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“Be still, and know [yada] that I am God” - Psalm 46:10

As we have seen, although the Soul temperarily dwells within the body, it is not the body. In order for the Soul to break free from the duality of embodied life it is helpful to enter into times of quiet stillness. It is in such time that the Soul knows or realizes its eternal relationship with God.

The Bible gives a few examples of meditation but lacks the detailed instuction of some other texts:

And Isaac went out to meditate [śûaḥ] in the field toward evening. And he lifted up his eyes and saw, and behold, there were camels coming - Genesis 24:63.

David meditated regularly: May these words of my mouth and this meditation [higgayown] of my heart be pleasing in your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.

The Hebrew word higgayown means: Meditation, murmuring sound, solemn sound, resounding music. So we see that David uttered sacred sounds and used music to assist him in meditation. This is what we are talking about here. The purpose for using sacred sounds is to bring us into focussed harmony on One God alone. Biblical religion supports this type of meditation but unfortunately gives very little instruction in its practice.

Question: Is quiet time and communion with the Beloved important to you? How do you observe these times?

Question: Have you used sacred sounds or music to help your meditations?

The Psalm cited above says that it is in silent seclusion that one knows or merges one's consciounsess (Yada) with One God. This word Yada is used in different ways. It means to 'recieve information' and also relates to two beings 'becoming one flesh' sexually because sexuality creates a spiritual connection between two people, a marriage. It is therefore in 'silence' that the Soul enter into the bridal chamber of the Beloved. Which is to say, experiences devekut, as described by the Jewish Chassidim. We find this principle in most spiritual paths.

Once the biblical worship of One God developed into Rabbinic Judaism in the 1st century CE, the emphasis on personal worship and meditation was replaced by obediance to the Rabbinate. Hence:

It happened that while Yeshua was praying in a certain place, after He finished, one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray [proseuchomai] just as John [the Essene] taught his disciples” -Luke 11:1-4.

The New Testament Greek word [proseuchomai] is a verb that denotes the act of praying and/or meditating. Essentially, communicating with God. It is a broad word that encompasses various forms of prayer, including supplication, intercession, thanksgiving, meditation, contemplation, and direct worship through the directed and intentional act of speaking to God with a sense of reverence and devotion." Not only is such benificial, spiritually it is imperitive.

Yeshua of Nazareth taught his talmidim: “When you pray or commune with God ['when you proseuchomai', not if you proseuchomai, do not to be like the hypocrites who love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they will be seen by people. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. When you proseuchomai, go into your inner room, close your door, and proseuchomai to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you - Matthew 6:5,6.

But like everything else, the conscious mind operates under the influence of the triguna: Goodness, passion, and ignorance. To silence the mind and discover spiritual communion with the Beloved can be difficult. This is why Yeshua's students said, "teach us how toi do it!" People are always thinking about so many things. But as Sri Krisha assures Arjuna and as Yeshua assured his hearers, it is possible.

Bhagavad Gita 6:34: The mind is restless, O Krishna, turbulent, strong, and obstinate. I think that restraining it must be more difficult than restraining the wind.
6:35: The Blessed One replied: Without a doubt, O mighty-armed one, the restless mind is difficult to control. However, by detachment, the mind can be restrained.

By detaching the consciousness from the the qualities of material nature the mind can be brought into subjection of the Soul. The incessant noise of the dualitic mind can be brought into teh silence of Divine communion. There fairly easy and understandable ways for us to hear only the Primordial Sound of Silence using the Omkara. This technique and those arising from it can lead the mind into spiritual detachment from material nature and its triguna. Focusing the mind on the Omkara is not generally understood in the West. Many people chant it, some regularly, however the deeper significance of this great bija or 'seed mantra' needs to understood.

Question: What experiences have you had with the Omkara?

Next time we will briefly discuss the holy sound of "Om" and how it's utterance may be applied to personal practice or sadhana. Having done this, we will discuss its applications to consciousness studies and spiritual realization with regards to the four levels of consciousness as described in Mandukya Upanishad.

Who Are You?
The Sound of Silence, Part 2

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