The Yoga of Roaring Silence
~ Abha Gupta, YSN Editor-in-Chief
(YSN Vol. 13, No. 1 – Jun 2025)
The culture of “what’s next?,” where each moment is quickly replaced by the next goal, vacation, relationship, outfit, gadget, or distraction, has shaped a generation constantly on the move, jumping from one pursuit to another. This “nexties” generation continues to feel restless unless it learns to pause, reflect, and turn inward. Only then can the cycle of endless seeking give way to lasting inner stillness. The restlessness within us persists regardless of wealth, power, health, or success until we discover true inner peace.
The outward journey of chasing objects, titles, jobs, recognition, relationships, travel, and entertainment may bring fleeting moments of joy, but it cannot offer lasting fulfillment. These pursuits may be meaningful and necessary, yet they cannot replace the quiet joy and stillness that
arise from within – the joy that needs no reason. This is why, even when life seems full on the outside, we often feel a subtle emptiness, a sense that something is missing, something we can’t quite name.
The only path to enduring peace is the inward journey, turning awareness toward the one who is seeking joy, peace, and contentment. This is the essence of yoga. It is not about twisted postures, mindful breathwork, or engaging with the mind’s endless chatter, but about gently returning to inner stillness, again and again, to ask: To whom are these thoughts appearing? You are no longer engaging with the content of the thoughts and being drawn into their whirlpool. This opens up a deeper space. As Mooji puts it, “It is not about watching the mind but being aware of that in which the mind is seen.”
As reflection and inquiry into the self deepens, we may encounter what feels like a wall of silence, a stillness that seems blank or impenetrable. But stay with it. This silence is not emptiness; it is the universal pulse, the seemingly underlying gravitational
force holding and sustaining all sentient and insentient beings alike. It is the invisible presence cradling us in its lap, hiding in plain sight.
This silence is not a block or a hurdle; it is a portal, a gateway to the peace that already lives within. It is the golden silence, the formless presence beneath all action and experience, upholding us through joy and sorrow, waking and dream states. It has no name or form, it is the
simple awareness of being.
This is Yoga, to be anchored in that inner silence, in our true nature (swarūpa), even while fully engaged in the actions of the outer world.
Om Shanti Shanti Shanti
May there be peace in the physical realm (Adhi-Bhautika), the spiritual realm (Adhyātmika), and the divine/cosmic realm (Adhi-Daivika).
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Guiding light posts left by those who walked before us on this planet emphasizing yoga as peace:
Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras
“Yogaś citta-vṛtti-nirodhaḥ”
(Yoga is the stilling of the fluctuations of the mind.) – Yoga Sutra 1.2
“Tadā draṣṭuḥ svarūpe 'vasthānam”
(Then the seer abides in their own true nature.) – Yoga Sutra 1.3
Bhagavad Gita
“yogī yuñjīta satatam ātmānaṁ rahasi sthitaḥ
ekākī yata-chittātmā nirāśhīr aparigrahaḥ”
(Let the yogi constantly engage the mind in the Self, in solitude, free from desires and possessions .) – Gita 6.10
“Prasānta-manasam hy enam yoginam sukham uttamam.”
(The yogi with a tranquil mind experiences supreme happiness.) – Gita 6.27
Yoga Vāsiṣṭha
“Manah-prashamanopayah yoga ityabhidhiyate”
(Yoga is defined as the means to calm the mind.) – Yoga Vashistha (3:9:32)
Shiva Sutras
“Cittam mantrah”
(The mind absorbed in its own essence becomes the mantra.) – Shiva Sutra 1.4
Katha Upanishad
Yadā pañcāvatiṣṭhante jñānāni manasā saha |
Buddhiś ca na viceṣṭate tām āhuḥ paramāṁ gatim ||
“When the five senses are at rest, and the mind is silent, the highest state is reached.” – Katha Upanishad 2.3.10