meaningful Quotes

For most human beings, for tens of thousands of years, home was quite literally 'on the hoof.' The hunter, the nomad, the rambler and finally the pilgrim. Perhaps it is no more than swift human intellect and our proud, strong legs following a primordial hunger to see what's around the bed, over the hill, or just upriver.

To some, this life of rambling and migration takes such a hold of the imagination that it comes to seem the one life worth leading - if only for some brief period, if only once in a lifetime.

For the pilgrim the road is home: Reaching your destination seems nearly inconsequential.

"If we look at the path, we do not see the sky." Native American saying

The Pilgrim resolves that the one who returns will not be the same person as the one who set out. Pilgrimage is a passage for the reckless and subtle. The pilgrim must be prepared to shed the husk of personality or even the body like a worn out coat.

Meeting the Buddha available at Powells and Amazon

Webfeed = spam-proof newsletter

A webfeed is a way for me to continuously “feed” you the headline of my latest post, with a link back to the full blog. That way you will know when I've updated the site, instead of coming back over and over to see for yourself.

Webfeeds give me a chance to update you all on my travels without filling your emailboxes with my newsletters. They are simple and they are also completely spam-proof!

Below are simple instructions to add a feed to Firefox, Safari & MS Internet Explorer:

Mozilla - Firefox - Live Bookmarks
Mac 101 - Lesson 20: Safari "View RSS Feeds"
How to Subscribe to an RSS Feed in Internet Explorer 7.0

For those not faint-of-heart, there are programs, extensions and add-ons that not only manage your web feed headlines, but can pull entire article contents to your computer without even going to that site directly. Just Google 'web feeds' and take your pick.

For my part, I will try to make my 'headlines' short and as descriptive as I can so you'll know when to come back for a visit to WanderingTheWorld.com [jim-wandering.blogspot.com]

"The Way of the Wanderer"

Discover Your True Self
Through Travel
by David Yeadon

Book Description

Beginning with a life-changing event in the mountains of Iran, and roaming the globe from the backcountry lanes of Yorkshire to the Australian outback, David Yeadon shares serendipitous encounters with amazing people, unexpected challenges, and near-death experiences. His stories illuminate the ways in which years of wandering have taught him to be open to experience, accept things as they are, live life to the fullest, and embrace his many "selves." These tales are filled with lessons learned from saints, sinners, fellow travelers, and everyday folk, and are accompanied by his own accomplished illustrations.

Meaningful Quotes:

...the magic of journeys and explorations is not to be found merely in the external adventures and discoveries - wonderful and terrifying though they are - but in the worlds that such experiences lead us to find within ourselves.

For some reason I chose travel as my stimulant of choice and catalyst of inner explorations.

...I chose travel as my conduit to these multi-selves. Real travel. Personal travel. Adventures and exploration. Endless. No finales, only preludes. The kind of travel that tingles and reverberates and resonates and sends symphonies of enlightenment and transformation rippling through our souls. The kind of travel that requires not so much exotic, distant places but rather some willingness on the part of the traveler to let go, to seek serendipity and celebrate uncertainty, vulnerability. The thrills of fresh discoveries, and the riches of inner journeys that recognize that their ultimate destination is ourselves.

Mountain Chant
In beauty may I walk
All day long may I walk
Through the returning seasons may I walk
On the trail marked with pollen may I walk
With grasshoppers about my feet may I walk
With dew about my feet may I walk
With beauty may I walk

“The dead are not those who rest in a cold tomb. The dead ones are those who have dead souls and continue to live. I am going away to an unknown country where I shall have no past and no name. And where I shall be reborn again with a new face and an untied heart.” Collette

“The wanderer is overcome by the joy of existence so that he can only laugh.” Tibetan Dhyani Buddha

Dying's not the risk – that's the sure thing. The risk is not living.

“All the answers are within us. But such is our tendency toward forgetting that we sometimes need to venture to a faraway land to tap our own memory.” Heinrich Zimmer

The more you see and celebrate the kaleidoscope richness in your own spirit, the more you're able and willing to celebrate the kaleidoscope array of other human spirits and, for that matter, our species as a whole.

You can find your own holy man within you if you open up to the secrets of others.

“You cannot travel the path until you have become the path.” Buddha

“Thou art a second world in miniature, the sun and moon are within thee, and also the stars.” Origen

“Spirit needs matter to become substantial – matter needs spirit to become meaningful.” unknown

“The wisdom of life consists in the elimination of non-essentials.”

Lu Yu-Tang

The Way of the Wanderer available at Powells and Amazon

"Live In a Better Way"

Reflections on Truth,
Love and Happiness
by Dalai Lama

Publisher Comment:

As accessible as it is inspirational, this selection gathers together a decade's worth of public lectures given in India to audiences from all walks of life. Following each talk are the original question-and-answer sessions, in which His Holiness opens himself up to his listeners and-now-to readers everywhere. His characteristically candid guidance on living fully and responsibly as we cross into a new millennium focuses on specific themes that range from religious tolerance to compassion and nonviolence. With a practical and highly readable introduction to Buddhism and the Dalai Lama's own spiritual heritage, written by Lama Thubten Zopa Rinpoche, this is the perfect book for seekers at any stage along the path of life.

Meaningful Quotes:

The practice of Buddhism can be summarized in the short phrase: "If you can't help others, at least don't harm them."

Patience offers you the greatest advantage and benefit in life, the best spiritual development. It transforms your mind, teaches you to be even more patient and abate anger.

The goal in life is not to harm others, but to benefit others. Make their life useful, free them from problems, develop compassion and wisdom to create greater happiness for others.

...contaminated seeds of disturbing thoughts and this is why it is the nature of suffering. A disturbing thought can only produce another disturbing thought.

Live In A Better Way available at Powells and Amazon

More books:
The Essential Dalai Lama
My Land and My People
Path of Wisdom, Path of Peace
Ethics for the New Millennium
Other books by the Dalai Lama