The Spoken Word

Words, specifically the spoken words, are powerful; let no one convince you otherwise. You may have been brought up with phrases like “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words never will.” True, words don’t necessary break bones; they do something much worst, they can shatter souls. Words can penetrate where no physical blow can fall, and when misused can do far more damage to the person. Of our five senses, you can refrain from touching; you can close your eyes and not see. You can shut your mouth and pinch your nose, but you cannot turn off your ears. Oh, we are all very gifted at selective hearing. Just think about the times you have shut your parents and teachers out… even to my voice right now. But the reality is nature did not provide us with the mechanism to close off our ears adequately short of bursting our eardrums. Words invade us, bypassing all natural defenses to touch our inner souls - incorporeal to the incorporeal.

Indeed, the spoken word is so powerful that it was used by the Judeo Christian God to create the world and command a people. The Greeks call it Logos, and define it as the underlying reality of all things; the “Way” things should be. Interestingly enough, the word Toa in Chinese can also mean “Speech” as well as the “Way”. Which goes to show that ancient culture holds the spoken word in high esteem. In fact, for the longest time, people were measured by their words; the quality of their speech, their power to debate and profess. From Cicero to Churchill, history has shown us that great statesmen were often great orators, individuals who can inspire passion in the masses with words. Of course, the reverse is true; just think of our beloved president (President Bush).

Anthropologists, sociologists, historians and scientists alike all agreed that language is the foremost indicator of development. Just think, many of our ancestors preserve the identities of a people through oral tradition. The original guardians of a culture, a people, were the storytellers, the shamans, and the gurus. Even to this day, every religion preserve its morale and virtues through story telling. Words form these stories, words of meaning, words of power. As humans, words give us power over things. When we seek to name things, when we tell stories to explain things, we use words to place ourselves above what we seek to control. The spoken word can alter the course of lives. It certainly can affect our moods. The soft spoken, the harshly said, and the passionately professed, influences the listener who in turn may pass it on to others.

In short, words are powerful. The quality of our vocabulary denotes our intelligence, it reflects heavily on our personality and the pride of a people. Therefore I urge you from this day forth, don’t open your mouth and utter so lightly. Treat each and everyone of your words carefully for who knows what they may result in. Thank you.