Scottish psychiatrist R.D. Laing was known for his (then) unusual view and handling of mental illness. He published a book of his findings, “Knots,” in 1969. It is a most unusual work in form and content and consists of a series of powerful, curious dialogues/scenarios that can be read as poetry or brief plays, each complete in itself.
The chapters describe relationships—the "knots" of the title—bonds of love, dependency, uncertainty, jealousy. The dialogues could be between lovers, parents and children, analysts and patients—or all of these merged together. But each demonstrates Laing's insights into the complexities of human relationships.
You may believe your life is free from what we sometimes refer to as drama. But think about it a moment. Do you experience craziness in a typical tangled day at work—or difficulties in other human relationships? No?
How about this, “They are playing a game. They are playing at not playing a game. If I show them I see they are, I shall break the rules, and they will punish me. I must play their game, of not seeing I see the game.” (excerpt, Knots, R.D. Laing, M.D.)
I’ve brought us to this place not for a psychology lesson but for sanity. That safe place where we all seek to escape and hide sometimes—if we choose to go. It is always a choice.
I could be wrong, but I think our world has progressed from broken to crazy. It isn’t improving. And it won’t get better. Yet we must find a way to live and function (sanely) in it every day, one relationship, one interaction after another until we aren’t here anymore. And, then, what will become of our children? How will we teach them?
A colleague of Dr. Laing wrote, “Mental illness is the game-playing tactic adopted by those who are dissatisfied with the rules of the game in which they are a player.” ~Thomas Szasz, MD. It certainly seems a fitting definition for our current times as well. How are we to respond to madness at any level?
Any response to craziness, particularly a sane one, will fuel more craziness. So. Why do we not just let go? Why not stop attempting to solve by ourselves what cannot be? Instead of wringing our hands and keeping ourselves in a state of anxiety, why not go to The Problem Solver for solutions to our problems? It seems as though so few choose that strategy.
Additionally, I cannot answer that for you, for I don’t really know you. And you don't really know me. It would be crazy for me to persuade insistently. Because, “I do not experience your experience. But I experience you as experiencing. I experience myself as experienced by you. And I experience you as experiencing yourself as experienced by me.”
I have tried my own solutions to the madness of this life in many different venues and found them as insufficient as removing only a tiny portion of a tumor from the body. I discovered that sane solutions to all the irrationality the world presents are contained in a book of books we commonly refer to as the Bible. The instructions will guide the seeker through the procedures to untangle life’s knots if read and applied. No binds or double binds, no game playing. No ridiculous fads or temporary fixes.
To those who are offended at this prescription or simply view it as uneducated nonsense, I would point you to the words of Confucius, who, when surrounded by so many in his day bereft of critical thinking skills, responded, “The way out is through the door. How is it that so few will use this method?”
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