Celebrating Rainer Langhans's 85th Birthday: "I'm Already Content"
Langhans, on reaching 85, expresses contentment: 'I'm already happy'. - Langhans on his 85th birthday expresses contentment: "I'm already content"
Rainer Langhans, the 68er icon, is a man with many passions. At 85, you can find him pedaling his bike, playing table tennis, or sitting in deep meditation. Despite a prostate cancer diagnosis, Langhans continues his unique journey, preparing for the inevitable, as he puts it.
Concerns arose in March when headlines suggests Langhans's end was near. However, Langhans clarified he's simply been "practicing dying" due to his inner journey, and it's been going "exceptionally well" for him. His birthday falls on June 19.
Embracing the Unexpected
Langhans's approach to illness is far from conventional. He was "delighted rather than shocked" by the cancer diagnosis, he says. Meditation, for Langhans, means trying to die every day. The cancer has given him an opportunity to intensify this practice.
He encourages people to embrace their illness, claiming his life has improved significantly since his diagnosis.
A Novel Relationship Dynamic
In Munich's Schwabing district, Langhans resides with three women. Sometimes referred to as a "harem," they do not share the same apartment—it's a spiritual commune instead. "It's a commune, but because our bodies don't live together, we can come together spiritually."
His partners, Christa Ritter, Gisela Getty, and Brigitte Streubel, are not overly worried about him. They are on the same path and support each other. "You only learn to die if you interpret your life positively," says Ritter. They view the term "harem" as a misunderstanding of colonialism and not as female oppression.
The Rebel Roots of Commune 1
In the 1960s, Langhans co-founded the legendary Commune 1. A threat to society with their radical alternative lifestyle, these members protested against the Nazi generation, the Shah, and the Vietnam War. Their actions, ranging from arson and leaflets to the failed pudding attack on US Vice President Hubert Humphrey, were headline-worthy. The image of the naked communards also caused a stir.
Through his relationship with Langhans, Uschi Obermaier, a fashion model at the time, became famous and an icon. Their relationship ended due to differences in views on sexuality.
The slogan "Make love, not war" was misunderstood, Langhans says. It was about spiritual connection, not just physical love. The image of the sexual revolution has stuck, however. In 2018, Langhans received a symbolic art prize of 1,968 euros for a golden pubic hair.
The "Apo-Opa" and His Radical Lifestyle
Even in his advanced years, Langhans, also known as "Apo-Opa," continues his radical lifestyle: vegetarian diet, physical activities, meditation, and a commitment to simplicity. He calls this "species-appropriate behavior." He dresses in white, and he prefers to live modestly to avoid the need to make money.
His journey continues, between the jungle camp and data transparency.
Jungle Camp Adventures and Data Sharing
In 2011, Langhans participated in the RTL-"Jungle Camp." For this, he received a large sum of money, which he spent substantially. It was about the commune-like experience for him; a kind of commune boot camp.
Out of Step with the Times
Occasionally, Langhans found himself at odds with societal norms. Misunderstood or: not of this world—his life's theme is also his trademark.
He was born as the first of four children in Oschersleben near Magdeburg. His feeling then: "I don't belong here." His parents couldn't handle it, so they sent him to a strict religious boarding school. Afterwards, Langhans went in a completely different direction: he became a conscript soldier. This enabled him to study. In Berlin, he first studied law and then psychology, but without a degree.
Corona as a Reflection for Society
In the "Argument Club" and in the Socialist German Student Union (SDS), he found like-minded people. From the extra-parliamentary opposition (APO), Commune 1 emerged.
The motto was: "The private is political." Therefore, Langhans recently advocated the liberal sharing of personal data online. "I give my data voluntarily and get euros in return," he said on his 80th birthday. He saw the Corona crisis as an opportunity for inner reflection and a "meditation unit" for the whole society—just like his own illness.
A Human Instead of Just a Man
He currently has no symptoms, he says. He didn't want an operation or chemotherapy, but he is receiving a therapy that palliatively reduces testosterone to zero. "I'm chemically castrated," he says. "So, I'm no longer a man at all, if you will. I'm now a human being, instead of just a man." He also sees this as an opportunity: it lifts "above all these lowlands of libido."
Birthday Plans: Deep Conversations
The women are organizing the birthday—instead of coffee and cake, there will be deeper conversations, says Christa Ritter. Langhans himself says he has no wishes: "I'm already content—I don't wish for anything."
- Rainer Langhans, at the age of 85, follows an employment policy that includes cycling, playing table tennis, and meditating, despite his prostate cancer diagnosis.
- Langhans encourages people to embrace illness and claims his life has improved significantly since his diagnosis, demonstrating a unique approach to health-and-wellness and mental-health.
- In Munich's Schwabing district, Langhans resides with three women, forming a spiritual commune, not a traditional household, that he calls a "harem."
- The Women in Langhans's life, Christa Ritter, Gisela Getty, and Brigitte Streubel, are not overly worried about him, as they support each other and view their relationship as a positive spiritual connection.
- In the 1960s, Langhans co-founded the legendary Commune 1, which was known for its radical lifestyle and protests against societal norms, differentiating themselves from the Nazi generation, the Shah, and the Vietnam War.
- Through his relationship with Langhans, Uschi Obermaier became famous and an icon, but their relationship ended due to differences in views on sexuality.
- Despite societal misunderstandings, Langhans continues his radical lifestyle, which includes a vegetarian diet, physical activities, meditation, and commitment to simplicity, known as "species-appropriate behavior."
- Langhans views the Corona crisis as an opportunity for inner reflection and a society-wide "meditation unit," seeing it as a parallel to his own illness and the liberal sharing of personal data online.
