Wednesday, March 26, 2008

Embracing Solitude

Loneliness is more about psychic disconnection than physical solitude. To appreciate time alone, most of us need to feel we have a choice—that friends or family are no farther away than a phone call. If not, time alone can be miserable. In fact, it seems that the primal feeling of loneliness has something to do with a genetic instinct that equates safety with physical closeness to a tribe or family. On that prerational level, loneliness can feel like death.

Maybe that's one reason why loneliness, or even the fear of loneliness, can be such a stumbling block on the road to inner growth. Certain journeys cannot be taken unless you're willing to face loneliness, and yet many of us are afraid to do so. Learn to embrace your time alone as a chance to connect with what's truly essential.

http://www.yogajournal.com/wisdom/1922

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