The Power of Solitude
Solitude
The idea of being alone scares many people, as the concept of it is often perceived with a filter of negativity. And although I do agree that we human beings as social creatures require interaction in order to function properly & healthily in our daily lives, spending time away from the herd by ourselves can benefit our wellbeing immensely.
So let's explore the power of solitude & see what it can truly bring to our lives.
"Without great solitude, no serious work is possible". -Pablo Picasso
In this day & age, (and quite possibly throughout the ages) our current society does not seem to like loners, as the fast-paced consumerism driven society that we live in cannot stand non-participation. People who prefer to be alone, such as introverts like myself, for some reason seem to invoke suspicion. Usually, we are ridiculed with comments such as: "He must be a crazy person" or "nobody likes him", etc.
And thus, such assumptions breed mistrust and mistrust turns into fear. After all, it's not uncommon for loners to feel the sense of certain people thinking; "Is he preparing for a terrorist attack?", "Is he a serial killer choosing his prey?" or maybe "he/she is actually a witch".
And to further this, people who have a preference to be alone tend to be portrayed as a villain in pop culture, such as Mojo JoJo from The Powerpuff Girls, Plankton from SpongeBob Square Pants, Baron Zemo from The Avengers & The Joker from Batman to name a few.
So given society's bias disliking to loners & solitude as a whole, does this truly mean that solitude is bad for you? Not at all. In fact, some of society's greatest thinkers & revolutionaries got us to where we are today, because of their ability to harness solitude as a form of energy to power their creativity.
Fortress Of Solitude
Since ancient times, Buddhist monks would periodically spend time alone, away from the monasteries to seek refuge in places of peace such as in caves, forests & mountains to deepen their meditation practice. Sometimes the search for such solace can last for several months at a time, but the monks knew that such an extreme form of isolation was not a form of self-abuse.
It is however, a way of testing & strengthening the teachings and practices taught to them in the monastery. But more importantly, it is also a testament of their understanding that happiness comes from within & that it does not require the presence of other people.
In fact, another great thinker who proved what the monks knew about solitude was right was none other than Nikola Tesla. The brilliant inventor, electrical engineer, mechanical engineer & scientist was a life long bachelor who made great & profound contributions to the world. Moreover, in order to optimize his creativity, Tesla was known to have secluded himself away from the rest of the noisy world, which resulted in him having razor-like focus.
And it is not only just scientists & sages who recognize the importance of solitude, many artists & authors also spend time away from society to further refine their work on their projects. After all, the great Spanish painter Pablo Picasso once famously said that: "Without great solitude, no serious work is possible".
Ease, Stillness & Peace
Solitude, if used wisely, can be a blessing. In fact, it can even be the secret formula to unlocking happiness, health & success that we so long for. By spending time alone and using it as an opportunity to reflect upon one's life, we may be able to gain insights & wisdom about certain life events, situations, or even about ourselves that we couldn't have possibly known at that moment.
Now, another benefit of solitude is the increase in productivity. Like the artists & sages of old, spending time in deep thought with oneself allows us to channel our undivided concentration into our work. We are able to fully immerse ourselves into the tasks at hand, unhindered & unobstructed by the distractions of other people.
However, we must be extremely careful when giving ourselves such freedom in solitude, as shutting ourselves away from people temporarily in order to be productive, usually presents us with the temptation to fill our minds with other forms of distractions such as binge watching series on Netflix, swiping left & right on dating apps, diving into the endless rabbit hole of funny memes & clips and seeing what our friends are posting today on social media.
As uncle Ben famously said; "With great power comes great responsibility", so it is up to us to make our time spent in solitude worthwhile. If we take care of the minutes, the minutes will take care of the hours.
Rest & Recover
Productivity aside, solitude doesn't just benefit performance. It also puts us in a position to explore, as well as embrace ourselves. A beautiful & scientifically proven mental exercise that helps us to open up our minds to possibilities & calm is meditation. Meditation is the practice of observing one's thoughts, as well as bodily sensations.
It allows us to slow down, to be aware, and to truly observe our natural self, unhindered & detach from any form of external bias, such as the expectations & opinions of our family & friends. Thus, realigning ourselves to the calm & peace allows us to make better life choices in the near future.
Furthermore, if we learn to appreciate our own company, we also become less dependent on the need for validation from other people in order to be happy. Some people have a tendency to cling onto others, even if the person that they are holding onto are not good company for them to say the least.
Many people tend to stay in toxic relationships due to the fear of being alone. But if you learn to be truly happy & content by yourself, then walking away from anyone who's not good for you is easier than you think.
What's more, an often overlooked aspect of solitude is the cultivation of love. Now this may sound strange to many, as we assume that the only way to cultivate love is through human interaction. However, the key is that when we're alone, we allow ourselves to spend time away from a certain group of friends or co-workers which makes us free from in-group preferences.
This allows us to see a much broader view of the world & gives us the opportunity to cultivate love for a wider range of different people. An excellent way of achieving this is by practicing Metta Meditation, also known as loving-kindness meditation. It is a Buddhist practice which evokes benevolence, love & kindness towards all beings in the universe by helping us to focus & visualize our honest and good-willed intentions of helping the world.
After all, as Napoleon Hill famously quipped: "If you can believe it, you can achieve it".
Summary
So in summary of our journey, if you want to be more compassionate & kind, more loving & productive, more mindful & more joyful, then consider embracing & harnessing the power of solitude.
Thanks for reading!
Yours Sincerely,
Satori Café
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