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The Way of Silence: Engaging the Sacred in Daily Life
The Way of Silence draws heavily on Buddhist teachings to cultivate the practice of "deep" turning away from noise and distraction, paying attention, and embracing quiet. The Way of Silence embraces absence versus presence in silence. Dynamic tranquility. The all-oneness of aloneness. Humbly, trusting in God, you'll practice emptying your mind in order to receive wisdom, insight, and understanding. You'll learn to listen deeply, with a trusting heart—and you'll joyously discover a new, interior freedom that will make you feel more vibrant, and more fully alive.
176 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 10, 2016
110 people are currently reading
361 people want to read
About the author
David Steindl-Rast
97 books140 followersBrother David Steindl-Rast is a Benedictine monk, author, and lecturer widely recognized for his commitment to interfaith dialogue and his emphasis on gratitude as a transformative spiritual practice. Born in Vienna in 1926, he survived the challenges of World War II before emigrating to the United States in 1952. He entered monastic life at Mount Saviour Monastery and went on to engage deeply with both Christian and Buddhist traditions, studying with notable Zen masters. His work bridges spirituality and science and has led him to collaborate with religious and cultural figures across traditions. He co-founded the Center for Spiritual Studies and A Network for Grateful Living, advocating for gratefulness as essential to human flourishing. His writings include Gratefulness, the Heart of Prayer and Belonging to the Universe (with Fritjof Capra). Known for his mystical approach, he describes religion as a living flame that must be rediscovered beneath layers of doctrine, ritual, and dogma.
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February 27, 2025
We love to read. And if you’re young, you’ll probably read anything you can get your hands on. But once we start reading as an escape, we could start creating a bad habit!
Let me explain...
As we age, we tend to LEAN more: on our friends, those we love, our habits and our dreams. But aging ALSO means eventually getting to the point when “the world is too much with us!” The world gets frenetic and a bit out of hand.
So we rely on our Leanings more and more as an Escape. But the world is in constant change and constantly disappoints. So that even our Leanings start to disappoint!
But our escapes become real and solid. THAT’s when we’re really in trouble. They become a Threat. The only solution to this is in the contrition of open and passive interior Silence - WITHOUT any escapes.
“We must be still and ever moving....” It’s a hard ideal to live up to.
So how do we DO it? How do we find PEACE while in constant motion?
Well, first of all, we must see the reason we CAN’T do it!
Steindl-Rast says we have to see the way the world works. The modern world is a fast-moving locomotive that is driven by PURPOSE. We’re told we must always have a GOAL for everything we do.
And so we stoke our Locomotive’s furnace with obsessional NEED. That quite often spells trouble.
Or disaster.
So what SHOULD we have done?
Steindl-Rast says, first of all, we should have seen that a Purpose-Driven Life is INIMICAL to our Heart.
AND that Instead of constantly ESCAPING from this crazy world, we should have stayed in a state of Moving Stillness. Without a solid goal. In absolute openness to the world’s unstated pain and anguish.
And the way to do that, is to keep the purity of your “Higher Dream” intact within a state of Inner Silence - and DISCARDING all speculative, obsessional imagination.
Which obviously meant, for me, discarding a LOT of my reading. Cause it was fuelling my Obsessions.
I had to STAY in a state of CONCRETE ACTUALITY.
Just as Jiddu Krishnamurti said so many years ago: THE ACTUAL IS THE REAL.
We have to TRASH our speculative, affective imagination. And all our imaginative obsessions.
You know, when you get to your seventies (where I am) your mind-shadows gain more strength and momentum.
Mind-shadows are fuelled by obsessional imagination. And Alzheimer’s always lurks in those shadows.
So, we have to give ourselves a break...
Give yourself a few moments of Silence each day WITHOUT entertaining your mind-shadows and the ceaseless desires that fuel your locomotive’s obsessional furnace.
Remember the basic perceptions of the reality in front of your eyes - and not your imaginative and obsessional thoughts.
Keep it simple...
Feed your heart with SILENT, ACTUAL PRESENCE.
Let me explain...
As we age, we tend to LEAN more: on our friends, those we love, our habits and our dreams. But aging ALSO means eventually getting to the point when “the world is too much with us!” The world gets frenetic and a bit out of hand.
So we rely on our Leanings more and more as an Escape. But the world is in constant change and constantly disappoints. So that even our Leanings start to disappoint!
But our escapes become real and solid. THAT’s when we’re really in trouble. They become a Threat. The only solution to this is in the contrition of open and passive interior Silence - WITHOUT any escapes.
“We must be still and ever moving....” It’s a hard ideal to live up to.
So how do we DO it? How do we find PEACE while in constant motion?
Well, first of all, we must see the reason we CAN’T do it!
Steindl-Rast says we have to see the way the world works. The modern world is a fast-moving locomotive that is driven by PURPOSE. We’re told we must always have a GOAL for everything we do.
And so we stoke our Locomotive’s furnace with obsessional NEED. That quite often spells trouble.
Or disaster.
So what SHOULD we have done?
Steindl-Rast says, first of all, we should have seen that a Purpose-Driven Life is INIMICAL to our Heart.
AND that Instead of constantly ESCAPING from this crazy world, we should have stayed in a state of Moving Stillness. Without a solid goal. In absolute openness to the world’s unstated pain and anguish.
And the way to do that, is to keep the purity of your “Higher Dream” intact within a state of Inner Silence - and DISCARDING all speculative, obsessional imagination.
Which obviously meant, for me, discarding a LOT of my reading. Cause it was fuelling my Obsessions.
I had to STAY in a state of CONCRETE ACTUALITY.
Just as Jiddu Krishnamurti said so many years ago: THE ACTUAL IS THE REAL.
We have to TRASH our speculative, affective imagination. And all our imaginative obsessions.
You know, when you get to your seventies (where I am) your mind-shadows gain more strength and momentum.
Mind-shadows are fuelled by obsessional imagination. And Alzheimer’s always lurks in those shadows.
So, we have to give ourselves a break...
Give yourself a few moments of Silence each day WITHOUT entertaining your mind-shadows and the ceaseless desires that fuel your locomotive’s obsessional furnace.
Remember the basic perceptions of the reality in front of your eyes - and not your imaginative and obsessional thoughts.
Keep it simple...
Feed your heart with SILENT, ACTUAL PRESENCE.
April 29, 2016
The Way of Silence: Engaging the Sacred in Daily Life
By David Steindl-Rast, Franciscan Media
Although this book is a slim volume and can be read quickly, it is filled with valuable insights and is a wonderful guide to a spiritual life. It makes a big claim in the title-engaging the sacred in daily life-but it lives up to it.
David Steindl-Rast is a Catholic Benedictine priest (b. 1926) with whom I am familiar from his daily gratitude quotes. Through his writings, I developed a practice (not perfect but still in process) of cultivating an attitude of gratitude, of thankfulness for the many gifts in my life. So I was eager to read this work.
And I was so not disappointed! Steindl-Rast begins with several touching memories of his early (childhood) spiritual awakenings. He connects these to the value of silence in our prayer life. Words and silence are deeply connected, he writes, and without the silence, the words have less meaning.
Steindl-Rast describes the major religions as granting primacy to one of three aspects of God: word, silence, or understanding. Although all of these are present in every religion, each one tends to focus on one aspect more than the others. Christians, Jews, and Muslims focus on the word, Buddhists on silence, and understanding (which he also calls “contemplation in action”) is the focus in Hinduism. Although he admits this is a very simplistic summary of these complex religions, he uses it as the basis of a kind of meditation on how the three are connected. He often uses the language of mysticism, describing our relationship with God as a kind of dance or a singing back and forth. We love because we are loved, when we love, we feel loved. The Catholic trinity of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is another example of this sacred dance.
When it comes to mysticism, Steindl-Rast describes it as “the experience of communion with Ultimate Reality” and says “every human being is a special kind of mystic” and that our “challenge…[is] to become precisely that mystic we are meant to be.” Since each one of us is unique, our encounter with ultimate reality, the wholeness of reality will be unique. And this experience of ultimate reality is to be found in the “peak experiences” we all of us have.
This peak may be, according to Steindl-Rast, as seemingly small as an anthill but it is a moment when we lose ourselves in something outside our personal narrative and are transported. For the great theologian (and mystic?) Thomas Merton found it on a street corner, others may find It in music or nature. He helps us discover our own peak moment when we stepped, or were carried, outside ourselves if only for a literal moment (for during these peak experiences there is no time) and discovered our mystical selves.
While grounded in Catholic theology, or maybe through Catholic theology, Steindl-Rast finds points of contact with Buddhism. The doctrine of shunyata (or emptiness) is an essential part of these mystical experiences that we all have and can all draw on for living our ordinary lives.
Through stories (some biblical), and personal experiences, Steindl-Rast points the way for all of us to experience more fully the sacred dimension in our daily life and to thereby experience joy as an integral part of that life. I cannot quote all the lovely and meaningful words in this book because my review would then become the book.
Just like everyone’s peak experience and encounter with the sacred will be unique, so, I think, will everyone’s experience of the book. It is not necessary to be religious or even to have a religion to find value in Steindl-Rast’s writing. All you need is a hunger to experience life on ever deepening and meaningful ways and to know joy as a part of that experience.
My deepest thanks go to NetGalley, the publisher Franciscan Media, and the author, David Steindl-Rast for giving me the opportunity to read this exciting book.
By David Steindl-Rast, Franciscan Media
Although this book is a slim volume and can be read quickly, it is filled with valuable insights and is a wonderful guide to a spiritual life. It makes a big claim in the title-engaging the sacred in daily life-but it lives up to it.
David Steindl-Rast is a Catholic Benedictine priest (b. 1926) with whom I am familiar from his daily gratitude quotes. Through his writings, I developed a practice (not perfect but still in process) of cultivating an attitude of gratitude, of thankfulness for the many gifts in my life. So I was eager to read this work.
And I was so not disappointed! Steindl-Rast begins with several touching memories of his early (childhood) spiritual awakenings. He connects these to the value of silence in our prayer life. Words and silence are deeply connected, he writes, and without the silence, the words have less meaning.
Steindl-Rast describes the major religions as granting primacy to one of three aspects of God: word, silence, or understanding. Although all of these are present in every religion, each one tends to focus on one aspect more than the others. Christians, Jews, and Muslims focus on the word, Buddhists on silence, and understanding (which he also calls “contemplation in action”) is the focus in Hinduism. Although he admits this is a very simplistic summary of these complex religions, he uses it as the basis of a kind of meditation on how the three are connected. He often uses the language of mysticism, describing our relationship with God as a kind of dance or a singing back and forth. We love because we are loved, when we love, we feel loved. The Catholic trinity of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is another example of this sacred dance.
When it comes to mysticism, Steindl-Rast describes it as “the experience of communion with Ultimate Reality” and says “every human being is a special kind of mystic” and that our “challenge…[is] to become precisely that mystic we are meant to be.” Since each one of us is unique, our encounter with ultimate reality, the wholeness of reality will be unique. And this experience of ultimate reality is to be found in the “peak experiences” we all of us have.
This peak may be, according to Steindl-Rast, as seemingly small as an anthill but it is a moment when we lose ourselves in something outside our personal narrative and are transported. For the great theologian (and mystic?) Thomas Merton found it on a street corner, others may find It in music or nature. He helps us discover our own peak moment when we stepped, or were carried, outside ourselves if only for a literal moment (for during these peak experiences there is no time) and discovered our mystical selves.
While grounded in Catholic theology, or maybe through Catholic theology, Steindl-Rast finds points of contact with Buddhism. The doctrine of shunyata (or emptiness) is an essential part of these mystical experiences that we all have and can all draw on for living our ordinary lives.
Through stories (some biblical), and personal experiences, Steindl-Rast points the way for all of us to experience more fully the sacred dimension in our daily life and to thereby experience joy as an integral part of that life. I cannot quote all the lovely and meaningful words in this book because my review would then become the book.
Just like everyone’s peak experience and encounter with the sacred will be unique, so, I think, will everyone’s experience of the book. It is not necessary to be religious or even to have a religion to find value in Steindl-Rast’s writing. All you need is a hunger to experience life on ever deepening and meaningful ways and to know joy as a part of that experience.
My deepest thanks go to NetGalley, the publisher Franciscan Media, and the author, David Steindl-Rast for giving me the opportunity to read this exciting book.
October 2, 2017
This is a solid look at the gifts of wakefulness and gratitude from a Christian monastic perspective. My only sadness is that this was a library copy, so I read it too fast and have to return it, but there is a lot here worth ruminating on. Next time Gadget, next time . . .
June 3, 2025
I am not religious in the traditional sense, but over the past few years I’ve felt a longing to develop a spiritual life of my own. I’ve been focusing on reading spiritual books from a variety of perspectives, which is how I came across this book.
Br. David Steindl-Rast is a Benedictine monk, but he expertly illuminates the commonalities across religions, which I deeply appreciate. So much of his life has been focused on interfaith work, and it’s a gift to us all.
While this book is only about 150 pages, I walked away with so much to reflect on. It’s not a prescriptive text. Rather, Br David lays a foundation of understanding from which the reader can explore their own methods for developing their inner mystic, engaging more deeply with the senses, cultivating grateful joy, opening up to the flow of meaning, listening with the heart, connecting with the still point within, and giving ourselves fully to the tasks at hand in our lives. The ultimate goal is full aliveness, which Br David offers as a definition of spirituality. I know I’ll be returning to this wisdom again in the future.
Br. David Steindl-Rast is a Benedictine monk, but he expertly illuminates the commonalities across religions, which I deeply appreciate. So much of his life has been focused on interfaith work, and it’s a gift to us all.
While this book is only about 150 pages, I walked away with so much to reflect on. It’s not a prescriptive text. Rather, Br David lays a foundation of understanding from which the reader can explore their own methods for developing their inner mystic, engaging more deeply with the senses, cultivating grateful joy, opening up to the flow of meaning, listening with the heart, connecting with the still point within, and giving ourselves fully to the tasks at hand in our lives. The ultimate goal is full aliveness, which Br David offers as a definition of spirituality. I know I’ll be returning to this wisdom again in the future.
June 1, 2019
Evil man. Evil Book. New Age claptrap under a thin, THIN veil of Christianity. Eg he says "When Christ says "I am the door" we are free to take this in the Western-Christian sense or the Buddhist sense..why should the latter be any less Christian?"
December 28, 2021
A friend on Facebook posted a n essay by the author in Parabola Magazine, called Learning to Die, by Brother David Steindl-Rast.
https://parabola.org/2016/02/29/learn...
I was bowled over. I read it twice, as I had never heard of this writer and thinker before. Every year I read something contemplative during Advent, so I immediately purchased his book the way of silence: engaging the secret in daily life which even the title drew me in. I had planned to read --and had purchased-- Looking East by Rowan Williams but decided to switch to this book as the essay in Parabola resonated so much with me.
First, I really appreciated his focus on two things which were very new to me. To start was his approach of trying to analyze and figure out what our "life peak experiences" have in common. I had never thought of this before. He tentatively defines these experiences as times when when (to borrow a phrase from Annie Dillard) we feel like a bell that’s been struck; when all your senses come alive. What do these moments have in common and then, what can be concluded from this?
I also loved and appreciated his interfaith focus. As a student of several religions, he kept making connections with other religions and in the he overlapping that happens, he advances his personal path to cultivate mindfulness gratitude practice. I have another friend on Facebook, who every November every single day she writes what she’s grateful for and it’s not even me that’s doing it and yet I look forward to her list every year. Steindl-Rast is extremely persuasive on grateful-mindfulness and a limitless yes to belonging. His approach is reminiscent of Thomas Merton.
I have much to think about concerning the profound difference between purpose and meaning...
I have been thinking a lot about his embrace of Buddhism, Judaism, Hinduism, Islam:
"Jews, Christians, and Muslims in their quest for meaning focus on Word and Buddhists on Silence, so Hindus focus on Understanding. Remember what we said about Understanding as the process by which Silence comes to Word and Word finds home into Silence. This gives us a clue to the central intuition of Hinduism: Atman is Brahman—God manifest (Word) is God un-manifest (Silence)—and Brahman is Atman—the divine un-manifest (Silence) is the manifest divine (Word). To know that Word is Silence and Silence is Word—distinct without separation, and inseparable, yet without confusion—this is Understanding. The Sanskrit word Yoga and the English word yoke come from the same linguistic root, meaning “to join.” Yoga in all its different forms—service, insight, devotion, and so on—is the action that yokes together Word and Silence by Understanding. And Hinduism knows that this Understanding comes only through doing. In the Bhagavad-Gita Prince Arjuna is confronted with a conundrum he cannot possibly unravel. Fate has placed him in a position where it is his duty to fight a just but cruel battle against his kinsmen and friends. How can a peace-loving prince make sense of this situation? The god Vishnu, disguised as Krishna, Arjuna’s charioteer, can give him only this advice: Do your duty and in the doing you will understand. Consider another example. We may read volumes and volumes on the art of swimming, yet we’ll never understand what swimming is like unless we get wet. So we may read all the books ever written on the love of God and never understand loving unless we love. Countless loving people practice Contemplation in Action without having ever come across its name. What does it matter? By loving they understand God’s love from within. Just as the Prayer of Silence may be called the Buddhist dimension of Christian spirituality, so Contemplation in Action is its Hindu dimension. Admittedly, all this is presented from my own perspective, which is a Christian one. But what other option do I have? If I try to be completely detached from my own religious quest for meaning, I have lost touch with the very reality I want to investigate. I would be like the boy who takes his tooth, after the dentist pulled it out, puts some sugar on it and wants to watch how it hurts. One cannot understand pain from the outside, nor joy, nor life, nor live religion. There is nothing wrong with speaking from inside of one tradition, as long as we do not absolutize our particular perspective, but see it in its relationship to all others.”
https://parabola.org/2016/02/29/learn...
I was bowled over. I read it twice, as I had never heard of this writer and thinker before. Every year I read something contemplative during Advent, so I immediately purchased his book the way of silence: engaging the secret in daily life which even the title drew me in. I had planned to read --and had purchased-- Looking East by Rowan Williams but decided to switch to this book as the essay in Parabola resonated so much with me.
First, I really appreciated his focus on two things which were very new to me. To start was his approach of trying to analyze and figure out what our "life peak experiences" have in common. I had never thought of this before. He tentatively defines these experiences as times when when (to borrow a phrase from Annie Dillard) we feel like a bell that’s been struck; when all your senses come alive. What do these moments have in common and then, what can be concluded from this?
I also loved and appreciated his interfaith focus. As a student of several religions, he kept making connections with other religions and in the he overlapping that happens, he advances his personal path to cultivate mindfulness gratitude practice. I have another friend on Facebook, who every November every single day she writes what she’s grateful for and it’s not even me that’s doing it and yet I look forward to her list every year. Steindl-Rast is extremely persuasive on grateful-mindfulness and a limitless yes to belonging. His approach is reminiscent of Thomas Merton.
I have much to think about concerning the profound difference between purpose and meaning...
I have been thinking a lot about his embrace of Buddhism, Judaism, Hinduism, Islam:
"Jews, Christians, and Muslims in their quest for meaning focus on Word and Buddhists on Silence, so Hindus focus on Understanding. Remember what we said about Understanding as the process by which Silence comes to Word and Word finds home into Silence. This gives us a clue to the central intuition of Hinduism: Atman is Brahman—God manifest (Word) is God un-manifest (Silence)—and Brahman is Atman—the divine un-manifest (Silence) is the manifest divine (Word). To know that Word is Silence and Silence is Word—distinct without separation, and inseparable, yet without confusion—this is Understanding. The Sanskrit word Yoga and the English word yoke come from the same linguistic root, meaning “to join.” Yoga in all its different forms—service, insight, devotion, and so on—is the action that yokes together Word and Silence by Understanding. And Hinduism knows that this Understanding comes only through doing. In the Bhagavad-Gita Prince Arjuna is confronted with a conundrum he cannot possibly unravel. Fate has placed him in a position where it is his duty to fight a just but cruel battle against his kinsmen and friends. How can a peace-loving prince make sense of this situation? The god Vishnu, disguised as Krishna, Arjuna’s charioteer, can give him only this advice: Do your duty and in the doing you will understand. Consider another example. We may read volumes and volumes on the art of swimming, yet we’ll never understand what swimming is like unless we get wet. So we may read all the books ever written on the love of God and never understand loving unless we love. Countless loving people practice Contemplation in Action without having ever come across its name. What does it matter? By loving they understand God’s love from within. Just as the Prayer of Silence may be called the Buddhist dimension of Christian spirituality, so Contemplation in Action is its Hindu dimension. Admittedly, all this is presented from my own perspective, which is a Christian one. But what other option do I have? If I try to be completely detached from my own religious quest for meaning, I have lost touch with the very reality I want to investigate. I would be like the boy who takes his tooth, after the dentist pulled it out, puts some sugar on it and wants to watch how it hurts. One cannot understand pain from the outside, nor joy, nor life, nor live religion. There is nothing wrong with speaking from inside of one tradition, as long as we do not absolutize our particular perspective, but see it in its relationship to all others.”
June 6, 2021
I love, love, love this book and anticipate re-reading it to absorb different and deeper wisdom. I saw Brother Steindl-Rast on a Ted Talk and appreciated his tone and emphasis on gratitude. I can identify with the desire for silence in my life and in my walk of faith. His views about ecumenism are refreshing, especially from a Catholic perspective. I am so glad to have found this book at the right time in my life.
Read
October 14, 2024“Informal prayerfulness is the rich, black hummus in which formal prayers grow.”, p. 10
July 3, 2018
Worthwhile read on meditation and silence.
While the author is a Benedictine Priest this book is written to a broad audience and may have the least appeal for the more conservative. Below is one of my favorite quotes from the book:
“Like most of us, most of the time I would have to say that I am not really fully present where I am. Instead, I’m 49 percent ahead of myself, just stretching out to what’s going to come, and forty-nine per cent behind myself, hanging on to what has already passed. There’s hardly any of me left to be really present. Then something comes along that’s practically nothing, that little sandpiper or the rain on the roof, that sweeps me off my feet, and for one split second I’m really present where I am. I’m carried away and I’m present where I am. I lost myself and I found myself, truly myself.”
While the author is a Benedictine Priest this book is written to a broad audience and may have the least appeal for the more conservative. Below is one of my favorite quotes from the book:
“Like most of us, most of the time I would have to say that I am not really fully present where I am. Instead, I’m 49 percent ahead of myself, just stretching out to what’s going to come, and forty-nine per cent behind myself, hanging on to what has already passed. There’s hardly any of me left to be really present. Then something comes along that’s practically nothing, that little sandpiper or the rain on the roof, that sweeps me off my feet, and for one split second I’m really present where I am. I’m carried away and I’m present where I am. I lost myself and I found myself, truly myself.”
February 21, 2024
I think I am a fairly well-read, articulate, and smart person, but this book was completely over my head. The writing was styled in a way that made me think that author wanted to appear deeper or smarter than maybe he was. I felt like I was reading riddles. I also thought the author spoke in circles. This left me confused and wondering if I was even reading a book in the spirit of Christianity.
November 30, 2022
My first David Steindl-Rast and I really enjoyed it. Lovely writing style and depth of insight.
The previous book I read on the contemplative life was Evelyn Underhill's Mysticism (1911). I had two concerns about the approach of that book: a kind of exclusivity of mystics as the upper echelon of humankind, and a certain disembodiment. Underhill went on to mitigate these potential pitfalls a little in her work, but Steindl-Rast does a brilliant job of more or less eliminating them as problems. His approach is deeply embodied (makes full use of the senses) and very inclusive (makes an open and accessible invitation).
The previous book I read on the contemplative life was Evelyn Underhill's Mysticism (1911). I had two concerns about the approach of that book: a kind of exclusivity of mystics as the upper echelon of humankind, and a certain disembodiment. Underhill went on to mitigate these potential pitfalls a little in her work, but Steindl-Rast does a brilliant job of more or less eliminating them as problems. His approach is deeply embodied (makes full use of the senses) and very inclusive (makes an open and accessible invitation).
Read
August 15, 2022Brother David is one of those writers who is able to deeply and profoundly stand strong in the tradition in which he has dedicated his life while at the same time see other traditions outside his own and appreciate their value, legitimacy, and truth. He draws on the Roman Catholic appreciation for mysticism and provides the reader with read food for thought. He also shares wisdom form other traditions to provide the reader with a will rounded, whole picture understanding of the topic at hand. Highly recommend.
November 2, 2023
This is a gem of a book. Small, readable, but one that will stay with you. An exploration of mysticism as union with God, one that we all experience during moments of our life. Mysticism as the spark of all religions, the holy trinity of word, silence, and understanding, the idea of alone=all one (when I am most truly alone, I am one with all), saying "yes" to all of reality. There are so many concepts to digest and ruminate on. Beautifully written, a lovely book.
November 22, 2017
A Joy
Very inspiring and gives many new and deep ideas to consider. A joy to read, and sorry when it ended. Would recommend this book for those interested in thinking in a new way about some ancient ideas and beliefs. You will be glad that you took the time to read about this great and holy man.
Very inspiring and gives many new and deep ideas to consider. A joy to read, and sorry when it ended. Would recommend this book for those interested in thinking in a new way about some ancient ideas and beliefs. You will be glad that you took the time to read about this great and holy man.
September 18, 2018
Whether or not you are religious (a word that is picked apart in the book), this book speaks volumes about the human condition. One of the best books I've ever read. So subtly brilliant. I'll be keeping it by my bed. Read it.
March 2, 2020
Subtly profound. The author, a Benedictine monk, demonstrates how a person of religion can utilize religion to be religious, which is more than merely being of a religion, and find within that path the threads connecting to other paths.
This book is both inspirational and informative. As well as the author's integrative, inclusive vision, I especially liked how he addressed the change in our understanding of mysticism from the past and showing how the mystical is available to everyone. As he notes, we each have mystical openings which mirror the Spirit within all of us. The author, likewise, well demonstrates religiousness is free of religion, part of everyday experience, while naturally taking on structures of religion-spirituality. Yet, these systems can become inefficient at transmitting the vision and inspiration of the experience that inspired their formations.
Steindal-Rast challenges the popular, false polarity, likewise, between religious and spiritual, as though one can be one or the other without being both. He does this, again, from the integrative-integrating vision that he shows is alive within himself. In so doing, he models how polarities are resolved in the original unity of the heart, before we think ourselves into false dichotomies. Hence, the book challenges us to the inner work of the integration of apparent contradictions into true paradoxes, beyond the common cliche that all religions are essentially the same and of equal efficiency.
I highly recommend this wisdom work for persons of a religious path and persons not of such a path but receptive to appreciate the universal wisdom within religions, while knowing religion is a form for connecting with the Nothing that can never be treated respectfully as a something.
This book is both inspirational and informative. As well as the author's integrative, inclusive vision, I especially liked how he addressed the change in our understanding of mysticism from the past and showing how the mystical is available to everyone. As he notes, we each have mystical openings which mirror the Spirit within all of us. The author, likewise, well demonstrates religiousness is free of religion, part of everyday experience, while naturally taking on structures of religion-spirituality. Yet, these systems can become inefficient at transmitting the vision and inspiration of the experience that inspired their formations.
Steindal-Rast challenges the popular, false polarity, likewise, between religious and spiritual, as though one can be one or the other without being both. He does this, again, from the integrative-integrating vision that he shows is alive within himself. In so doing, he models how polarities are resolved in the original unity of the heart, before we think ourselves into false dichotomies. Hence, the book challenges us to the inner work of the integration of apparent contradictions into true paradoxes, beyond the common cliche that all religions are essentially the same and of equal efficiency.
I highly recommend this wisdom work for persons of a religious path and persons not of such a path but receptive to appreciate the universal wisdom within religions, while knowing religion is a form for connecting with the Nothing that can never be treated respectfully as a something.
October 14, 2020
I’m in tears... this book illuminated so much in me that has been a growing transformation of my religious beliefs. He put into words what my heart has been moving towards. I’ll return to this book again and again.
June 7, 2023
A study in silence and spiritual meditation
THE WAY OF SILENCE, written by a Benedictine monk, provides a useful guide and justification for silent prayer and meditation, citing examples from various religions.
THE WAY OF SILENCE, written by a Benedictine monk, provides a useful guide and justification for silent prayer and meditation, citing examples from various religions.
March 18, 2019
Nice read
It is a nice read. I thought I would have been more moved by the book. Rather, it confirmed my previous spiritual discoveries.
It is a nice read. I thought I would have been more moved by the book. Rather, it confirmed my previous spiritual discoveries.
July 26, 2019
Very good thoughtful read
August 26, 2020
Only okay
May 30, 2021
Very thoughtful and inspriring read for a quiet Sunday.
June 25, 2024
A day in the life of a grateful monk. I have always enjoyed reading the works of David Steindl-Rast, especially after his TED talk on gratitude.
August 25, 2025
Wonderful book.
December 22, 2025
Great book! Some very inspiring thoughts and captivating illustrations.
March 17, 2021
I’m an atheist and I found this to be one of the most important books I’ve read so far this year. I remain an atheist, but Brother David’s perspectives on silence, prayer, and awe will improve anyone’s experience being human and cultivating an appreciation for life. His takes on religion we’re refreshing and freeing and I look forward to reading more, if not all of his works.
This is the best book on mediation that I’ve ever read.
This is the best book on mediation that I’ve ever read.
February 9, 2024
This was the March book pick for our book club. I can’t wait to discuss it! As a cradle Catholic with a keen interest in Thich Nhat Hanh, I found this book to be very reaffirming. As someone who has gone from not wanting to be alone in silence, to someone who needs silent contemplative prayer everyday like I need air to breathe, this book was an affirmation of all my heart and mind long for. The idea that everything can be a prayer if done with love, resonates deeply. His descriptions of bird watching as being in communion with God, and having mystical experiences on the mountain hold true with me. This book was a joy to read. I wanted to wait until we got closer to our next book club date to finish it, but I couldn’t put it down.
September 9, 2018
Appreciating the images of the author and his past. Mother and grandmother images, guiding him in his faith connections to God whilst yet a child. A gentle approach to prayer and the import of silence in our own faith understanding and in the depth of insights. Valuing the reading of these truths.
I am impressed with this introduction to the author's writings and recommend adding The Way of Silence to other contemplatives pursuing spiritual journeys and parents considering the import of the effect of their spirituality on others including their children.
I am impressed with this introduction to the author's writings and recommend adding The Way of Silence to other contemplatives pursuing spiritual journeys and parents considering the import of the effect of their spirituality on others including their children.
October 19, 2021
Simply outstanding! This little book on silence is a treasure trove of insight, not only into silence itself but also into mystical experience, the interconnectedness of different religious perspectives and systems; the two edged sword of doctrine, dogma, and ethics; the nature of institutions, and perhaps even a prescription for moving forward. Highly recommended!
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