What do you think?
Rate this book
Celebrating Silence
Celebrating Silence is a collection of the weekly discourses (1995 to 2000) organized by theme rather than by chronological order. This book is both insightful and a practical guide given from the depth of an ancient lineage of wisdom.
206 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 2001
About the author
Ravi Shankar
329 books335 followersRavi Shankar usually known as Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, born Ravi Shankar Ratnam, on May 13, 1956, in Tamil Nadu, India, is a spiritual leader and founder of the Art of Living Foundation (founded 1982), which aims at relieving both individual stress and societal problems and violence, and which is an NGO with UNESCO consultative status. Frequently referred to simply as "Sri Sri" (honorific) or as Guruji or Gurudev, he also established in 1997 a Geneva-based charity, the International Association for Human Values, an NGO that engages in relief work and rural development and aims to foster shared global values.
He has reached out to an estimated 300 million people worldwide through personal interactions, public events, teachings, Art of living workshops and humanitarian initiatives. His talks and programs have helped people around the world reduce stress, experience physical and emotional healing and develop a sense of belonging.
To know more visit http://www.artofliving.org/in-en
He has reached out to an estimated 300 million people worldwide through personal interactions, public events, teachings, Art of living workshops and humanitarian initiatives. His talks and programs have helped people around the world reduce stress, experience physical and emotional healing and develop a sense of belonging.
To know more visit http://www.artofliving.org/in-en
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 113 reviews
January 9, 2008
Every day I need some knowledge to live by, I pick up this book. Every time I am going through a challenge and need some guidance I pick up this book. Everytime I need to believe there is something greater than me, I pick up this book.....It is amazing!
May 28, 2012
There are some books that change your life :) this book changed mine. A prized possession!!!
November 4, 2018
Such a beautiful, beautiful book. There were certain things that we think we know, but the kind of depth, to every emotion, every feeling, to everything that exists in your essence and mind is stated very clearly in this very book. I can't claim for anything but one thing is for sure, till the time you are reading this you will feel happy and serene.
August 2, 2009
I learned to live a better life. There is so much knowledge in this book. Everyone has to read it.
January 7, 2010
this is my handbook for life!
January 18, 2016
A nice collection of thoughts and quotes. I must admit I don´t understand some of them and there are others that I don´t agree with, however I definitely found a few inspiring gems in there! It´s a great book to have around and read a couple of pages at a time.
January 15, 2014
The principles of leading a good life seem so simple when seen in isolation. Reading some parts of this book you feel...aah so true, now it should be easy to cure this fault of mine! Yet when all of them are summed up together in our life, it gets so complicated!
September 5, 2012
This is really a nice book. One of my friend gifted me this on Sri Sri Ravi Shankar's Birthday last year. (13 may 11) & Whenever I am stuck with some or the other problem this is the most inspirational book I pick up and read any random page & it relaxes me. This is the best gift for me from then.
February 6, 2014
A book for all days and seasons. Snippets of deep wisdom, so simply put. Sri Sri really brings to life ancient wisdom in the scriptures making it easily relatable and applicable to our modern lives. A game-changer to change the prism through which we see our world.
February 9, 2014
Excellent read. Short succinct practical wisdom and life-skills for leading daily life. Doesn't feel like I am reading something 'spiritual' per se as the stlye is light and conversational, but after reading it and chewing on it a bit, the spirit feels uplifted. The other beauty is that I can keep going back to the back as many times as I wish, read 1 page of 5, and it feels new each time. highly recommend it.
February 6, 2014
This is the best book I have come across!! And is a must have for all who draw inspiration from books!! Not only is this book a great spiritual insight..but it also acts as a silent guide to answers we seek everyday!!
January 21, 2008
A good read before bed, one page at a time!
Or for those raindy, grey days!
Or for those raindy, grey days!
September 13, 2016
This book is a keeper. I go back to it all the time. Whenever I pick a random page it seems to be perfect for what is going on in my life and in my mind at the time.
June 20, 2015
More a collection of excerpts from talks than a book, the result is disjointed and superficial, at times bordering on trite. Not recommended unless you believe the author can do no wrong.
May 26, 2023
This book has nuggets of wisdom about every area of life. I like to read a page from it every day. Highly recommend it.
June 26, 2013
This book will definitely make your mind calm and fill your soul with joy and happiness, and gives you a Mantra for Real Bliss.
February 26, 2017
I read this book over the course of 5 months... loved it
February 7, 2014
After reading quite a few books on spirituality I Stumbled upon this masterpiece. It's more than a book really it just grows on you as it can easily be related to day to day affairs of life and indeed is very practical .The way it affected my personal life and the way it improved my life is nothing short of magnificent.There is one thing reading books on spirituality and another implementing those elements in real life and this is where the book proved me wrong.The manner in which the content is so relatable to our daily life issues is simply stunning . A MUST READ.
June 17, 2021
While there is wisdoms in this book and much of it can find application in life, I found too much of it contained in short, pithy statements that simply did not explain context or intention.
Whenever someone's teachings are chopped up and only select statements are shared you lose some of the weight and strength of the wisdom that is being imparted. I would like to have the entire transcript of the talks that these statements are lifted from in order to truly digest the wisdom that he is sharing.
Whenever someone's teachings are chopped up and only select statements are shared you lose some of the weight and strength of the wisdom that is being imparted. I would like to have the entire transcript of the talks that these statements are lifted from in order to truly digest the wisdom that he is sharing.
February 9, 2014
This book has been an inspiration for years. I still wonder about the fact that Sri Sri Ravi Shankar is able to convey such profound wisdom in such easily digestible language...
As it covers a wide range of topics that are relevant to anyone's life, I would recommend this book to all as a source of inspiration, practical wisdom, and practical techniques how to deal with life's day-to-day challenges.
As it covers a wide range of topics that are relevant to anyone's life, I would recommend this book to all as a source of inspiration, practical wisdom, and practical techniques how to deal with life's day-to-day challenges.
August 12, 2012
This book alow us to realize what is important to our life
H.H Shri Shri Ravi Shankar not bring a BIG thing to realize but a very LITTLE thing that everyone have but forgotten, LOVE that only thing who can mede us realize who we are
H.H Shri Shri Ravi Shankar not bring a BIG thing to realize but a very LITTLE thing that everyone have but forgotten, LOVE that only thing who can mede us realize who we are
Read
March 30, 2010one of the best spiritual books that i have come across... knowledge personified
June 29, 2010
Very good book.
April 10, 2013
A garden full of fragrant flowers and juicy fruits.
March 8, 2012
Let's talk with Guru ji , in this one he replies to my mind and soul...
May 8, 2012
yearn for the beauty of silence.realise how beautiful inner silence is..
February 6, 2014
Remarkable words of compassion, clarity, and wisdom on topics of life from a great humanitarian and saint. Like a GPS for any variety of life situations.
August 31, 2016
This book is absolutely a joy and amazing! Each page is a glimpse of guiding grace that has helped me in various situations just by opening up the book to a random selection.
August 25, 2014
Not really my kind of book. I actually disagreed with several of the quotes.
May 25, 2023
This is a collection of topically-arranged edited excerpts from Sri Sri Ravi Shankar's talks around the world. Most of the excerpts are less than a page, but they are thematically grouped (e.g. Fear, Ego, Compassion, Discipline, Consciousness, Silence, etc.) and many sections are several pages long and contain numerous excerpts. It is food-for-thought in bite-sized pieces, easily readable as a book that one picks up now and again to occupy a spare moment or two.
As for the content, I found it to be a mixed bag. I found a few pearls of brilliant insight mixed among banal truisms, and another form of faux-wisdom, one that is equally unproductive if more compelling to read, a shock and awe approach that forces interest by twisting consensus on its head. Prime examples of the latter can be seen in the sections on "Tolerance" and "Gratitude," both of which are taken -- on the whole -- to be negative traits. There are also a few points where I think ideas were misrepresented, such as in the section on "Skepticism" in which it is called a "know it all" attitude. While I'm not a skeptic, from what I'v read from those who are, it is rather a position that one can't know much, if anything -- depending on how extreme a stance is taken.
The book is well-edited to be readily consumed by readers. However, it's not clear how much one might be losing from context. By this I mean that presumably some of these excerpts were answers to questions or were comments delivered for a specific event (we know only dates and city,) and so it's possible that the shape of these comments were influenced by the context in ways that the reader can't know, (including those responses I've criticized.)
I found the book to be worth reading. It might seem like I was pretty hard on it, but even banalities, shock for shock's sake, and the rare misrepresentation can trigger insight in one who reads thoughtfully and analytically. It's a book of food-for-thought, and taken that way (as opposed to as sacred scripture) it has much to offer.
As for the content, I found it to be a mixed bag. I found a few pearls of brilliant insight mixed among banal truisms, and another form of faux-wisdom, one that is equally unproductive if more compelling to read, a shock and awe approach that forces interest by twisting consensus on its head. Prime examples of the latter can be seen in the sections on "Tolerance" and "Gratitude," both of which are taken -- on the whole -- to be negative traits. There are also a few points where I think ideas were misrepresented, such as in the section on "Skepticism" in which it is called a "know it all" attitude. While I'm not a skeptic, from what I'v read from those who are, it is rather a position that one can't know much, if anything -- depending on how extreme a stance is taken.
The book is well-edited to be readily consumed by readers. However, it's not clear how much one might be losing from context. By this I mean that presumably some of these excerpts were answers to questions or were comments delivered for a specific event (we know only dates and city,) and so it's possible that the shape of these comments were influenced by the context in ways that the reader can't know, (including those responses I've criticized.)
I found the book to be worth reading. It might seem like I was pretty hard on it, but even banalities, shock for shock's sake, and the rare misrepresentation can trigger insight in one who reads thoughtfully and analytically. It's a book of food-for-thought, and taken that way (as opposed to as sacred scripture) it has much to offer.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 113 reviews