The noise of silence

So much can be said, understood and heard in a moment of silence. It is a part of all languages, yet it isn’t acknowledged in the way it should be. To be able to hear our thoughts, appreciate the beauty of nature, hear our hearts beating, feel love or acknowledge a sensation, we need the noise of silence. To feel at ease with one’s own silence, as well as with others silence, is not something humans find easy, as our world is a constant thread of noise and cluster. Learning to appreciate silence, its defining noise and effortless beauty, is something we must learn to internalise in order to gain a clear understanding of ourselves, others and the world in which we live in. Silence is, not only the most “abandoned” part of speech in every grammar of every language, it is the most important part of speech. It creates emphasis where needed, without the distractions of words or emotions. An ancient Chinese philosopher and writer, Lao Tzu, (founder of philosophical Taoism, and a deity in religious Taoism and traditional Chinese religions) believed “silence [to be] a source of great strength” (Taoism deals with individualistic character and a spiritual, ‘nature-centered’ approach to life). Lao Tzu believed in order to recognize and follow natural forces, we must be at one with the flow and shape of events. Rather than following the human tendency to resist or fight the natural order of things. Taoist philosophy suggests that by ‘doing nothing’, one could ‘accomplish everything’. Lao Tzu therefore argues against the reliability of language to describe something so vast and eternal as reality; as it holds a conventional and changeable nature. Advocating naturalness, spontaneity and freedom in one’s life, not following into the trap of convention or desire; which society has created. Lao Tzu refers to the ‘ultimate order of things’ and ‘ultimate basis of reality’ in the Tao (meaning ‘the way’). In other words, we need to harmonize with ‘the way’ of life, in order to be at peace with our own existence. Linking back to silence as being one of the simplistic approaches to life, leading us through a path where we use our natural, authentic and spontaneous impulses. Plato’s philosophy on silence focuses more on speech, rooted in his theory of “sige, sigao, sigazo”; being the antinomy of speech. In a moment of silence we can recognize the meaning of the nature or the meaning of art. By listening to our silence we can internalise our senses and better understand our surroundings. Plato believed silence to be the distinguishing feature of a ‘sacred place’; the condition for a mysterious situation that causes anxiety or religious ecstasy and divine speech. Silence can be used as a form of psychological defence (fear or anxiety), courage and resistance, silence after death or when one has nothing to say. All in all, Plato deciphers silence as the most important part of ‘speech’, as a subtle strength can be created in the absence of words. However, being at ease in a situation where silence overtakes the space, makes us uncomfortable. This is because we tend to associate it with awkwardness or even fear. Being ‘at one’ with our silence opens us to be more self-aware to our environment, universe and senses. Silence permits a type of reflection that is beyond mere introspection; as it promotes the ability to connect threads in a seemingly disorganized and disconnected world. In the words of the Polish poet C.K. Norwid, “sometimes it is better to talk to silence than with a man”. The ‘psychoacoustic’ aspect of silence can make it deafening, when in fact nothing can be heard at all; giving it the unpredictable power which we are so afraid of.