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RSM on 21st century “hermits”

A curious piece in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, Dec. 2012, is titled “Taking refuge from modernity: 21st century hermits.” The article describes some contemporary individuals as fleeing society due to “idiopathic, environmental intolerances, such as ‘multiple chemical sensitivty’ and ‘electrosensitivity'” and searches for possible analogies with historical hermits. The abstract shows the direction of the research and point of view:

Idiopathic environmental intolerances, such as ‘multiple chemical sensitivity’ and ‘electrosensitivity,’ can drastically affect the quality of life of those affected. A proportion of severely affected patients remove themselves from modern society, to live in isolation away from the purported causal agent of their ill health. This is not a new phenomenon; reports of hermits extend back to the 3rd century AD. We conducted a literature review of case reports relating to ancient hermits and modern day reclusion resulting from idiopathic environmental intolerance, in order to explore whether there are similarities between these two groups and whether the symptoms of these ‘illnesses of modernity’ are simply a present-day way of reaching the end-point of reclusion. Whilst there were some differences between the cases, recurring themes in ancient and modern cases included: dissatisfaction with society, a compulsion to flee, reports of a constant struggle and a feeling of fighting against the establishment. The similarities which exist between the modern-day cases and the historical hermits may provide some insight into the extreme behaviours exhibited by this population. The desire to retreat from society in order to escape from harm has existed for many centuries, but in different guises.

The historical hermits studied (and named) are just four: Noah John Rondeau, Roger Crab, St. Simeon Stylites, and St. Anthony. The article concludes controversially that with the diminished influence of religion in the modern world, the motive of those who are deemed intolerant of modern society may include the pretext of idiopathic medical conditions referred to in the article and abstract.

URL: http://jrs.sagepub.com/content/105/12/523.full

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Psychology Today: Silence

Psychology Today offers a collection of 21 popular essays on the topic of silence: “The Sounds of Silence.” As with popular treatments of complex and nuanced topics, your mileage may vary:

  • A Taxonomy of Silence: What can we learn from silences? by Judith Eve Lipton, M.D.
  • The Art of Silence: How the use of silence can make you powerful and charismatic, by Alex Lickerman, M.D.
  • Why We Need Quiet: We need silence for all our senses, by George Michelsen Foy
  • Does Music Help Memory? Students listen to music while studying. Is that a good idea? by William R. Klemm, D.V.M, Ph.D.

17 more essays …

URL: http://www.psychologytoday.com/collections/201312/the-sounds-silence

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Catholic hermits today

Catholic World Report offers a summary article on Catholic hermits titled “Modern-Day Hermits: Answering the Call to Solitude, Prayer” and the byline: “While we might think of hermits as relics of the Church’s medieval past, today there are many who devote their lives entirely to solitary prayer.” The article emphasizes canonical hermits and the traditionalist hermit brothers at Hermits of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel in Christoval, Texas.

URL: http://www.catholicworldreport.com/Item/2670/modernday_hermits_answering_the_call_to_solitude_prayer.aspx#.Um_uk1OTafO

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Viktor, Siberian hermit

Siberian hermit Viktor

Reuters features a photographer’s blog entry by Ilya Namushin highlighting Viktor, a Siberian hermit living near the Yenisai River. Though affable, Viktor revealed few personal details about his motive and past except to indicate that he once was a bargeman.

Viktor is 57 and lives alone in a small hut that he made himself. He doesn’t only live there over the summer, but during the harsh Siberian winter too. He told me that he feels weak in the winter because the forest doesn’t give him energy then; he says the forest is resting. Therefore, Viktor rests too during the winter. He eats fish, mushrooms, and berries that he saves up during the warm season. If he’s ill, he treats himself with wild medicinal grasses, which he collects in the woods.

Despite being a hermit, Viktor is by no means unsociable. He does not mind kind visitors, and local fishermen and tourists come to see him every once in a while. He also crosses the wide Yenisei River from time to time to sell fish and buy essentials, like flour, salt, matches, and gasoline for his boat’s motor.

On the western bank of the Yenisei River there is a road and people come and go. On the eastern bank, where Viktor lives, there is nothing. No signs of civilization: no roads, no electricity lines, no buildings. Only steep, rocky banks and untouched forest.

Includes several photographs.

URL: http://blogs.reuters.com/photographers-blog/2013/10/25/at-home-with-a-hermit/