The English word ‘silence’ has negative connotations. It is considered the opposite of ‘sound’. ‘Mouna’ in Sanskrit is a positive concept. The word Mouna is derived from Muni, just as soukhya (well-being) is derived from sukha (happiness). It is the characteristic of a muni or a sage. It is not physical silence that is referred to but mental silence. A muni is one whose mind is merged in the Self. The speech of a muni is a refraction of his silence. His is not an individual point of view as he speaks from the source of everything, the Self. As he speaks without any sense of doership, what is said by him has neither antecedents nor consequences for him. Speech springs from silence and sinks back into silence. We all think that we have control over language but in fact language seems to have control over us. We are not sure of what we are likely to say till we have actually said it. Sometimes we are most surprised at what we have said. Words are symbols and are not things. However be