Even if the fetishes and gri-gris are of some psychological help, they can give rise to fatalism and a technical passivity which sooner or later results in a loss of control. G ood technical skills certainly help maintain control. But real autonomy only comes if you can see beyond the standard solutions and imagine new ones. Any technique must be used for what is is, an aid whose limits must be known and which must be subordinated to the constant research for autonomy. I n mountaineering as in all adventure sports, autonomy is the first requirement for survival but is is impossible without imagination.
Safety is a marriage of solid technical skills and creative imagination.