quiétude: ‘a state of stillness, calmness, and quiet in a person or place.’
Life offers us the opportunity to take two journeys: the first is in the outside world where we share our experiences, our stories, and also the mundane parts of life. The second is the inner journey, where we find our way to the heart, and connect to our own truth and our soul. Knowing what is true for each of us, and choosing to live from this inner knowing, can create a profound sense of inner peace and balance. In Sanskrit, this state is called ‘sat-chit-ananda’, or ‘being-awareness-bliss’; it describes a state of complete union of all the opposites within ourselves, where the outside becomes like the inside, and where harmony and inner peace can finally enter.
The soul space is difficulty to define, because it is not physical; but it can be described as an immense vastness within, that is as strong as the almost invisible silk threads of a spider’s web. Each silk thread, being a thousand times thinner than a human hair, might look flimsy, but it is measurably five times stronger than steel. The secret of its strength lies in the weaving technique of the spider.
Again, in the spider’s web we recognise the paradox of being seemingly thin and delicate, yet so strong at the same time. The soul space too might be invisible, but it has the same strength as a spider’s web. It is a place of such grandeur and magnitude, that once you tap into it, nothing and nobody will be able to unsettle you or knock you off-balance. You will be able to stand in your truth, like a bright light bursting forth from the most magnificent star.
In my own experience, the soul is a space that is as close and intimate as my next breath, the beat of my heart, or the flutter of my eye. It might be different for each person, but what is true for all of us, is that this space can only be found when we seek the secret doorway that leads us within. However, in this noisy world with its many distractions, most people do not spend time in any way or form to connect to this part of themselves. A lifetime might go by, without this ever happening. Through our ‘busyness’, our excuses, or our seeking external confirmation of who we are, we lose sight of our inner landscape.
But once we become disillusioned with many of these offerings, the search might begin for something more. A heartbreak, or the loss of a job, our health, or a loved one very often opens the doorway into this space of the soul. Somehow, it only gets our attention when everything and everybody else has failed us. And only when we realise how crucial it is to our sanity and survival, will we seek ways to find our way back there.
When you feel the desire to connect with your soul, your essence and your truth, one of the best ways is through quieting the mind, seeking silence. You have to slow down to hear the voice of the soul. At first it might come as a mere whisper, but as you find your way to silence again and again, you will start ‘hearing’ your soul more clearly. A friendly warning: the soul speaks in a voice all of its own. Your soul does not use the words we use in conversation. It speaks through metaphors, sounds, images, dreams, and memories. It is a place of such immense depth that it might scare you at first, as it pulls you gently into its soft embrace, with the same allure as the sweet nectar that intoxicates the bee.
You will be amazed and mesmerised – all at once. In this space you are always received as the honoured guest, and your arrival is celebrated. Just settle in this home within, where you know you belong. Once you have found your way to this place within, you will never want to leave, ever again.
The soul is the secret place where we can tap into an eternity of knowing. Long before we are born into this life, and long after we are gone, this river of knowing will keep flowing. We are just fortunate, when we learn during our lifetime that we have access to this source of wisdom, knowing and truth, within the recesses of our own being.
Come back, return to this place of silence within, that begs you to spend time with yourself, so that you can discover the beauty you hide from your own eyes. The soul whispers in this place of silence. Find your way here.
