The vast majority of people David Lynch met later raved about his friendliness, calmness and goodness. There was an almost meditative silence and concentration on his sets, which is rare in the film business. How does this fit with the abysses that the director and artist opened up in his works?
Perhaps only a psychoanalyst can answer this question. According to his own statements, Lynch avoided this at the beginning of his career. At the time, he asked whether therapy could influence his creativity. When this could at least not be ruled out, Lynch decided against this help. Instead, he invested some energy and a lot of money in so-called Transcendental Meditation. Lynch later also became an ambassador for the association, which is viewed very critically by many.
Meditation to get better ideas
However, the director himself swore that daily meditation and increased attention to inner peace saved his life – and at the same time became the driving force for his art. He described this in great detail in the book “Catching The Big Fish” (subtitle: Meditation – Creativity – Film, published in German by Alexander Verlag). It is actually the only publication available in German that the director wrote himself.
When asked what effect meditation has on him, he replied: “It’s like having a bulletproof vest.” Specifically, Lynch describes in the book how he has been meditating every day since 1973 and how this practice promoted his creativity, calmness and joy in life . He compares meditation to exploring an “ocean of consciousness” that is full of ideas. “You dive within, and the deepest levels of life are found within yourself.”
David Lynch and Transcendental Meditation
The title of the book is of course to be understood metaphorically. Small fish (small ideas) swim on the surface, but big fish (deep, meaningful ideas) are found in the depths of consciousness. In Catching The Big Fish, Lynch emphasizes the importance of patience and openness in the creative process. Ideas come not through compulsion but through a relaxed and receptive mind. Lynch: “An idea is like a gift. It’s like something that suddenly appears and you know it’s just the right thing.”
The director also discusses the making of his films such as “Eraserhead,” “Blue Velvet” and “Twin Peaks” and how meditation helped him maintain clarity and focus. Of course, the work is also a kind of advertising brochure for a spiritual community that can also be understood as a sect. Sentences like “The deep ocean is accessible to everyone, regardless of faith or origin” can also be understood as a siren call.
Nevertheless, “Catching The Big Fish” contains a key to interpreting Lynch’s films and works of art. Overcoming evil also appears to be a symbol of driving away all those things that stand in the way of creativity. “Stress is like a brick weighing down your creativity,” Lynch claimed. “When you remove it, you open a channel for ideas.”