Why Silence is a dimension

 

Why Silence is a dimension

Silence as a revelatory space, not an absence.

 

There are people who just can’t ever be silent. They either speak or over-think or need some or other kind of noise to feel safe and alive. For those who have really experienced silence – truly know that there is nothing louder than silence!

May it be silence in terms of sounds, or silence as no 3D communication between two souls, or silence as a response to a question or situation! Silence can mean so much and contains its own kind of fullness, if only we are willing to actually delve into it.

As per Spirituality and Hinduism; Silence is the place of aether… Sky tattva. Represented by Shiva – the guardian of Time. The very energy has no attributes to it. It’s emptiness. A place before beginning and after culmination of everything living or non-living, perceived or unperceived.

In our chakras, sky element is placed in the centre of our throat and shiva sits upon our third eye chakra. All hormones get secreted right between these two chakras in our system. All thinking happens between these two. all thoughts originate and culminate here.

Likewise at macro level, the entire life comes into existence when prakriti or Shakti enters in. If Shiva is Aether element, then his consort ‘Shakti’ - is all rest of the elements. She represents nature itself. So, anything with attributes to it – fire, air, earth, water – is shakti/ energy/ nature/ prakriti.

In coding language, Shiva is Zero. So is silence. Shakti is all ones that make it a language. All though, both fulfil each other, yet both are equally essential in themselves. And both are in themselves their own dimensions.

As such, each of the elements comprise of their own worlds – water has its own life, air is what we breath in, there are creatures living even layers below earth’s crust – deep inside earth, fire too has its own mystery and colors about it. Yet, its sky or ether that is all pervasive and without which, none of the things would seem the way they seem to us.

Each cell of our body contains maximum amount of nothingness. It’s rather sky element that fills all these micro and macro structures.

Likewise, its rather silence that gives meaning to any language structure.

That’s how melodies are made – a play of sounds and silence in between. Or else, it would be a list of consecutive sounds without any drops in between. I wonder if that would even be music.

It’s the space between breath in and breath out or breath out and breath in – that makes breathing a verb and life a living experience.

And yet, those in between pauses between breaths are the focus points of all meditations. Have you ever wondered why is that so? Which frequency do those pauses connect us to?

What is this silence that sages go to find all up on mountains – away from noise?

Is it just silence from sounds – external or internal or is it silence of some other kind? What is Silence?

Spirituality defines it as a state where there are absolutely no thoughts. No beings around. No chitter chatter in mind. No desires, no aspirations, no complaints, no struggles. It’s just hollow and empty. A clean slate. A state of nothingness. Of Aether. Of sky. Of Shiva.

You don’t want to be anywhere, don’t need to do or get anything. You are complete in yourself. You are in your now.

A musician would define Silence as absolute mine. For that’s where all music originates from. You need to be comfortable with silence, eventually listen, listen to every friction and frequency; and that’s how you learn the highs and lows and the magic of sounds in it.

Only a blank canvas is capable to receive shades of imagination from scratch. Rest all are but remixes.

 

Probably, Silence then is in itself a separate dimension. May it be a state of mind, a land where Shiva resides, a frequency of no frequency, the point before origin point, the dark matter that fills the entire universe, the place from where we are born and where we go after we die. Who knows? Silence however can be any or all of these entities. We can only name it or understand the impact of it with the limited human perspective and even more limited linguistic availability.

For after all, it is what can’t be seen, heard, felt or experienced in a 3 D way. Yet, it can totally be experienced with all of our senses when one is really aware and accepting of it. And of course, it is the ultimate cosmic state. Hence, we all are connected to it. Rather we are made out of it.

A baby spends nine months in a womb. Not sure, how many sights, smells, sounds or touches he/she experiences in there. But silence must be the majority of it.

All though universe is said to carry a universal sound of ‘Om’ in it, yet there are also areas beyond our milky way. there are also black holes containing cosmic debris. There is a vast universe much beyond what is known to mankind. And silence is what it all mostly comprises.

 

So, what is it about silence that makes sages chase it? That makes troubled people crave for it? That makes people travel from comfort of their homes and cities to offbeat natural places? That makes people leave relationships just to be able to live isolated but in peace?

 

I don’t know about others, yet from my personal experience, I can for sure say that Silence is what helps me be creative.

My ears are super sensitive. I detest loud sounds. Can’t handle gossip or obnoxiously loud, flattering, belittling, boasting, uncivil people. Yet, my own family is like that. They consume media at top volume, talk with each other loudly; often taking calls on speaker, making random clapping sounds, jumping upon floor and what not. But my house is of narcissists. That’s part of the deal I guess.

Yet, each time that I am home, I feel this intense urge to just reduce the volume of my ambience. I often dull out the sound with using earphones 24 hours at the cost of hurting my eardrums; or in summers that sound of A.C. and fans helps a bit… Yet, the significance of silence – I totally get it.

So much that I get impacted by their noise that when I do get home alone time, the sounds still vibrate in my ears for a few days… It takes time to actually find that silence again.

And being a writer and an artist, it becomes super significant to get that silence. Imagine, I am thinking about one thing, and typing or writing it and suddenly I overhear a random conversation totally useless for me and there my entire flow goes with it.

That’s just a me thing though. Better not delve into it.

Yet, all I want to say is that, I totally and sincerely get the value of silence and how much we get impacted by the presence or absence of it.

As such I have travelled more more than a decade in my life. That took me to places of all kinds. Places where nature was more prominent, or places where wilderness could be more experienced, cities or forests, villages or islands, mountains or beaches… basically all kinds of places.

And one thing I observed in all those places… that it is not just people who talk or noises of sounds… One can trully experience energetic noise or energetic silence… Like when I return back home in Delhi to my home, I feel heavy. Can’t explain it. But a fog kind of builds in my mind. As if I am full. Not with silence. Not with even thoughts or words. But I feel full. Maybe I stuff myself with food. Maybe I block all sounds or city’s vices around. Maybe, I get into this cocoon of comforts to forget the world. I don’t really know. But it is anything but silence. Even when I am home alone and don’t exchange a single word with anyone. It still feels strangely heavy and full.

Probably, it’s an energetic overload. Or traumas that these walls carry. Or that inner child who has lived in these walls and has experienced all kinds of unfair ordeals.

Maybe, it’s the pressure of growing up, the self that actually had certain dreams and aspirations.

Maybe, I am actually undergoing some transition. Who knows? But it sure feels heavy. And it is far off from the silence I am used to and love being at for my being!

I used to find that silence earlier while travelling solo. For nobody knew me at those places. There were no expectations, no judgements. No necessities for even small talks. No long term connections to take care of.

Just I and this freedom to stroll freely amidst nature. And maybe write poems, or compose songs, or take out my paints and create paintings, or weave macrame jewellery with my chosen energy; create or not create, be someone or be no one… There used to be so much space. To become a star at times, or simply observe choosing to be invisible like sky.

I learned both presence and absence… I learned being present in absence… at times I participated, at times I simply spectated.

It was all a beautiful show. Not to celebrate or something. Just a reflection of it all feels like a cosmic show.

But now, I am no-more sure. For all those places are better acquainted with and not only am I expected to be a certain person at those places but I too have formed judgements and opinions about people and places and cultures at all those places.

The moment attributes enter in, sky reduces. Silence reduces. And there is language, or elements, or thoughts… and one loses freedom which is the most crucial both for me and for silence to happen!

Silence can also be found in love. As I look at my cat comfortably sleeping in her bed – knowing she is safe here, is well fed, has a special music played just for her; she can simply sleep tonight her best – unafraid of predators or cold or anything else. She can be herself. She can rest and sleep in this silence. In safety. In love.

Can we then consider the fulfilment of a desire as silence?

Can we instead call finding our soul tribe as silence?

What is this silence?

Is it filled with safety and love?

Or is it simply knowing that you are taken care of regardless whatever and therefore finally getting to be yourself without any pressure or judgements – external or internal?

Is the culmination of all desires – silence?

A poor person can’t find peace for his mind and life would keep him bothered about his immediate survival needs. A rich person can’t find peace as he would be bothered about protecting his resources or else may be bothered about secondary needs like relationships or connections. A mountain person may seek city comforts. A city person may seek mountains’ strength and simplicity. A beach person may wish to live away from water. a desert person may imagine living by a river or a sea.

 There is no end to our desires. Everyone needs someone or something. And so, there is always this noise of getting something, achieving something, becoming somebody. And as well all know, desires know no end. They just keep on enhancing.

 

Is absence of all desires Silence then? Probably! But that’s almost equal to death. It is desire that gives us our will to live. It is desire that drives us to do anything in life. The lesser the desires be, the lesser the noise; but also, the lesser alive one feels. Probably, that’s where I am at presently. Silent! Desireless! Almost lifeless! Or maybe, it’s just a phase. But I totally feel it.

This can’t be healthy silence. Or maybe it is.

For the process of manifestation involves both desiring something soulfully and then detaching from it entirely.

That’s how one even quantum leaps maybe. By letting go all past versions of oneself, by having no iota of personal or universal desires for future; by letting the universe take its course, surrendering to it… By becoming silence itself. Being as still.

Or maybe, these too are fabricated stories that we like to believe to give ourselves hope that not all is doomed. That world still has something to look forward to. who knows?

But, until we won’t stop and reflect and observe; until we won’t be one with the silence; we would never know the difference between chaotic noise and pleasant melody.

One must know peace to decipher chaos from harmony.

One must experience nothingness to then value something or create any frequency after it.

Otherwise, we would keep on creating and becoming remixes. Copying others, following trends. Becoming but replicas of each other.

What’s so original about it? Oh, you copied someone else’s business idea or painting or did a cover better than original? Still a cover right? Still a copy?

Original happens only when we sit with ourselves. When we eliminate all distractions, all noise. And decide to become a medium for universe to design.

And that’s where we get access to the dimension of silence.

To shiva’s world.

One needs to become neutral for that.

It’s neither an electron, nor a proton.

It’s right at the nucleus. The neutron.

That is silence. Neutron.

It is not charged. It has no sound. Has no color. Is transparent.

It is not even an absence. It’s an invisible presence that can be so fulfilling that everything else would seem like a noise when you actually be one with it.

But then you decide. And you create something beautiful out of it.

 

Shiva and Shakti had three kids.

Kartikeya – the lord of wars. The one responsible to eliminate all demons.

Ganesha – the formless divinity. The supreme consciousness. The bhrahman. Someone who only wishes to best for universe.

Ashoksundari - The goddess of joy and emotional fulfilment.

 

Spiritually speaking, each time we connect to the silence and then create something instinctively, by becoming universal medium – our masculine and feminine self merges within us and creates Kartikeya, Ganesha and Ashok Sundari. We get strength to fight inner and outer demons. We create something well intended, prosperous and abundant both for ourselves and the world. And we create joy and emotional fulfilment both for ourselves and universe.

That’s the power of silence. That’s the power of connecting to divine and letting it make us a medium for divine designs.

 

The question arises – how to reach this state?

How to access this dimension?

In a way this dimension always has access to us. When we sleep, when we have good intentions, when we wish to create joy and emotional well-being and such. Or when we meditate, when we don’t want to talk in the first hour of waking up. When we just lie in our beds doing nothing, thinking nothing, just staring at the ceiling for hours – not because we are upset, but because we don’t suffer with being productive all the time. When we simply be one with nature, maybe look at the river passing by, or feel the breeze on top of a mountain cliff or caress a pet. At all these moments – are minds are silent. And we are one with the divine – consciously or unconsciously.

Each time when we are totally at one with the moment – we are also in touch with this dimension of silence. As, in those moments, there is no internal noise of what if, what not, what should and such. There is no distraction even from outside. And we just are one with time.

Yet, how to consciously reach it?

One way is of course meditation. Where at first there would be excessive thoughts but eventually, with more and more sessions, the thoughts would recede and you shift from experiencing to observing to actually having lesser and lesser thoughts to ultimately reaching thoughtlessness, hence the realm of silence.

Another way is of course literal. By consciously distancing yourself from people, places and things that create noise around you and within you. that includes consciously choosing your company, environment, home setting, places of work, mode of communion and your every-day life.

Then, of course, our internal environment that becomes most crucial. By actively working upon our thoughts, desires, anxieties, fears, aspirations, goals, relationships, connections, traumas and such. It does has a lot of intentional over thinking. But it is a kind of catharsis. You do it so much that you reach the other end of it. For not all thoughts can be avoided or repressed. And even then, one never know when a repressed thought or pain may resurface and ooze out at people or situations we actually care about. Better to heal on our own in our inner mindsets. Lesser the internal noise, the more coherent would we be with the realm of silence. The better that we would live, create, be!

Oh, and one bonus key that I too can provide. Up to you if you take it or not. Don’t watch news or Television. Don’t read newspapers. Don’t consume any mainstream media that pretends to tell you reality about the world.

Trust me on this, most of that news is manipulated to favour those in power. They create fear in the masses and brainwash people to think/feel a certain way as suited to those who benefit out of it.

Being an empath and an INFJ, I have never been able to consume any of that media. I wasn’t even aware of these terms, but I just knew that all that drumming noise in news channels gave me anxiety and newspapers too carried things that hardly seemed of my interest to me.

Instead connect more to your instincts. The more in touch with collective consciousness you would be, the more that you would naturally feel the pain or joys of the world.

There are times when I am not even aware of a certain disaster, but I just feel overtly emotional, rageful or vulnerable and later that I get to know about a disaster.

The more you would be in touch with your inner being, the more in touch you would be with the entire universe.

Of course, I am not telling you to simply stay cut off from the happenings of the world. Just because I don’t have any interest in politics or worldly affairs, doesn’t mean that you should not as well.

Each is entitled to his/her own interests. Just beware of the credibility of its source and also be aware of the cost of it upon your own mindset and sense of being.

As fabricated news is just noise similar to cheap gossip that people indulge into and waste their precious time, energy and life with.

And real news would anyhow reach you this way or the other.

I personally prefer to watch comedy shows. There are few great comedians who actually show a mirror to reality and bring up current affairs with a lighter note to it. That doesn’t create unnecessary drama to the system and simply makes one think, even laugh upon social atrocities but later makes one reflect back upon those pointers and even take right measures for it. But that’s a discussion for another time.

All I want to insist upon over here is healthy and conscious consumption of media.

And not just media, rather everything. Food, environment, people, conversations, smells, textures. Lesser the better. At least, that is where I am at presently. And somehow, it’s giving me an insight beyond explanation.

I have been keeping strictly to myself for few months now. No reason. Just listening to my inner rhythm. And trust me, for the traveller in me, that’s my personal hell. Yet, for the thinker in me, it’s my personal heaven.

Yesterday, I stepped out till the market after many days. I had never noticed so many smells out there. My nose had a rush of smells at each step that I took. Not like it’s a dirty market and not like I was visiting it for the first time. I had just never noticed all those smells earlier. Yet, being in a clean environment for so long actually made me more aware of every unknown or different smell. I was conscious and aware of every new smell and that felt like a power and made me irk at the same time.

I was thinking, what if my sense of smell also has now become more magnified same like my listening ability. It can actually become a difficulty. Though if used correctly, can even be a power. Depends how I utilise it. Or, if I have even attained it.

What matters more is the fact that the more in touch with silence you be, the more aware you get of every tiny atom or experience or moment in life. And that’s how you can actually maximize you living experience as well.

Not by chasing as many experiences as possible. But by living each moment to the fullest with all your senses – even the absence of such moments. eradicate the noise, kill the instant dopamine hits, let life unveil itself to you instead of you chasing it.

It's the same like – when in summers, the excessive heat makes the moisture of a certain area vaporize… and for a bit the place becomes complete empty. And then gushes of cold air fly towards the empty area to fill it in. Likewise works our life or consciousness or mind or connection with the realm of silence.

You need to kill the distractions, become comfortable with silence. Only then the best possible life or manifestations would occur.

It takes time however. Do not get defeated by the first whiffs of bad smells or loud sounds. Naah! Enjoy the fact that you can experience better. Have a soft corner when you have better empathy for others. It’s both a bane and a boon to be more aware. But it’s up to you if you let the experiences stick to you or not.

Be observant. No need to get personal or stay struck with even these vulnerabilities or powers. Remember, you are but the medium. Become so empty that universe can fill you with what you are born to be.

You got to surrender. Got to leave your limited version of an ideal life. Allow the destiny to take its course. Just be ready to do what the divine designs.

You got to sit with silence. Be neutral to highs and lows. Be accepting to even what seems like stagnation but is actually the phase of integration and activation. For that’s what eventually gives birth to life!

The world didn’t come into existence because of noise. It came to life when nothingness finally decided to unveil parts of itself. And that’s when it originated – the light!

The first sound, the first amber, the first drop, the first atom, the first song, the first love story, the first divine union, the first star… so many firsts – the best of all. They all originated out of silence. Out of nothingness. Out of a spark that decided to come into existence.

Silence is a beautiful dimension. Maybe even a portal between this life and after life.

Maybe a secret network of communication between said and unsaid.

Maybe the wireless transmission or telepathic connection between lovers happens exactly there.

Maybe that’s where we communicate with our pets and therefore no more needs words or proximity to exchange our needs pr beliefs.

Silence is where Shiva lives. Silence is where Sages wish to reach. Silence is the realm that is all pervasive. In between words, between sighs, between breaths, in each atom, in every deep sleep, before birth, after death, between beats, between letters received and sent, upon the lips of someone who has a lot to say but just can’t find the right words.

At times, silence is in itself enough.

At times, silence is what triggers someone.

The more you would get to know it, the more you would fall in love with it.

Trust me on this! For I absolutely adore it, thrive in it, listen to it, interact with it, drown in it, swim in it, laugh with it, cry with it.

At times, I become it. At times, I pray to it.

Silence is the ultimate truth.

A dimension so here and yet so invisible. Maybe, that’s the beauty of it.