“To Be Free Is Often To Be Lonely”

By Sumit Paul, New Age Islam 21 December 2023 " Why do you want to think with people When you're free like a bird in the sky See yourself as an independent ripple That survives in the ocean low or high " Iranian mystic poet Anwari, translated from Persian by the author I've always been intrigued by the British-American poet W H Auden's profound statement, "To be free is often to be lonely." A free individual is free in all respects as Ted Hughes also said, "A free human is emotionally grounded but ideologically and sentimentally emancipated. Such a man is always lonely and alone." Freedom from all bonds and bindings leaves you (desirably) alone. There's no condescension in it but if the truth must be told, almost all humans are ideologically and sentimentally tied up just to avoid this unbearable sense of loneliness. Hardly anyone is free in the actual sense of the word. We've families, friends, groups, religions, scriptures, addictions and associations just to avoid being alone. That's why, most of us never choose to be completely free. This overwhelming desire to tie oneself to the apron-strings of some idea, ideology, object or group is inherent in all humans. Because of this, we're never free. Observe people from afar. Nowadays, you'll see people glued to their smart phones or engaged in inane chatting and lifeless conversations or they visit a temple/shrine to be with their god/s and other like-minded 'god-fearing' devotees. Our aloneness frightens us. So, we keep ourselves engaged in all sorts of humdrum pursuits. We don't want to be free because we don't want to think freely and independently. We need the support of others even to think. Why true rebels have been so few in all ages and eras? Because, hardly a few chose to come out of their comfort zones and could think independently without any fear or apprehension of being alone and vulnerable. Most of the humans follow religions, nations, ethnic groups etc. because they get a false sense of societal protection. Salman Rushdie rightly says that every human is necessarily or unnecessarily tied-up here and there. The constant fear of loneliness doesn't let us become totally free and fearless. Mind you, loneliness doesn't make one a recluse or aloof. Au contraire, it lets you introspect and reassess. But, who has time for introspection and desire to summit the apogee of absolute emancipation? To be alone is to be god. Here, I'm resorting to god as a metaphor for absolute freedom and a semantic equivalent of complete detachment as I've no faith in your concocted god/s. ----- A regular columnist for New Age Islam, Sumit Paul is a researcher in comparative religions, with special reference to Islam. He has contributed articles to the world's premier publications in several languages including Persian. URL: https://newageislam.com/spiritual-meditations/free-lonely/d/131351 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism