What does silence mean to me?

Leena, one of the course leaders at Dharma Silence Retreat and Inner Joy Dharma Vipassana Retreat shares what silence means to her.

Silence is what I arrive at in meditation. In silence, I gain distance from everything going on in my life — a pause from it — so I can see it with greater clarity and calm. Silence teaches me to be alone with myself. The clarity, peace, insight, and nourishment I find in silence mean everything for how I work, how I relate to others, what kind of mother I am, and how I write and express myself. Silence gives me a center when everything around me is in chaos.

For me, being in silence, in meditation, is the courage and willingness to be with everything happening in me and around me, without running away from it. It helps me let go, step back from self-criticism, and find that place where I reconnect with myself and with what I long to express. 

The most powerful experience I have of silence is when we are together for a longer period of time on a retreat. Then something truly special happens — as if we create a shared field that everyone is drawn into, where the silence becomes almost tangible, and it feels simple, natural, and very alive.

With silence comes everything that truly matters to me: calm, trust, joy without reason, love without conditions, creativity that flows freely. It is a deep wellspring that nourishes me more and more, the deeper I go into it. It’s something I wish every human being could experience.

Leena has her daily work in Dharma Mountain, where she leads meditations during retreats and groups, and arranges regular writing courses. Leena is also an author. She has a background from Osho Risk Therapist Training and Star Sapphire Energywork. Primal Childhood Deconditioning and Tai Chi. Her work is characterized by presence, clarity and playfulness.

Dharma Silence Retreat • 27th – 31st August, 2025
Inner Joy – Dharma Vipassana Retreat • 22nd January – 1st February, 2026