MUSIC OF SILENCE - THYSELF KNOWEST THYSELF

MUSIC OF SILENCE

Hear the music of the meeting of the soul with soul - ­
It is the divine music, thrilling and soul­-stirring.
It is the music that gives rapturous ecstasy.
The light of this music illumines the world.
It is the source of all vocal music,
It is the source of all musical instruments,
It is the music of that supreme silence,
It is the music of the flute of Sri Krishna,
It is the music that delights Radha,
It is the music without stringing and playing,
It is the music of the sahasrara (thousand­-petalled) lotus.
Sivananda says: "Listen to me, brother,
There are only a few
Who have heard this music of silence."

THYSELF KNOWEST THYSELF

We cannot know thy nature.
Thou alone knowest what thou art,
Thyself knowest Thyself, by Thyself.
The mind cannot reach Thee -­
What can poor understanding know?
Speech cannot reach so far,
The power of thought fails.
Thou art not a mental concept,
You cannot be confined
Within the walls of the mind ­
Thou art infinite.
Ascetics practise pancagni tapas ("five­-fire austerity"),
Hatha yogis stop their breath
And practise tratak (gazing).
By devotion alone
You can be known in essence.
Only a few blessed ones
Have realised Thee,
Only through thy grace.

—So says Sivananda