The complex man-made environments that we live in can often feel constricting. Societies throughout history have been shaped and maintained by complex sets of customs, laws, and ideologies that give organized societies the structure and integral support they need to sustain themselves. It is doubtful that any of them could ever hope to sustain themselves without them. Established modes of production and lifestyles, along with compatible codes of moral behavior, keep our artificial worlds relatively secure, predictable, and productive. So, it is completely natural for its beneficiaries to diligently support and defend whatever principles their respective social orders rest upon. This protective impulse, shared by the majority of the population in any healthy human organization, guarantees the necessary degree of cohesion required to keep its mechanisms running and in good order.
Yet, there is a familiar feeling of suffocation when one is forced to maintain strict social discipline for too long. Of course, nearly everyone has a degree of moral tendencies which makes it easy to follow at least the obvious laws, norms, and mores of their group. But there is always a superfluidity of rules and guidelines, and the more numerous they are, the more they tend to clash and fall into dysfunction. Even the most essential rules, if they bear too heavily on the individual, can threaten to crush the individual spirit, which can feel compressed at times even within the most relaxed parameters.
What is this individual spirit that struggles with our social instincts and expectations? It is our animal core, our primal essence. Freud referred to it as the “id”, and it represents the part of the brain that is housed in the basal ganglia, located in our brain stem, the most archaic region of our brains. It is the locus of our primal nature, the secluded lair that harbors our ancient animal drives. Rarely seen but always present and heard, our conscious minds rarely operate without its low, guttural growl floating through the caverns of our mind, demanding food, fun, sex, and adventure.
In our rational age, we often think of our conscious selves, our egos, as the man at the helm. After all, we humans pride ourselves as being rational beings. However, modern neurology suggests this first inhabitant of our minds often, if not always, assumes a commanding role. As is the case with any animal, it cannot be reasoned or negotiated with. As an essential part of ourselves, it cannot be destroyed. Indeed, doing so would certainly be the destruction of the self. Yet, it doesn’t acknowledge social boundaries and loathes asceticism in any form. It is a selfish and hedonistic being. Because of this, all societies demand that individuals suppress this side of themselves to a certain extent for the sake of good order and mutual benefit. This is accomplished through appeals to the moral impulses ingrained in us as we evolved into social animals, through our rational capacities, and even through our instinctive capacity for illusion and gullibility. Thus, our primal side is kept at bay with our complementary moral tendencies, practical rationalism, and credulity.
There is some need for this, to be sure. Our inner beast is an amoral creature, and society demands moral behavior, driven solely by primal biological imperatives. Thus, it must be restrained they its three custodians. It is through them that our primal selves, which are wholly incompatible with any social order, has any hope for survival.
However, within the beast lays our vitality, our most enduring and genuine primal energy. By leaving it languishing in its den for too long, it becomes emaciated and lethargic. Its bold and jovial spirit falls to bitterness, and before long, its strained and vengeful howls begin to haunt the deepest corners of our souls. Its desperate call, although muffled by its alienation from the conscious mind, inevitably penetrates and subdues its jailers. It breaks through into the rational mind, fills it with resentment, and turns it toward vengeance. It suppresses meek moral drives. It hijacks our illusions and refits them to its ends. One must be a benevolent steward toward its primal center. A despot can only hope to resign itself to eventual subjugation or mutual destruction.
Even the strongest of us cannot suppress the will of the beast forever without incurring a terrible cost. Evading insanity, one is compelled to release him from his bonds. In most cases though, there has been too long a wait, as embracing our animal side is too often regarded as dirty and shameful, a bad-faith illusion perpetuated by societies throughout history in their over-zealous attempts to control it. So, when it is finally unleashed into the world, it gorges itself while taking out its vengeance upon society. The longer and more vigorously the beast in restrained, the uglier and more ferociously it discharges its hatred when it is finally released.
Yet the beast is not only part of us, but the archaic core of our being, and it must be cared for. Society teaches us to reject and suffocate it, to be ashamed of it. But it is essential to the health and flourishing of the human soul that we embrace and care for it. To accomplish this, it must simply be freed as needed. Free to run and to rest, to feast and imbibe, to take risks and embark on adventures, and have fun. In other words, it must be allowed to discharge its energy in a place where social interruptions are minimized. Through this cathartic jubilation, our inner animal blows off its steam and releases its surplus energy. Satisfied, the beast can then return to its den, imparting a healthier and more controllable energy to the conscious mind. In this way, a symbiotic relationship is developed between our primordial unconscious and our rational, conscious minds. The man looks after the beast and lets it run, and in return, the beast bestows a controllable vitality that can be converted into a positive, creative energy.
It should be mentioned, though, that too much of a good thing is a bad thing, even for our bestial side. Overindulge it, run it too much, let the dog walk you, so to speak, and you will not only lose control, but, exhausted, fall into exhausted lethargy. It is absolutely necessary, therefore, that the rational mind, as the lawgiver of the psyche, takes responsibility for it, and exercises necessary discipline. Because again, the beast has no regard for boundaries, and if allowed to take the wheel unaided, the individual is destined to fall.
The only question left, is where should the beast be let free to roam? As mentioned before, there is no place for this feral beast within the bounds of one’s home. Failing to acknowledge this can only lead to disaster. The answer then, is to go outside its bounds. To what can be referred to as the “frontier”. Here, the individual is beyond the scope of judging eyes, fragile surroundings, and curious ears. Here, in the endless expanse of the free landscape, the beast can be released and freely run.
One may think of this “frontier” as a natural setting, but more accurately, it is anywhere that an individual can let down his hair and act out his primal side without judgment or retribution. Such places can be found spread out around the globe, yet they are also often hidden in plain sight. Historically, ancient civilizations erected entire cities that became focal points for hedonism. Cities such as Las Vegas and the Mediterranean island of Ibiza illustrate the endurance of this tradition. Festivities throughout time, from Carnival to even today’s Spring Break festivities in the U.S. turn everyday communities into carnal whirlwinds, where asceticism is sin and excess is the highest virtue. Sailors had, and still do, cut loose when they come to port, and the practice of debauchery on business trips is a persistent practice.
Almost everywhere and throughout time, societies have found ways to help the beast get some fresh air without tearing the whole place down. And this is no doubt necessary, for an animal locked away too long will - if afforded the opportunity - eventually break free of his cage and tear itself and its surroundings to pieces. The widespread practice of accepting the animal side of humanity and regulating times and places to express it is a credit to human wisdom, although it was all very likely a response to the irresistible howling of the beast within.
It is only through a strict interpretation of a moral civilization as an ascetic structure that the beast is repressed, crushed, and twisted into a dangerous monster. Can anyone think of a society more cruel, corrupt, and debased as one that portends to absolute discipline? Such places are always filled with bitter, resentful, and aggressive people, who make a habit of pointing fingers and judging others for their deviance. All the while, though, these very people are tortured by their own inability to act out their “deviance”. They praise their adherence to social rules, while secretly chaffing under the yoke of their pitiable subservience. They shun their beast, believing this to be the will of a justified higher authority, not realizing that it is, in fact, a loyal companion that fires the soul and leads our spirits to inspiration. They put up a front of superiority, but reek of jealousy and cowardice. Because behind the posturing and declarations of self-respect, is self-loathing. The beast is an inextricable part of the self. To hate it is to hate one half of the self while depriving the other half of its companion.
Just as a dog is man’s best friend, our inner beast is the indispensable companion to our conscious egos. The human mind, with its sentience, rational and imaginative capacities, and rich spectrum of emotion, is a remarkable thing. Indeed, it is the nature and abilities of the conscious mind that account for our creative abilities and the richness by which we experience our lives. But our ancient animal side, our beast, is the source of our most vital and enduring energy in our being. It is the fire of our souls. It energizes the human spirit and gives it the strength to raise itself to greater and greater heights. It is an indispensable, inexorable part of every human. For these reasons, we should accept it, embrace it, and see to its health. Doing this, while keeping it under a gentle yet firm discipline, promises the potential for self-actualization, and the boundless flourishing of the human soul.