While reading a book I realised something which was obvious and mind boggling! We, humans, the so called intelligent species on our planet, spend most of our lifetime in trying to understand those elements of Life and the Cosmos that constitute a infinitesimal percentage of it. In doing so, we wade through the tidal ups and downs of our thought process, get entangled in it many a times, even diving into the realm of madness, and on hitting the bottom, seeking a way out of it.
Lets revisit the atomic structure that we all have studied or the structure of the cells that is all we are. Ask yourself a simple question: "What component occupies the maximum percentage in these cells, atoms or of our body consequentially?" Whats the answer. Yes, its "nothing". The space in between the working components is vast and if I ask myself, that is what we are. Isn't it amazing? Even the most compact structures around us can be practically approximated to space, absolutely nothing.
This makes me wonder, why is it so? And what kind of role does this "nothingness" play when it comes to my daily life. I understand it on a cosmic level, but again, we are a part of cosmos, although to me, humans and Life sometimes seems to be nothing but a cosmic error! But now that the error has occurred and the cosmic powers want us to live through it, how can we deploy this wonderful component of space for our well being? Its a question that I am seeking an answer to.
What happens when we spend an entire day in meetings, the extremely engaging and brainy conversations, deploying our energies to win some arguments or take a few decisions? Basically, we drain out. At the end of it, we stand up, rush outside and seek….again "blankness". We want silence all around and when we really want it, sometimes we attain it, we try to be still, to be silent, ignore the voices and the noises of the world and desperately seek our own corner space of well being. We try our best to evade thoughts which is nothing but the manifested self and try to merge into the not so obvious but the peaceful inner self.
How many words do we speak in a day? Or better, how much time do we speak, and how much time are we silent? Silence wins hands down, although, mentally, we might be talking or thinking a lot. But even between those thoughts, those words there are those vital spaces without which ay language, thought or conversation would not be able to convey any meaningfulness to the listener. Talking about the Listener, how well can we listen entirely depends on how silent and still can we be while trying to focus on what are we are listening to, taking our attention to the words, but mostly to the gaps between them. When our loved ones speak, what they don't speak coveys much more than what they actually do. So what matters is the emptiness, stillness of a communication more than the linguistic fabrications that our mind is so fond of. But they are important as well, taking nothing away from the mind!
Everyone of us comes to a stage where we start wondering what is it that constitutes the inside of me? How can be more connected to it and be at peace with it even while doing my daily tasks, howsoever physically tiring or draining they might be. Lets try and follow any meditative discipline, feeling the breath, feeling the consciousness of our body, organs and most of all being in still mindset and identifying with the "field of the inner self". The presence of a stronger and ever relaxed inner being which is always in touch with the cosmos. And after some repetitions we will develop a habit of being in touch with our inner space and that is where, the real self or the "nothing" exists!
Even the most famous of thought leaders, philosophers, artists etc spent most of their time in this inner space at complete peace and only then they were able to come out with the wonderful creations which extended their knowledge across the generations. More important than the knowledge that there works conveyed is the knowledge that they didn't. If mind is noise, the inner self is the silence that we seek.
Mind is not Life, but Life is what emanates from deep inside through the nothingness. And through the silence and stillness, we can keep the mind in check and evade what is unnecessary and be engaged in what is absolutely important to us.If we can gain that knowledge, we can explore our inner self, the amazing beauty that we are, the wonderful but tiny part of the cosmos that we are, to the fullest, we would be able to live happily and do justice to whatever error the cosmos committed!
(written at Kolkata Airport, 19 Feb '13)
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