Master your words
Ordinarily a mind is full of words—relevant, irrelevant, rubbish; all kinds of words go on gathering inside you. Two persons are talking; you simply hear, and those words become part of your mind—for no other reason, accidentally. You heard two persons talking. You have become burdened. You go and you read the signboards, and those words become part of your being. You read unnecessary advertisements. In magazines, people read advertisements more than anything else. Or you go on gossiping with people, knowing perfectly well that this is just useless, a sheer wastage of time and energy. But words are gathering inside you like dust, layers upon layers, and you mirror will be covered by them
Buddha says, Master your words. Be telegraphic. Listen only to that which is significant, read only that which is meaningful. Avoid the unnecessary, the irrelevant. Speak only that which is to the point. Make your each word your heart. Don’t just go on saying things as if you are a gramophone record.
Mary was sitting alone on the couch when her mother came in and turned on the light.
“why, what is the matter, dear?” asked her mother. “Why are you sitting here in the dark? Did you and John have a fight?”
“Oh, no, nothing like that,” replied Mary. “As a matter of fact, John asked me to marry him.”
“Well, then why do you look so sad?”
“Oh, mother, it is just that I don’t know if I could marry an advertising executive.”
“But what is wrong with marrying a man who is in advertising?”
“Well, how would you feel if a man who has proposing to you told you that it was a once-in-a-lifetime, never-to-be-repeated, special offer?”
Just like a gramophone record! He may not be at all aware what he is saying, may be repeating his habit. He is skillful in that, it has become part of his mind. It may be repeating itself; he may not be conscious at all of what he is doing.
When Buddha says, “Master your words,” he means be conscious. Why are you saying something? To whom? And what is the purpose of it? Be clear, otherwise be silent.
