A few years ago it was revealed in a numerology reading that my life’s path number was five – the path of freedom.

The truth will set you free

To live a life in truth isn’t always as straightforward as it sounds. It’s a bit like getting off the express super highway and stumbling out barefoot onto the hard and stoney, 'road less travelled' and there are far too few of us here for comfort.

It’s been a while since I left my job and the security that laid a beautiful roof over my head. After eight years, life in London and all that it had to offer a young girl had dulled, but in a chance encounter, my luck had come in and I happened upon the ancient teachings of yoga vedanta (the ancient philosophy behind the practice of yoga). A beacon of light had set my soul ablaze and all my instinct spoke out – here I had found my truth.

To recognise your truth is perhaps one of the most blessed and cursed experiences of this life. In this time old pursuit many have anguished over the quest to find meaning and purpose, however when meaning and purpose do finally fall into place, to live in accordance with those understandings can be an entirely different matter. After separating the lie from the truth and the material from the immortal you might start to experience an uncontrollable desire to change a fair few things... and of course, as with most change, not all folk will understand. Sadly much of this hardship will come from your closest friends and family. This is the lonely road where many walk in the pain of separation, outcast and estranged, ridiculed and hated but when you believe in pulling yourself out of the mire, every sacrifice is sacred and there becomes no other way of being.

Thankfully, for as much pain there is as much promise and there will be many newfound discoveries in which to delight in along the way. In my time as living ‘homeless’, I had come to realise that without an address there were now a fair few societal restrictions that could no longer apply (a top bonus if like me you’re interested in dicing along the thin blue line of the law).

When you cease to see the sense in society, in a world where basic human rights have become increasingly distorted, even something as simple as going outside can become a bewildering experience... perhaps even inciting a volatile protest! Imagine being denied entry to board a costly train because you arrived moments too late, only to watch it sit stationary on the platform for a further two minutes, dumbfounded to the heights at which ‘health and safety’ have reached.

When you’re on the other side, to think deeply about life can become an ever evolving experience and you might start to wonder why it is that others do not. One of the hardest things to contemplate is the plight of consumer culture, something which can bring about all manner of feeling ranging from disbelief to sadness to even outrage. For example, knowing that the existence and growth of major corporations such as the food, beauty, and pharmaceutical industries are driven through global demand and that these corporations seldom served to overcome suffering but exist for the proliferation of profit in sickness and addiction, simply because we continue to allow it. Is amongst the absurdities of modern society in which we now live.

Manipulation and control through institutional governance and it’s rebellion have gone hand in hand throughout the ages. But as we quickly move from one scandal to the next, frustration lies in the forgetting. Through art and film, lyric and literature despite every warning history has foretold, apathy has continued to prevail and can anyone really be blamed for that? In a centralised government, continuity of life as we know it and our attachment to the safety of the system is now so deeply rooted in survival, that there is so much at stake. And there are some pretty serious topics to contemplate… How would we cope with food shortages, a serious banking crash or a housing shortage? Self reliance no longer exists on our farms and we are so disconnected from the natural world, to whom would we turn¹?

While there is nothing that can really be said to someone who isn’t yet ready nor wants to hear, the wisest discipline is often the hardest thing to endure, allowing others their own rates of progression and growth and to stand patiently aside while much damage continues to be done. Could it really be that despairingly simple, to do nothing while government continue their steady march forward threatening our abilities to legitimately and successfully protest, removing every right while we contemplate our lot?

Yes and no and perhaps so, but my advice is not to do nothing. Every scripture has taught us that the most powerful impressions we can leave this world are simply to live from truth because we can not choose freedom for anyone but ourselves. In my experience, the road less travelled is the beginning of the ultimate path to freedom. It is arduous by nature and not everyone will understand, you may lose friends, family, respect and livelihood, perhaps it will be the hardest and most difficult choice you will ever make. But know this – there is a deep satisfaction in every step and this will be many times worth your effort. Because what could be grander than the grandest vision, than in the creation of our new earth together.

1. Since leaving behind major aspects of the system six years ago, I have spent this time supporting and being supported by a rich diversity of natural and urban communities here in the UK. If you would like to know more, please leave me a message in the comments and I will be happy to share more of my experiences with you.