A Poem: The Silence Beneath Thought (YS 1.10)

This reflective poem is inspired by Yoga Sutra 1.10:

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Abhāva-pratyayālambanā vṛttir nidrā
Sleep is the mental movement based on the experience of absence.

In this sutra, Patanjali invites us to look gently at sleep, rest, dullness, and awareness. Sleep is not wrong. Rest is sacred. But yoga asks us to notice the difference between unconscious drifting and the quiet presence that remains aware.

This poem is an invitation to rest deeply without disappearing from yourself — to honour the body’s need for sleep while also awakening to the silent awareness beneath thought.

Listen when you feel tired, foggy, emotionally heavy, or in need of a gentle reminder that stillness can be alive, clear, and compassionate.

Rest deeply.
Awaken gently.
Remain aware.

Transcript

This poem is based on Yoga Sutra 1. 10. And this poem is titled, The Silence Beneath Thought. When thought grows quiet, Soft and dim, And names dissolve into the night, The mind may rest in empty space where nothing rises into sight. No image forms, No story speaks, No memory calls the heart away. The outer world begins to fade as darkness folds the noise of day. Yet even in this field of sleep, Where waking thoughts no longer stream, A subtle movement still remains a quiet trace beneath the dream. Abhava, Absence, Open, Washed, Where ordinary forms depart. Pratyaya, The mind still knows. The blankness held within the heart. How often do I call it peace, When really I have turned away? How often do I drift through life, Awake in body, Dim in day? I scroll, I speak, I move, I plan. Yet something deeper is not there. The eyes are open to the world, But presence sleeps beneath the stare. So let me honour needed rest, The sacred dark, The healing deep, But let me also gently wake from all the ways I live asleep. May stillness not become escape. May silence not become disguise. May rest bestow the worthy mind while awareness softly opens eyes. For sleep may come, And sleep may go, And dreams may rise, And dreams may cease, But something watches, Through it all, A quiet lamp of inner peace. Abhava pratyaya alambana vittar nidra softly shows even absence can be known by awareness that never comes or goes. So let me rest beneath all thought, Yet keep one thread of presence bright. The body sleeps, The mind grows still, Awareness shines, True silent night. Namaste.

Reviews

Good morning, thank you, Namaste 🙏🏻.