We live in a world where only each one matters, individualism is present in every step we take, unfortunately. However, it is very strange to hear someone say that they take a few minutes a day to really think of themselves in the best possible way, how? Through silence.

Is that silence is an excellent tool for many things, from enriching our inner life to “lower several revolutions” when we are anxious, nervous or stressed. It is necessary to stop talking for a moment, stop listening to television or people (from your partner to friends, through politicians to journalists) and begin to connect more with silence.

The stimuli that surround us (advertising, television, radio, PC, noise, conversations, speakers) make our brain always be on “alert”. We are continually aware of what happens beyond our body, even when we sleep. Without them, we can feel alone, abandoned, afraid, etc.

But, what can happen if we remain in true silence, that which is only in the field, at dawn, at sea out of season? What can be found in this silence or lack of annoying sounds? What does it have to contribute to our awakening as people?

Silence in the Western world, says the Chilean psychologist Claudio Araya in his book “the greatest advance is to stop”, is devalued. It is believed that it is a bad thing, that we cannot remain silent or not listen to anything for a few minutes. As we can see or analyze the world today, it seems that we are very afraid of silence.

According to the Spanish writer Raimon Panikkar, one of the diseases of modern man is “sigephobia”, precisely the fear of silence. This is because we live in a society where the most terrible power at our disposal is noise, sound. On the contrary, silence is presented as a very expensive luxury. You must be too rich not to hear. Not only children are terrified of silence, but more and more adults. That is why they musicalize us to the elevator (have you ever thought about that?). These are the words of Araya.

The intimate space of silence

Discomfort often arises when there is silence, why? Because it is an intimate space of each one of us that has not been fully explored yet. When we are with other people and for some reason we stop talking, we feel in an embarrassing situation, for example. When we listen to a radio program and the announcer takes two seconds to speak again, we think that something bad has happened and it catches our attention. However, in many cases, it is healthier to keep quiet and talk too much.

Being silent helps us in mental health. For this reason, psychologists recommend to have a calm and peaceful inner life, have moments of silence, especially after a chaotic day at the company, in a city with traffic problems and full of noise at all times. We need to stop a bit and sit down to reflect. This can only be achieved with the help of silence. Being alone at home or going a few kilometers from the center serves to analyze certain questions: what do I want, what do I need, what worries me, how to act, how to continue, what to decide, etc.

Being able to find and enjoy the silence within us can sound ironic, because within our mind and body there are endless noises and sounds, which are not manifested in words but can be deafening much more than anything else. What is contained must come out, because the more we have trouble listening to ourselves, the more we will depend on the outside world to be able to solve our life.

With the whirlwind of day to day, routine, obligations, arriving first, filling the schedule with activities, etc., we lack inner richness, we cannot interpret the signals that the body gives us, we are not used to beneficial practices. such as meditation or yoga, which bring us closer to ourselves, increasing contact with what really happens to us.

The excuses do not take long to appear, because in this task the will and the disposition play a lot to be able to work on relaxation and obtain the long-awaited or blessed silence. It is likely that we say that we do not have time to sit down to “listen to nothing”, do a meditation practice (it is not even necessary to go to a specialized center, we can assemble it ourselves at home with candles, incense and cushions), spend five minutes without the TV on, etc.

The more time we let go to find ourselves again, the more moments of silence we will need. Self-knowledge is vital to achieve happiness (which we seek so much) and also to be able to solve the problems that afflict us in all areas of life. Therefore, we should not be afraid of the lack of sound, the lack of noise or words spoken. On the contrary, we must take advantage of those moments that we can give ourselves or that the world “conspires” to offer. Let’s not miss this opportunity to be in tune with our interior and what happens to us.