Written by Leigh Marsden, Yoga Teacher
Leigh Marsden is a registered yoga, breathwork, and meditation teacher, published author, and silence advocate. She has extensive experience in silence practices, and silent retreat facilitation.
Lao Tzu once said, "Silence is a source of great strength". Now, let me ask you, do you crave more deep silence in your life? I mean, "deep silence" that goes further than the few moments you catch in the shower or those sweet seconds just before you fall asleep, when the house is finally quiet. Further even than a walk in the forest, when the only sound is the leaves in the trees. Goodness knows it can be noisy in one’s head, even there.
Indeed, many people feel overwhelmed by the level of external and internal noise in their lives. From constant notifications to a podcast while we’re driving, to those midnight mental lists, it’s extremely difficult to simply find a quiet moment. What if you don’t need a perfectly quiet environment to practice deep silence and experience the profound benefits? What if you could practice deep silence anytime, anywhere? You can. And you won’t regret it if you do.
What is deep silence?
Deep silence is a state of being in which one’s attention is turned from thinking to feeling. We move completely inwards, towards sensations in the body. This process by itself is termed "somatic mindfulness". Here are 5 Tips To Move From Thinking To Feeling From A Somatic Therapist
In deep silence, we aid the meditative process by pausing all communication with other people for the period of practice. Deep silence allows practitioners to become absorbed in the experience of being in the present moment, within their body, without the distraction of external communication. Practitioners avoid speaking with others, as well as eye gaze, gestures, notes, or any other form of non-verbal communication. Reading is also avoided during deep silence, as this is an external conversation.
Sensations take precedence over thoughts. While many thoughts may continue to arise, they are allowed to be in the background. In deep silence, one looks without preference at different sensations within the body as they arise, and works towards keeping the attention here, rather than towards thoughts of the past or future, or of analysis of the present moment. While initially very challenging, like any new skill, over time deep silence practitioners may experience profound states of peace and stillness, and sometimes even blissful states of oneness with all. Taking deep silence is a recognized technique in many religious and spiritual traditions, where it is often referred to as noble silence.
Does deep silence require silence?
While a quiet environment certainly helps, it is not essential. You can practice deep silence anytime you are not required to externally communicate. From stimulating brain cells to relieving stress, there’s no doubt that finding more quiet time in your day is beneficial. 7 Benefits of Silence | Psych Central. Yet, there’s so much noise in the world, it’s such a challenge to escape it. The fifth limb of yoga, Pratyahara, is concerned with reducing stimulation in the environment, to allow greater ease when turning towards meditation. For thousands of years, yoga students have struggled with the noise of life around them. Imagine how much noisier we have it now!
While we can do our best to curate the environment, we simply cannot completely control for external noise. Trying to do so would only create additional stress and tension. We are interrupted constantly on silent retreats, by cars, cows, alarms, and unannounced visitors! Consider then the distraction on a regular day, as we interface with a busy world physically and electronically.
The reality is that moments of complete external and internal silence are rare for most modern humans. Fortunately, we can do our best to nurture helpful circumstances for our practice, then let go of the pressure of trying to create a perfect environment and dive into the practice itself.
How do I do it?
Pause communication with others, including speaking, eye contact, written communication, reading.
Turn your attention inwards and notice the sensations of your breath and body.
Gently guide your awareness back to your breath and body when you notice that you’re distracted.
How can deep silence help me?
Deep Silence combines the benefits of somatic mindfulness with the mental break that comes with eliminating the requirement to communicate with others. Here are 3 ways deep silence can enhance your life:
1. It encourages somatic awareness
Most of us are busy thinking for most of the day. We’re analyzing the past, “Did I say the right thing?” We’re predicting the future, “I hope that flight isn’t delayed.” We’re dissecting the present, “I’m not sure I like that tone.” This constant mental activity can leave us feeling frazzled and drained. Paying close attention to the sensations of the body, such as the feeling of the breath flowing through the nose, grounds us in the present moment, allowing the mind to rest and refresh. Need more help grounding yourself? 3 Easy Tips To Ground Yourself In The Morning (brainzmagazine.com)
2. It enhances equanimous observation
In deep silence, we look with our ‘inner eye’ at the sensations of the body and accept without further analysis what is present. Much of our human suffering comes from the habit of pushing away unpleasant sensations and clinging to pleasant sensations. And who can blame us? Of course we’d prefer pleasant. But life ensures that we must experience unpleasant too. When we practice observing without preference, we’re learning to become less reactive to challenging situations in our lives. We learn to respond rather than react.
We may even choose to engage in a practice such as Sitting Still Meditation within our deep silence practice. Sitting Still encourages sensations to arise so that we might practice observing without judgement. Sit Still!
3. It balances all that doing
Taking a break from Doing and resting in Being is a much-needed reset for modern humans. Did you ever notice how the cashier at the supermarket asks you, “Busy day?” It’s not really a question, it’s an expectation. Chances are you’ve been racing, and deep silence is one way to press the reset button. It’s well understood that balancing periods of focused work with intentional rest is the best way to optimize performance across all areas of your life. Shake Up the Norm: From Busy to Balanced - Prioritizing Rest for Peak Performance in a Hustle Culture. To perform better at home, at work, in sports, and in life, you must incorporate rest. deep silence is an accessible way to bring balance into your life.
5 ways to facilitate your deep silence practice
1. Lower noise in the environment in the hours before your practice
We can’t eliminate distractions to our practice, but we can give ourselves a hand. Reducing mental stimulation as much as possible in the hours before you begin means that you will find it easier to focus your attention inward. For example, while it’s valuable to learn, perhaps you don’t need that extra podcast while you’re cooking. Perhaps you could jog in silence rather than listen to music. Turn off the radio in the car, flick off the TV if it’s just on in the background. Look at your daily environment and see where you could reduce the excess noise.
2. Practice regularly
Like any meditation practice, start small and build your deep silence practice. Could you prioritize 5 minutes in the morning, before you start your routine? How about 15 minutes on your lunch break? It’s preferable to take small silence bites rather than wait for an annual retreat.
3. Practice in a variety of settings
You can turn inwards, pause communication with others, and observe the sensations of your body any time where outward focus is not needed. For example, while walking, sitting, eating, or showering.
4. Tell others what you’re doing
Seek the support of your people. Explain what you’re doing and why, and how they can help you. Stopping communicating with others for a period may seem odd, so explain why you’re doing it. Who knows, they may be inspired to try deep silence for themselves!
5. Manage your expectations
Modern humans have a lot going on. We don’t have the luxury of hours of undisturbed time to devote to our meditation or spiritual practice, and that’s okay. Hustle culture is King, and we’re constantly stimulated. Therefore, it’s important to be gentle with yourself when you do come to practice. Expect to be distracted. Bring yourself back calmly and time and time again. Release yourself from the mind’s expectations of how the experience should be going.
Where can I get more guided deep silence?
The word is spreading about the benefits of deep silence! Google ‘Silent Retreats’ in your area to find out what’s available.
Silent retreats in the South Island, NZ: Yoga and Wellness Retreats in South Canterbury | Leigh Marsden Yoga, Vipassana Silent Retreats, Worldwide: Vipassana Meditation
Are you ready to go deep?
Make a plan to incorporate 5 minutes of deep silence into your day. Note in your journal the benefits you notice extending into your life.
Leigh Marsden, Yoga Teacher
Leigh Marsden is yoga teacher and a leader in the silence movement, offering enriching silence practices within her yoga teachings along with multiple silent retreats and events each year. She is passionate about helping others find more silence in their lives.
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