The vow of silence-healing from within
Part I — Background
One fine day, decades back, I came back from school and started calling out my mom, which was my daily regime. Mumma, Mumma where are you. Today this happened and that happened. On and on I went prattling incessantly, never caring for a response as sooner or later I always heard her scolding me. “Shoes on the rack, backpack in its place, no littering around!!”.
Little I knew that I was about to witness a watershed moment… as my mom, did not reply….
I did not hear her voice from inside the house. Irritated, I called her louder, no response.. panicked, I maneuvered inside the palatial house…still calling her out with tiny sobs covering my face. Then I felt a hand on my shoulder, shocked, I jolted back to find my mom smiling. Phew!! With unbound joy and tearful eyes, I hugged her and shot a thousand questions. She still did not reply. She was not speaking, not even a monosyllabic sound! It was too much for a 12-year-old to bear. Sensing the turmoil raging inside my tender heart, led me inside, gesturing to stay calm.
nside, she gave me a note written, “I will not speak”.
What!! Why !! I demanded. Flummoxed!
She gestured to stay calm and gave me another note written, “ To excuse you from my scoldings”
What!! Why !! I demanded. Perplexed!
She gestured to stay calm and gave me another note written, “ Relax, only for today I have taken the vow of silence, the vow of no verbal nonviolence.
What!! Why !! I demanded. Baffled!
She gestured to stay calm and gave me another note written, “ Now go and put your shoes on the rack and backpack in its place.”
As I looked up, her visage radiated Buddha calm and peace.
Well, that day passed somehow and the next morning I heard her yelling conventionally, “Get up you lazybones. Always late for everything. So disorganized….blah blah blah…..”. My bemused brain was wondering where did the last night Buddha go?!
A fortnight later, she again observed the vow of silence, the vow of no verbal nonviolence.
My mother was diving deep and seeking solace in this fortnightly vow, which she called “Maun Vrat.” Maun means quiet, Vrat means a vow in Indian culture.
I did not comprehend much the dynamics of all this at that young age except that her curt comments and scoldings were fading. The more calmer she grew, the deeper she communicated via her silence. Her ripples of silence were reciprocated by me being more responsible.
In the years to come, she was an image of tranquility and repose, always calm in chaos, calming the chaos.
Part II- Illumination
I have seen my mom practicing Maun- Vrat {the wow of Silence} for long and indoctrinating its benefits . A few are below worth pondering over.
Spiritual Benefits
- There is power in thoughts and there is MORE power in the pause.
Picture a situation where we get into an argument and tend to spit venom only to realize later that if we had refrained from speaking, things would have been better.
When we do not let our thought waves(crests and troughs) manifest into words, they just pass leaving us unharmed.
By being silent from mouth we stop negative thoughts metamorphose into words…
By being truly silent from the mind we stop any kind of mind metamorphosis giving our mind to rest and brain to rewire.
Now that energy when we are stopping from moving out has to go somewhere and do something. As we all know energy is neither created nor destroyed, it just changes from one form to another. This powerful energy of pause goes inside us and invigorates our body cells, making us more alive. Healing us from within
2. Silence is full of answers
Ever experienced a brain depletion after long hovering over an issue. Then we sit back, emptying our mind, thinking of nothing, just quiet, and Voila, the solution strikes us.
Silence declutters the mindless chatter and leads us straight to the answers we are seeking.
It calms the noise of our inner thoughts. A soul detox.
Scientific Benefits
1.The scientists discovered that when the brain is exposed to two hours of silence per day new cells are developed in the hippocampus. (This is the reason why meditation helps hippocampus) .The hippocampus is a region of the brain associated with memory, emotion and learning, mental clarity and focus.
2. Communication costs our body energy.Research shows males speak about 7000 words per day females take a lead again and speak 20,000 words per day. Tremendous energy is dissipated in doing the same. So why not economizing this energy drain by plugging it off for few hours on set days?
3. Being quiet for sometime releases stress .Think about how a good sleep rejuvinates us. Brain detox.
Part III- Takeaways
- True silence shuts off the mindless chatter.
- Maun-Vrata gives a diplomatic dismissal to the stress.
- We cohabit coherently in a turf of truce with everyone.
- Our Ecosystem revels in ripples of Silence, peace and calm.
Part 1V - Present Day
As my daughter is prattling incessantly, mumma, mumma. I give her a piece of paper stating, “ Am observing Maun-Vrat today, shall not speak.” She hugs me , picks up the tv remote , relaxed in the fact that today I will not shout at her.
