Книга Жажда смысла. Практики логотерапии по Виктору Франклу - Галина Лифшиц

Birds, mice, grasshoppers, bugs and all other creatures ate and destroyed all the crops on the fields, meadows looked burned, trees in gardens were like brushes, leaves and flowers were eaten by caterpillars – and none of them could be killed! Lakes and rivers contained so many fishes, frogs, water spiders and other insects that water stunk and was no good for drinking anymore. Air was full of mosquitoes and flies, and soil was covered with so many ugly insects that they could’ve killed any human. If any one could die. People were walking neither dead, nor alive, like shadows.

The blacksmith say what has he done with his reckless idea and so he said:

God made it great that there is Death on Earth!

So he went towards her, let her go and It killed him right away.

And everything went back as it is supposed to be.

* * *

As the practice shows, working through this tale helps to come to inevitability of death and it’s acceptance.

During exercises one of the participants (Larisa) said that her main problem was fear. Thoughts of death were bringing her to the conclusion of senselessness of life and paralyzed her. Just as the tale’s main character she deprived death ability to act miraculously. In our imagination we lived through the consequences of “Death’s capture”. Larisa added her fantasies to this fairy-tale. It appeared that everything lost it’s sense: medicine, sciences, art and love. Everything lost it’s colour. And after that we started to think about the sense of death. Since life and death are parts of one system, parts of the world that we live in. During the process of thinking Larisa has named senses of death: renewal and source of life. Conclusion: life becomes full and intensive, precious and bright because of understanding of the death’s inevitability.

But does it mean that we have to give up to death, yield to it your own life without a fight and struggle? And here the character of the blacksmith is very helpful, which, loving of his life, fought for it using any possible trick.

Here are the questions that were used during the group session:

Can we say about the character of the tale that he did in his life everything he could?

How could we describe the blacksmith? (hospitable, hard-working, honest, sly, life-loving, active, etc).

If there were no death (or, the death would be captured like in the fairy-tale) – would life still remain?

Is life senseless because it’s not eternal?

Can we make conclusion that life and death are two parts of one entity?

If there is no death will the new life appear? Will new children be born? Will it has any sense? And, in accordance, will there be love?

The blacksmith – true lover of the life in all his characteristics and personality. Why did le let the Death go? Because of humility or because of love to life?

What is the power of the main character?

And as a conclusion (and, partly – thoughts of the power of the character I can quote the words of V. Pozner about the “Flying over the cuckoo’s nest”. He was astonished by a piece where the Nicholson’s character told other patients of the mental hospital that he is going to rip the stone sink off the floor. It didn’t work out. But he exclaimed: “At least I’ve tried!”. Pozner comments if like that: “Suddenly I realized that it is the main sense of life! We cannot say that “it’s not going to work out”. You just have to try, it’s the only thing worth living for”.

Our blacksmith at least had his try.

Finally, working over the fairy-tale Larisa noticed that thoughts about death stopped to paralyze and scare her. New thoughts appeared: of how to use the time-being the best way.

3) Example of practice.

Fairy-tales, legends, myths and parables bear many senses. And, often, the most important, hidden into the metaphor is hardest to find. The patient who hears the story relaxes while falling into the search, leaves anxiety, calms, thinking that he goes away from his problem. So, the action is even more effective of the found sense. In this meaning the plot of Euripides tragedy “Medea” is very indicative.

Medea

Jason, the hero of the Ancient Greece, raised by the Centaur went to find the Golden fleece which was in a possession of king Aeetes. Jason would never get the fleece if not the help of Medea. She was the daughter of Aeetes. When Jason came to the palace of the king, invisible and naughty god of love Aetot hid behind his back and shot the golden arrow into the heart of Medea. So she fell in love with the stranger. And, besides, Medea was a sorcerer.

Father of Medea had a condition on which he would have given the Golden fleece to Jason. It was impossible to fulfill: to plow the field of Ares – god of war, with the iron plow of the king, and to harness fire-breathing axes with copper legs. Secondly, he had to take dragon teeth and sow them in the field he had ploughed. And when the armored warriors will grow out of these teeth, Jason had to fight and kill every one of them. Medea, who fell in love with Jason, helped him to achieve victory in these tasks. She knew that she was betraying her own father, she experienced terrible visions but could do nothing because of love. So she helped Jason with her magic that made him invincible. Jason was touched with her love and fell in love to her in turn. Finally Jason abducted the Golden fleece and flee away with Medea. He married her and gave oath of fidelity. Many challenges and troubles Medea had to live through in foreign land: without her homeland and family, bearing the guilt upon her shoulders. But she tolerated everything, loving her husband. She gave birth to two sons of Jason.

Time was changing. Jason got bored and fell in love with the daughter of king Kreont, who blessed the marriage of his child and the hero. When Medea knew about this betrayal she fell into despair. She fell into wrath. Her spirit was unchained, she could not subdue herself. So the woman turned into the creature obsessed with evil spirits, thirst of revenge.

Jason came to Medea and started to assure her that he is going to marry king’s daughter for the sake of Medea and their children. Since they are sons of foreign woman with bad reputation marriage of their father on king’s daughter will make their status in society much firmer. Medea pretended that she did subdue. She’s sent bride the poisoned dress and crown as sign of her subdue. But the crown and dress has eaten her rival alive. King, who tried to rescue his daughter, died poisoned, too.

But Medea’s anger is unstoppable. She also kills her own children. She has two reasons to do that. She knows that loyal kings servants will revenge them. And, besides, she desires her revenge to Jason to be complete. She flies away on the golden chariot of God Heliot with the bodies of her children. It is useless for Jason to beg, asking to return bodies of his sons for at least to bury them and cry on their graves. Medea is not a woman any longer. She is the spirit of evil. And evil spirits do not credit to human tears.