The Pedestrian Mystic
Historically, the term pedestrian referred to anyone traveling by foot, either walking or running. It was not uncommon for even Olympic level runners to be referred to as pedestrians. Now we tend to utilize this term as an insult. Like many things in our culture, we often confuse basic simplicity for lacking depth. This irony should not be lost on runners and endurance athletes.
Those of us who run and walk for exercise know deeply the level of knowledge, respect, study, and appreciation a person has to possess to truly accomplish the title, “Pedestrian.” It was upon hearing someone insult someone else’s idea as pedestrian that my lovely wife, Holly, pointed out the need to reclaim this term. She pointed out that we have dedicated our lives as spouses, friends, therapists, and spiritual seekers to the simple and everyday. The foundation of our lives together is rooted in a form of ordinary living. We are pridefully pedestrian.
Reclaiming the Pedestrian
My spiritual life is the one thing which influences every aspect of my identity. I am a Buddhist practitioner as a husband, friend, therapist and athlete. This dedication to living a life as a seeker has inevitably found its way to my study of movement. I always want to be able to find the mystery in any movement and a way to live the questions created by this embodiment. To deepen this process, I dedicated myself to developing the idea of the pedestrian mystic. Reclaiming the Pedestrian requires you to be a seeker of movement, connoisseur of cadence, and a practitioner of the novel.
Here, we are not only attempting to reclaim the pedestrian as any of us moving our feet. We will also access pedestrian mysticism as a way to find the profound in the mundane. Anyone with a background in endurance knows the divine connection found in the repetition of one foot in front of another. In this way, pedestrian mysticism becomes our dedication to learning and maintaining a beginner’s mind.
Simple but not easy
We can take the simplicity of running and turn it into our Zen practice, our contemplative prayer, and our offering to mother nature. We create our own rituals and creations that honor the universe both inside of us and outside of us. Pedestrian mysticism teaches us that movement reduces duality. We become one with everything around us by simply committing to the pedestrian.
I implore you to look at the austere parables of Zen Buddhism, among other wisdom traditions, which teach us to stay curious and still while connecting to our embodied experience. Fear not if you are unfamiliar with these traditions. Finding yourself in the discussion of having a body is forever deeper than finding yourself in the traditions. For your intuition, connection to experience, and exploratory nature which led you to a pedestrian mystic life will forever show you more than anything outside of you ever could. I am thankful to seek alongside you.
by long-term Team RunRunner Chaz Franke. In his words: “I know more about being a Buddhist and being a therapist than I do about being a runner, but I love looking for overlap between spirituality and movement.” Stay tuned for more of his writing.