news, sites, and pages of interest about hermits and solitude
British musician Richard Dawson is described as composing and performing “prog folk” or progressive folk. His music treats and exhausts the traditional English folk devices, melodies, and textures, adding touches of more familiar “prog rock” or progressive rock elements overlapped with psychedelia. His recent (2022) The Ruby Cord includes a 40-minute section titled “The Hermit.”
Granted that the US Sun is a celebrity-gossip source, here is an interesting item on a Russian hermit named Leonid, who lives in Siberia, lost his fingers to frostbite, and dreams of living in a real cabin with a few amenities. The article is part of the Sun‘s “Out in the Cold” series, the article title: “I turned my back on society 25 years ago to live as hermit — I’ve lost all my fingers to frostbite but won’t go back.”
URL: https://www.the-sun.com/news/9958677/hermit-for-25years-lost-all-fingers-but-wont-return/
La Vioix du Nord offers a n article about a hermit titled “Ma rencontre avec Ludwig, qui a choisi une vie d’ermite.” The article profiles German-born sculptor Ludwig, who is 80 years old, and has lived in rural Flanders for a decade. Ludwig is a hermit. The jornalist who discovered Ludwig reflects on the simplicity and possessions of the hermit. He reflects, too, on Ludqig’s life in the cold and rainy days in Flanders after departing from the hermit’s home. Article in French.
A collection of recent items on unconventional hikikomori, : female, aging, and not necessarily from Japan.
From Japanese news site Mainichi: “‘Not alone’: Growing number of middle-aged female ‘hikikomori’ shut-ins in Japan.”
URL: https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20230815/p2a/00m/0na/003000c
From Japan News:”Older,Female, and Hikkikomori: Japan’s Newly Precarious Population.”
URL: https://japannews.yomiuri.co.jp/editorial/cultural-viewpoints/20230518-110226/
From Financial Express (Bangladesh): “Why thousands of Japanese stay isolated from the society?”
URL: https://thefinancialexpress.com.bd/lifestyle/culture/why-thousands-of-japanese-stay-isolated-from-the-society
From BBC: “Hikikomori: Why S Korea is paying young recluses to leave home.” From the article:
“A growing number of young South Koreans are choosing to isolate themselves, withdrawing fully from a society that exacts a high price for failing to conform to expectations.
“These recluses are known as hikikomori, a term first coined in Japan in the 1990s to describe severe social withdrawal amongst adolescents and young adults.
“In South Korea, which is battling the world’s lowest fertility rate and declining productivity, this has become a serious concern. So much so that authorities are offering young recluses who meet a certain income threshold a monthly stipend to coax them out of their homes.”
URL: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-65554271
From Newsweek magazine: “The South Koreans Who Won’t Leave Their Rooms.”
URL: https://www.newsweek.com/south-korea-reclusive-youths-acute-social-withdrawal-isolation-1797787
From the website of YES! magazine comes this reflective piece titled, “Murmurations: Loneliness As Fermentation.” The essay addresses the epidemic of loneliness that followed the Covid pandemic but especially affected the disabled. Here the author focuses interest on Julian (a)of Norwich, the 14th-century Engish anchorite, and how her deliberate isolation summoned a sense of spirituality into a bleek setting.
URL: https://www.yesmagazine.org/opinion/2023/09/28/murmurations-loneliness-fermentation
Three articles from Psychology Today:
“The Art of Loneliness,” with the byline “Striking the balance between solitude and isolation.” The article develops several themes: understanding the benefits of solitude, distinguishing isoltion from solitude, paying attention to the benefits of silence, and relieving stress.
URL: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/duty-to-self/202309/the-art-of-aloneness
“Lessons on Facing Loneliness From Philosophy,” with the byline “Wisdom traditions teach the value of solitude for clarity and peace.” The article develops several themes: solitude as opportunity for reflection and growth, that our moods carry formsof wisdom, and that loneliness, however painful, teaches us about ourselves.