Silence: By Jan Barendrecht

Silence is most natural. But it doesn’t mean “no thinking”. The majority of thinking revolves around one item or more of the “unholy trinity,”, other(s), my feeling(s).. Unholy, because all wars and conflicts are regarding “I and mine…” or its plural “We and our…” so it is obvious that without “I”, the sense of otherness has gone too and Silence just IS, irrespective of thinking. It will be clear that religions, systems of meditation and yogas are aiming to diminish the sense of “I” to such an extent that one becomes aware of the Silence. If this results in a preference/like for Silence above anything else, that could be called Grace because it will transform seeming austerities into a joy and “attainment” will be swift.

On the lighter side, on the Internet there is no way to verify whether someone is speaking from experience or not. It will be obvious that more people would be inclined to say (and probably are doing so) that spiritual life is for the spirit than to say it will affect mind and body, eventually to the extent that profound changes will emerge. Yet the changes in mind, body and behavior are the only “proof” as the Self is changeless: the immaculate silent Spirit has no need for a spiritual life, no need whatsoever.