(Posted by Emily Effner)
Would you ever consider solitude a constructive endeavor?
It’s a good question. You could find yourself saying, “Yes, I can see that”, but you could equally find someone of the opposite opinion: that it has no value, is wasteful, is selfish, or foolish.
The concept of Solitude struck my interest when I found a seminar offered on the eremitical (hermit) tradition at UCSD. What was there to learn about… hermits? What constitutes a hermit? They are like outcasts, but are sometimes highly regarded in certain societies. What are they to our culture? How can someone be so actively apart of society, and then just comfortably disappear?
A book by Philip Koch called Solitude (Chapters 1 & 2) clarified a great deal of the mystery and appeal of solitude with what he called the “5 Virtues of Solitude”:
(basically these are themes Koch identified in famous writers who sought solitude, such as: Lao Tzu, Plato, Jesus, Dickenson, Thoreau, Hesiod, Emerson, Muir, Rousseau,.. )
• freedom to think in whatever fashion you'd like, beyond all social constraint: no longer having to be that predictable person we share with the world. And beyond all social obligation that otherwise would be present if anyone else was there.
• attunement to self; to finally hear a clear voice in your head that is recognizably your own. An awareness of thought, feelings, and emotion (devoid of censorship) to understand the reason behind your own judgments, opinions, and actions; Perhaps a point where you are entirely honest with yourself. An ability to achieve a sense of ‘wholeness’ (or centeredness, completeness, etc).
• attunement to nature; it is extremely common to acquire a more sensitized perception of the world around you – namely, nature, when in solitude. A loss of of the sense of barriers with it (where we actually feel apart of it), and an incredible appreciation.
• a reflective perspective: involves a thoughtful approach to the elements of experience. To just quote Koch: “The more given to reflection a person is, the more a philosopher: and when, in addition, the objective of reflection is a connected vision of the whole reality, we have a philosopher in the strongest sense of the term”.
• creativity: goes beyond all the previous 4 mentioned. ‘It imposes a programmatic ordering upon its freedom of action’, ‘ability to gather disparate elements into the conceptual statement. ‘ To go farther.
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Another great read, and great for discussion:
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So my fellow Bohemians, what do you think? Do you agree with these categories set forth my Koch?
Do you think we are often infected by what is “normal” in our society?
Do you think a person who can fully welcome interaction & as they do solitude, is in any way enlightened?
What have you ever gotten from solitude?
Do you think as human beings we fear to be ourselves or to be alone?
