Robert Frost spoke of how certain lines of great poetry stick to one like burrs caught on a country walk. One line he often recalled was from a Shakespeare sonnet: ‘He that has power to hurt and will do none.’ That, he said, had meant a great deal to him.
The mental repetition of a meaningful phrase, or even a particular word, has the power to penetrate one’s whole being. The words resonate with increasing intensity and we begin to sense new layers of possibility. This is not an intellectual or analytical exercise; rather, it is one of allowing the words to sink deeper and deeper, like pebbles dropping into a pool, so that, whether out walking, waiting for a bus, washing dishes, or waking in the night, the mantra goes on tolling like a temple bell – summoning us to what is beyond and yet, at the same time, closer than close.
But a warning! If we just say the words mechanically or gabble them hurriedly we won’t get very far. And we won’t go very deep. It is slow, quiet, repetition that will, gradually, over time, penetrate our innermost being.
Last night, I attended a viewing of a documentary film, The Brainwashing of My Dad, which describes and explains how Fox News and other right wing talk shows have shaped the social culture of the U.S. In a constant barrage of hateful fabricated angry talk, literally has turned once ordinary balanced citizens (primarily older white males) into hateful angry people. The words become them, become their behaviour, as the film clearly shows, and through experts in neuroscience, media and human behaviour, explains. It’s effect can be seen in the phenomenon of Mr. Trump in America. The power of words is not to be dismissed. The repetition (in isolation: they only listen to Fox, et al) and in this case noise, of hateful thoughts has penetrated the being not only of millions of individuals, but the being and fabric of the society. If only we did the same but with words of compassion.