Experiencing Silence
By Pose123
@Pose123 (21635)
Canada
February 6, 2009 8:37pm CST
Silence is much more than the absence of sound as anyone who has experienced it can attest.Taking the time to experience silence calms the mind and rejuvenates the body. Silence is the void where we can hear the many sounds that we often ignore – the voice of our intuition telling us the truth, the sound of the breeze blowing, and the noises we make just because we are alive.
One way to experience silence is to wake up before the rest of the world has come alive. Try not to move into activity, and leave off the lights, radio, and television. Sit still and simply listen. You may hear your heartbeat or your breath, but keep your attention tuned to the silence that surrounds you. Stay this way for as long as you can, and allow the sound of silence to penetrate your body. We can also chose a few moments when everyone has retired at night to tune in to the silence. Many people feel nervous around silence and try to fill these moments with sound. Yet silence is always there – vast, potent, and available for us to step into any time we choose and the experience can be very rewarding.
6 people like this
12 responses
@barehugs (8973)
• Canada
7 Feb 09
The silence can be deafening to the Yogi as he sits cross legged in Full Lotus. After completing the Asanas his mind has slowed, and he begins to see within, envisioning scenes from Past Lives, and pondering the roads traveled. How did he get here from there?. How easy for him to go forward, when he knows from whence he came. Yes, An Answer here, now the Question? A Healthy Lifestyle, and Independence from the Medical Establishment. Balancing the diet with nutritional foods. Gentle living. Yoga is a series of slow stretching movements that strengthen Muscles, lubricate Joints, and Invigorate the Mind. Live longer and stronger with Yoga.
1 person likes this
@faith210 (11224)
• Philippines
11 Feb 09
Hi Pose123! Silence can be my friend some times. Whenever I need to relax and to listen to my soul, I tuned in to silence. Silence can be rejuvenating and can be a healer. In silence, I can hear the whisperings of my heart and soul. And in silence, I can reconcile with myself.
Take care and have a great day!
lovelots..faith
@Roseo8 (2947)
• India
9 Feb 09
I guess this is what we try to do in meditation......Silencing our thoughts completely.It is difficult only because we are so unused to this idea. The mind is so used to thinking that it is easy to think our existence is defined by our thoughts and this must be our only existence.Modern life with all its distractions and features seems particularly unsuited to silence. Even if we have actual outer silence our mind is rarely silent. If we analyse our thoughts there seem to be a never ending stream of worries, anxieties, and regrets.But silence helps to calm the mind and soothes the soul.
1 person likes this
@France7 (385)
• Philippines
13 Feb 09
Hello there Pose. I definitely agree that silence can rejuvenate the soul, the body, and the spirit. Aside from waking up early in the morning or remained awake when everybody's already sleeping, we can also feel silence when we go to a quiet place such as at the top of the mountain. I do climb the mountains to just sit, relax, and feel the music of silence. It is such a beautiful experience to leave the noisy city sometimes and confine ourselves into a place where we can only hear the music of nature or even our own breath.:)
@Pose123 (21635)
• Canada
13 Feb 09
Hi France, Thank you for commenting and I really like the idea of the top of the mountain. Sometimes in the Summer I will get away from the town and to a place of quiet in the outdoors. The silence interrupted only by the sounds nature breathes new life into me. Blessings.
@ronaldinu (12422)
• Malta
7 Feb 09
The truth is that we are bombared with noise both inside and outside of us. If you switch on any type of media whether it is television or radio station we are bombarded with adverts and other messages. Even when we are quiet our mind is always on the go, our mind will be wondering on projects that we have to finish. That's why most of us are scred to face silence in our lives.
1 person likes this
@Perspectives (7131)
• Canada
8 Feb 09
Oh yes...do I agree with you on this one my friend. Meditation is something that I seek with the busyness of my brain at times. I also enjoy getting up early in the morning or staying up really late at night and listening to the silence in nature. We moved from Winnipeg because the 750,000 plus population there always has a "hum or buzz" to it.
In our little rural village of 850 residents the silence we experience within our daily life here is dramatically different than big city life.
The other thing we remind clients in conflict resolution sessions is that silence is the one that that no can argue with.
Good topic...nice to be chatting again.
Raia
1 person likes this
@hotsummer (13837)
• Philippines
7 Feb 09
yes silence. i had so much of that before when i was younger. when other members of the family was all busy with their of own thing at work and i am alone at home mostly. it was really terrible to have this silence and it was so depressing actually. i didn't like it. but i tried to use that silence i had back them to my advantage. i took time to meditate and to plan things for my future. but still i don't have a good life. it is because i was not able to follow up my plans.
anyways, silence is good as you have said. it relaxes my mind. but not all silence means peace in our hearts. there are times when silence specially silence at home creates some loneliness and depression. so for me i only want to have a moment of silence when i really need it.
1 person likes this
@Pose123 (21635)
• Canada
7 Feb 09
Hi hotsummer, Thank you for commenting. You may be confusing silence with being alone and we are social creatures which means most of us enjoy company. You can enjoy the silence when there a people around you. Just choose a time early in the morning of at night when others are sleeping. Blessings.
@phyrethyme (1267)
• Philippines
7 Feb 09
I see.. Experiencing silence is natural for me. I am the quiet type of person.. I'm pretty comfortable when there are moments where people run out of things to say. There's no pressure on me to fill up that space. Silence itself is a reward too at this day and age, I guess. 
1 person likes this
@TLChimes (4822)
• United States
8 Feb 09
I love to sit on my front steps in the early morning and just take in the light as it comes up from the dark. The streets are still. The air dances as it sees fit. You some times hear dogs or distant trains but the silent breath before light is what you feel.
The dark is there and then not. I see, hear, and feel that. What a wonderful sense of peace and hope.
I have never been good at meditation but this is close and usually less stressful because I'm not TRYing for that quiet and stillness... it just is.
1 person likes this
@allright (86)
• India
14 Feb 09
Hi pose123 for me silence has deeper meanings like most of responders here.
Have you people ever experienced the uneasiness of silence in a room u enter just after an argument there ? So silence can say a lot of things . But mostly I associate it with inner peace and harmony with our fellow beings.
