Silent Silence
by Odin odin@aflx.com — Read all 3,869 poems by Odin odin@aflx.com
Finding peace amidst the chaos is but one of the chores of Zen belief. Such focus was stirred up recently while watching an interview with Garret Keizer, author of the book "The Unwanted Sound of Everything We Want: A Book About Noise." (Image by Richard Smith)
Monday, June 19, 2017
Silent Silence
Like a hooded falcon at rest,
silent silence asks little.
Listen…
Fearing tumult at birth's door,
mothers intuitively send the quiet asunder,
knowing attachment bodes ill,
as the preamble to silence and being
insists on quiet.
Savagely Silence clings to grounding,
aware,
but not of danger,
anticipating,
but not of respite.
For…
Just as the falcon must ready the flight,
talon-cinched safety gives way to freedom's silence beckoning
as umbilical’s reality secures
our random flings of arms and legs,
understanding silence gives way
to crying,
screaming,
crawling,
walking,
and finally running,
but to where?
Being ambulatory
moves through yesterday's silence,
leaving behind birth's soft caress,
the inner soft voice asking…
Why?
Modernity's torrid insistence
pushes growth beyond
one's birthing moment,
one's ambition,
one's anything.
While Silent Silence remains ever faithful,
patient of longing,
knowing the outer noise
is but an illusion
unknowingly needing to rejoin
the unknown,
where there may be a place Zen’s quiet
hears familiar silent silence
and is willing to share.
Love ya!
Jane
But you wrote about something different. About the noise pollution that we encounter almost at birth that pervades everything and prevents us from having those cherished moments when we can just be silent and alone in meditation. Fortunately, I find those silent moments still quite easy to obtain in my uncluttered lifestyle. I'm sure others don't. I do, sometimes have difficulty going to sleep if there is any noise like a television left on, people talking, or someone on the telephone, even in very low volumes.
Unfortunately, in time when my hearing loss becomes complete, silence will surround me continually.
Ron