Silence

Silence (mona or tuṇhibhāva) is the quality of being quiet, at peace and without noise. Buddhist psychology sees a direct connection between verbal silence and mental silence. Thus the Buddha said to his monks: ‘When you meet together, either talk about the Dhamma or maintain a noble silence.’ (M.I,161). In a beautiful paean to silence recorded in the Sutta Nipāta he said: ‘Learn this from the waters. In mountain clefts and chasms loud gush the streamlets, but great rivers flow silently. Empty things make a noise while the full is always quiet. The fool is like a half-filled pot; the wise person is like a deep still pool.’ (Sn.720-1).

The Buddha praised in particular the maintenance of a dignified silence in the face of insults and false accusations: ‘Not to react to anger with angry words is to win a Template:Wiki hard to win. It is to act for one’s own and the other’s Template:Wiki, although those who do not know the Dhamma will think you are a fool.’ (S.I,162). As a result of this, the Buddha and his disciples had a reputation for being ‘fond of silence, encouraging silence and Template:Wiki in praise of silence’ (D.III,36). It was said of the Buddha that he ‘seeks lodgings in the Template:Wiki, in the depth of the jungle, in quiet places with little noise, places far from the crowd, undisturbed by people and well suited for solitude.’ (D.III,38). Template:R www.buddhisma2z.com