Welcome to New Hour Sunday Talks, an exclusive series for the patrons of the inspirational

living podcast. Today's talk was edited and adapted from

By Ways of Blessedness by James Allen, published in 1904.

There is great power in the words of a wise woman or man, but their silence is more powerful

still.

The greatest people teach us most effectively when they are purposely silent.

The silent attitude of the great teacher, perhaps noted by only one or two disciples,

is recorded and preserved through the ages, while the flamboyant words of the merely clever

talker, heard by thousands and at once popularized, are neglected and forgotten in at most of few generations.

The silence of Jesus when asked by Pylek, what is truth, is the impressive, the awful silence of

profound wisdom. It is pregnant with humility and reproof and perpetually rebukes the

shallowness that thinks the be-all and end-all of the mystery of things can be summed up in

some textual formula or theological platitude.

When plied with questions about Brahma, aka God, by the argumentative Brahms,

Buddha remained silent.

He taught them better than they knew, and if by his silence he failed to satisfy the foolish, he thereby profoundly instructed the wise. Why all this ceaseless talk about God, with its accompanying intolerance?

Let us practice some measure of kindliness and good will, and thereby acquaint ourselves with the simple rudiments of wisdom.

And why all these speculative arguments about the nature of God?

Let us first understand somewhat of ourselves.

There are no greater marks of folly and moral immaturity than a reverence and presumption. No greater manifestations of wisdom and moral maturity than reverence and humility.

Lao Tzu in his own life exemplified his teaching that the wise person, quote,

teaches without words.

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