The Other Murray from New Zealand

Murray was born in New Zealand in 1952. Murray does not own a home or a car. Murray does not have a family or relatives. Murray is a wanderer, a nomad of sorts, living country to country. He has been to more than 80 countries, and when he runs out of money he works where ever he is, earns enough, and keeps going. I met Murray at my bungalow when I first arrived in Pai. While sitting in a hammock listening to tunes, Murray propped himself next to me and began talking for what was the beginning of a two hour lecture. He seemed like the kind of guy that if in New York City, would be on the Union Square steps on a Saturday preaching to who ever would listen. It started out with U.S. government (obviously), then went on to things like meditation, only eating things with seeds, the Vietnam War, being okay with transvestites, Ghandi, why the human body isn't made to digest meat, and so on. Over the course of this 120 minute one-way dialogue, my mind definitely wandered abit. I thought about things like the Giants' meltdown, my favorite VH1 reality shows, and how my roommate was doing at the NFL Combine. Then he said something that woke me up... he said, "Alex, there are two journeys going on right now with you. The one outside of you, all around you, every place you go... and one inside you."

I went on a journey with Murray the following day. I knew there was much to learn from him. We went on a three hour hike to a waterfall in the hills of town. It was a bit difficult to catch Murray's drift at first. Remember, he's a little loose hinged. He'd be walking, would stop and turn to a tree, and hug it. What was I gonna do, stand there like an idiot? I had to hug a tree too. He would start flinching and flailing his arms all over, just so his body would feel a different sensation. He asked me to sing to him, and wouldn't take no for an answer. So I hit him with some Lil Wayne, some Spin Doctors, some Oasis... all the stuff JD's dad would be proud of.

After an hour's walk, he stopped, turned to me and said, "Alex, if you do this trip correctly, you will not return home the same person as when you left." As stated before, Murray is a nomad. He once lived in a desert in Australia for three weeks, in total solitude, completely naked. He didn't bathe for 21 days, didn't wear shoes, and slept on rocks. He loved every minute of it. He built a hut in the woods of New Zealand and lived in it for six months, in total solitude, completely naked. When he needed supplies, he walked 90 minutes to the nearest road and hitch hiked to town.

Murray taught me, "You can't confuse the concept of 'what's right' with 'personal preference'. Too often, we proclaim our personal preference as "right". Yes, there are universal rights and wrongs... bombing buildings is wrong, 2+2=4 is right, and so on. What we prefer isn't right or wrong, it's just what we prefer... so it's what's right for us. But that doesn't mean it's right for everyone else. Throughout the day Murray kept preaching the idea of allowing the boy mind inside me to run free and play. "Alex, whatever you do with your life, no matter how old you get, no matter where you go... let the boy inside you play and be free."

Over the course of a full day and a half with Murray I learned a whole lot. What specifically, I am not quite sure. But you'll know as soon as I know. For a guy who's incredibly off the charts, who lives months at a time in complete naked solitude, who has no home or set job or family, he knows an awful lot about the world around him and just as much about current events. Smart... what a subjective word.

It was the end of a gloriously insightful day, and I didn't care to let him know that my name was Max.