Solitude is frequently described as a state of discomfort and without meaning…however for those who can feel a deep relatedness to life,solitude is often a preferred way of spending time.
We are socially conditioned to identify with a separate self or image which creates a need to belong to our social environment,and identify with their imposed belief systems…just as our separate self is an illusion,the need for belonging and also identification with the acceptable social beliefs only compromises our integrity.
For those who realize they are irreversibly related to life,the social beliefs and the fiction of separateness are no longer taken seriously and the pleasures and spiritual awareness of solitude becomes very precious…it is paradoxical that through solitude we can transcend separation.
Language… has created the word “loneliness” to express the pain of being alone. And it has created the word “solitude” to express the glory of being alone. ~Paul Johannes Tillich,
Inside myself is a place where I live all alone, and that’s where I renew my springs that never dry up. ~Pearl Buck
I have a great deal of company in the house, especially in the morning when nobody calls. ~Henry David Thoreau
The happiest of all lives is a busy solitude. ~Voltaire
I would rather sit on a pumpkin and have it all to myself, than be crowded on a velvet cushion. ~Henry David Thoreau
Loneliness can be conquered only by those who can bear solitude. ~Paul Tillich
I live in that solitude which is painful in youth, but delicious in the years of maturity. ~Albert Einstein
Related Pages
H. D. Thoreau
Collapse of Ego
Doing Nothing
Pam,
Your tuning skis are a true experience of oneness with skis in solitude….it is the same process as creative writing but deals with personal and painful feelings….if you wrote about ski tuning you would see the difference….it would be important to heal your painful feelings before you are able to write about them objectively.
Sid
Hi Sid,
I find Mister Thoreau’s quotes brilliant, I feel complicity and humor at the same time.
Nevertheless, I don’t see this moments as ‘meaningless’, in this solitude I find myself digging for deep feelings and emotions in order to inspire myself to write.
It is in this moments of almost insanity where I drop all the pretensions, were I feel most vulnerable, open, like a child in front of a candy store.
Blessed Be.
Hi Rebecca,
Only in solitude can you deeply commune with the right brain and find its unconditional love beyond what can be expected in any social relationship…it is the best friend you’ll ever find.
Sid
Sid, I love this one. Solitude is where I am completely free to experience whatever breathtaking beauty life places before me in the moment I am in. Simple time alone without pressures is my strength and my sanity. If I have any love or wisdom to give, it is birthed and nurtured in time alone. Because most of my culture views solitude negatively, it is so comforting to hear the wise voices you quoted. Thanks for revealing yourself as a kindred spirit in this regard.
Rebecca