Silence Is Golden, But Where Is It?

It’s said that silence is golden, but that no longer seems to be the case.

Our modern world is filled with the constant hum and stress of white noise, generated by all our machines, toys and gadgets wherever we go. It blares out from TV’s turned on to the sports or news channels in practically every public gathering place, traffic, loud speakers and overhead pagers, even cell phones that never seem to find the “off” setting. Once upon a time our homes were the last bastion of silence, yet the majority of us seem unable to even walk through the front door without picking up a remote that will kill the silence instantly.

Is there a constant war against silence? I think there is, and it seems “noise” is easily winning, and we are paying the price resulting in a gradual burnout.

We have long since forgotten that the world “screams” while our souls “whisper”. With noise, all else is drowned out but with silence comes the sound of our heart when it speaks.

As Richard Mahler states, author of Stillness: Daily Gifts of Solitude, Simplicity and Silence, “Silence allows us to open the door to our unconscious mind, feel the yearnings of our heart, follow the wisdom of our intuition, probe the origin of our aversions and understand the truth of our experience”. Speaking of silence, he goes on to say “We at last get in touch with our deepest secrets, strongest passions, fondest wishes and happiest memories.”

Sometimes silence is a sign of fear or oppression, or as a way of withholding the truth, or when choosing not to speak out against great injustice. That is not the silence of which Mr. Mahler speaks, but instead he refers to the golden silence that takes us away from our fast paced, noisy lives and transports us to a beautiful place where we can heal and grow strong once more. It would be wise for more of us to “mine for that gold” as it will lead us on a path to a sacred place, free from worry and fear.

Without these moments of silence we are doomed to keep on moving and searching, all the while allowing what is good and worthwhile to remain a step behind. If we spend all of our time talking about what we think we know, then we will never hear anything new or important.

American historian James Truslow Adams wrote, “Perhaps it would be a good idea, fantastic as it sounds, to muffle every telephone, halt every motor, stop all activity some day to give people a chance to ponder for a few moments on what life is all about, why they are living and what they really want.”

Understanding the need for silence is one thing, knowing how to reclaim it is quite another.

The first step is in understanding that time spent in silence is not wasted time or loss of productivity. The reality is that silence is its own reward, because it is in silence that we can re-connect with our inner voice and rediscover our sense of time, well-being, happiness and ease.

Committing to some moments of silence each day does not necessarily mean we have to carve out new time within the already busy day in order to fit them in. They are already there waiting! All we have to do is turn off the TV, radio, or cell phone in order to tap into our beautiful silence.

It really isn’t that difficult to add silence into our lives, and here are just a few ways to do so:

• Take 5 minutes a day to meditate. That’s all the time it takes to reap the benefits of the most recommended, powerful practice of silence.
• Go for a walk without the aid of earphones. Leave the music behind. Listen to your thoughts.
• Turn off the TV during your morning coffee and just BE.
• Take a few extra minutes in the shower and experience the relaxing water on your body.
• Or, treat yourself to a luxurious bath, complete with nothing but the sound of water dripping from the faucet.
• Start to engage in hobbies and pastimes that require no type of sound such as reading, writing, and knitting.
• Try cooking and/or eating with no background noise. You’ll be surprised at how relaxing and how much better your food tastes when you take the time to enjoy it.
• Choose to work in silence when you are performing a task with another. Gardening and other physical activities is where this seems to work best.
We are literally up to our ears in sound every waking moment of the day adding to a constant stress and burnout, which is why silence is necessary more now than it ever was.
“Your hearts know in silence the secrets of the days and the nights.”