SILENCE IS GOLD

It is a famous saying, “Silence is gold and speech is silver.”

Silence cultivates one’s spirituality and feeling of nearness to Allah. It promotes tranquility. While keeping silence, reflect about our environment. Silence guards secrets, silence controls tongue, silence gets rid of non-sense, silence sharpens the wits, and silence increases the value of our words.

The Noble Messenger (s.a.w.a.s.) said:

You must maintain silence for prolonged periods of time for verily it drives Shaitan away and helps you in matters of your faith. (Bihar al-Anwar volume 71 page 279)

Blessed is the man who speaks good and is triumphant; or keeps silent in the face of evil and is secure. (Tabrasi, Mashkat al-Anwar page 175 second edition)

Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day, let him speak good or remain silent. (Bukhari and Muslim)

Wisdom consists in keeping silent, and those who practice it are few. (Al-Baihaqi)

If a man is not able to say something useful, he should keep silent from inappropriate words and his silence will keep him far from Allah’s wrath and the harm which might befall him.

The Gateway of knowledge, the Commander of the Faithful Imam Ali (a.s.) said:

He who speaks more commits more errors. He who commits more errors becomes shameless. He who is shameless will have less fear of Allah. He whose fear of Allah is less, his heart dies. He whose heart dies enters the fire. The tongue is like a beast. If you let it loose, it will wound someone. Remain silent until you are requested to speak, for that is better than speaking until you are requested to become silent. When intelligence is complete, speech becomes less. A wise man first thinks then speak, while a fool speaks first then thinks. One who guards his secrets has complete control over his affairs. Silence will create respect and dignity.

The Infallible Imam Ja’far al-Sadiq (a.s.) said:

Silence is the mark of those who are certain of the realities which have already come to be, and about which the Pen has already written. Allah has made it a veil for the ignorant and an adornment for the man of knowledge. Through silence, patience can be set aside, and with it comes self-discipline, the sweetness of worship, removal of hardheartedness, abstinence, virtuousness and resourcefulness. Therefore, lock your tongue to speech which is not necessary, especially when you do not find anyone worth talking to; except, when you are talking specifically about matters to do with Allah. People’s destruction or salvation lies in speech and silence. Good fortune belongs to those who are given the knowledge of what is incorrect and correct in speech, and the science of silence and its advantages, for it is one of the qualities of the prophets and one of the distinguishing marks of the select. One who knows the value of his speech will also know the value of silence.

Sources used: Nahjul Balagha, Lantern of the path by Infallible Imam Ja’far al-Sadiq (a.s.), Hadith.net, Virtual mosque, Islamic insight, and The Characteristics of a Muslim by Al-Balagh Foundation