ShodhPatra: International Journal of Science and Humanities

The Ethics of Stillness: Revisiting Silence as Knowledge in Indian and Western Thought

In an age defined by noise—of words, images, and endless connectivity—silence has become a forgotten language. Yet silence has never been mere absence; it is a conscious presence, an ethical and epistemic act that deepens understanding. This paper explores the role of silence as a mode of knowledge and moral awareness in both Indian and Western philosophical traditions. In Indian thought, mauna (sacred stillness) is viewed as the culmination of knowledge, as seen in the Upanishads, the Buddha’s noble silence, and Gandhi’s maun-vrata as moral discipline. Western philosophy too—from Socrates and Kierkegaard to Heidegger and Wittgenstein—acknowledges the limits of speech and the illuminating power of silence. The comparative analysis presented here reveals that both traditions regard silence as a path to truth, humility, and inner sovereignty. Re-reading these insights in light of today’s hyper-communicative world, the paper argues for an “ethics of stillness,” where silence functions as resistance to distraction, a method of self-knowledge, and a moral ecology for a civilization that has lost its capacity to listen.