Keep communication open

Open communication, which includes listening, occurs when people can openly, clearly, honestly, and fearlessly express their thoughts and ideas to one another. The chief benefits of open communication are that it encourages involvement and engagement, promotes inclusion, and strengthens bonding, all by building trust among those involved. The preconditions for these benefits to accrue are that it should be of the right quality. When communication turns crooked, selfish, scheming, and manoeuvring, it damages relationships.

The importance of communication is largely discussed in modern management curriculum and training, and in the sub-topic of inter-relationship aspects of psychological studies. But two important dimensions of communication—spirituality and ethics—do not get the priority they deserve.

Ethical communication involves communicating in a manner that is transparent, clear, concise, relevant, truthful, honest, listener-oriented, responsible, timed right, and occurs in the right place. It ensures freedom of expression, tolerance of opposing views, and unpleasant deliveries.

When communication is grounded in spirituality, it attains its highest quality. Such communication occurs when the persons involved are endowed with spiritual qualities like peace, equanimity, forgiveness, humility, truthfulness, empathy, compassion, altruism, reciprocity, love, and an overall belief in the divine presence in everyone. The spirituality referred to here is the universal human experience that goes beyond culture, religion, and thoughts. Communication plays a vital role in building, or breaking, a relationship. Communication, in any of its forms—verbal, non-verbal, written, or visual—is essential for building healthy and strong relationships. Communication contents are invariably influenced by the culture and conditioning of the communicator, and as such, have to be understood in the proper context.

The spiritual influence is so subtle and invisible that it passes our normal understanding. But its impact is so strong that it overtakes all other influences. The contents and delivery modes have divine origins. This beautiful aspect of communication is highlighted by Lord Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita: Ishvarah sarva-bhutanam hrid-deshe ‘Rjuna tishthati bhramayan sarva-bhutani yantrarudhani mayaya (BG 18/61), meaning that, dwelling in the hearts of all living beings, the Supreme Lord directs the wanderings of the souls, according to their karmas, as though seated on a machine made of material energy.