Keeping the Silence

Last night I spent some time with a friend who moved to Brooklyn about two years ago. Even more recently, she found meditation and it has become a significant part of her life. I am all for it, but I have to say, I really appreciate the chapter in Wherever you go there you are titled Keeping it simple. This chapter states,

there's no need to tell other people about it, or talk about why you are doing it, or what it's doing for you. In fact, there is no better way to waste your nascent energy and enthusiasm for practice and thwart your efforts so they will be unable to gather momentum. Best to meditate without advertising it.

I have practiced meditation regularly in the past. It's not something that I have kept up consistently, but I have had enough experience with it to see the immense benefits, both physical and psychological. I wasn't one to ever talk about it, but that's really because I was younger and among my friends it would probably be considered strange. At that age I just didn't have the confidence I do now as an adult and I was unwilling to let anybody know about meditation. Now that I am older, and I hear my friend "advertising it," I really see the importance of keeping it to yourself. It's difficult for me to explain why it's so off-putting, but I think it partially has to do with the fact that it comes off as very self-righteous. And, I really think that Kabat-Zinn is correct in saying that it's a waste of energy to broadcast your newfound love of meditation. When I hear somebody gloat or brag about their new lifestyle, it sheds a bad light on it and makes me want to have nothing to do with it, and I'm sure it does the same for other people as well. Meditation is something that people truly do have to find the beauty in themselves, because it's such a personal experience. We should all do the art of meditation a favor and keep it to ourselves.