Solitude is NOT loneliness

Solitude is NOT loneliness. Equating them is as nonsensical as thinking a butterfly is an airplane. Yes they both fly, but that is where the similarities stop. Yes Solitude and loneness share in the sensation of being alone, in any of the 4 body’s. Those commonly being referred to as the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual shards of the soul, but that is the extent of their similarities.

Solitude is so so much more than loneliness. It’s a cascading sense of calm and fulfillment, it’s as close to enlightenment as the human race can get. The bliss of true solitude is far grater then any high. It’s true that with a drug or sex or success high you become elevated, but that elevation lacks the sense of what’s both below and above. With solitude you stand atop a mighty tower and can see precisely what you have risen above, and more importantly you can see there is nothing above you.

Loneliness is personified by cracks in that mighty towers foundation. Some can never move past those cracks, like the light Shining thought them somehow diminishes the brightness seen only from atop that tower. That’s not to say those cracks are necessary, and its true that the closer to true solitude you get the less frequent they become.

Some have summarized this train of thought by claiming that solitude and loneliest are the same, with your mindset being the only differentiating factor. They would you believe that if your mindset is positive then solitude will arise, and that solitude is a good thing in moderation. but if your mindset is negative, then loneness will follow, and that loneness is always bad. This philosophy is dependent the assumption that all people WANT something to do with one another. That people can only see themselves in the shadows of their peers. That’s not to assume in order to experience Solitude you must remove all earthy contact with those peers, that's almost as idiotic as original comparison between Solitude and loneliness. With loneness you long for some kind of meaningful connection, you want, and in some cases need that. Or at the very least the illusion of that. Whereas with solitude those connections are irrelevant, your existence is not negatively or positively impacted by something so completely out of your control.

While loneliness is not some kind of steppingstone to solitude, many if not most people see it that way. They see solitude as just making the most of loneliness, and not what it truly is. I suspect this is due to society’s relative unacceptance towards solitude. I can write 100 thousand words on that subject alone, but It boils down to this. Solitude by definition requires a removal from society, and if you are removed then people can’t compare themselves to you. Some of those souls can’t even entertain why someone would willing do that. Most of those people need society in order to tell them they are “right” or “wrong” or if they are “winning” or “losing”. Without that they lose their sense of self and without there sense of self they have nothing. They are nothing. And as such they view those that have escaped the chains they cling to as, at best nothing. Causing them to generally display pity or sorrow as if only an extreme metal illness could make someone of the same race not care about something so fundamental to them. Much like those raised from birth in a cult struggle the rest of their lives with their beliefs even if what they believe has been proven without a doubt to be false.

To many spend their lives looking for what true solitude so generously gives without ever considering it as a potential truth.