Retire to your home. Close all the windows and shutters. Turn off all the lights. Sit crosslegged on a cushion on the floor. Straighten your spine. Keep your head balanced. Close your eyes. Breathe regularly. Stop all of your thoughts. If snippets of thought keep pestering you, repeat your favorite mantra in your mind to dispel them. When hungry, eat a little. When tired, sleep a little. When you need to pee or shit, go to the toilet. Keep doing the same day after day.

Addendum I (November 1, 2015)

As I was looking for an old Venetian proverb on the World Wide Web, I came across an entirely different one that seemed vaguely familiar: “Se ti vol libertà, va a casa tua.” And I remembered this particular piece shortly afterwards. As it happened, I had just retired to my home in search of the proverbial peace and quiet. As well as liberty, it goes without saying. The proverb I found without looking thus struck me as no less than providential. The fact that it hailed from the city of my progenitors only added to my contentment. Nay, serenity.

Addendum II (March 29, 2016)

All of my pieces with this kind of title, where a Roman numeral follows the word “exit,” are about departure from this world. That is, suicide. The first three were written in 2000, and the next four were written one each in 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2006. Remarkably, not a single piece with such a title appeared in the intervening eight years. In retrospect, this piece is a joke of sorts, for it is about departure from the social world only. That is, social suicide. And this is the exit that I have actually taken earlier this year. Although I am entirely friendly with everyone I meet, my liberation amounts to no less than social suicide. Which is why I now spend most of my time perfectly alone, as well as why I now eschew all projects aimed at this world.

Addendum III (May 27, 2018)

Well, well. My last piece with a title of this sort is plain enough: abandon thought at will and remain free from it for as long as you wish (“Exit IX,” March 11, 2017). Easy-peasy, to be sure. Retire to your home and follow this simple advice that leads to liberation (“No-Bullshit Enlightenment,” January 18, 2016). It takes years, though. And it takes much more besides. In particular, it takes regular yoga practice (“Ten Principles of Bon Yoga,” November 13, 2012). In my own experience, the blessed exit is far from easy to reach. Most of the people I happen to know are not even able to start the journey, let alone bring it to a successful end. Still, this piece is not entirely in vain. Retire to your home. Close all the windows and shutters… How do I know? I have just followed my own advice, and I feel no less than uplifted. The first step! The very first blessed step!