Why Practice Silence?
When was the last time that you experienced silence? True silence?
Is there really any such thing?
The definition of silence is “the complete absence of sound”. I’m not sure that it’s ever possible to have a complete absence of sound. A better definition of silence might be that it’s a deep inner stillness – which it’s possible to achieve even in amongst a noisy world.
But why might we want to achieve this?
Disconnecting from Distractions
Life seems so busy for everyone. Our focus is pulled in numerous directions, we find it hard to concentrate - we’ve really lost the ability to be present. Even if there is a moment of silence – a moment of inner stillness – we quickly distract ourselves by doing something, like picking up our phones.
The amount of information that we have at our fingertips is scary – and overwhelming. And due to this, we have increased guilt in moments of rest – we find it almost impossible to do nothing.
Even during a pleasurable activity, like walking in nature, we often split our focus by listening to a podcast, phoning a friend, or trying to take the perfect photo of our walk. We find it impossible to just do one thing.
Yet it is in moments of stillness, when we can drop the doing – when we can simply be – that we find silence, even if the world around us is still chaotic. We can find the silence within. And that can be a blissful place to be.
My Own Journey with Silence
When I started to practice mindfulness, I found the idea of silence terrifying. I was so used to covering up my unhappiness with noise, that I couldn’t even imagine sitting for a couple of minutes with nothing to occupy me. Over time, I began to appreciate the pauses in guided meditations more and more and eventually was encouraged to try building my own silent practice by my mindfulness supervisor.
Of course, it hasn’t always been a smooth journey. Silence can feel very different from one day to the next. But I have definitely had periods of time during my practice when my mind has quietened, and I’ve just experienced the sensation of being – just being. It might feel like there’s a word missing from the end of that sentence, but there isn’t. When we’re being it’s the complete absence of doing – anything.
It is something that I definitely recommend everyone tries.
Benefits of Silence:
I’ve been reading lots about silence recently, as I went on a silent retreat day last month – it made me curious about why I seek out silence (I went on a non-residential silence retreat last year for 5 nights) and if there are benefits to this. I can condense my findings into these 10 main benefits of silence:
It encourages mindfulness – this feels important to me, and I actually think that they influence each other
It promotes self-awareness
It stimulates brain cells – primarily in the hippocampus – linked to memory, emotions and our ability to learn
It relieves stress and boosts inner calmness by actively reducing cortisol
It helps with processing information, so helps to improve our ability to learn
It boosts creativity
It aids concentration and focus, increasing productivity
It cultivates patience
It lowers blood pressure
It improves insomnia.
I have to say that I feel slightly amazed at all of the benefits that silence can bring. For myself, I know how important it is for me to enhance my mindfulness practice – it helps me to be present. I’m also more able to tune into myself (self-awareness), and know that my levels of stress are much reduced when I practice silence regularly.
How to Practice Silence
It’s always a good idea to start small, and to build up over time. Try setting an alarm for 2 minutes in the first instance, and to do nothing during that time but sit. Remember, it’s not about your environment being silent – it probably won’t be – but about you finding that inner stillness within.
When practicing in this way, acceptance is really important – there will be noises around, and other distractions that pop up – allow them to be there. It’s not about creating the “perfect” environment to practice in. I remember on a retreat I was holding, after a practice someone complained about the birdsong – it had been irritating her during the silence, and she became quite frustrated with the bird! If she had been able to accept the birdsong, she would have had a very different experience during her practice.
As well as finding pockets of time for inner stillness during your day, see how else you can cut down on unnecessary noise. If you always walk listening to something, is it possible to walk in silence? If the radio or TV is a constant companion, how does it feel to turn it off? Can you have a cup of coffee in silence with a friend? If you live in a busy house, can you negotiate 15 minutes at the start or end of the day that are just for you? Seeing how you can bring silence into your day, in a planned way helps you to reap the benefits.
Sinking into Silence
If the idea of silence is appealing, why not join our Silent Retreat Day – Sunday 3rd September 10am-3pm at The Place to Pause & Breathe. Read more about this, and book in, here.
If you’ve missed this Silent Retreat Day, but you’d like to hear about future ones, get in contact: pause@pauseandbreathe.co.uk
