Negotiations

The Prashant sessions ended today. It was a successful and satisfying six days. He touched on so many things, but often came back to one theme: that we have to learn, understand, and work with the "wide range of negotiations" inside. In response to a question about sound, and after playing a lot with different sound vibrations we all might resonate with, he said, "Silence is not the absence of sound; it is the absence of hearing."

This week in our apartment we have a surfeit of sound and hearing. Everything about this place is perfect but for the very loud, ongoing festival music that doesn't seem to be accompanied by a festival. We walked over to the source of the music a few nights ago and saw a few kids playing around under some street banners. A fellow Institute student said she thought it was a wedding. Our property manager said it was a festival for Lord Shiv. Whatever it is, it's ongoing and requires me to negotiate covering my ears with a pillow every night.