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The Functions of Silence in India

Implications for Intercultural Communication Research

Nemi C. Jain and Anuradha Matukumalli

In this chapter, Nemi C. Jain and Anuradha Matukumalli provide an excellent account of the forms and functions of silent communication in India. They contend that, although it is often viewed negatively in the West, silence is interpreted as a sign of interpersonal sensitivity, mutual respect, a sense of personal dignity, affirmation, and wisdom in the cultural context of India. At the individual level, silence serves as the means for the individual soul to achieve union with the universal spirit in the Hindu practice of yoga. At the interpersonal level, silence is used in Indian social interactions to maintain harmony, avoid conflict, and exert punishment. At the public level, as manifested in the Gandhian movement of satyagraha, self-restraint, patience, and protest against social and political injustice are communicated in silence and particularly significant in the civic sphere of Indian life. Jain and Matukumalli urge communication scholars and students to recognize and realize the value of silence and its full potential in intracultural and intercultural interactions.

Speech and silence are complementary forms of communication; each acquires significance from the other. Traditionally, Eastern societies such as India, China, and Japan have valued silence more than the Western societies. Oliver (1971), based on his study of communication and culture in ancient India and China, pointed out this difference when he stated: “For a variety of reasons, silence in Asia has commonly been entirely acceptable, whereas in the West silence has generally been considered socially disagreeable” (p. 264).

Numerous scholars have suggested the immense communicative power of silence. Silence can communicate apathy, confusion, repressed hostility, thoughtfulness, contemplation, sadness, regret, obligation, respect, agreement, disagreement, embarrassment, or awe; it can voice an infinity of meanings. Ambiguity endows silence with immense power. The capacity of silence to provoke such diverse interpretations makes it one of the highest forms of communication and one of the greatest sources of misunderstanding. It also makes it one of the most elusive of all communicative behaviors to study and describe (Barnlund, 1989).

Although several scholars have alluded to the importance of silence in India (Bruneau, 1973; Ganguly, 1968; Jensen, 1973; Johannesen, 1974; Oliver, 1971; Saville-Troike, 1985), our knowledge of the role of silence in India, especially in the Western cultures, is very limited. Since communication is a relatively new field of study in India, it is understandable why Indian scholars have not explicitly focused on the communicative role or functions of silence in India. Western communication scholars have generally ignored this topic partly due to the elusive nature of silence, and partly due to immense difficulties in conducting cross-cultural research. We feel that communicative functions of silence in India deserve systematic study by scholars both in India and abroad.

The primary purpose of this paper is to discuss the major functions of silence in India especially among the Hindu and Jain segments of Indian society. The secondary purpose is to suggest some implications of our analysis for future intercultural communication. Our research was limited primarily to a review of literature available in the American libraries. We were unable to review several primary sources published in India which pertained to this topic. We intend to pursue our research on silence using Indian sources in the future. In this sense, our research is exploratory in nature and is aimed at stimulating further study of cross-cultural perspectives on silence.

Functions of Silence in India

A number of scholars have proposed various frameworks used to describe the functions and forms of silence. Johannesen (1974), for example, developed four major categories for studying the functions of silence in a number of contexts: (1) its role in human thought processes and cultural development; (2) its role in purposive, everyday, interpersonal communication; (3) its role in political and civic life; and (4) its role in pathological settings such as counseling and psychotherapy (p. 25). Jensen (1973), on the other hand, proposed that silence performs five types of communicative functions: (a) linkage function; (b) affecting function; (c) revelational function; (d) judgmental function; and (e) activating function (p. 249). Bruneau (1973) suggested three major forms of silence for understanding its human communicative functions: (1) psycholinguistic silence; (2) interactive silence; and (3) socio-cultural silence (p. 17). After examining these and other conceptual frameworks for studying silence, we propose that the functions of silence in India can best be described in terms of the following three levels of analysis: (1) individual level; (2) interpersonal level; and (3) public level. These levels are interrelated and overlap in some ways, but we feel that they provide a useful framework for the systematic study of functions of silence in India.

Functions of Silence at the Individual Level

Silence is an integral part of Hindu and Jain philosophy. The word silence does not have the same sort of solemnity as its Sanskrit equivalent, shantam, which signifies many states such as quiet, peace, silence, and restfulness. The word shantam has a deep metaphysical significance. Sanskrit phrases like “shantam, shivam, advitam,” have contributed to the depth of connotation attached to silence in India. Another Sanskrit word often associated with silence is maunam which signifies a conscious behavior of engaging in silence. While shantam is a “state of being” with connotations of peace and bliss, the concept of maunam is a “state of becoming” through a deliberate effort of restraining from speech. Shantam is used as an all-enveloping concept covering a wide range of indescribable phenomena such as God, truth, self, being, freedom, nothingness, maya, and nirvana. The highest truth and bliss are both experienced in shantam (Ganguly, 1968).

We suggest that the functions of silence at the individual level can best be understood in terms of the Hindu concept of yoga. The word yoga comes from the same root as the English word yoke, which carries a double connotation: to unite (yoke together) and to place under discipline or training (to bring under the yoke). Both connotations are present in the Sanskrit word. Thus, yoga is a method of training designed to lead to integration or union. Yogas are of many kinds. Here we are concerned with the yogas designed to unite individual spirit or soul with God who lies concealed in its deepest recesses. As Smith (1958) states,

Hinduism recognizes four major types of yoga: (1) jnana yoga; (1) bhakti yoga; (3) karma yoga; and (4) raja yoga. Although silence is used in each of these four yogas at some stage or the other, raja yoga puts special emphasis on concentration and meditation through silence. The principal aim of raja yoga is to lead the seeker of truth through the path of meditation of the highest state of super consciousness where the individual soul communes with the universal spirit in silence and achieves union with it.

Silence is also an integral part of jnana yoga which is the path of right knowledge. Jnana yoga, intended for spiritual aspirants who have a strong intellectual bent, is the path of oneness with the Godhead through knowledge. Smith (1958) states: “There are persons who are by nature philosophical. Ideas to them are of first importance. When such persons become convinced of something it makes a real difference in their living, for their lives follow where their minds lead. Socrates and Buddha are classic examples of men of this type” (p. 36). For persons of intellectual bent, “Hinduism proposes a series of meditations and logical demonstrations designed to convince the thinker that there is more of him than his finite self; once this kind of person sees this he will shift his central concern to the deeper reaches of his being” (Smith, 1958, p. 36). Silence facilitates the contemplation and introspection which enables the person to distinguish between the real and unreal until he or she realizes “the one nameless, formless, indescribable, absolute Being of the universe, where the subject and the object, the knower, knowledge and its object losing their relativity merge into the ocean of the absolute Brahman” (Abhedananda, 1936, p. 60).

Bhakti yoga is the path of devotion and love and the extreme forms of these can be experienced and expressed only in silence. Jains devote a part of their daily prayer to “silent prayer” in order to seek communion with their soul or atman. Jain monks, called munis, a word derived from the word maunam, practice maunvrat or “active silence” on a regular basis as a way to achieve control over their senses, to reduce their attachment from this mundane world, and thereby achieve nirvana.

Karma yoga, which is the path of work, opens the way to complete self-control. This involves the art of being and working in the material world without getting attached to it. According to Hinduism, a true sense of detachment requires shantam or silence. In fact, the first temptation that a person needs to overcome is the temptation to communicate. It is for this reason that yogis (whether they are Hindus, Jains, or Buddhists) observe maunvrat or a vow of silence. Hindu and Jains use these moments of silence as a part of meditation aimed at achieving self-realization and, thereby salvation.

Thus, Hindu philosophy emphasizes the importance of silence at the individual level in all four types of yoga. It is believed that self-realization, salvation, truth, wisdom, peace, and bliss are all achieved in the state of meditation and introspection when the individual is communicating with himself or herself in silence. Hindus and Jains have a long tradition of setting aside time for self-communion through silence. Many combine silence or maunvrat with fasting for self-purification. For instance,

Like Hinduism and Buddhism. Jainism also recognizes the value of silence in attaining the higher aims of life. According to Jain philosophy, the world of minds is primarily a business of words, concepts perceptions, arguments, discussions, categories, logic, scriptures, and form. When mind is allowed to rule your life, you do not set yourself free to see and feel the beauty and serenity of that which is beyond—the soul or atma, the sentiment energy (Chitrabhanu, 1979). Speech, senses, and mind have a tendency to focus our consciousness outward—our physical world, our body, our worldly concerns. It is the introspection, not introversion, which helps you turn inward. Introspection is purifying. It helps you become conscious of what is taking place in your thoughts, in your feelings, in your fancies. Gradually you observe your relationships to yourself, to your thoughts, desires, and attachments, to other people and other living beings. Eventually, with vigilance and continued practice of this introspection through meditation and silence, a fresh awareness dawns upon you: that now mind is not operating, governing, or controlling, Mind is operated, governed, and controlled. By whom? By sentient energy, by atma, by soul, by that which has the living force of life, a deep awareness of innate qualities (Chitrabhanu, 1979).

Functions of Silence at the Interpersonal Level

For any culture, silence serves many functions in interpersonal communication. One of the widely held assumptions of human communication theory is that a person cannot not communicate (Johannesen, 1974). Hence, silence communicates because listeners or observers in a conversation will attach meaning to the silence whether the sender wishes so or not. This is true in both normal purposive interpersonal communication settings as well as pathological settings such as counseling and psychotherapy. Since we could not find any literature on the role of silence in pathological setting in India, our discussion will focus primarily on the functions of silence in normal, day-to-day interpersonal interactions.

India is a relatively high-context culture, which emphasizes many collectivistic values such as cooperation, harmony, and interdependence. It tends to value hierarchical ordering of social roles in family, caste system, and other social institutions. These characteristics of Indian culture have significant influence on the nature of interpersonal relationships in both formal and informal settings. Role relationships are highly structured. Interpersonal communicative norms are clearly patterned and highly regulated. Conflict is avoided or carefully regulated through social rules and institutions. These factors tend to reduce the need to communicate through verbal messages. Everyone knows and understands who should talk to whom about what in what manner, when, and with what expected outcomes. Under these conditions, silence assumes a larger role than speech. When there is a communication breakdown, silence communicates more than words in an interpersonal encounter.

The personality of interactants, the nature of interpersonal relationship, prior experiences, and the verbal and nonverbal contexts surrounding silence will influence how a person perceives and interprets the meaning of silence. Our research suggests that silence performs three major functions in interpersonal settings in India: (1) harmony; (2) avoidance of conflict; and (3) punishment.

First, silence is used to indicate that someone has nothing to say—in other words, interactants feel no urgency to communicate on particular topic at a particular time. Silence communicates harmony. It is also used to convey total agreement in a relationship. In a family, for instance, the father does his job, the mother performs her roles, and children do what is expected of them. Consequently there is no need to talk unless there is a problem. In a relatively tight social structure, as is common in traditional Hindu families, silence affirms that harmony or agreement in social relationships and serves the implicit function of speech (Oliver, 1971).

Second, silence is used to avoid conflict, disagreement, disharmony, and discord. Rather than confront an issue or disagreement in an interpersonal encounter, one decides to avoid the topic or issue through silence. For instance, if a wife disagrees with her husband’s decision about the marriage of their son or daughter the mother can avoid conflict by remaining silent on the issue until there is an opportune time to bring it up or perhaps wait till someone else does it. This way, the family harmony is preserved through the use of silence. In schools and colleges, students tend to be relatively silent in the classroom partly to show respect to the teacher and partly to avoid any form of dissent. In work settings, subordinates use silence to avoid conflict with their superiors. Thus verbal confrontation is avoided through silence in interpersonal settings.

Third, silence is used to punish others through the seemingly universal technique of “the silent treatment.” India is no exception to this function of silence. People in authority, in both formal and informal social settings, at times use silence to punish others by ignoring them and by excluding them from verbal communication. For instance, when a daughter expresses her concerns about her forthcoming marriage and the father feels angry about his daughter questioning his authority, the father may keep silent and thereby punish her through the use of silence.

Functions of Silence at the Public Level

The significance of silence in civic and public life was amply demonstrated by Mahatma Gandhi, “the father of India.” He used silence as a protest against social and political injustice in both South Africa and India. Gandhi equated truth with God and believed that the only certain means of knowing God is through nonviolence or ahimsa and love (Naess, 1965). Nonviolence requires self-restraint and patience. All these virtues are derived from silence.

Gandhi’s concept of satyagraha also recognized the importance of silence at the public level. According to Gandhi, satyagraha is a process of educating public opinion, such that it covers all the elements of society and makes itself irresistible. It is relentless search for truth. It is an attribute of the spirit within. Since satyagraha is a purely spiritual weapon, a satyagraha turns the searchlight inward to weed out all the defects that may still be lying hidden there. A satyagrahi uses silence and meditation in the process of self-purification and self control. The concept of satyagraha extends the value of silence from self-purification at the individual level to mass education at the public level (“The Quintessence of Gandhi”). Whether it was against the British or against his own compatriots, Gandhi demonstrated that “silence as protest” can be used effectively. His vows of “fast unto death” were coupled with vows of silence, because he strongly believed that the way of peace is the way of truth (Naess, 1965).

Traditionally, many Hindu and Jain religious rituals begin and end with silence. As discussed earlier, Jain monks or munis combine vows of silence (maunvrata) with fast in Jain temples. They serve as role models for masses to demonstrate the value of silence for self-control, meditation, and self-realization.

Implications for Intercultural Communication Research

The present discussion of functions of silence in India has several implications for intercultural communication research. We have shown that the concept of silence has very different meanings in India and the West. Silence is more than pauses, hesitation, or mere absence of speech. In India, silence is viewed as a “state of being” which encompasses a wide range of indescribable phenomena such as God, truth, self being, freedom, bliss, nothingness, and nirvana. The highest truth and bliss are both experienced in shantam or silence. This difference in conceptualization of silence has important implication for cross-cultural research on silence. Much of the research on silence has been done with the Western conceptualization of silence. Intercultural communication scholars need to broaden their theory of silence to include Indian concepts of shantam and maunam in pursuing their research on cross-cultural perspectives on silence.

At the interpersonal level, silence in India is used to promote harmony, cooperation, and other similar collectivistic values. In India, silence is interpreted as a sign of interpersonal sensitivity, mutual respect, a sense of personal dignity, affirmation, and wisdom. In the Western traditions silence is viewed negatively and is to be avoided in social relations as much as possible. These differences in the use of silence at the interpersonal level would have significant implications for intercultural communication between persons from India and those from Western countries. Intercultural communication scholars need to examine how cross-cultural differences in the use of silence in India and the West influence intercultural interactions.

India has a strong tradition of using silence in civic and public life as demonstrated by Mahatma Gandhi in his struggle for India’s independence through non-violence. The concept of “silence as protest” has been used with different degrees of success in the civil rights movement in America under the leadership of Martin Luther King, Jr. The current political and social problems in India, America, and in other parts of the world seem to be getting worse. Speech alone cannot solve all the problems our world is facing today. Perhaps, an optimal combination of speech and silence is a better approach, as argued by Mahatma Gandhi in his discussion of the concept of satyagraha. We need to explore further what made Gandhi so effective in his use of silence with speech in his work in South Africa and India. We feel that communication scholars have thus far neglected the study of the role of silence in social movements in India as well as in the West. This is a fruitful area for future research by scholars from both the East and the West.

Indian immigrants are viewed as one of the fastest growing ethnic groups in the United States. Most Indian immigrants currently living in America grew up in India and were conditioned by the Indian values, attitudes, and norms regarding silence. In order to succeed in the verbal, talkative American culture where silence is viewed so negatively, they go through a process of intercultural adaptation. Unlike material cultural adaptation (such as food, transportation, and appliances), adaptation of cultural patterns regarding silence is very subtle and gradual. Some would find such adaptation painful. Others would find the adaptation relatively easy. Still others might achieve a cultural synergy in which they combine “the best of both worlds”—an optimal use of silence for their success and growth. We need to study the process of adaptation of silence related cultural patterns of Indian immigrants living in America. Also, we need to explore ways to achieve synergy between Indian and American cultural patterns regarding silence.

We feel that the global industrialization and communication revolution have subdued the value of silence in human civilization. We are becoming a talkative civilization. Silence is not necessarily an enemy, which “civilized” people are supposed to subdue, but rather a powerful force, capable of fostering or hindering healthy communication. We need to realize the full potential of silence. We need to view silence not as periods in which there is an absence of communication but rather as an active agent, an important vehicle for significant communication at the individual, interpersonal, public, and global levels.

References

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