The Voice of the Silence
Of the five human senses, hearing is one of the first to be used by the newborn child, sound heralding our initial introduction to the physical world - and what sound we are born into! From the relative silence of the womb, we are catapulted into the tempestuous roar of modern life. This cacophony of vibration symbolises a growing lack of harmony in the way we interact with the world around us. Its shock waves play unceasingly upon our jangled nerves and threaten to drown out the silent voice within that relates us to our spiritual source.
Yet this inner voice, when carefully listened for, can wisely guide us through the maze of manifested existence. To the outer ear, it has no sound at all, but to the inner ear it is the voice of the silence, the dynamic utterance of the Christ within. In times of crisis when we feel alone and in need of guidance, we catch faint whispers of wisdom from this source. Eventually the depth and frequency of these crises prompt us to change our whole life direction and follow its call. As our inner senses register the voice of reason more frequently, our minds are steadily elevated to new spiritual heights, creating in the process a pathway of consciousness that spans the gulf between the inner and outer kingdoms of nature. Every moral victory and every virtue attained by heeding the voice of the silence form the path of return. As such, it is a path of inner sound and light along which we travel towards our spiritual destiny.
Every person, every form, has a tone which is produced by the minute sounds of the atoms composing that form. Through life's adventures we learn how to fine-tune this sound until the soul's vibration can play through its instrument and resound throughout the entire structure. A full, rich chord then rings out appealing to the inner senses of others and awakening them to the silent voice within their own inner sanctum.
Sound is therefore intimately linked to the "Spirit of Relationship" that we considered in the previous article, for it helps us to develop right relationship with our higher Self, and then through this medium, with all other selves. Interestingly, the ear, which enables us to register sound, is also associated with the faculty of balance. And the inner correspondence of balance demonstrates as that 'spiritual poise' which enables a human being to stand balanced and rightly orientated at the midway point between the two poles of existence - spirit and matter - and relate them to one another in dynamic harmony.
In some of the inhabitants of the animal world, balance and orientation are perfected to an amazing degree, as seen in echo-location systems where sound is emitted and reflected back from their surroundings giving a precise awareness of location. From a psychological viewpoint, the human voice is similarly used in social interaction, evoking responses that lead to an understanding of place in society and the nature of relationships to others. From the spiritual perspective, we each have to find our own 'inner note' in the midst of life's challenges and in spite of the density of form. Through meditation and reflection, a subjective hearing is developed that enables us to locate our true selves. An understanding then dawns of our position in the great scheme of things and the direction in which we must travel to merge with that "peace that passeth understanding" from where the soul's note of joy silently beckons.
All God's great works are silent. They are not done amid rattle of drums and flare of trumpets. Light as it travels makes no noise, utters no sound to the ear. Creation is a silent process; nature rose under the Almighty hand without clang or clamor, or noises that distract and disturb.
Andrew Martin Fairbairn
 
|
