SANTO DOMINGO DE SILOS: the sound of silence

 

Marijuán González

Santo Domingo de Silos is a small village of Burgos, with a population of 165 inhabitants. It is named after Saint Domingo,  who  was a hermit,  an abbot and  a restorer who lived in the abbey of the  village. In 1088 he died  and was buried inside the church, which had been built by him a few years before. Today this abbey is everything to the village.
The  art, history, and cloister attract thousands of tourists to the Abbey  of Santo Domingo de Silos.  I have been there several times. My parents took me for the first time eight years ago and the only things that called my attention were the souvenir shops outside the abbey. The last time I visited it, six months ago,  it was completely different. It was  the quietness and beauty of the place what called my attention.
It´s impossible for me to make a  detailed description of the abbey. The cloister is magnificent. It has ninety-six arches, each one with its capital. All the capitals are different and unique: It is a museum of medieval sculpture in itself.
Inside  the cloister there is a nice garden with different plants and flowers, and near  the middle there is the landmark of the abbey : the cypress which inspired Gerardo de Diego to compose his well-known sonnet.
                                  
That view also inspired me. Everything was still, without movement, so I stopped,  and  the only thing I could hear was the sound of  "silence". It was a magical moment.
Apart from the cloister and  the chapel in the abbey   something you can' t miss is to listen to the monks singing live the Gregorian chants. They sing at the services several times every  day. People wait  quietly and patiently inside the church until the monks are in the choir, pray for a while and then sing some Gregorian chants. When you listen to them you are transported to old times and  are fascinated to listen in silence to the beautiful  sounds of the Gregorian era.