Life at a much deeper level is about the magical interplay between silence and sound. Both silence and sound are like large orchestras playing intricate and sophisticated melodies quite seperate and independent of each other and yet there is such a spirit of co-operation that exists between them. The musical matrimony of silence and sound gives life an amazing depth and meaning, it also offers us rare insights into the abyss of life and can introduce us to higher and altered states of consciousness if we would only take the time to participate.
Our ability to hear the subtle nuances and the unusual accents contained within the rich and cleverly constructed musical pieces of silence and sound is dependent upon finding time to be still and the refinement of our listening skills. Without both these things we extract so little from the symphony of life and the tragedy is that most of us live our lives without really listening or finding time to be still. The orchestras of silence and sound play continually their varied, hypnotic melodies but without “active listening” we are unable to hear their magic, instead we are deafened by the chaos of everyday life, and so we do not fully engage in the dance of the universe because we are caught up in the myth that the material world offers us all we need.
Still time is where we reclaim ourselves, it is the time we spend learning the art of listening to ourselves and life. When we are still we are able to disentangle ourselves from the hazardous and hectic pace of life and see more clearly what it is that we need to be doing to grow and improve. Still time shows us the way, unlike any other activity it focuses the mind on the fine details and those things that regularly get over looked because our minds are often pulling in so many different directions. When we are still, our inner power is able to gather and group all its energies and potential, so rather than us functioning in a fragmented way there is cohesion and co-operation, this creates a “collective consciousness”. In other words our power moves as a united force in one direction which means there is less wastage of energy, greater clarity of thought and enhanced powers of discrimination. Still time helps us find our way back to ourselves and so the more we indulge in its splendour, the more we are bestowed with its gifts.
Like all personal development activity the key to success is consistency, without this, the fruits we so desperately want to taste and savour will always be out of our reach. Therefore, if still time is to shower us with its beauty we need to engage in this practice at regular intervals, if not daily at least 2 or 3 times a week. It is better to do a little regularly, than a lot all at once. Structure your life in such a way that at least 15-20 minutes of your time can be surrendered to being still each time you engage in this activity.
Remember consistency is what counts and establishing some kind of routine is one of the best ways of creating consistency. When we establish a routine a rhythm develops and that rhythm goes on to create its own momentum, and the wonderful thing about momentum is once it has reached a certain point it takes care of itself and becomes a self propelling force. This self propelling force is what is more commonly known as a habit, which is the tendency to perform or engage in an act with very little or no conscious thought.
When a positive act is elevated to the status of habit our desire to be more complete and to live closer to our real nature is made so much easier, so our mission is to embroider as many positive activities as we can into our lives and through consistency encourage habit formation. Then the momentum of what is good and positive will carry us onwards and upwards. Once still time is an integral part of our lives the symphony of silence and sound is not something we merely listen to or observe, it becomes an event in which we are active participants. Be still and discover its magic for yourself.