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It seems that science has made modern man omniscient and omnipotent. Why, then, are we increasingly turning to what we once thought was wild in search of answers? The knowledge of primitive people can be useful to us in everyday life, says psychoanalyst and psychotherapist Elizabeth Orowitz.
1. Informed means forewarned
How do they: the Eskimos of Iglulik, the inhabitants of the Torres Gorge and Papua New Guinea are watching everything around: a branch cracked, a stone fell, lightning flashed. In the «signs» they see a reflection of the future.
What can we do: catch the signals of the world and decipher them. Repetitions of numbers can indicate an important date or amount of money. Caught repetitions of words, names, phrases — about key decisions. Before going to sleep, let’s remember all the events of the day, scene by scene: the door slammed in front of us, the song we heard on the radio — what our consciousness missed will make sense.
2. Like Attracts Like
How do they: similar things affect each other. To stop the rain, the Kaingang Indians boil water until it evaporates. And they act as if they already got the desired result.
What can we do: use an analogy. Elizabeth Orowitz advised a single woman to go to all the weddings in the city and anonymously send a gift to the newlyweds, getting used to the image of a happy one. Anyone who dreams of prosperity can look at expensive housing through real estate agents in order to «feel» the taste of money and «call» them.
3. Get rid of an unpleasant relationship
How do they: the thing and its image mean the same. This is why primitive tribes sculpt fish out of wax or clay before they go fishing. Natives from different continents are sure: everything that comes out of the body (sweat, secretions), that touched the body (clothes, things, jewelry), traces, hair, reflection — all this is connected with the «owner».
What can we do: draw an uncomfortable situation and mail the drawing to a distant land. Or “recycle” painful relationships from the past: for this, Elizabeth Orowitz advises to print a portrait of the person with whom there was a relationship on a piece of clothing and wear it for as many days as we are years old.
4. Conquer fears and enhance abilities
How do they: images attract the image — with the help of the picture it can be strengthened or weakened. The inhabitants of New Caledonia tie the fashioned figurines of their fellow tribesmen with a thread, restoring harmony between men and women. Australian bushmen draw huge larvae on the rocks so that insects multiply better.
What can we do: mold plasticine figures of participants (even ourselves) of a frightening situation. Try to reduce a person’s power over us: we will increase his photo to the size of a poster and every day we will reduce it until it «collapses» into a miniature «non-scary» version. You can increase your abilities by presenting in the form of a photograph, drawing, sculpture in a large size what we want to reveal.
5. Store positive energy
How do they: the Maori people believe that places, things, jewelry, clothing and people are saturated with miraculous energy — «mana», which radiates strength, joy, security or power. Therefore, for example, the inhabitants of Kodyak Island (Alaska) keep the mummies of the dead lucky whalers and take them with them to hunt.
What can we do: go through things, thinking about the circumstances in which we acquired them, what memories they evoke. If they are saturated with success, luck, happy moments, they contain a lot of mana.
«Negative» things that depict failure, failure, suffering, must disappear from our lives. You can symbolically free yourself from a completed relationship by parting with shared bedding. Or stop wearing clothes, jewelry, perfumes that remind you of the sad pages of life.