Sundays are traditionally a time for rest and reflection, and what better way to embrace that stillness than by delving into the profound power of silence? Silence is not the absence of sound, but a gateway to the core of our being.
Today’s beautiful thoughts on silence come from the 13th Century Persian poet Rumi:
“This silence, this moment, every moment, If it’s genuinely inside you, brings what you need.” – Rumi
“Let silence take you to the core of life.” – Rumi
“Last night I begged the Wise One to tell me the secret of the world. Gently, gently, he whispered, ‘”Be quiet, the secret cannot be spoken, It is wrapped in silence.”‘ – Rumi
“Silence is the language of God, all else is poor translation.” – Rumi
“Why are you so afraid of silence, silence is the root of everything. If you spiral into its void, a hundred voices will thunder messages you long to hear.” – Rumi
And then arguably Rumi’s most well known phrase:
“Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing there is a field. I’ll meet you there. When the soul lies down in that grass the world is too full to talk about.” – Rumi
When you have downtime, how do you use that space? Chances are, you’re geared to filling in that time – probably without even thinking about it – by answering a few emails, doing a little work, cleaning, surfing the web, scrolling social media or catching up on your TV shows. You may not think to yourself, I think I’ll sit in silence.
Yet most of us crave more down time, more stillness. So why don’t we make it happen?
Silence can make us uncomfortable because when we’re truly silent, we have to face whatever is inside of us. So we’ve become conditioned to fill every spare moment with activity, to seek solace in the constant hum of information and interaction.
Dr. Stephanie Ludwig, Director of Spiritual Wellness at Canyon Ranch Tucson say’s “We’re so used to distracting ourselves from what we’re feeling, from difficult emotions like fear, resentment or anger that we’d rather keep moving and making plans and doing things for others. We live in such a ‘doer’ culture – go, go, go, do, do, do! If we really knew the blessings that come with silence, we would definitely make more time for it.”
Mantras for embracing silence:
- In the quiet, I find myself.
- Silence is not an absence, but a presence waiting to be discovered.
- Today, I choose stillness over stimulation.
- I listen to the whispers of my soul, and they guide me home.
Spending time in silence helps you remember who you are, while slowly-slowly softening everything that you’re not.
Have a beautiful Sunday.
– pierre –
Today’s LIVE meditation is: Finding silence.