The Art of Listening || By Bikram Badyakar
In the Shrimad Bhagavad Gita lord Shrikrishna says to Arjuna on the knowledge of the Gita –
“Even
those who only listen to this knowledge with faith and without envy will be
liberated from sins.”
These
words illuminate the profound power of listening—not merely as a passive act,
but as a transformative spiritual practice. True listening goes beyond hearing;
it is the quiet art of opening the mind with humility, trust, and presence. When we listen with sincerity and without prejudice, we allow
wisdom to take root within us.
Most
of the time, we don't really listen to what others are saying. They are saying
but we take the meaning as per our prejudiced mind. Our prejudiced minds
constantly interfere in their speech. That's why what they try to deliver to
us, most of the time, can't be taken as they say.
By
listening experiences and thoughts of the people, we always get some new lessons
that may be useful in our future. So we should listen attentively. But what about interfering with our prejudiced mind interfering in someone's speech always?
The answer is we should drop our ego. And the ego is 'I know everything'. This
ego nourishes our mind and makes our mind prejudiced. That's the reason
why we don't listen to people, or if somehow we listen, we take the meaning
according to our prejudiced mind. Hence, what is spoken is not always
understood in the same way. And even sometimes we take totally different and
opposite meanings.
So
whatever is said to us, we should listen with an egoless mind. We should not
allow our prejudiced minds. After listening to the entire speech, we may agree
or disagree with it; it's in our hands, and that freedom deserves appreciation. But without listening properly, we don't have the right to agree or
disagree with the person.
Our
mind will be calm when there is no ego. And in this state of mind, the truth of
life (Aatmagyanam) was advised to people by our ancient great sages. Shravana
(Listening) Manana (Reflection) and Nididhyasana (deep contemplation) are the
three steps in Advaita Vedanta, a school of Hindu philosophy, that guide the
seeker towards self-realization. They represent the process of learning,
understanding, and internalizing spiritual teachings.
Therefore, listening is a skill like speaking. We have to learn this skill. In a world
where minds are clouded by prejudice and ears are tuned only to confirm beliefs,
mastering the art of listening is a radical return to awareness, empathy, and
psychological freedom.
***
(The views expressed are personal.)
About the Author
Bikram Badyakar is a writer, researcher, and contemporary poet currently pursuing his Ph.D. in Sanskrit at the University of Delhi. He completed both his undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in Sanskrit at Visva-Bharati University. He has published research papers in reputed Sanskrit journals and has contributed articles and poems in English to the blog Wings of Word. His poetry has also been featured in three anthologies: Rains in the Plain (2021), Loving Unloving (2022), and Heap of Broken Images (2022). His writing interests include poetics, Kāmaśāstra, psychology, mythology, and related fields.
Comments
Post a Comment