“For me, the lame part of the Sixties was the political part, the social part. The real part was the spiritual part.” – Jerry Garcia
It may very well be that the attempt to control forces outside of themselves led to the downfall of the first Hippie movement. As noble as their intentions may have been, the fight against the war and the political powers that pushed it forth may have played a big part in diverting their energies from the inner journeys which guided them toward the ideals of peace, hope, and community in the first place.
All these years later, wars are still being mounted and political powers are still pushing them forth for personal gain. And yet there is also a renaissance of those ideals of peace, hope, and community burning in the hearts of people all over the world. As we see the same mistakes being made by the political powers, trading only jungle for desert, let us not fall into the same routine and make the same mistakes, but realize the magnitude of the inner journey. For the changes we long to see in our society and our world will not be made by the force of brutes, but by the power of the spirit.
This is not to say that we should not be against war, pollution, and political corruptness, but that we should be all the more so for peace, natural living, and integrity. For these are not political aspects, and trying to force them to be so will only end in disillusionment, as we have already seen. The fight we must wage is for our independence from the folly they engage in, seeking a revolution of spirit and a solidarity of purpose which will guide us toward the future we envision.
Steve McAllister begin_of_the_skype_highlighting end_of_the_skype_highlighting
In addition to serving as Managing Editor and contributor to Modern Hippie Mag, Steve McAllister is an actor, musician, accomplished author, filmmaker, and the man behind Your Daily Groove. His most recent novel, The McAllister Code is available as an e-book at www.themcallistercode.com. Find Steve on Twitter, @InkenSoul. Read his reviews and articles here.
Steve McAllister, Modern Hippie Mag's resident Lifestyle Guru, describes himself as a Renaissance Man. An author, filmmaker, songwriter, and perpetual artistic experimenter, he has recently re-released his second book The Rucksack Letters into paperback to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the journey. His latest book, a comical foray into philosophical science fiction, is How to Survive an Estralarian Mind Meld. His latest artistic project is The Labyrinth of the Unbroken Path. .
