Path Without Destination: An Autobiography

I love this book. Most of us may have a vision of how we could save the world, and then promptly return to our normal routine. Mr. Kumar remains faithful to his vision of seeing the good and expecting the best of people, of spreading Gandhi's message of nonviolence, and representing a life of treading lightly on the earth. I hope more people read this powerful book, which is why I put a link to it on my website's "Reading" page.

Kumar claims to have been destined at birth to be the child of "unfulfilled wishes," born in a time of unrest in both India and the world. His walks, which he began at the age of 9, are the waterways where his beliefs flow and ebb, sometimes stronger, sometimes a trickle, but always moving. Although he admires the trees under which the Buddha found enlightenment, he himself cannot seem to settle. I found this to be an inspiring book ending with the principles by which he lives; not so much an instruction book of how to live, but it itself the gentle pilgrim sharing his stories in a less smelly and more conveniently printed format.

The very first paragraph will captivate most readers. There is a lot of life and a little magic in the author's introduction to his autobiography. I had never heard of Satish Kumar, and most people probably never will.But the very idea that a man would walk virtually around the world carrying a message of peace, says a lot about the potentiality of mankind. In my own view, a pilgrim was someone on a spiritual odyssy who brought peace as a consequence of their actions. Kumar seems to have accomplished this in a reverse manner. This is, to me, evidenced by his motives and in his writing. His story is well paced and and an enjoyable read. It is educational and informative - in a delightful way, where other books omit translations and accurate portrayals of custom, they are not lacking here. His honesty about himself requires the reader to at least attempt witholding judgement 'till the final page is turned. I found myself traped, particularly early in the book, in preconcieved notions about the mans emotional lacking. I even found the book to be rather emotionally flat, during the first half, but it did not dampen my desire to see it through. In retrospect, it seems that Kumar treated the aspect of the books emotional content as a reflection of his life's emotional content at the time. As the book comes to closer to it's conclusion, the author finds his heart. The finale chapters will leave you in awe, whether you agree with the author or not, you will know that he found his heart.

I discovered Satish Kumar when I read his interview in "The Sun" magazine. His discussion there prompted me to buy this book. I'm glad I did. Kumar writes, "sacred stories heal wounded souls" (p. 173). In this autobiographical collection of "sacred stories," Kumar describes his own way through life as "a journey without destination . . .it was as much an inner journey as an outward one . . .it was a journey into detachment . . .I was a wanderer, wandering through life . . .living from day to day, from inspiration to inspiration" (p. 100). In Chapter 5 of his book, Kumar remembers his 1962 peace walk, without carrying money or eating meat, from Delhi to Moscow, Paris, London, and then to Washington, or in his words, from "Ghandi's grave to Kennedy's grave" (p. 103), and then back to Delhi in 1964, where "the moment of beginning and ending became one" (p. 103). Along the way, there are notable encounters with Khrushchev, Bertrand Russell, and Martin Luther King. Later, in Chapter 9, Kumar recalls his friendship with E. F. Schumacher ("Small is Beautiful"). It seems Kumar finds a "sacred story" everywhere, in milking his cows, Radha and Hazel ("for me," he writes, "milking was meditation"), to reflecting upon trees: "How much I can learn from a tree! The tree is my church, the tree is my temple, the tree is my mantra, the tree is my poem and my prayer" (p. 178). This book encourages the wanderer in each of us to search out our own "sacred stories." G. Merritt

I loved this book from start to finish. Kumar uses simple sweet and pure language to describe his walking journey which entails both outer countries and his own inner truths he discovers on the way. The only time I was mildly disinterested is when he stops walking to live in a house he buys for his family. I felt like I had stopped walking with him. A flowing inspiring story not to be missed.