My investigation began by rereading the online article and gathering clues.
Then, I
sought to contact the sponsors of the Hermit-in-Residence Project. The article
stated it
was from the Shugsborough Home in Staffordshire England. I did an internet search,
and
discovered the website for the Estate. There was no mention of the position
on the
website, so I expressed my interest via the only email address given for the
estate. I sent
a copy of my curriculum vitae which outlined much of my experience with meditation
practice and my experience living in the cave in India. I was candid in expressing
my
interest, and wondered what they were really looking for. Did they want some
sort of
actor or a real authentic hermit? I felt I could offer them an authentic hermit.
I didn’t expect my inquiry to really get anywhere, especially since the
number of
applicants was said to be so large. But to my surprise, after a few days I received
two
emails. One was a kind of standard response sent to several applicants with
the attached
application. The other was a personal note from Anna Douglas, the artist who
is given
credit for thinking up this idea. Anna replied that she read my email with pleasure
and
answered some of my questions. She said that most of the applicants thought
of it as a
chance to do some play-acting, but suggested that my experience certainly connected
me
to the spiritual aspects of the hermit tradition. She made reference to the
“fashionable”
18th century tradition around the time the writings of French philosopher Rousseau
were
entering literary circles. She also said she looked forward to my application.
I was elated to read her personal response. I continued gathering all the information
I
could and calculated and visualized the possibility of me being chosen for the
hermit
position. Unlike the 5-year well-paid stint that was referred to in the initial
article, this
hermit position was only for one weekend, of September 21st –22nd. It would
pay 600
British Pounds or a little over US$900. Enough to get me there and back. “Could
this be
a whole new career for me?” I pondered. Also, I wanted to learn everything
I could about
this tradition and Rousseau, since she specifically mentioned him. I was determined
more
than ever to apply. This was something that I really wanted to do. It’s
an important job, I
reckoned. It makes a statement which touches a yearning, something I’ve
felt throughout
my life. Indeed, in my own mind, especially after brushing up on the Philosophy
of
Rousseau, this makes an important statement about man and society, nature and
God. I
had to do it! I sent Anna Douglas an email response the next day. I acknowledged
the
importance of Rousseau’s thoughts on this project. Perhaps to make myself
sound
intelligent I wrote, “This event has already inspired me to brush up on
Rousseau and my
understanding of his philosophy as being somewhat critical of modern society.
In this
regard the hermit is one way the individual can escape the obstacles that society
places on
allowing one's true self to evolve or manifest.” In my excitement I also
explained that if
chosen, I would be the very best hermit I could possibly be. Then, I set my
focus on the
application.
The application gave some information about the beauty of the estate and its
history. The
grounds of the estate make for a naturalized park, as adopted from 1770 from
the
fashionable ideal of the ‘Greek Revival’. However, there was a steady
reaction in the
18th Century against the formal aesthetic of earlier gardens, which affected
estates such as
Shugsborough. “Following the writing or the poet Alexander Pope, estate
owners were
urged to return to the ‘amiable simplicity of unadorned nature’ and
let local topography
inform the layout of the park,” as the application reads. A return to nature
indeed,
allowing man, at least one man, to live in this natural state. Whether there
was a hermit
at Shugborough is debatable, but the application goes on to say. “A horse-ride
away from
the house, a foray into raw nature (only recently tamed and made safe by the
poets and
artists of the day) would have seemed all the more ‘picturesque’,
when greeted by the
lonely figure of a hermit. On long winter nights, it would have been reassuring
to know
that whilst the journey out into the blackened night was too dangerous, or just
plain
inconvenient, someone in the wilderness was doing the job of Solitude by proxy.”
And
on the role of solitude the applicant is given his or her lesson here as well.
“Throughout
the 18th and into the early 19th centuries the idea of solitude flourished.
The need for it
was central to Wordsworth, Ruskin and John Stuart Mill who in 1848 wrote about
the
importance of preserving places where people could be alone: ‘Solitude,
in the sense of
being often alone, is essential to any depth of mediation or of character; and
solitude in
the presence of natural beauty and grandeur is the cradle of thought and aspirations
which
are not only good for the individual, but which society could ill do without’.”
Further
reflection on the idea of solitude is given in respect to our modern life of
increasing speed
and technology. “Where can we retreat and reflect quietly about ourselves
and the
world?” Yes, these people were definitely speaking my language, I thought,
in one way
at least. Just earlier this summer I had started to reread Thoreau’s Walden
and vowed to
spend as much of my summer in nature and solitude as possible. I had just written
a
couple of short descriptive narratives about my summer’s experiences in
nature, on the
theme of how it feeds the soul and its vital importance.
In my quest for information
about this hermit project, I wanted to know more about the
18th Century tradition in order to understand what it was they were really looking
for. So,
garnering my internet research skills again, I did a search for the ‘18th
Century Hermit
Tradition’. As I discovered, more than just our Shugborough folks are interested
in
reviving this old tradition. Isabel Colegate’s Pelican in the Wilderness
(Harper-Collins,
London, 2002) explores men who have lived lives of solitude from Lao Tzu and
the
Desert Fathers to Wordsworth, Thoreau, and present-day hermits. Rendering the
quote
from which the books title comes, "A Man that studies Happiness must sit
alone like a
Sparrow upon the House Top, and like a Pelican in the Wilderness." (Thomas
Traherne,
c.1699) We find in Colegate’s book, examples of men becoming hermits for
a variety of
reasons, whether it is for spiritual solitude, poetry or art, or social or political
persecution.
The publication of the book also coincided with an exhibition at the Holburne
Museum of
Art in Bath called “A Pelican in the Wilderness: Hermits & Solitude
in Art.” This exhibit
held earlier this year (April-June) showed examples of solitude from ancient
times to
modern day, and goes on to say, it “ …will fascinate anyone who has
ever felt the
impulse to escape, to opt out, to give it all up to spend time alone.”
Described as a
moving, and at times amusing, exhibition, it included representations of hermits
from the
Far Eastern tradition carved in bamboo and rock crystal. As well as the first
public
showing of black and white photographs by Thomas Merton. And true to my particular
Hermit-in-Residence application, a large part of the exhibition was devoted
to what is
described as the 18th century British cult of the ornamental hermitage. “From
William
Kent's delightful designs for Queen Caroline's Hermitage in Richmond to John
Piper's
view of Urganda's Cave at Badminton and a picture painted in coloured sand by
George
IV's confectioner, Benjamin Zobel. Aristocracy and gentry sometimes housed a
'hermit',
employed on a full or part-time basis, to give life to a view or perambulation,
such as
Stourhead in Wiltshire”. Also the Holburne Museum website ads, “Architecture
students
from the University of Bath, inspired by Le Corbusier's studio, have designed
modern
hermitages to accompany the exhibition”.
This information was
all very good news indeed for me. Sending an email to my sister in
Florida yielded the response, “Hermit-in-residence! Only you could find
a job like that.
You should definitely do it.” Well I hadn’t been offered the job yet,
but in my
excitement I found myself telling everyone about it. Usually if I really want
something to
happen, I keep it quiet until it does, so I don’t seem too foolish if it
doesn’t turn out. This
one was an exception where I didn’t mind seeming foolish. I wanted to tell
everyone
because it was so unusual and seemed like an answer to one of my life’s
biggest
problems, even if it was for just a weekend.
For much of my life
I’ve wanted to just be. Such as when I’ve studied meditation of the
Buddhist kind or as I’ve mentioned earlier went to India to live in a cave.
I’ve always
been very happy in these sort of situations. And the hermit position is a viable
manifestation of that in the real world. So I got down to nitty-gritty of the
application that
required me to write two short hand-written essays. In these I try to communicate
the
importance of solitude, and how it makes me feel so good. I wanted to say a
lot more
than the limited allowable space on the application. What follows here are the
longer
versions. The two questions were: 1) Describe your Personal Qualities and Experiences
relevant to this position, and 2) Tell us why you would like the position of
weekend
Hermit-in-Residence, and what original personal contribution you would make
in the
performance of this role.
Naturally for question
# 1 I wrote about my Himalayan cave experience. Surely this
would get me several points ahead of other applicants, I thought. This is what
I wrote:
“My first reaction when I read about this position was, ‘Hey, I have
experience living in a
cave.’ Indeed, in 1990 I left on a spiritual pilgrimage to India, with
no specific plans, and
ended up living an authentic hermit’s life of the 5000+ year old cave-dwelling
tradition of
the Himalayas. For two months I lived in a cave and then in a nearby hut by
the Ganges
River hosted by a respected Indian Swami. I assumed the practice of relative
silence,
solitude and meditation at the same spot each day looking at the roaring Ganges
River
and the expanse of Himalayan Mountain Ridges before me.
As I established my meditation spot,
Swami offered to help me build my own little hut there. We erected four
posts from logs and built the walls up with rock. A green tarp was available
for the roof.
There I spent my days in meditation, or gazing at the vastness of the mountain
views or
blue sky. At night the stars shone so brightly and brilliantly that the haze
of the Milky
Way was always apparent. I felt really good and pure there.
The Himalayan cave experience
in many ways represents how I have often felt
throughout my life. I have always been, perhaps, a bit unable to fully mold
myself to fit
into modern society and struggled emotionally as a youth. I have always questioned
deeply and sought time alone in quiet. A sense of melancholy definitely was
a driving
factor. My college studies brought me to a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy.
Before and after the cave dwelling experience a deep inner calling drew me towards
Buddhist silent meditation retreats. Many of these retreats lasted 10-days or
longer.
In 1995 I embarked on a four months silence mediation retreat maintaining a
rigid daily
sitting practice of about 10 hours per day as well as time walking in nature
and a few
chores. In more recent years I spent some time with a group of Buddhist monks
in
Northern California. Though the monastery life was hard with rules like no eating
after
noontime, I left there feeling quite uplifted in heart and soul. There is some
lesson there
about a lifestyle of purity and simplicity that while being outwardly deprived
can be
inwardly enriching.
Perhaps it is not so
much the time that I’ve spent seeking out solitude, whether alone or in
community, but it is what I have learned from the experience. Just as the philosopher
Rousseau is somewhat critical of the way modern society can be an obstacle to
manifesting one’s true self, I deeply feel that inner tension. As the demands
of work,
relationships and daily business increase there is something lost in the soul,
or perhaps
what could be called an abundant inner nature. As my experiences of time in
solitude or
meditation I’ve only come to increasingly uncover and reveal a much truer,
more
satisfying human nature. Perhaps it is that solitude and nature can return us
to our
original unadulterated state, reconnecting us with the vital forces of life
and creation.
That ended my response to the first question.
Next I sought to try
and communicate what I would contribute in the role of Hermit-in-
Residence. At the suggestion from a friend, I really needed to think what it
was that the
Shugborough folks wanted in a hermit. I wanted to take their needs and expectations
into
account. I could only think that the best thing to tell them was that I knew
about their
English cultural revival of the 18th century fashionable hermit tradition. I
had done my
research on Colegate’s Book, and the Holburne Museum. And too, I wanted
to assure
them that I could offer what would be the most authentic hermit experience.
What
follows is the full version of what I abbreviated on my application (because
of the limited
space for a response). So I wrote this three-part response to the second question:
“My
personal contribution to the performance of this role would be: 1) an appreciation
of the
cultural tradition of the hermit and how society views this tradition 2) an
ability to be an
authentic hermit, appreciating and living close to nature and 3) giving the
physical
appearance and presence of a hermit.
I have an appreciation
and sensitivity to the cultural and artistic project. My heart and
soul speaks to the importance of the revival of the hermit tradition. I was
happy to hear of
the position because I believe it is important. (I have since learned of the
exhibit at the
Hoburne Museum of Art earlier this year in Bath and the publication of Colegate’s
book,
A Pelican in the Wilderness.) Imagine a society that actually popularly values
hermits.
Giving someone the opportunity to live alone in solitude and as close to one’s
true self as
possible, without the encumbrances that society inevitably puts on the individual.
This is
fodder for much questioning and provides a leverage of perspective to examine
society in
general.
The hermit life would
be a natural extension of how I strive to live my life today, when
the responsibilities toward society don’t get in the way. The art of the
hermit living so
close in nature really accentuates a message, subtle as it may be, that I want
to
communicate and as I believe the sponsors of the 18th century hermit tradition
also
wanted to communicate, or at least appreciate. As a hermit shuns society to
some degree,
he is also blessed with a compensation of peace and quiet in nature. I am skilled
at this
appreciation. In my performance of an authentic hermit life, I would find the
time and
appropriate spot in nature to sit and reflect. As is my natural inclination
to become quiet
and at peace in a natural setting. To have the time and beauty of surroundings
can inspire
the peaceful inner experience. As I wrote earlier this summer after a day out
in nature,
‘Time had slowed to its relaxed fullness of the day, granting us a kind
of satisfied
spacious feeling that there was nothing more to do than just sit and appreciate
the beauty
of life and nature as it was presenting itself at that moment.’
I am also prepared to
grow a beard and wear ragged clothes to fit the part, if desired. I
have long hair with a receding hairline. I look more like a hermit today than
I do in the
pictures.”
With that comment, I
ended my application. I also included the mentioned pictures,
printed on one sheet, of me in the Himalayas as well as another copy of my curriculum
vitae. I went to the post office, and wanting to make sure that I got it there
in plenty of
time for the deadline, I sent it “Global Priority”. Later I regretted
this, thinking that it
was a bit too pushy. I should have just sent it standard airmail, as even a
stranger in the
post office that day advised that it would still get there in time. But at that
time there was
nothing left to do, but simply forget about it. It was in their hands now, I
thought, no
need to think about it further. So I went back to my normal life and continued
my search
for a real job. It was like all the air escaped from my balloon. All hope and
buoyancy in
life had vanished.
Having heard nothing
two weeks later, I thought that it meant that I wasn’t in the running
for the Hermit-in-Residence post. Believing so, I thought there would be no
harm in just
sending another email to Anna Douglas to get some news. After all, I was still
very
interested in the project and thought that I might like to write about it if
nothing else. I
sent the email to Anna expressing exactly that. To my surprise she answered
me later
that same day. She informed me that I haven’t been forgotten and that she
has
unexpectedly begun “short-listing” applicants for interviews. Unfortunately,
while she
really liked my application she doesn’t think that I could be included
because they don’t
have the budget to fly me over just for the interview. But as a consolation,
she would like
to display my application as ‘pride of place’ at the exhibit. Wow,
all this really blew me
away. If only Anna knew how she had the power to lift my spirits out of the
doldrums
that I was in!
I am really happy to
have my application on display there. My photos and writings on
Museum-like display in England, as part of a project sponsored by their Arts
Council and
National Trust. I never had anything like that happen to me before. I was elated.
And as
elated as I was, I thought this meant there was still a chance that I could
be the chosen
one – the chosen Hermit-in-Residence. Meanwhile my sister emailed to inform
me that
news of the Hermit-in-Residence job had reached her in Florida via local television
news.
The excitement faded for a while. My life’s purpose and directions seems
more lost than
ever. So even more reason to question, Why the Hermit-in-Residence? What would
it
mean to really be a hermit? What is the appeal? There really is an element of
survival in
our modern society. It really demands so much of us. Like noticing that all
the
advancement in technology hasn’t really made out lives easier. The burden
of work,
more than ever seems to be an aspect of human existence.
The excitement continued
to fade, as no new emails from Anna Douglas were
forthcoming. I am beginning to accept the fact that I am not the chosen Hermit-in-
Residence, but still feeling very happy about having my application and photos
on
display. In my life, I don’t really think I want to be a permanent hermit.
I like people
and socializing. But I also know that time away in nature has always been a
key to
rejuvenation, health and happiness for me. Particularly learning from the mediation
retreats, I feel like I have begun to really catch on. I have found after a
few days of
solitude and quiet the chatter of the mind begins to slow down and there is
an ease of
seeing things just as they are. And, as the mind quiets it seems that the heart
grows and
feels more. I sometimes have feelings of joy and wonderment that I haven’t
felt since I
was a small child. Nature is even more beautiful. It is so subtle that I think
people miss
it. Many people miss out on the experience of having the heart and soul awakened
to
more purity, health and harmony by practicing a period of solitude. It is an
awakening of
an energy source within.
Although I may not have
been chosen to be Shugborough’s Hermit-in-Residence, I take
heart in my past experiences and gifts of wisdom which come from the peace of
solitude.
I am glad to have this reminder. I hope you too, if you desire it, get to be
a Hermit-in-
Residence soon, if just for one weekend.
[Rick Baker lives in Northampton, Massachusetts can be reached at rick_baker@excite.com.]