Song of silence

Concept Note

Simply Sitting

“Who can wait quietly, while the mud settles”?
Watchful, like men crossing a winter stream
Alert, like men aware of danger
Courteous, like visiting guests
Yielding, like ice about to melt
Simple, like un-carved blocks of wood
Hollow, like caves
Opaque, like muddy pools
Who can remain still until the moment of action?
Observers of the Tao do not seek fulfillment.
Not seeking fulfillment, they are not swayed by desire for change.

•⁠  ⁠Tao Te Ching
Lao Tsu

The invisible Covid -19 has gripped the world affecting more than 200 countries and over 6 million people.  It is estimated that 6 lakh people have succumbed to the pandemic disease.  Almost all the countries around the world went under lockdown and we all were confined to our homes. It also had a telling effect on the economy and also, on our socio-cultural activities. 

The pandemic poses enormous health, economic, environmental and social challenges to the entire human population. The impact of this crisis will have far- reaching consequences.  Besides, rampant ecological change is going to be a big challenge of this century. Enormous efforts are in place to restore the environmental quality. It is interesting to note that, the lockdown has led to a drop in pollution across the world. The contingency measures have improved the air and water quality and has drastically reduced the noise pollution too. 

In this context, I feel that silence is the best medicine, if we go through the social history, we can find that our great saints and reformers like Lalon Fakir, Rumi, Kabir, Ramana Maharshi, Sri Narayana Guru, Sri Aurobindo, Sri Rama Krishna, Vivekananada and Gandhi have talked about the silence and the importance of its observed. Silence is one of the tools that lead to inner healing.

During, 2020 and 2021, we all have noticed that during times of adversity, activities related to arts, music, films plays an important role in healing. So let us all think about the same in the current context.  We can observe silence in our life for some time and respond to a situation such as these to heal ourselves and nature.

Suresk K Nair
Banaras Hindu University 
Varanasi 
December 25, 2021