40 powerful silence quotes that will inspire you deeply

By Derek Wydra

In a world bursting with noise and distraction, we often forget the power of silence. So here are 25 of the best quotes on silence, from great people like Gandhi, Einstein, and Mother Teresa. To help you feel that deep inspiration, peace, and calm, that only comes from being still within.

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Quotes on the power of silence ⚡

The power of silence is underrated. Many people perceive silence to be mere emptiness, the absence of noise, or even a sign of passivity or weakness. But just like the pauses in a song create the music, our moments of stillness deeply influence how others see us. By holding back and leaving things unsaid, we fuel their imagination to paint a positive picture of us more than words ever could.

  1. “Once you’ve matured, you realize silence is more powerful than proving a point.” —Unknown
  2. “Silence is a source of great strength.” —Lao Tzu
  3. “Nothing strengthens authority so much as silence.” —Leonardo da Vinci
  4. “Silence is the best answer for all questions. Smiling is the best reaction to all situations.” —Unknown
  5. LAW 4: Always Say Less Than Necessary. When you are trying to impress people with words, the more you say, the more common you appear, and the less in control. Even if you are saying something banal, it will seem original if you make it vague, open-ended, and sphinxlike. Powerful people impress and intimidate by saying less. The more you say, the more likely you are to say something foolish.” ―Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power
  1. “There is a time to speak and a time to keep silent.” —Ecclesiastes 3:7, The Bible
  2. “Silence speaks louder than words.” —Thomas Carlyle
  3. Quiet people have the loudest minds.” – Stephen Hawking
  4. “It is a great thing to know the season for speech and the season for silence.” —Seneca the Elder

    (His son became an influential Stoic philosopher. 👉 Read our summary of Letters from a Stoic by Seneca the Younger.)
  5. “Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak and to remove all doubt.” —Maurice Switzer
  6. “Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing there is a field. I’ll meet you there. When the soul lies down in that grass the world is too full to talk about.” —Rumi

Quotes on working hard in silence 💪

“The darkest hour is just before the dawn,” wrote English theologian Thomas Fuller. Just like the deep blackness of the night sky makes the stars shine so bright, our silent hours of work and sweat later become the unshakeable foundation of our strength and prosperity. Never forget: your hard work speaks for itself.

  1. Work hard in silence. Let your success be your noise.” —Unknown
  2. “Keep silence for the most part, and speak only when you must, and then briefly.” —Epictetus
  3. “I think 99 times and find nothing. I stop thinking, swim in silence, and the truth comes to me.” —Albert Einstein
  4. “Without great solitude, no serious work is possible.” –Pablo Picasso
  5. Silence is the sleep that nourishes wisdom.” —Francis Bacon
  6. Move in silence. Only speak when it’s time to say checkmate.” —Unknown
  1. “Non-judgment quiets the internal dialogue, and this opens once again the doorway to creativity.” —Deepak Chopra, author of “The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success” 👉 Read our summary!
  2. “The more tranquil a man becomes, the greater is his success, his influence, his power for good. Calmness of mind is one of the beautiful jewels of wisdom.” —James Allen, author of “As a Man Thinketh” 👉 Read our book summary!
  3. “Everything that’s created comes out of silence. Your thoughts emerge from the nothingness of silence. Your words come out of this void. Your very essence emerged from emptiness. All creativity requires some stillness.” —Wayne Dyer
  4. “The monotony and solitude of a quiet life stimulates the creative mind.” —Albert Einstein

Quotes on silence in relationships, love and hurt ❤️

Moments of silence in relationships can express true friendship, unspoken love, but also sadness and unhealed hurt. It can shine like a morning sunrise or be as intense as a rumbling storm. In the end, the silent moments allow us to really listen and get what’s going on in someone’s heart.

  1. He who does not understand your silence will probably not understand your words.” —Elbert Hubbard
  2. Speak only if it improves upon the silence.” —Mahatma Gandhi
  3. “Silence is pure. Silence is holy. It draws people together because only those who are comfortable with each other can sit without speaking. This is the great paradox.” —Nicholas Sparks, The Notebook
  4. “When you have nothing to say, say nothing.” —Charles Caleb Colton
  1. “The best answer to anger is silence.” —German Proverb
  2. Words can sting like anything, but silence breaks the heart.” – Phyllis McGinley
  3. “Have you not noticed that love is silence? It may be while holding the hand of another, or looking lovingly at a child, or taking in the beauty of an evening. Love has no past or future, and so it is with this extraordinary state of silence.” —Jiddu Krishnamurti
  4. “We have two ears and one mouth, therefore we should listen twice as much as we speak.” —Zeno
  5. “Silence is golden when you can’t think of a good answer.” – Muhammad Ali
  6. “I don’t want to be married just to be married. I can’t think of anything lonelier than spending the rest of my life with someone I can’t talk to, or worse, someone I can’t be silent with.” —Mary Ann Shaffer, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

Quotes on keeping calm with silence 🧘

“Keep calm and carry on” was a slogan made by the United Kingdom government in 1939 and printed on posters, to help their citizens remain stoic in the face of World War 2. We can all take that message to heart when our world seems to be getting too loud, too fast, too chaotic and crazy. Embracing silence isn’t about ignoring the world, but finding a peaceful center in the middle of the storm.

  1. “You talk when you cease to be at peace with your thoughts.” —Khalil Gibran, The Prophet
  2. “To listen to the silence, wherever you are, is an easy and direct way of becoming present.” —Eckhart Tolle, author of “The Power of Now” 👉 Read our summary!
  3. “The quieter you become, the more you are able to hear.” —Ram Dass
  4. “It is better in prayer to have a heart without words than words without a heart.” —Mahatma Gandhi
  5. “Silence is essential. We need silence, just as much as we need air, just as much as plants need light. If our minds are crowded with words and thoughts, there is no space for us.” —Thich Nhat Hanh, author of “The Heart of the Buddha’s Teaching” 👉 Read our summary!
  6. “Everything has its wonders, even darkness and silence, and I learn, whatever state I may be in, therein to be content.” —Helen Keller
  1. The fruit of silence is prayer. The fruit of prayer is faith. The fruit of faith is love. The fruit of love is service. The fruit of service is peace.” —Mother Teresa
  2. “We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature—trees, flowers, grass—grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence… We need silence to be able to touch souls.” —Mother Teresa
  3. “All of humanity’s problems stem from man’s inability to sit quietly in a room alone.” —Blaise Pascal
  4. “A happy life must be to a great extent a quiet life, for it is only in an atmosphere of quiet that true joy can live.” —Bertrand Russell
  5. “Silence is something that comes from your heart not from outside. Silence doesn’t mean not talking and not doing things, it means that you are not disturbed inside.” —Thich Nhat Hanh
  6. “People try to get away from it all—to the country, to the beach, to the mountains. You always wish that you could too. Which is idiotic: you can get away from it anytime you like. By going within. Nowhere you can go is more peaceful—more free of interruptions—than your own soul.” —Marcus Aurelius, author of “Meditations” 👉 Read our summary!

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