The Path
A hard, bleached earth path through a golden field of wheat with a blue sky.
“There is the path of joy, and there is the path of pleasure. Both attract the soul. Who follows the first comes to good; who follows pleasure reaches not the end.
The two paths lie in front of [humanity]. Pondering on them, the wise [person] chooses the path of joy; the fool takes the path of pleasure.”
Katha Upanishad
It might seem silly, but I know for a fact that this golden path represents the choice presented to us in that Upanishad quote. It symbolises both the path of pleasure and the path of joy. I know this for a fact as I’ve walked both.
During the first walking through a field of wheat, I chose the path of pleasure. So devoted to this path was I, that I even invented the Religion of Cake. Not only did I invent this religion, but I actually won a competition for Best New Religion, as my lowest common denominator style of worship naturally resulted in the largest following. The world was happy until we all developed leaky gut and IBS, and then died an early death whilst suffering horrifically from diabetes and Alzheimers. It was shit, to be honest, even if it tasted good on the way out.
If you think about it, wheat makes it pretty clear that it is going to fuck you up if you try to eat it. I mean, look at their spiky, alien, abrasive looking selves: they are being upfront about how they are going to rip your intestines to shreds should you dare harm them. Oh you can mill it and bleach it and crack it and do whatever you like to it, but you’ll never process out that sharp, abrasive energy. It’s wheat’s essential state of being and a part of its genetic code.
Therefore, the second time I walked the path, I chose joy and by joy I mean normal poops, no bloating, no bubble guts, and no excruciating agonising stabbing pains. It was nice. Joyful in actual and literal fact. The way to choose the path of joy is to say, “hey, wheat, I refute thee and I give you to the birds”, and then you just kind of skip down the path going “wee, what a lovely day, look at the blue skies, and golden colours and wow, I’ve got so much consistent energy and vibrancy now I eat loads of animal fats and no grains and my brain feels awesome and my body feels strong, and wee, did I say, weeee life is amazing!” Etc, etc.
So there you have it. Not many people that would link The Upanishads to a very low carbohydrate diet, but that’s the great thing about being a Seeker with wide-ranging interests propelling you through life. Suffering may be inevitable, but it is not to be sought. Choose joy, people. Pleasure’s too short.
Listen to me read this story: