Silence: How to Find Inner Peace in a Busy World [Paperback]

Christina Feldman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 2003

Silence: It is a precious commodity that even the most successful of us may not have. As we work to ensure our status in the world, it is easy to forget that we are not merely physical creatures. The state of our spiritual health can be easily tested. When the noise of the world dies away and we are left with ourselves, we get a pretty clear indication of the true extent of our inner peace. In Silence, author Christina Feldman charts a four-part course to accessing and sustaining this nurturing state—even in the midst of our busy lives. She writes, "We can learn to find it in all moments and all things; we discover that it has never been lost only hidden. With over 230 color photographs and a striking contemporary design, Silence is a calming book to look at, to read, and—most important—to use.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Silence is golden, says Christina Feldman in Silence: How to Find Inner Peace in a Busy World; it is also elusive. In this attractive coffee table book, Feldman offers a history of silence; teaches readers how and why to cultivate it in their lives; and explores its spiritual "fruits," such as self-knowledge, inner peace and strength, serenity and fresh perspectives. The book is wonderfully designed, with more than 230 color photographs and some unusual design elements. The text, which draws heavily on Buddhism and meditation techniques, is also surprisingly substantive and reflective for a book of this format.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From the Inside Flap

How to Find Inner Peace in a Busy World

Silence is a deeply moving guide to the spiritual journeys undertaken by mystics and sages through the ages-into silence and into the true self. World-renowned meditation teacher and writer Christina Feldman shows you how to absorb this ancient experience and create inner peace and richness in your life today.

Silence is a life-changing book that looks at the ways we create noise within us and how silence can be nurtured as an inner state. This profoundly spiritual book explores what is to be found in silence and will help you achieve peace in a world that seems to get noisier every day.

A Rodale Organic Style Book

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Rodmell Press (October 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1930485034
• ISBN-13: 978-1930485037
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,128,830 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Be still, and know that I am God". Psalm 46:10., March 27, 2005

By 

Butch (From the American Heartland.) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Silence: How to Find Peace in a Busy World (Hardcover)

Meditation Master and Sage, Christina Feldman, has put together a beautiful and profound book on the art of silence. The many pictures within the book speak the silent language of the heart. Her heartfelt words point us in the direction that all great spiritual sages and mystics have pointed, to the inner room of our heart, the Holy of Holies. From generality to nuance Christina takes us by the heart and leads us into the way of silence. Silence is the universal language spoken by Lao-Tzu, the Buddha, Jesus, and all those other sages and mystics that have spoken to our hearts down through the centuries. Silence is the common denominator of the spiritual life, East and West. Lao-Tzu once said, "The Tao that can be described is not the eternal Tao". Silence was very important to the Master of Paradox, to the "Old Child". The "Buddha" didn't achieve Nirvana until he gave up on the noise of religion and sat down and quietly meditated. Jesus the "Christ" went into the desert for forty-days and forty-nights to meditate and pray in silent solitude. He then changed the history of the world. As Christina states, "Silence lies at the heart of all our great Spiritual traditions. The variety of forms of contemplation, prayer, and meditation meet in their reverence for silence". Silence is golden.

Silence is the sound of one hand clapping. The sound of nonduality. The sound of God. It is both personal and impersonal. Silence is tangible, the bed from which the universal source of being is aroused. There is an intimacy that can only be known and shared in silence. The intimacy of absolute love. It is in quiet solitude that we come to realize that we are never truly alone. Silence is a field where love grows.

"Awe" ('fear' is a poor translation) of the Source of our being is the beginning of wisdom". Proverbs 9:10. Christina quotes from a poem by the Zen Master, Basho, "Speechless before These budding green Spring leaves in blazing sunlight". Again, awe is the beginning of wisdom. Awe is an attraction, fear is a distraction. Zen poetry is a language of the heart. Zen Koans are irrational alarm clocks for waking us from our slumber, from our inattention. Silence is a refuge that offers sanctuary from the hustle and bustle of modern life. The still small voice of God is always near. Silence is a gift that we give ourselves so that we can give ourselves to others. In silence we strip down to our essence. There is a spark of Divinity within each of us. An essence that is a part of the essence of God. The Kingdom of God is a family. In silence we remember our permanent home address. We are part of God, and yet God is other, and in others. Pride would limit God to self. Humility knows otherwise. In silence there is the reconciliation of East and West, of self and other, of self and God.

Christina points out that there are many different paths or ways to silence that we can chose to take. That in the end each of us must learn to travel our own path. As no two snowflakes are exactly the same, no two paths are exactly the same. As they say in Hinduism, "Though truth is One, the Sages know it as Many". Others can give us guidance, but we must make the journey of self-discovery ourselves. The Wizard can't give us anything we don't already have. We must learn to see with the eyes of our heart and discover our own way to stillness if we are to live lives worth living, to live examined lives. "I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened..." Ephesians 1:18. This journey of self-discovery is available to each of us. One such way to enlightenment that Christina points out is to follow one's breath...

I have only scratched the surface of the depths of this book with this review. If I had to limit my library to 10 books, this would be one of them. It is spiritually universal in its scope. A good used hardcover copy can be had for less than $5, though it is well worth its new price.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Silence: How to find Inner Peace in a busy world, May 13, 2006

By 

Sandra Donnelly - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Silence: How to Find Inner Peace in a Busy World (Paperback)

I found Silence to be a wonderful part of my meditation and self-calming efforts in this all too tense and busy world. It is a beautiful book in its writing and its wonderful pictures. I was instantly calmed when I read the first section, and looked forward to reading more each night before sleep. I am buying copies to gift to my tense friends and family. I plan to reread my copy often. I would highly recommend this peaceful and beautifully written book to anyone seeking calmness and peace in their lives.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A worthwhile keepsake, April 19, 2006

By 

Diana H C Tan "dianat the book lover" (Singapore) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Silence: How to Find Peace in a Busy World (Hardcover)

It took me several turns of heart before I bought this book, and all because this book costs SGD 60.27 at Kinokuniya Singapore. It was clinged wrapped at first and I had the service people opened it for me. The cover was a simple jacket of gold with the words "silence" in striking gold. The subtitle and the author's name appear in white. As silent as the subject of the book, the cover design is simple and freeing - full of space. I was struck (as with all coffee table book) by the quality of printing, the paper quality and the quality of the pictures. I discover at the point of writing this review that the book was printed and bound by a printer in Singapore. It was typeset and laid out in graphic style, not like the normal print of a book.

The author writes about silence as observed by different traditions and religions. I find, however, after reading the whole book, that the slant is somewhat towards Buddhism (not that this bothers me). Pictures of Buddhist monks featured in many instances in the book. What erks me is the deliberate large print of some of the words in each page of the book. I guess the author was trying to highlight words that are associated with silence, peace and love but where I first thought that the large print made the typesetting graphical, after a while I got distracted on occasions by the jarring big and bold words. I was also distracted by sentences and quotes that are set in landscape format and in faint font all over the book.

In all fairness, I did enjoy the book and I could resonate with some words of wisdom that the author wrote. For example, "Silence is what frees us to listen well, to live with authenticity and discover wholeness within ourselves." "The joy of silence teaches us to be more generous, caring and sensitive." Having myself experienced the rewards and joys of keeping silent moments in each day, I found myself nodding with approval and consensus with the author that indeed it is in silence that we learn about ourselves, and if we respond to change ourselves first, then love will be manifested through us and love will reach other people.

This book, costly no doubt, is one worthwhile keepsake and a beautiful one to line my bookshelf. Looking at the pictures in the book give me different perspectives of silence and how simple objects can be viewed creatively so one sees God alive in them.