Noise is everywhere, on the crowded train, in the busy office, in the pub, the school playground, and even at home. We simply can’t seem to get away from the buzz of everyday life. Sometimes it’s just all too much.
We know that peace and quiet are good for both the body and the mind, but it’s increasingly difficult in today’s world to experience real quiet, and that’s why a National Quiet Day is so important.
Everything that’s created comes out of silence. Your thoughts emerge from the nothingness of silence. Your words come out of this voice. Your very essence emerged from emptiness. All creativity requires some stillness.
Wayne Dyer
Every day we are surrounded by the chatter of TV, the radio, even our friends and family. Few are the opportunities we have to engage in a little quiet contemplation, giving our vocal chords a rest to simply listen to the world around us and simply experience it. Quiet Day is dedicated to taking a little time to free your voice and mind from the rigors of conversation.
History of Quiet Day
Quiet Day was established to remind us to slow down and give silence a chance. During this celebration, you are encouraged to simply not speak, and preferably to take a chance to not communicate at all.
The sounds of our voices, and in fact our active interaction with others has served to keep us spiritually silent and separated from the world around us, and in some odd ways from the very people we interact with every day. Quiet Day allows you to engage the world around you by removing the shield that is the wall of words we use every day.
In India, there are meditation retreats where time is spent kneeling and in contemplation, sometimes as many as 10 days in succession. These are called Vipassana retreats, a word which means “to see things as they really are”, and comes from ancient Buddhist practices.
While Quiet Day is just one day, the principles included in these retreats can be applied to your one day of silence. The peace and clarity it can bring has the possibility of opening your mind to things about your life that have long since been buried in verbal noise.
