level 7: alone

I've entered the seventh level of the waterfall and come halfway up it. After the steep boulders of the sixth level, there's a period of respite in the seventh level. The valley is a little bit less steep for a while, and one can hop amongst the boulders quite readily. It's a beautiful place.

But just now, I'm really feeling this aloneness. I've been sensing it more and more coming up the valley; leaving behind society; leaving behind material comforts; friendships; really, all that is comfortable about human interactions. On our spiritual journey, there are times when we have to step aside from all that. And we have to go alone into the wilderness. And that's very much how this level seven of the waterfall is feeling to me. It's so difficult to get here, with those elements of rock climbing, wading or swimming through pools. So, I've never seen anyone else up here, except for the one time last year when I brought a friend, and this is about as far as we came – level seven.

Yeah, for me, this is a place of deep aloneness. And it's in these moments of aloneness, that we actually have the best opportunity to make real contact – direct contact – with existence, with god. You know, being social, interacting with other people, is a beautiful part of life. And there's a lot that we learn, about being human, in those situations. But there are also things that we can only learn when we are deeply alone, profoundly alone. And of course, for some people, there's a great fear of being alone, that loneliness can come.

I feel fortunate. I've never suffered greatly from loneliness, and certainly since I've been moving deeper into my spiritual journey, loneliness no longer arises, and I really celebrate times of being alone. And this is one such time.

I've come to the top of the seventh level, and I can already see that this is as far as I will be going today. Here there is really a gorgeous pool, and one of the most beautiful waterfalls in the whole valley. The water comes over an overhanging boulder – huge boulder – crashes down, spray going everywhere. And under the overhang, there's a lot of mossy greenery. And as I look at it to the left, there's a steep, smooth slab. And that's the way to climb from the seventh to the eighth level.

It's not going to happen today though. It's one of the most difficult, and potentially dangerous, pieces of rock climbing in this adventure. And the smooth, steeply sloping rock is only passible when it's dry. But we've had some heavy rain over the last week or so, and it's still seeping out of the mountainside. And that steep, smooth rock is mostly damp today. In one place there is a stream running down it. So, I'll have to leave that for another day. It's a beautiful, if rather scary, little section of this adventure.

For today, though, I'll just sit and enjoy the majesty of this waterfall and deep pool. It's stunningly beautiful.