Why the jungle teaches more than 10 years of psychotherapy? Beata Pawlikowska

Pawlikowska presents this as the simplest, most accessible spiritual practice that requires no money, no guru, and no special skills. She contrasts it with the commercialization of spirituality, where people pay for ceremonies or workshops. She insists that true spiritual experience cannot be bought and must be cultivated personally. The dawn practice is her answer to the question 'how do I connect?' She emphasizes that it must become a non-negotiable daily habit, like brushing teeth. Over time, it transforms from a mere routine into a profound spiritual experience. She guarantees it changes lives if done consistently for a month. The practice is also a form of 'letting go' — puszczanie — which she identifies as the key to freeing oneself from the overactive, repetitive mind.

Pawlikowska ties this practice to her experiences of extreme hunger in the jungle, where she once saw a bird only as a potential dinner. Having known real deprivation, she now can appreciate every meal profoundly. She deliberately allows herself to become genuinely hungry during the day so that when she sits to eat, she is the happiest person in the world. This practice is part of her broader philosophy of not needing external stimuli to feel good — the capacity for joy is built into simple, mindful engagement with basic activities.

Pawlikowska uses this exercise during her jungle workshops. She explains that the list of desired partner traits is essentially a list of unmet self-care needs. For example, wanting a partner who is always supportive means you need to learn to support yourself. This reframe helps people stop outsourcing their happiness and start building a secure relationship with themselves. It aligns with her broader message of taking full responsibility for one's emotional state.

Pawlikowska illustrates this with a real example: a business partner she trusted acted irrationally and caused potential legal and financial consequences. Her initial reaction was shock, disbelief, anger, disappointment, sadness. But then she asked herself: why did this person cross my path? Did I trust too quickly? She concluded that she had approached the collaboration idealistically, assuming the partner would be as honest and competent as she wished, without taking proper precautions. She reframed it as a lesson: people are not ideal, and she should not stake everything on one person. This process allowed her to process the emotions without being consumed by them.

Pawlikowska builds her argument by first noting that humans are genetically over 90% microbial. She then speculates that just as microbes might have driven humans to travel and explore new territories (to spread themselves), they could also be behind the impulse to kiss. She points out that the mouth is a high-density microbial zone, making it an ideal transfer point. She even jokes that this could be a great pickup line: 'My microbial genes want to transport themselves to yours.' While she admits this is her own theory, not established science, she presents it as a logical extension of the growing understanding that our microbiome influences behavior. The idea challenges the notion that romantic or emotional drives are purely human, suggesting instead that we are vessels for microbial agendas.

Pawlikowska contrasts two scenarios: 15,000 years ago in a pristine jungle, having children made sense because they would be healthy and strong. Today, in a civilization where everything is contaminated — physically and mentally — creating more humans who will be raised in fear and taught to avoid effort is, from nature's perspective, not good for the species. She argues that we are producing weaker humans with lower chances of survival. This is not a narrative she adopted to justify her choice; she insists she simply never felt the desire for motherhood, but when pressed for a larger theory, she offers this evolutionary-environmental reasoning. She also notes that her life choices — travel, self-discovery, writing — have made her 100% fulfilled, and she has no sense of lack.

She explains that when you name God, paint an image, and declare what He is like, He becomes something you can control, which gives a false sense of security. Religions then act as intermediaries, promising salvation in the next world rather than teaching people how to be happy and good here and now. This disempowers individuals, making them dependent on the religious institution instead of fostering a direct, personal connection with the divine source. She contrasts this with her own experience of connecting directly to the 'primordial consciousness' — a quantum field of awareness from which everything emerged — which brings immediate happiness, a desire to be a good person, and a sense of being cared for by a force that always seeks balance, truth, and honesty. She notes that all religions originally had this principle of goodness, but it has been lost in favor of divisive, fear-mongering teachings.

Pawlikowska explains that she realized she is the only person who will be with her until the end of her life with 100% certainty. The self-wedding was a private celebration of finally growing up enough to take full responsibility for herself. She emphasizes that this does not preclude being in a relationship with another person, but it means she will always be primarily in a relationship with herself. The act was not for show — no guests, no public ceremony — because it was about her internal shift, not external validation. She contrasts this with her earlier pattern of emotional dependency, where her feelings were dictated by others' moods and behaviors.