Survivalism 101: A beginner's guide!

Joseph Bailey41 said:It's true, the option of monastic life exists for laypeople too. Elizabeth Gaskell (Eat, Pray, Love) used to scrub floors at an ashram frequented by travelers, and Leonard Cohen stayed at a Zen monastery until he had to head back because his accountant cleaned him out (or something along those lines, I don't recall the specifics), and he said it helped free him from depression. As far as Christians go, I know the Carmelites have their secular orders for both men and women, but I'm not sure if there's an option for short-term stays in a monastery.

But, the person who started this thread is interested in the desert hermit lifestyle, which is something else entirely. There are people living out in the woods, almost completely isolated from society, though usually not for religious reasons. The main issue is that in that situation, nobody is coming to feed you or check to see if you've been eaten by coyotes. You have to be totally self-sufficient, so you won't actually have much time left over for prayer and meditation. Even if some of those folks claim they hardly need food, I wouldn't count on that.

What seems like a reasonable middle ground to me would be lighthouses. Some of them are rented out much like apartments (though the price tag is definitely steeper), so if you can afford it, you could rent one for a few months and just be alone with God, the ocean, the fish, or whatever else is out there.

That is an incredibly difficult and harsh way to live, especially given the climate here in the States.

A reasonable option seems to be renting a lighthouse. Some of them are available just like vacation rentals—though the price tag is much steeper—so if you can afford it, you could stay for a few months and simply be alone with God, the ocean, and the sea life.

I believe the best approach is to connect with someone actually living that lifestyle to gather enough information before deciding if a person is truly ready for it.

mistybison said:That is an incredibly difficult and harsh way to live, especially given the climate here in the States.

A reasonable option seems to be renting a lighthouse. Some of them are available just like vacation rentals—though the price tag is much steeper—so if you can afford it, you could stay for a few months and simply be alone with God, the ocean, and the sea life.

I believe the best approach is to connect with someone actually living that lifestyle to gather enough information before deciding if a person is truly ready for it.

Truth. So many people romanticize the great outdoors, only to end up miserable after forty-eight hours in a tent because of mosquitoes, hard ground, and all those other little headaches.

Joseph Bailey41 said:Truth. So many people romanticize the great outdoors, only to end up miserable after forty-eight hours in a tent because of mosquitoes, hard ground, and all those other little headaches.

Condensation 🙂 🙄

Honestly, I’ve been thinking lately about how much a life in a monastery might actually suit me. But—and there’s a big "but"—I wouldn't want any of the Mass or constant prayers. Just a vow of silence. And I definitely wouldn't be doing any kitchen duty or scrubbing floors; that kind of manual labor just gets under my skin. Instead, I could spend my time tending a garden, managing a library, or maybe transcribing books... though not by hand, because that's just too much work. Maybe something like typing them up. I'd just want it all tucked away somewhere deep in nature, ideally near a lake. And a waterfall would be nice, too.

You’re dreaming of a mountain getaway funded by some wealthy husband, but the guy has three other girlfriends and is just relieved to be hiding out in the middle of nowhere somewhere.

bluemason3 said:You’re dreaming of a mountain getaway funded by some wealthy husband, but the guy has three other girlfriends and is just relieved to be hiding out in the middle of nowhere somewhere.

Exactly. And honestly, which naive soul are we even talking about here? 😁

If I actually knew how to play him, I'd probably be crushing it 🤣

bluemason3 said:If I actually knew how to play him, I'd probably be crushing it 🤣

Honestly, you'd just end up looking foolish. You're way too old for that. Just pass him over to me instead—I'll happily take him off your hands and enjoy a little fun with my dim-witted little brother.🙂

Besides, we're never actually going to get close to God.😢

bluemason3 said:You’re dreaming of a mountain getaway funded by some wealthy husband, but the guy has three other girlfriends and is just relieved to be hiding out in the middle of nowhere somewhere.

Check this out:

But even then, it doesn't check all the boxes.

Paul Rogers94 said:The core of asceticism is detachment from mental constructs... and it doesn't even have to involve physical isolation.

Precisely!
👍

We need to start encouraging a kind of solitude that stands completely apart from both the left and right extremes. Those outliers are where the real potential for progress actually lives.

Ryan Wilson2 said:As long as you have a roof over your head, a comfortable bed, and a steady supply of food provided by others, you aren't living some sort of ascetic, hermit-like existence. It is incredibly easy to sit around philosophizing about the deep meaning of life when you have zero responsibilities and everyone else is handling your meals and your wardrobe.

I fail to see any distinction between Edita Majić and these self-proclaimed "minimalists," much like I see no difference between them and those teenage spiritual seekers who still rely on their parents for every single necessity.

Spot on. Taking full responsibility for yourself is a mandatory prerequisite for actual solitude, which is what we should actually be aiming for.

They say there are plenty of saints over in Tibet who live in constant Solitude, yet somehow remain incredibly useful to humanity. How does that even work?

Ramana Maharshi: It’s quite simple. Realizing one's Sovereignty is the GREATEST GIFT you can offer the world. That’s why people call saints "useful," even when they're hiding out in the wilderness. But—and this is important—don't assume Solitude requires a forest setting.

You can find Solitude right in the middle of a city, amidst all the chaos of daily life...

People in America just don't get it—they don't realize a person living in Solitude can still be an asset to society. They have this narrow idea that being "useful" requires constant, frantic activity. When will this delusion finally end? How much longer will the American mind keep wading through the mud before it finally grasps the Truth?

Ramana Maharshi

I mean, does it not speak for itself? Either the guy is useless or he’s lost his mind.

The ego always needs some kind of validation. If you can't actually accomplish anything useful, you tell yourself you're important just because you have a certain "vibe" or whatever.😁

bluemason3 said:I mean, does it not speak for itself? Either the guy is useless or he’s lost his mind.

The ego always needs some kind of validation. If you can't actually accomplish anything useful, you tell yourself you're important just because you have a certain "vibe" or whatever.😁

Exactly, bluemason3, because that’s precisely how you and your supposedly "objective" ego operate right now.
You spent about fifteen years trekking through India and came up empty-handed.
Nothing but a string of failures.

So, your ego reached its own conclusion:

"If a brilliant, objective guy like me didn't discover some grand truth, then there's nothing left here—just a giant hole in my resume."
It wasn't that my parents were crazy and I was being condescending by thinking they wouldn't understand spirituality; it was something else entirely.

I guess I'll just pivot back to standard materialistic pursuits:

Focusing on a career, finishing school, paying the rent, getting married—all those things I used to look down on, but now suddenly find quite valuable.
==

Look, bluemason3, I get it, but Aesop covered this ages ago in the fable about the fox and the sour grapes.😉

The reality is simple: you couldn't reach the grapes, so now you're telling everyone the grapes are sour and that it's a waste of time to even try to pick them.

👋

You’re missing the point. I’ve seen people go through the exact same thing after just a few trips—just like a friend of mine who hit the same state during a kundalini process after years of meditating twelve hours a day and fasting more than eating.

You're overstating the impact of self-induced or innate neurochemical imbalances.

Claiming this is all cult influence is a classic tactic, but it doesn't hold up. These same experiences and "revelations" are found among everyone in the spiritual scene, whether they stayed in a sect or left them behind. The only difference is that some people apply critical thinking, while others just refuse to grow up and stay stuck in a fantasy world.

I don't see any real distinction between so-called spiritualists and materialists—it all boils down to whether you latch onto a worldview, a paradigm, an agenda, an identity, or some myth. It’s all essentially fake. The core issue is this compulsion to cling. The mind has an inherent intent to hook itself onto *something* because it cannot exist in isolation; the mind and its contents are one and the same. As long as you're holding onto something, you think you're fine—but there's zero chance of surviving an encounter with conceptless reality (the unthinkable, the unknown)... that same reality that constitutes both his own existence and everything else. Reality doesn't need a mind to exist, whereas a mind can't exist without reality.
As for meditation, I don't see any inherent value in it regarding an encounter with ultimate reality. If such an encounter happens through meditation, it isn't thanks to the practice—it's happening in spite of
'practice' can only ever be a byproduct—a mere reflex of deeper shifts in consciousness.

If we set aside spirituality and focus strictly on the material plane, everything is fundamentally interconnected through atoms and molecules—from the air we breathe and the water we drink to our own bodies and the cosmos itself. I’m not just offering an opinion; scientists would agree. Based on the logic of matter and its density, hermits living out in the Rocky Mountains or the Appalachian Mountains play a vital role by sending subtle vibrations directly into the fabric of reality. Without them, the world would have likely collapsed long ago. My respects go out to those desert dwellers, wherever they may be.

Does that have anything to do with the desert or whatever?
Just what comes to mind...
and

hiddenpuma75 said:Exactly, bluemason3, because that’s precisely how you and your supposedly "objective" ego operate right now.
You spent about fifteen years trekking through India and came up empty-handed.
Nothing but a string of failures.

So, your ego reached its own conclusion:

"If a brilliant, objective guy like me didn't discover some grand truth, then there's nothing left here—just a giant hole in my resume."
It wasn't that my parents were crazy and I was being condescending by thinking they wouldn't understand spirituality; it was something else entirely.

I guess I'll just pivot back to standard materialistic pursuits:

Focusing on a career, finishing school, paying the rent, getting married—all those things I used to look down on, but now suddenly find quite valuable.
==

Look, bluemason3, I get it, but Aesop covered this ages ago in the fable about the fox and the sour grapes.😉

The reality is simple: you couldn't reach the grapes, so now you're telling everyone the grapes are sour and that it's a waste of time to even try to pick them.

👋

Who says all you got was failure? Zen teaches us that even failure can be a success in its own way.
Much like this little parable;

One day, flying low over the edge of a nearby forest, a Raven spots a piece of bread. He swoops down, grabs it with a skillful maneuver, and as he continues his flight above the trees, he starts thinking:

- I can't let the Fox trick me like that Raven in the story. If the Fox says, "good day, Raven," I'm just going to stay silent and act like an idiot. Because if I open my mouth, I lose my bread. That's the plan.

The Fox, who also happened to have read that very same fable, spots the Raven with his crust of bread and decides to try that winning literary formula again:

- good day, Raven!

The Raven stays silent.

- good day, Raven!

Still silence from the Raven.

- Hey Raven, your boss is sleeping with your wife!

- WHAT?!

And there goes the bread.

The moral: Keep your mouth shut when your boss is messing with your wife, otherwise, you're going to end up hungry.