Chapter I Meaning and Purpose of Mauna

Chapter I Meaning and Purpose of Mauna Introduction This chapter attempts to bring about clarity as regards the understanding of the concept of Mauna, its meaning, what it is and what it is not, what different purposes it serves for different people in different contexts and in what way its use can be understood in the sphere of yoga. Hence, it is in order, first, to consider the various meanings ascribed to the term Mauna, which is generally understood as only silence of speech. 1. Meaning of Mauna Dictionary Meaning of Mauna Mauna is basically a Sanskrit word. The term Mauna1(मौनम)् or Maunitva (मौननत्व) means silence, taciturnity, silence of the mind – as in मौनमुद्रा (the attitude of silence) and मौनव्रतम ्(a vow of silence) or मौननन ्(observing vow of silence). In the Sanskṛta dictionary, there are several synonyms for Mauna such as – अननवचव नम ् (silence, not uttering anything), अभाषणम ् (silence, not speaking), अवचन (absence of assertion, .श녍दम ् (silence, a calm)2ﴃsilence, taciturnity), अ핍यातम ्(silence), नन Chambers Twentieth Century Dictionary gives the meaning of the word ‘Silence’ as absence or abstention, taciturnity. One inference which can be made just by looking at these meanings is that Mauna or silence is a restraining practice or practice involving 1 Apte V.S.(1970) The Practical Sanskrit-English Dictionary. Digital Dictionaries of South Asia. Delhi, MotilalBanarsidass. 2 Ibid. 33 not making utterances or speech or sound. Does it mean that silence does not come naturally but has to be imbibed and maintained by man? Or is it pointing out the fact that one has moved too much away from one’s natural state, if that state is one of silence and now by practicing and preserving silence one is moving towards one’s own natural state - the real nature? Silence fits in as a tapas practice, an austerity for burning of impurities, for self-purification. In India, Mauna has been a popular practice from time immemorial; the sadhus or munis who sustain its practice for years together are called mounīs. The terms ‘sādhu’, ‘ṛṣi’, ‘muni’ and ‘santa’, are synonymously used and all of them evoke a common feeling of awe, respect, worship, sacredness and spirituality in oneself. Progressing on the path of spirituality and moving away from materialistic empirical life is the common factor among all these individuals. Though the differences may not be very clear-cut in the individuals holding these appellations, one may make some subtle distinctions among them. Rishis, who are generally preceptors or teachers (say for example in the King’s court), may be householders who can have family life. They are more extroverted as compared to Munis who remain single and abstain from house-holder-ship. Munis are more ascetic and focused on their sādhanā in the quest for attaining the spiritual goal. A Sadhu may be considered as a holy man who has renounced the world and is living alone. A Sādhu may also sometimes impart his wisdom on spiritual matters. A Santa is a saint who has realized the truth. He may be a householder but shares his wisdom and relentlessly propagates the truth. Having seen the dictionary meaning of Mauna, let us try to unravel the real significance of Mauna. What is Mauna in the real sense? 1.1 Mauna – Not Absence of Sound Mauna or silence, interestingly, can be considered from two perspectives – internal and external. From the external perspective, silence is generally considered as absence of sound. The internal perspective, being the crux and thrust of this thesis, will be considered all along in the thesis. It may refer to stopping the ever-present chattering of the mind thereby putting an end to the mind itself. 34 Commonly, one understands Mauna as absence of all sounds. But it may not be so. Is it possible to have a soundless state? Sound may be said to be produced by vibration or movement in a medium. Thus, the presence of two things is necessary for sound to emanate viz. vibration and medium and consequently, soundlessness means absence of both. The entire universe is a throbbing universe, a dynamic creation. Change in each and everything is the ever-present reality. Change is a movement, a vibration, gross or subtle. There is no place and no time where / when some action is not happening; some change is not occurring. Even our thoughts are movements in time. If there is movement, action, change, then there is vibration. Thus, the state of no vibration is non- existent in the creation. Now come to the second thing i.e. medium. The entire universe is pervaded with the medium of space. In fact, in talking about anything, even of God for that matter, the medium (space or ākāśa) where it exists is assumed. There is no state where there this medium is not there. Ākāśa or space is omni-present and all-pervading. This medium may be too subtle and beyond the limits of normal sensory perception but nevertheless its presence is there. If vibration and medium of space are always present, then sound is always present; a soundless state may be non-existent. Some of these sounds are audible to the human ears and some not, depending upon their wavelengths. These sounds are called as āhata nada or struck sound i.e. sound generated by the colliding of two objects. Also, there are said to be some sounds which cannot be heard by one’s ears but can be sensed by the mind directly or so to say by the whole being. These sounds fall under the category of Anāhata nada or un-struck sound. Thus, sound is always there. It may be sometimes beyond our audible range, beyond the limited range of one’s sensitivity and awareness. But when the level of awareness rises, the limitations of the sensory and mental capabilities are transcended. One can then hear this Anāhata nada. This ever-present sound (some call it divine) envelops all as it envelops the entire creation. At the gross physical level, one lives amidst noise and disharmony. The untrained mind habitually gets involved with this noise losing its equipoise and capacity of 35 concentration. This miserable state is aggravated further by the constant din generated by one’s own thoughts, without let or lease. The mind is never at peace, never calm, never tranquil and never serene. Such a state of mind is never able to catch that other sound, the Anāhata nada. This is the sound of silence, the sound of being as against that of becoming. It is the soundless sound. This is the sound which is caught in Mauna or silence. This is the sound, which is the essence of one’s Being. Mauna in Yoga sādhanā is not meant to be total absence of sound, but a state focused on this primordial sound the Brahma nada, the Anāhata nada. Yoga sādhanā demands that the mind be non-oscillating and without any distraction like a non-flickering lamp in a windless place. The mind has to be always in a state of steady focus without being distracted by the unnecessary sounds around. Only then Silence is achieved. 1.2 Mauna -its source In India, the word Mauna is commonly used by all languages and religions. It has a history of its own in religious discourses, scriptures and traditions. The noun Muni, meaning sage or hermit is derived from the word Mauna. Mauna has a meaning immensely richer than its English equivalent. Mauna can mean blissful calmness, joyous recollection, tranquil quietude or peaceful stillness or all of it. In some articles and books, it is mentioned that the word Mouna or Mauna3 is derived from the Sanskrit root, ‘mun’ which means ‘to measure’. This brings to the fore the prescription that one has to measure and observe 1. the necessity of communication, and 2. the input and output of the senses as a means to obtain inner silence. Thus, it can be inferred that the concept of Mauna as propagated in yoga and other spiritual traditions is not to stop talking but to have control over the expressions of the senses. It is sometimes said that Mauna is power, the living force, the only reality, the soul, peace, strength, goal, aim and purpose of one’s existence. That state which transcends speech and thought is Mauna or silence4. 3 Saraswati, N.S. (2012). On the wings of the swan. Munger, Bihar, India: Yoga Publications Trust. Vol. 2, pg. 182. 4 https://books.google.co.in/books?isbn=0141935383. 36 Sages say5that the state in which, even the thought of ‘I’ (the ego) does not rise even in the least, alone is self (Swarūpa), which is a state of total silence (Mauna). Thus, it can be said that the state of Silence is the Self, the essence of Self. This may explain the significance and sādhanā of Mauna or Silence in almost all spiritual traditions including Yoga. Silence is the means and the goal! Self is Mauna because in the experience of Mauna, in that supreme state, nothing happens, nothing exists to be attained other than the self. Mauna sādhanā may thus be the most potent form of ‘spiritual work’. The śāstras which are vast and emphatic may lead to generating that all-encompassing silence within. 1.3 Mauna - a Fasting of the Mind The Mind of man is the greatest blessing as well as the greatest curse. As a blessing, it has enabled man to succeed and survive in the struggle for existence.

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