I'm still contemplating the religious, spiritual, philosophical concept/imperative/instruction to "be still." I've yet to come to any conclusions--prehaps because The Great Researcher, that portion of my self that loves nothing more than the hunt for sources (rather than the "answer" itself) has come to the fore. As much time as I've spent just considering this subject has been doubled by that spent searching for images and the words of others about it. Maybe what follows will, at least, help to orient you to the direction that my mind is taking as I work this out internally.
“[The modern age] knows nothing about isolation and nothing about silence. In our quietest and loneliest hour the automatic ice-maker in the refrigerator will cluck and drop an ice cube, the automatic dishwasher will sigh through its changes, a plane will drone over, the nearest freeway will vibrate the air. Red and white lights will pass in the sky, lights will shine along highways and glance off windows. There is always a radio that can be turned to some all-night station, or a television set to turn artificial moonlight into the flickering images of the late show. We can put on a turntable whatever consolation we most respond to, Mozart or Copland or the Grateful Dead.”
[Wallace Stegner, from Angle of Repose]
“Whenever there is stillness there is the still small voice, God's speaking from the whirlwind, nature's old song, and dance....”
[Annie Dillard, from Teaching a Stone to Talk: Expeditions and Encounters]
“The point is that when I see a sunset or a waterfall or something, for a split second it's so great, because for a little bit I'm out of my brain, and it's got nothing to do with me. I'm not trying to figure it out, you know what I mean? And I wonder if I can somehow find a way to maintain that mind stillness.”
[Chris Evans]
“There are seasons when to be still demands immeasurably higher strength than to act.”
[Margaret Bottome]
[David Foster Wallace, from Infinite Jest]
“If you're still, and if you don't hope too much, peace will come to you. It's a grace. But you have to choose happiness.”
[Dean Koontz, from Forever Odd]
“Feel your emotions,
Live true your passions,
Keep still your mind.”
[Geoffrey M. Gluckman]
“Be still
Stillness reveals the secrets of eternity”
[Lao Tzu]
“Still, what I want in my life is to be willing to be dazzled---to cast aside the weight of facts and maybe even to float a little above this difficult world. ”
[Mary Oliver]
“Let sleep itself be an exercise in piety, for such as our life and conduct have been, so also of necessity will be our dreams.”
[Saint Basil]
“The inner is foundation of the outer
The still is master of the restless
The Sage travels all day
yet never leaves his inner treasure”
[Lao Tzu]
“Your duty is to be and not to be this or that. 'I am that I am' sums up the whole truth. The method is summed up in the words 'Be still'. What does stillness mean? It means destroy yourself. Because any form or shape is the cause for trouble. Give up the notion that 'I am so and so'. All that is required to realize the Self is to be still. What can be easier than that?”
[Ramana Maharshi]
these are interesting posts, helpful to me this morning, when I am anything but still inside, as the day comes up, outside, and everyone else is asleep, even the dog.
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad that they're helping you, too. I'm still thinking on this subject; there is at least one more post in the series still to come.
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