It is when we are in a beach two contrasting experiences strike us! The stillness free of all the regular sounds that surround us! Those sounds of traffic, movements and chats of people, activities generated by machines, blowing wind swaying the trees, etc. are absent in the beach. The relative stillness in the absence of the above sounds can make us feel strange.
It takes time to familiarise with the stillness of a beach in the absence of the regular sounds that one is used to. It would need a transition of several minutes before one can become aware of the sound of the waves. The waves are mostly silent till they strike the shore and water recedes from the shore. The force with which the waves strikes the sand bed on the shore creates a sight and sound. The water appears foamy and bubbly which by itself is a sight. The sound of this forward and backward movement of water creates a musical tone in medium frequency in changing decibels. This sound travels within to our mind, when all other regular sounds do not compete for attention.
Today as I saw the sights of the water movement and heard the sounds associated with it, it dawned on me that the familiar and regular experiences can condition us to the extent of loosing out on the message, new experiences can bring to us.
It was after about half an hour or so after having been in the beach, I began to feel the sounds of wave within!
The sounds of the waves create a gentle stirring within. It is as if one is hearing different messages with each wave reaching the shore and recede.
One message that seemed to hover over my conscious mind was that of a never ending embracing of the sand by the water. The seashore is nourished by the water of the sea. Similarly the sounds of the waves can nourish our mind by dispelling other fearful sounds and voices.
The fearful sounds and voices of anxiety, stress, rejection, loneliness, and woundedness stay within us and make us prisoners of our habitual patterns. Sometimes even our sleep gets interrupted as some of these emotions haunt us and preoccupy us.
It was when the sounds of the waves brought an interior experience of comfort, I realised that the sounds of the waves were embracing my troubled mind!
That is why listening to gentle music, humming tunefully familiar inspiring songs, and stilling the mind with thoughts of being loved by God, the giver of life, can liberate us from the clouds of doubt and self doubt!
I find returning to read or listen to the the sayings of Jesus of Nazareth is one way of creating a feeling of being loved and cared for. This then creates a feeling of being embraced and received.
We need stillness within for the sound of God's love to become a wave within our inner being!
M.C.Mathew (text and photo)
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