Simple Living Challenge: 10 Minutes of Silence

Ahhh… the sound of silence. There are two aspects of silence: (1) Outer Silence, and (2) Inner Silence.

During the day, I contemplated when and how I wake take my 10 minutes of silence. I was feeling fairly tired, restless and a little stressed, so I decided to do a 20 minute Yoga Nidra session.

Yoga Nidra is a body scan meditation done as a part of a yoga practice to relax the body and mind.

By the end of the session, I felt rejuvenated but calm and present; and, most importantly my mind was chattering with overwhelming thoughts.

Often times, whether during meditation or yoga or some other solitary activity where I need to go inward, I will notice that there isn’t much silence — I am fully active in my mind.

Over the past couple of years, my first Vipaasna Meditation course, and walking the first couple weeks of the Camino de Santiago in silence gave me a taste of what it is to go inward.

When I was silent for long periods of time, it was like an ocean of waves calmed down and I could see to the bottom of trenches. But seeing would recreate the feelings, and then the ocean would start churning again. With Vipaasna, I would have to keep coming back to my breath. And, with the Camino, I had to keep coming back to each step.

Sometimes, I could come back to my breath or the step or the moment. And, sometimes, I couldn’t.