Wordless is an invitation.
It is a calling to sit still without naming what comes into the mind. It is a calling to put aside logic, analysis, or reasoning. It is a calling to sense what emerges from deep within.
This is bigger than not-talking.
Not-talking is contract we sign at a silent retreats. However, silent retreats are loud with internal chatter. That inside voice that gives fear, uncertainty, and doubt a stage.
This is not that.
Wordless is effortful love to settle the ego. Wordless is resistance to judgement. Wordless is a delicate moment which allows that part of yourself to witness new things emerge.
Wordless is natural state of being – but we forgot.
We are born without words. We are loved without needing to speak.
Then our first words excite our parents. They spark interest in siblings. We received encouragement to use words.
As young children, we are scolded when the explosion of anger becomes physical harm. A bite or a scratch. A push or pull. The young feel the frustration and let that energy out with no words.
So we are instructed to find our words to express those feelings. We are offered names for those sensations. We are held accountable to vocalize first.
We are conditioned to move to words quickly.
This takes on a life of its own.
Words fill libraries, the internet, everyday conversations. Stories are worded. Instructions are worded.
When knowledge is transferred from one person to another, from one time to another, from one place to another, there are words.
Over 8 billion heartbeats on planet Earth with the ability to form words. Yet there are 15 times as many mammals who communicate without words.
So we are brought back to the invitation to remain wordless.
To return to an earlier state in our development.
To cultivate the Beginner’s Mind.
We are invited back to feel feelings without labeling them. We are invited to feel without categories, reasoning, or justification. We are simply invited to explore the source of those feelings.
To let our Witness Mind sense the insights. To let that part of ourselves speak without translation.
Awaken this practice within you.
Explore those strong emotions which are trying to get your attention. Ignite curiosity and seek meaning without speaking.
You may find that deferring the use of words may afford you a more profound understanding.
What does this look like? Step by step.
Sit comfortably. Deep breaths to relax the body. Close your eyes.
Notice the thoughts. Notice how they go as quickly as they come. That one supersedes another.
Then pursue this questioning in a wordless way: what am I feeling right now? Where am I feeling it?
What message do you have for me?
Ask, but don’t expect the reply.
Sit silently instead.
Accept that there may be no reply.
Accept that the next thought is the ego trying to regain your attention.
Accept that you cannot force the answer, reason it, or even anticipate it.
It comes when it comes.
And when it comes, it comes wordless.
We call these inklings.
We give words to these notions to make sense of them.
But what if you, just once, deferred the words and sat with the feeling.
This is your call to action. Your call for growth. Your call to get to the truth that lies beneath the story you are telling yourself right now.
The Visual8 