Silence: The Hidden Path to Success, Freedom & Happiness

By Deb Maes

This book points to modern science for the understanding of the ancient practise of silence, and shows how you can become an unshakeable island of calm amidst the storms, noise and challenges of life. With a collection of simple exercises in the latter part of the book, silence is an any-moment practise you can start right now.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Balboa Press AU
• Release date: Oct 18, 2020
• ISBN: 9781504322645

Deb Maes

Deb has used her life experience as the basis of her success as Australia’s most sought after transformational and leadership coach. She masterfully weaves together intuitive knowing with decades of psychological and neuroscientific research, presenting profound wisdom in easy and accessible conversations, making her very presence transformative.

Book preview

SECTION ONE

Chapters

About Silence

Chapter One

Emergent Genius

‘You don’t get anywhere by not wasting time.’

- Rovelli

Have you ever had a flash of brilliance while taking a shower, or wandering aimlessly? This is what happens in silence; we get insights and our genius emerges. This is why it is worth talking about silence.

We get epiphanies when we are quiet, and yet modern lives are full and often hectic. Our problems, in life and work, are complex and we need to find effective solutions. Great realisations though cannot come when the mind is busy and worried. They only occur when we are still, when our minds have space, like on those occasions when we are aimlessly lying under a star-filled sky, lingering under a shower, out for a walk or jog, or wandering in nature. Our thoughts can grow, undisturbed and uninterrupted, within the space created by silence.

A silent mind, although there is space, it is not empty. A silent mind is not absent of thought. Quite the opposite; silence is a vehicle for efficient and concentrated thought. A silent mind can be fully aware of all that is around and considering what is happening.

Paradoxically, even though full, a silent mind is not overwhelmed, as a busy mind often is, rather it is fresh, open and spacious.

The fact is quite simple;

we think better when our mind is

not anxious and busy.

We think better when our mind is

not continuously occupied with many things.

Mental spaciousness, not business and worry, is what fosters our creative genius capacity. This is because spaciousness allows for concentrated thought. It is through this that one gains access to hidden recesses, ideas and solutions. Swami Paramananda illustrated this by saying that when someone is suddenly thrown into a situation – a problem, when external resources aren’t immediately apparent, at first the mind grumbles and resists, not wanting the unexpected event. But if the mind is given space, it will think more deeply. It is then we discover inherent resources and solutions that have their own originality.

This is also true in child development. If we do not contrive to completely occupy children’s minds with artificial activities and games, we see children work quite inventively to create their own activities.

Space to contemplate and invent leads to a quickening of mental abilities. It is letting the mind learn how to learn; a vital skill that can be used throughout life, one which can only develop with mental space.

There is no greater evidence of this than Nobel Prize-winning physicist Albert Einstein. According to theoretical physicist Carlo Rovelli, in ‘Seven Brief Lessons on Physics’, Einstein skipped high school and ‘spent a year loafing aimlessly.’ Einstein was contemplating the world, with no intention to accomplish anything at all. Some people could claim this was wasting time; that he, Einstein, wasted a year. Yet, it was this year of contemplation that he credits for the insights that he spent a lifetime exploring scientifically.

Geniuses, such as Einstein, are often profound thinkers and retire from crowds to contemplate. They discover many insights and make profound connections in the space provided by mental silence.

Inward contemplation is what the Indo-Aryans recognise as an essential factor in all forms of study. They believe that not everything can be learned from consideration of external data alone.

The deeper themes of life can only be discovered when our mind is not constantly agitated by external activities. Every successful scientist, musician, artist, entrepreneur and business person knows they must have time and space – non-action – for ideas to emerge and the energy of inspiration to burst forth.

You’ll know this to be true if you have observed someone absorbed in the creative process. You’ll see that they are not inclined to engage in mindless conversation. When someone’s mind is absorbed in a task or activity – fully absorbed – it is often impossible for them to engage in dialogue. If they speak, they are often speaking out loud to themselves.

The person is literally rapt in thought. You know you have been in a deep, mindful, contemplative state like this when you find yourself annoyed or confused if someone interrupts you in the middle of a mental creative process.

But, not everyone appreciates the value of taking time for silence. A very active person – constant speaker – may misunderstand the quiet person. If not constantly engaged in external activities some imagine this unambitious or time wasting. If not forever engaged in conversation some judge this as antisocial or aloof. But perhaps the constantly talking or striving person misses what emerges and radiates from a calm and contemplative mind: an unbroken flow of thought and feeling towards an ideal.

According to Swamiji, the mind acquires this unbroken flow of thought through the persistent practice of three skills: discrimination, elimination and concentration.

Discrimination

One who has developed discrimination is able to recognise and understand differences between one thing and another. It is a skill that can be refined throughout life. Think of a child who first learns to name colours, such as red and blue. Then later distinguishes between dark and light blue. Then eventually they can discern teal, aquamarine, cerulean… all of which are blue but slightly different. The practice of questioning and seeking to find and comprehend distinctions between two things builds this vital skill of discrimination.

Never let us be lulled into assuming we know. Much is missed when we allow our mind to rush to recognition. By way of example, if I hear or use a word such as ‘service’, do I settle with my experience of the word? Do I think, ‘I know this word’ Do I say, ‘for me, the word means this or that.’

Or do I allow my mind to contemplate as a child might. Do I question in ways that allow me to find: how ‘service’ differs from ‘serving’? How does one ‘serve’? Who is associated with ‘service’? In what contexts is ‘service’ used? Discrimination applies not only to words and concepts but all experience.

Let us allow our mind to recognise and understand not just what we know but finer and finer distinctions in all things.

Elimination

Eliminating unconscious and superfluous movements conserves energy. The deliberate choice of each movement, the practice of giving mind to movement, before the movement occurs, contributes to focused direction of one’s energy. Imagine the person who is constantly flapping their arms and moving their body, wriggling and fidgeting. It is a waste of one’s vital energies towards no practical end. How ludicrous would it be to fuel a machine that had many superfluous moving parts which contributed nothing towards its purpose? Likewise it would be foolish to insert actions that broke or blocked a machine’s work.

Unconscious and superfluous movements not only wastes energy, it tells our mental system there is no order or control. This teaches the mind to flip and flop wherever it may please. Not only should it be evident that this is an inefficient use of our human reserves, it should also be apparent that this is not the path to success in our endeavours.

Rather, let us practise the complete removal of all superfluous movement, for a time², to eliminate automated unconsciousness of the body. When we do this we are resigning the position of mindless fool, and regaining the position of mindful master.

Concentration

The act of focusing all one’s attention on a single ideal, this is a concentrated mind. Have you noticed how naturally action emerges spontaneously from clarity of mind? Have you seen how unstoppable a person is with a concentrated, single-focused mind?

A ‘one-track mind’ is a powerful tool. It achieves results and animates the human. It requires no effort to notice things that can serve, things that are related and it dismisses all else with the ease of blindness.

Just as our eyes see more clearly when focused on a single object, our mind sees more clearly when it focuses on a single ideal. As long as our physical eyes lead us to the many we cannot see the one. If the logic of this is not clearly apparent to you, then you will come to know this in the experience of it.

Determine to practise focusing on a single ideal³ and you will develop a wholesome ‘one-track mind’ and success becomes inevitable.

This type of concentrated mind, as it comes in contact with the external world, will distinguish between vital and non-vital and between real (present data) and imagined (generated by fear). Then it focuses singularly upon the vital and real. Imagine decision making with a trained silent mind, focusing only on the vital and real.

Having developed all three skills – discrimination, elimination and concentration – a silent mind, with a laser-like focus, in the hands of a skilled master, is our reward. Imagine the efficiency and effect with such a mind as your servant and you as the master.

If we are to see the manifestation of our highest intelligence, we are wise to dedicate some time to the development of the silent mind. We need to take the time to ‘wait and watch’, urges the mystic Kahlil Gibran, for ‘the knowing element’ inside. When we do, we will witness our inspired genius emerge into consciousness.

Chapter Two

Silence The Germinator

‘As a seed lies alive but silent,

invisibly absorbing nourishment,

within the deep darkness of the soil,

growing quietly and protected,

until it bursts forth and blooms,

so does our inner Self,

beneath the surface of the mind’s soil,

absorb nourishment in quiet contemplation,

waiting to burst forth into consciousness.’

- Adapted from a metaphor by Swami Paramananda

Silence is THE great power; a miracle of life, that draws the nutrients held within the soil of our mind, to nourish our self, building