The Sounds of Silence
In snow country, winter brings aseason of soft, deep and wonder-filled silence. The snow absorbs sounds,creating silence that feels juicy, thick and almost “holy”. Think to the Christmas carol, Silent Night.
Yet, many find comfort withconstant noise. The TV endlessly talks. Lawn mowers, traffic and more…continually add noise. We are used to constant sound-chatter. Do we escapesilence to avoid feeling alone or vulnerable? Do we hide from our feelings and innermostthoughts? To a screaming mind, silence isunbearable, but silence has gifts for us to explore.
AHindu Master, Sri Ganapathi Sachchidananda Swamiji, reflects that in silencethere are no quarrels. Silence lies beyond the realm of judgment. Silence ispeace. True silence occurs when the mind is still. In silence there are noquestions. Creativity begins with silence. True friends communicate best insilence.
Spiritual leaders have longrevered silence:
· “Silence is the altar of God.”
· “Be still and know that I am God.”
· “When we go into the inner chamber and shut the door to everysound that comes from life without, then the voice of God will speak to oursoul.”
How ironic, the deepest silence isfull of a world of sounds (that we don’t hear with our ears). Mystics professthat as one journeys towards enlightenment, a series of subtle, internal soundsmay be heard in silence. People have professed to hear in silence the:
· Pounding of the surf of the sea
· Humming of bees
· Tinkling of soft bells
· Ringing of soft bells
· Chirping of crickets
· Babbling water of a brook
· Rumbling of thunder
· Roaring of a lion
· Blowing of a conch shell
· Gong ofa big drum
· Strings of a harp
· Tone of a flute
· Sound of bag pipes
· Absence of all sound
The Bible also refers tothis inner hearing: “And I heard the voice fromheaven. Like the sound of many waters, like the sound of loud thunder, thevoice I heard was like the sounds of harpers playing on their harps.”
Focused innerlistening reveals a subtle chorus of inner sounds. The ability to perceive these subtle inner sounds can bedeveloped. How do you hear the“jewels” of silence? Focus attention on a sound that is nearby. Next, adjustyour hearing to listen to a sound that is far away. Continue changing yourlistening focus, going back and forth. This eventually creates a high pitchedsound, similar to a ringing sound in our ears. (Tinnitus is not a commoncondition. Tinnitus usually results from inner ear damage. The little “soundsof silence” could be confused with tinnitus. With tinnitus someone hears the same pitch, volume and quality of soundall the time.)
Another wayto access “silence” sounds is to plug your ears and then listen carefully tosubtle internal sounds. Find whatever means worksbest to block out extraneous sounds, such as using earplugs or placing a pillowover the ears.
Alternatively,imagine that each sound you hear can be locked in an imaginary bag thatcompletely muffles the sound. One by one put the sound of traffic, therefrigerator, an airplane flying overhead and so on into the sound tight bag.Let all these sounds go and then listen for the sound that comes from withinyourself.
Manysit quietly in meditation for quite some time before they perceive these subtlesounds. As they focus on slight sounds, they first hear their nervous orcirculatory systems, heartbeat or other internal sounds. Internal sounds may bemechanical sounding, like a ringing in your ears, the white noise on TV or itcould sound like nature…such as the ocean, crickets or rain. As you focus oninternal sounds they become louder. Close your eyes and move into the soundswith your feelings. Allow sound to come around you, like a cloak. Sound isinvasive and let it in!
Atfirst listen you may hear one sound, but with additional concentration noticethat the tone is comprised of a multitude of softer and shorter frequencies.Just like a white light can be divided into a rainbow of frequencies, internalsounds divide into softer component pitches.
Over timeyour internal sounds morph. What begins sounding like a cricket may end up tenminutes later resembling the sound of the ocean. I went through many monthsthat I only heard crickets and then suddenly my internal sounds were similar tothe howling of the wind.
I lovedplaying with these sounds. I often replicated an internal sound, increasing thevolume of my inner hearing and this also provided me with a sense of balance.Singing an octave below the pitch grounded me, giving me a feeling of solidityand power. Humming the octave above appeared to increase my intuition andconnection to spirit.
Many sages credit theproper use of sound with great wisdom. It offers profound spiritual growth andputs pilgrims on the spiritual fast-track. Below are quotes from a variety ofspiritual disciplines, reflecting on the power of sound and our hearing abilities.
“My Soul counseled me to listenfor voices that rise neither from the tongue nor the throat, Before that day Iheard but dully, But now I have learned to listen to silence, To hear itschoirs singing the songs of ages, Chanting the hymns of space, and disclosingthe secrets of eternity.” (Kahlil Gibran)
“While information and knowledge,the fruits of pursuing the light, provide relative peace and spiritualprogress, they pale in comparison to the higher God attributes of truth, love,wisdom and freedom and power which the awakened Sound Current imbued within thesincere seeker of truth… These attributes are enlivened by bathing in theaudible Life Stream.”(Sikh Guru Nanak)
The winter sings to us in silence.These songs enhance our wonder, spiritual wisdom and abilities to listen to thestill small voice and the huge world of inner sounds that we all possesswithin.
Jill Mattson is aprolific Artist, Musician and Author. Jill is widely recognized expert andcomposer in the field of Sound Healing! She has produced nine CDs with intriguing,magical tracks using ancient & modern techniques, & special healingfrequencies to achieve profound benefits. Jill is a four - time author. (The Lost Waves of Time – Best Book of 2016and Best Alternative Science book of 2016, Deep Wave Body Healing CD– BestSound Healing CD of 2016, Contacting Angels & Masters CD – Best CD of 2015and Deep Wave Beauty CD – Best New Age CD – Silver Award). She offers an online Sound Healing School.Jill presents new ways of approaching health and everyday issues using thebenefits of sound! Free music & School of Sound Healing at www.jillswingsoflight.com
