Listen to Silence

Dr Sumedha Kushwaha *

A few weeks back, I was in a deep conversation with a friend, who was explaining to me how things are going wrong with her in every aspect of life. I was getting sweaty palms and pretty much tensed listening to her story.

I am personally a huge fan of this ancient Persian Poet ‘Rumi’ whose work has inspired me to live a fuller life. Whenever I find myself in ‘blank mind spots’ when technically my brain stops functioning, I go on a cup of coffee with him.

So, I made myself some freshly brewed coffee and picked up a book of his quotes. The third page said “In order to understand the dance, one must be still. In order to truly understand stillness, one must dance.” I read and re-read these lines and tried to understand what Rumi what trying to tell Sumi (that’s my nickname).

And after a week of contemplation about this, it occurred to me that life is a paradox in all senses. In life, in most absurd moments, we find peace. Most shameful incidents bring courage.

Dirtiest places bring about hope. Ugliest experiences sow seeds of love. Slavery brings freedom. Distance brings closeness. It is in complete silence; we lose the ability to hear. Letting go gives you everything and so on.

So when we are in the vortex of emotions and problems, it must be crucial to find the central axis around which all problems revolve.

No matter how many unnecessary thoughts, preconceived notions, anxieties of the future, painful memories of the past- we should always find the center of vortex, it’s quietest there, where we can find problems to all solutions.

I understood then that it’s okay to duck down in life sometimes. It’s fine to stop and take a break. Things will automatically come to you when you are still. Because in stillness, you understand motion better.

You don’t have to put in so much effort all the time. In the process of inaction, you will find answers. If you have ever played chess, you will realize that it’s not the move that makes the difference.

It is the silent time between the two moves –of the opponent’s and yours that brings victory or defeat.

It might be in that idleness that you would find your idolness.The feeling that we are stressed, stresses us more than the situation itself. Also, pushing too much during a stressful situation would lead to more unwanted results.

If you have ever tried meditation, you will see how we are never in the present moment. We are either too attached to our past that we are living and reliving a life that we have already lived. Or, we are in anticipation of the future, dealing with the stress of unknown situations that haven’t even happened.

Be present. Be mindful of what you think and how you think for self and others- Because the fourth page said “Listen to Silence. It has so much to say”.