What is the importance of silence in the spiritual path?

[Elshaddai]

Personally I enjoy spending time alone and I'm pretty introverted, but can silence really ultimately lead to growth, spiritual experiences and liberation if done with enough intensity?

[Consilience]

Spend a few years devoted to mmm... 1-4 hours per day in silent reflection whether through seated meditation or contemplation and you’ll have your answer. 

For myself, yes. I have seen astronomical shifts in consciousness from having a serious formal meditation practice. I have experienced radical states and experiences through practice. It’s abnormal for meditation to not feel like Im on a low dose of psychedelics these days.

By formal Im meaning seated, in silence, and in stillness, without distraction. Yet, very easily someone could start arguing with me about why silent reflection isn't a big deal and is certainly incapable facilitating deep transformations or elevations of one’s consciousness. 

There are countless anecdotes on the internet proving it has some measurable effect. The only way you’ll know for sure is by testing it on yourself. 

[The0Self]

12 hours ago, Elshaddai said:

can silence really ultimately lead to growth, spiritual experiences and liberation if done with enough intensity?

It seems to lead to all of those, quite effectively, with the exception of liberation. Nothing leads to that, simply by definition, since liberation is merely the end of all false claims, including but not limited to: time is real, space is real, I am here, past caused present, future is real, movement is real, something is needed, etc. With liberation it is recognized that nothing has ever lead to anything, nor even actually happened at all.

Edited May 2, 2021 by The0Self

[Moksha]

When you settle into stillness, simply being, you realize there is no growth, and no liberation. You are already infinitely abundant.

When it hits you, it is hilarious  All this time, pursuing spiritual growth, when you are already free.