Receive the Knock in Silence

Many years ago we had put in place a schedule of regular emails from Auromira Centre entitled “KNOCK KNOCK”. These were designed to remind those on this path to remain on the path. To be an active participant on the journey, to be an active instrument. The emails were a reminder to come back to the real work in case one had drifted away in the buzz of 'everyday living’ which is so easy to do. On the path we enrich ourselves with The Mother’s and Sri Aurobindo’s words but perhaps only intermittently put them into practice and we have to constantly remind ourselves of our purpose - ‘to be’ as They have said. We may start the day with good intentions and do put into practice, for a while, what we might have read on a particular day. But why do we drift away from maintaining this attitude, why this easy distraction? And if we can be distracted within a day, imagine how that adds up over several days or weeks or months. Then, we have to have the regular “KNOCK KNOCK” emails to bring us back in line, even if only for a little while.

So, let us step back and try to understand why we cannot keep to the path, why we cannot be in a permanent state of receptivity and opening and offering, why we cannot put into practice what we must. One reason is that we are bombarded by all sorts of vibrations and signals and forces on a constant basis. And these veil the constant reminders of The Divine Grace that surround us. Just look around - and not even far away - and see what does not remind you of The Grace. So why do we not see this at all moments, in all circumstances, at every step? It is because the veils of ‘noise’ hide these beautiful reminders and we are easily swayed away from them in the hum-drum of daily living, a living on the surface, a living full of ‘noise'.

In the beautiful moments when we are by the expanse of the sea or in the serenity of mountains or in the coolness of woods, we give ourselves the chance to feel and enjoy The Divine’s Riches. Similarly, in the magical moments when a little action of a little child surprises us or when we receive pearls of wisdom from an elderly relative, we glimpse the torrents of Divine Light that are out there for us to receive. So, now let us consider why we are able to appreciate these magical and mysteried moments - it is because we are able to give them our full attention in a vague silence. And this is the secret - quieten the ‘noise’, bring in the silence in every part of our being, or at least in our mind, imagine the body’s cells silently swimming in a lyrical rhythm in their milieu. It is in this silence which we have access to that we can receive all that The Divine intends us to receive. This is the biggest secret in our living.

As a doctor who studies cells on a daily basis, I can see how each cell harmoniously mingles with its neighbouring cell and even though there is a factory of activity going on on the surface of the cell and within the cell, there is no loss of this harmony. If we have this at hand in our own cells, then why cannot we have it in the whole of our being? To me, silence is easier in the vastness of the sea, mountain or woods but equally easy in the vision of harmony of our cells.

The “knock” of The Divine is constant and persevering. It is compassionate and waiting to be heard. Let us give ourselves the chance to seize this “knock” and hear its tale. Let us work harder to silence the ‘noise’. Then there will be no end to the wonder of creation as it will speak to us of The Divine’s Joy and Glory at all moments and we would be compelled to hear this, never wanting this downpour of The Grace to cease. 

Try it - start with 5 minutes of silence, then 10 minutes, then even longer until you are in this state most of the time. What can be received in a few moments of silence would take aeons to receive in ‘noise’.

Let us help ourselves to receive the ‘knock’ in silence.

This is a good point to remind ourselves of some of The Mother’s and Sri Aurobindo’s pearls:

"The ideal, you see, is to enter an integral repose, that is, immobility in the body, perfect peace in the vital, absolute silence in the mind — and the consciousness goes out of all activity to enter into Sachchidananda."1 

"It is only when the mind enters into a complete silence, a perfect quietude, that it becomes just a mirror for reflecting what is above; then one can rise above."2

"The Self is everywhere and by entering into full detachment and silence, or even by either detachment or silence, one can get anywhere some glimpse, some reflection, perhaps even a full reflection, or a sense of the Self’s presence or of one’s own immergence in that which is free, wide, silent, eternal, infinite."3

- Sanjiv Manek, Auromira Center (UK)

Keywords: Silence, Harmony, Divine Grace, Daily Sadhana, Progress

1 The Mother (CWM vol.7; 13 April 1955)
2 The Mother (CWM vol.7; 27 July 1955)

3 Sri Aurobindo (CWSA Letters on Yoga part 1)