Wholeness or Perfection

Rilke and O'Donohue

Silence is something that comes from your heart, not from outside. Silence doesn’t mean not talking and not doing things; it means that you are not disturbed inside. If you’re truly silent, then no matter what situation you find yourself in, you can enjoy the silence. - Thich Nhat Hanh “Silence is not merely negative – the pause between words, a temporary cessation of speech – but, properly understood, it is highly positive: an attitude of attentive alertness, of vigilance, and above all of listening.” - Archimandrite Kallistos Ware “We need silence, not to escape from ourselves but to know the foundation, the roots, the tendencies of our true nature. There is in us a zone where noise and tumult have no place, and a zone where everything reverberates. When we try to return to the inner, vital zone, it is not to cancel the noise. We do not make use of our moments of collectedness as a retreat. Inner silence is comparable to a light that reveals what is in the shadows, reveals our mechanicality. When we deeply relax, our attention unglues itself little by little from our preoccupations, our identifications. It moves, gropingly, toward the zone of silence… During the experience of inner silence, if thoughts appear, they pass as if upon a screen. Our emotions are short-lived movements that do not carry us toward externals. Our moments of inner openness are linked to the silence.” - Alphonse Osbert “Do not worship silence, but that to which the silence leads.” - Tom Rothschild “Within you, there is a stillness and a sanctuary to which you can retreat at any time and be yourself. - Herman Hesse

When a cat lets go of a tree, it lets go of itself