The art of stillness- a well forgotten art indeed! Let us deepdive into the art with this wonderful shloka from the Bhagavad Gita.
“Yogī yuñjīta satatam ātmānaṁ rahasi sthitaḥ…” — Bhagavad Gita 6.10 (“A yogi or an enlightened soul should always try to concentrate his mind, remaining in solitude, with the mind and body controlled.”)
Ever wondered why your mind often goes restless while focusing on an important task. Why your mind is filled with unwanted future worries while you lie in bed to sleep? We will try to answer it in this blog post ahead! As we move ahead, we revive the art of stillness- an art which can be instrumental in rewiring your brain to focus instead of worrying, to get empty of clutter it has stored through years and allow it to be creative and calm again!
In a world that celebrates speed, hustle, and constant productivity, we’ve forgotten the quiet power of stillness. We chase goals, tick off tasks, and fill every minute—but still, a strange emptiness lingers.
What if doing nothing—consciously, mindfully—wasn’t laziness, but sacred? What if stillness was not a lack of action, but the foundation of all meaningful action?
The ancient Vedic seers knew this truth. And today, let us rediscover it.
📖 The Vedic Call to Pause
The Upanishads, Bhagavad Gita, and Shrimad Bhagavatam are timeless fountains of this wisdom. Let’s see what these scriptures have to say about the art of stillness.
Māṇḍūkya Upanishad introduces the fourth state of consciousness: Turiya—a pure, silent awareness beyond waking, dreaming, or deep sleep. This isn’t achieved through effort, but by becoming inwardly still.
Bhagavad Gita 6.5: “Let a man lift himself by his own self; let him not degrade himself.” Self-upliftment begins when we turn inward—not through more noise, but by resting in the Self.
Shrimad Bhagavatam 11.14.33: “When the mind becomes purified by hearing and chanting, and fixed upon Me, it becomes still, like a flame in a windless place.”
Stillness is not weakness. It is the womb of wisdom.
🫁 Breath: The Gateway to Inner Silence
“Prāṇāpāna samau kṛtvā nāsābhyantara cāriṇau…” — Bhagavad Gita 5.27 (“Having regulated the incoming and outgoing breath within the nostrils…”)
In the yogic and Vedic tradition, breath (prāṇa) is not just air—it is life force.
Mastery of breath = Mastery of mind. Calming the breath is the first doorway to calming the mind.
🌬️ Daily Breathing Ritual:
Inhale slowly for 4 seconds
Hold for 4 seconds
Exhale gently for 4 seconds
Repeat for 12–15 rounds
This breathing exercise is usually termed as ‘Anulom Vilom’ or ‘Naadi Shodan‘ however there are some differences as well between the two.Anulom Vilom balances the breath through alternate nostrils without breath retention, while Naadi Shodhana purifies the naadis with controlled inhalation, retention, and exhalation.
While doing this, we can optionally add on, like, With each breath, mentally chant a sacred name: Om, Hari etc. or maybe focus on your breath or else, remind yourself of the affirmations you want to manifest in your life- like success, love, positivity etc. Let it be a sacred pause—a moment of reunion with yourself.
🧘 Stillness is Not Inactivity
“Naiva kiñcit karomi iti yukto manyeta tattvavit” — Bhagavad Gita 5.8 (“A truly wise person thinks: I do nothing at all.”)
This verse unravels a deep truth: The awakened being acts outwardly but rests inwardly in stillness.
In daily life, you may be working, speaking, cooking, or writing—but inwardly, there can be a silence that watches all. This inner non-doing aligns you with divine will. The subtle concept being is to do your daily activities as duty to the supreme- while being non-attached and remaining calm inside– that’s an art in itself! And also source of all bliss!- we will discuss that further in our upcoming posts as well.
🌱 Nature’s Wisdom: Healing Happens in the Pause
🌰 A seed becomes a tree in the dark silence of soil.
🐛 A caterpillar becomes a butterfly in the stillness of the cocoon.
Similarly, mind manifests glory when we stop worrying and keep calm and move inwards in ourselves for some moment letting the moment sink in and just focusing on the process- instead of dwelling our mind upon furture worries of result.
So this is the way your soul blooms in stillness!
📿 Sacred Stillness in Practice
Here are 5 gentle ways to cultivate this sacred art:
Begin the day with silence—before phone or tasks.
Practice deep breathing thrice a day. Say 100 deep breaths before moving out to work- it hardly takes few minutes.
Take 1–2 sacred pauses during the day. Just sit with eyes closed. No phone. No input. Just breathe and be at the present.
Read 1 verse from the Gita or Upanishads daily. It will align your mind to the higher good.
Offer gratitude in silence before sleep—to the Divine, to Life. Speak positively to yourself ” What positive things I did today and how can I improve myself the next day?”
Just these little steps towards it can result in a very positive impact on overall wellbeing in the long run!
✨ Closing Thought: The Power of Doing Nothing
Stillness is not passive. It is radical receptivity. It is not running from life – but rather meeting it finally without any filters.
“In the stillness of the heart, you are not diminished – you remember that you were always whole.”
If you feel called, take 5 minutes after reading this. Sit. Breathe. Just be. Let the world fade away. Let your breath guide you home. Let doing nothing be the most powerful thing you can do.
Hope you enjoyed the post! We will add such divine gem concepts regularly.
🔗 Connect the Journey
If you enjoyed this reflection on the sacred journey of spirituality , explore my earlier post’s foundation:
