What could be the greatest punishment that can be given to a human being? Is it the death sentence or imprisonment or banishment or anything that is considered to be brutal or cruel under law? These kinds of punishments are physical tortures or discomforts. According to me the biggest punishment that could be given to an individual is ignoring him / her or silence.
Silence is golden but it is not just about keeping one’s mouth shut. It is a language without words. This language like any other has the most gentle and harsh words in it. That is why I believe that silence is the greatest weapon that can be used for a suicide or murder. How do you feel when u want to avoid an argument that you think could end up in problems. The best way is to let the opponent speak and remain silent. But on the other hand remaining silent and running away from a problem can also worsen the situation to a large extent.
This is where every single person accepts the fact that “life is the greatest teacher of all times”. How do we know when to speak up or remain silent? We all must have been in situations where we should have remained silent and did speak a lot and in a situation where we should have spoken and did remain silent. As a result of which the situation had worsened. Here I remember a quote “do not speak unless you can improve the silence”.
Silence is a great master by itself. It teaches us many things in life. When we are left at silence we retrospect all that had happened in our life. Many of which may make us feel proud or happy for what we did and many of which may make us feel sorry or ashamed for our action. That is why Josh Billings said “Silence is one of the hardest arguments to refute”.
One minute of silence has a hundred meaning than an hour o speech. Silence helps one to know their inner-self. That is why Leroy Brownlow said “There are times when silence has the loudest voice”. You speak to yourself when you experience silence. Silence can be a stress – buster or a stress – booster. It depends on the individual to decide whether to remain silent or speak up.
You hesitate to stab me with a word, and know not – silence is the sharper sword. – Samuel Johnson
Spiteful words can hurt your feelings but silence breaks your heart – unknown
True silence is the rest of the mind; it is to the spirit what sleep is to the body, nourishment and refreshment. ~William Penn
I have often lamented that we cannot close our ears with as much ease as we can our eyes. ~Richard Steele
In the attitude of silence the soul finds the path in an clearer light, and what is elusive and deceptive resolves itself into crystal clearness. Our life is a long and arduous quest after Truth. ~Mahatma Gandhi
We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature – trees, flowers, grass – grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence…. We need silence to be able to touch souls. ~Mother Teresa
