Silence and Solitude

I have always enjoyed solitude and silence right from my childhood and this trait has been a part of my personality. But many people mistook me for ‘the proudest’ and some of my friends used to call me ‘a solo man’ during my collage days. I have no specific reason for this trait except that I was born with it. I do not regret it but I understand the negative side of this personality, especially when you have to freely move in a society and make new contacts and friendship to expand your circle for better prospects and future. This is especially true when it comes to business, trade and networking. The positive side of it is, I was able to focus my mind on research and development, innovation and it opened a whole range of new possibilities. When you are silent, your mind works fast and your imagination soars to new heights. Albert Einstein who I always admired as a scientist, once quoted, “Imagination is more important than knowledge”. I can certainly understand why he was walking in a pouring rain in the streets of Berlin, oblivious of his surroundings, while his mind was deeply contemplating about the theory of relativity. He was completely drenched and he did not realize that he was drenched in a pouring rain until his friends remarked about it. In a way he was a ‘karma yogi’ who dedicated his whole life in pursuit of scientific knowledge and unraveling the mysteries of the universe. Silence and solitude was certainly part of his personality. In fact, his parents thought he was dumb child because he hardly spoke to others during his early stages, but sat quietly in his backyard gazing at the sky and stars. Silence is something I always seek, because it helps me in my inward journey of contemplation and meditation. When you withdraw your mind from the external world of sights and sounds, there is so much to discover. It is like diving into a sea where you can witness amazing lives of plants, corals and colorful fishes. It is entirely a new world where one can search and discover pearls. But will the silence and solitude help you progress in your career and profession and achieve your goals of success? It is a question somebody asked Jesus Christ two thousand years before. He said,”You cannot serve two masters”.Obvisouly one has to choose either a prospective carrier and material wealth or choose a secluded life of silence and solitude and pursue your spiritual goals. I have always thought about these two conflicting alternatives and the path forward. I can now say in unequivocal terms that perusing spirituality is the right choice than perusing a success in this materialistic world. One has to only look at the history of so-called successful people who lived and died. Albert Einstein named as the man of the millennium, died as a lonely man, as a recluse, in spite of the pinnacle of success he achieved in science. Look at the kings, queens, presidents, business tycoons, scientists and Philosophers and the list is endless. What happened to their glorious past and memories? People do not remember even their legacies. Everything vanishes into a thin air. As Jesus was leaving the Temple, one of his disciples said,”Look, teacher! What wonderful stones and buildings!”Jesus answered, “You see these great buildings? Not a single stone here will be left in its place: every one of them will be thrown down.” Every beginning has an end, and every end has a new beginning. This is the law of nature. One can choose a path only by an discriminative knowledge and Jesus encouraged people “to seek to find”. After all, one can seek only in solitude and in silence. I do not regret my trait because it is my destiny that shows me a path for an eternal freedom called ‘salvation’.