Three Doorways to Silence

S I L E N C E

"Silence has three gates to pass.
One is the most peripheral: speaking.
Speak only telegraphically.
Speak the essential and you will be surprised that
almost ninety per cent of your talking is useless;
only ten per cent will do.
And you will also be surprised —
that ten per cent will become more effective
because that ninety per cent,
that unnecessary burden
is no more there.

Words become more pregnant
when you don't go round-about,
when you go directly.
And if one has to be telegraphic
one has to go directly.
That's why you can write a long letter
but it doesn't have that effect —
a small telegram is more effective [...]

All the great scriptures of the world are telegraphic.
That is the meaning of the sanskrit word sutra —
just a hint has been given but very pregnant.
This is the first step:
be telegraphic, speak the essential.
And drop the non-essential
and then the second step.
Think only the essential
and you will be surprised.
Ninety-nine per cent is unessential;
only one percent maybe is essential.
That too I say maybe, perhaps;
otherwise it is all holy cow dung.

So drop thinking unnecessarily
about unnecessary things [...]

So drop useless thinking
and you will be saving so much energy
that the third step can be taken.
the third step is the most subtle:
feel only the essential.
And if you come to the essential
then there is only love.
Anger, greed, lust —
all these things are non-essential.
They are parasites, they are exploiting you.
When you come to the essential only love remains.
And when your heart is only full of love
you can enter into the very centre of silence.

These three things have to be passed:
the outer part of the mind — talking;
the inner part of the mind — thinking;
and the innermost part of the mind — feeling.
And when you have passed all these three
then there is silence.
And that silence is the door to the divine."

— OSHO, The Sound of One Hand Clapping, Chapter #19 - 19 March 1981 pm