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Solitude
3-24-2015
We all need to take breaks from our regular routine to recharge ourselves and reconsider our priorities. For many people that means taking time to be alone and seeking solitude. This type of temporary intentional privacy is priceless as it gives time to work, think or rest without being disturbed. Solitude can be a gift you give to yourself.
Recently, I met a man who took the concept of solitude to an extreme few people would ever consider. In 2001, Bob Kull followed an inner call to live alone for an entire year on a desolate uninviting island off the southern tip of Chile. He brought with him survival supplies, including basic food, materials for building a small hut, a satellite phone in order to report in once a month and a cat for companionship. He went as a scientist, not to study the flora and fauna of the region, but to study himself. His time alone, cut of from civilization including the events of 9-11, allowed him to discover deep truths about himself, society and realities of the world. He wrote about his adventure in “Solitude: seeking wisdom in extremes.”
One of the themes Mr. Kull returns to time and again is the concept of accepting that we are not in control. As tiny fragile humans in an immense universe, we are not exactly helpless, but we are definitely not in charge. Life ebbs and flows around us, like the waves that pounded his defenseless island – relentlessly unstoppable. For him, the wind best illustrates this idea of being inconsequential in the face of nature. Living on the coast of a rocky island near the treacherous Cape Horn meant constantly enduring winds that averaged 30 kph and gusted to over 100 kph. He speaks about the wind being his constant companion – moody and unpredictable, a force to be wary of, something to be respected in its indifference. Mr. Kull explains, “The wind is a powerful teacher that we are not in control – not even of ourselves. The wind taught me about surrendering. Each day I’d go out to the most raw and exposed point on the island and be hammered by the wind. I would stand and let it carve me in ways I didn’t know. I projected my fear onto the wind. It was incredibly frightening to let myself be vulnerable.” He came to realize that his constant battle to defend himself against the wind was not only exhausting, it was pointless, as are so many of the battles we engage in ultimately are. The world exists independent of human control. The wind is simply part of the world. It is not there to be regulated or directed. The wind, like so many things, is beyond us. Making use of something, as we do the wind for sailboats and windmills, should not be erroneously perceived as commanding it. We can do things to influence nature, we can even wound it through our greedy destructiveness, but we do not control it.
Hearing Mr. Kull’s account of his process of surrendering is a touchingly moving experience. Often we think of surrendering as weak or cowardly. To surrender implies giving up and failing. We seem driven to be victorious. To conquer our foes and fears. To fight at any cost and to never give up. Mr. Kull sees surrendering as a positive accomplishment to be sought after. His type of surrendering is indeed empowering. Surrendering to powers beyond our control removes false bravado and foolhardy arrogance. Surrendering allows a person to recognize limitations. By distinguishing between where you can and should take action from where you can and must let go, you channel your energy into accomplishable tasks. By relinquishing the fantasy of domination you learn to cooperate with nature, with others, with the inevitable and, most importantly, with yourself.
In Islam, we call this concept "submission." To accept what is beyond our control and to be at peace. To recognize that there is a guiding force beyond human capability or our complete understanding. It is no wonder that most religions have prophets and messengers who engaged in solitude. By intentionally retreating from the trappings of the world, you come to know it better and still cultivate a sense of humble reverence. One's illusions, assumptions, expectations and misconceptions are stripped away by the winds of awareness. You do not have to go to the extremes Mr. Kull did, but be sure to gift yourself with time for solitude to discover wisdom for yourself.
To see stunning photographs of Mr. Kull’s borrowed island and learn more about his story, go to http://www.bobkull.org. Zainab Dhanani can be reached at z_dhanani@yahoo.ca.
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