Why monkeys and clowns aren't ashamed

Why monkeys and clowns aren't ashamed

Clowns have a strange job.

The best thing that can happen to a clown is: as soon as they step onto the stage, everyone starts laughing. They haven't done anything yet, and the audience is doubled over with laughter.

If the same thing happens to you in the morning at the office when you open the door and all your colleagues roar with laughter the moment they see you, or when you visit friends and everyone starts laughing the moment you enter the room, that doesn't feel so good.

You'll probably get red in the face, wondering what you did wrong. Maybe you'll be ashamed and not even know why. Or you'll get angry and rant because you feel laughed at.

None of this fazes a clown. No matter how funny they look, with their red nose on their face, their pants that are too short, too tight, or too big, and their clumsy demeanor. A clown has nothing to be ashamed of, not for how he looks or what he does. He practically has carte blanche. He fails, and everyone thinks it's great!

No wonder many dream of being a little bit as carefree and free as a clown.

Our so-called "normal life" is determined by the desire not to do anything wrong, by the fear of not being good enough, and by the shame of others noticing.

Shame is one of our biggest killjoys and the reason we withhold so much vital energy. We are ashamed that we are too tall, too short, too fat, too thin, too loud, too quiet, too stupid, too smart, too black, too white, and, last but not least, too sexual or not sexual enough.

 

Sex sells

Yes, it's actually hard to believe:

Jokes about shame in connection with sexuality, sexual innuendo, and correspondingly exaggerated maneuvers and actions work time and time again, even today. No matter what age, background, education, etc. And if they don't work because no one reacts, everyone is shy and covers themselves, or seemingly "has nothing to do with it," that's precisely why they work.

Why is that? Why does shame play such a big role?

I remember a situation at a swimming lake. My wife and I were lying on a blanket by the lake, enjoying the beautiful weather. Two women were lying next to us, chatting. Suddenly, a little boy jumped out of the water naked and ran joyfully toward the two women, one of whom was obviously his mother. Triumphantly, the little naked man presented himself to the women and exuberantly shook his tail.

What was wriggling so funny between the little boy's legs completely disconcerted the two women. With a bright red face, the mother hissed at the little boy, "Take that off immediately!" Completely confused and shocked by his mother's reaction, the child immediately ended his brave performance, ran away crying, and buried himself and his little body in the sand, sobbing.

This dramatic and momentous spectacle unfolded right next to us. It wasn't our job, nor was it our right, to interfere.

At the same time, however, we knew how this experience would leave a lasting impression on the little human brain. What effect it would have and what its impact would be. The shock of his "inappropriate" performance will remain subconsciously embedded in his body for his entire life. How long, if ever, will it take until one day, as a grown man, he will once again present himself so courageously and joyfully, instead of "getting rid of it immediately?" Such experiences leave a lasting impression, creating a concept of guilt and shame that blocks us and prevents us from being joyful and creative.

A lack of creativity is often simply a matter of shame, the fear of showing oneself and being criticized for who we are.

 

On Innocence

What fascinates me so much about the figure of the clown, and thus to this day about my over 30 years of clown work with so many people:

It is the joy of reconnecting people with their innocence, with their natural strength and creativity, and the desire to feel and express themselves in their self-expression. Because it makes profound sense to reconnect with our original innocence instead of allowing ourselves to be blocked by shameful fears.

At this point, I would like to tell you about a memorable encounter I had many years ago on the famous Rock of Gibraltar at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula.

In this special place, where Europe and Africa are closest to each other, the United Kingdom still controls a British overseas enclave. This militarily important base, however, offers visitors another significant attraction. This is a group of free-roaming monkeys who live there traditionally, giving the place the nickname "Rock of Monkeys." The tolerated visitors are allowed to look over a barrier down at the herd of monkeys. Even from a distance, I noticed how fascinated the humans were watching their former companions.

Unfazed by this, the monkeys sat close together, picking their fur and licking each other without omitting any part of their bodies. The visitors watched this spectacle, mesmerized, almost in shock, as the monkeys rolled wildly across the floor, surrendering to their pleasurable existence.

In that moment, I realized how far we are from the experience of innocence, and how feelings of guilt and shame can separate people from their creative self-expression.

I felt as if the other visitors, albeit subconsciously, also perceived this loss of their own natural innocence. Like a distant echo, the memory of a primordial freedom and connection sounded across the barrier up to the humans, and it was in this place that I understood more than ever which side of the cage we actually stand on.

At the same time, I allowed myself to wonder whether it was really only military considerations that led the British Kingdom to maintain this last base – at a safe distance from their original homeland, of course.

So let's hope that the monkeys of Gibraltar will remind us of our innocent origins for a long time to come. Before they, too, give up the impulse to fend for themselves and behave as they naturally do, due to the feeding of visitors, and mutate into domesticated pets.

Now you know why monkeys and clowns have no shame!

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