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Developing Your Own Sound Healing Practice: The Role of Music and Sound in Healing from Cancer
Co-Relation of Health in Music
It is interesting to look at achieving health through musical terms.
Sound:
- Transmitted vibrations of any frequency including those outside the range of human hearing.
- The sensation stimulated in the organs of hearing by such vibrations in the air or other medium.
- A distinctive noise.
Music:
- Transmitted vibrations of any frequency including those outside the range of human hearing.
- The sensation stimulated in the organs of hearing by such vibrations in the air or other medium.
- A distinctive noise.
Harmony:
- Simultaneous combination of notes.
- The study of the structure, progression and relation of chords.
- Combination of sounds considered pleasing to the ear.
Harmonics:
- Of or relating to harmony.
- Integrated in nature.
- Series of overtones produced as an integral multiple of a fundamental tone.
- The theory or study of the physical properties and characteristics of musical sound.
Vibration:
- A rapid back and forth motion or oscillation.
- To shake or move with or as if with a slight quivering or trembling motion.
- To produce sound; resonate.
Resonant:
- Strong and deep in tone, resounding.
- Continuing to sound in the ears or memory; echoing.
- Having a prolonged subtle, or stimulating effect beyond the initial impact.
Dissonant:
- Discordant.
- A clashing musical interval.
Consonnant:
- Harmony or agreement among components.
- Correspondence or re-occurrence of sounds; repetition.
- An agreeable combination of sounds or musical notes.
Coherency:
- The action or fact of stitching together, cohesion
- Logical connection, congruity, consistency.
- Harmonious connection of the several parts of a discourse, system, etc., so that the whole works together.
Harnessing the Healing Powers of Sound and Music for Yourself
Our body is a self-healing instrument. We have a genetic blueprint for health. We become ill when
we lose the sacred balance with our true essence and become out of harmony with our true nature
programmed within our DNA. Sounds and music vibrate us into a state of resonance with our natural
rhythm and state of harmony and health. When we surrender ourselves to healing sounds, they not
only assist us in becoming more receptive to their healing affects, but, additionally are the means
by which the healing can happen. Every cell in our body is a sound resonator and lives in a
rhythmic pattern. Every organ has its cycle, its pulse, and its musical note. Every system has
its cycle and its pattern and its pulse. The various systems in our body respond to sound
vibrations as do our mental, emotional, and spiritual states of consciousness.
Fabien Maman, a French composer, acupuncturist, and bio-energeticist, believes that each individual
has one particular frequency that is unique to each person. This frequency, which he calls the
"fundamental sound" has been verified at the cellular level under a microscope. Just as each
person has their fundamental sound, he also believes that certain types of music has different
affects on the mind and body depending on the time of day or the season in which it is played.
This can be seen throughout the music of India if one studies the Indian Raga system.
This being true, we must become incredibly sensitive to our mind and body, and the signals and
signs that are always there for us to notice. We must learn to pay close attention to how things
affect us. It is a matter of feelings, not a matter of following a generally prescribed program
of treatment. Just as we change, so must our ways of healing ourselves. We must become more aware
of the rhythms of life in the purest sense.
Music for Entrainment and Diversion in Healing
The history of entrainment is linked to Dutch scientist, Christian Huygens in 1665. While working
on the design of the pendulum clock, Huygens found that when he placed two clocks on a wall near
each other and swung the pendulums at different rates, they would eventually end up swinging at
the same rate. This is due to their mutual influence on one another.
Practically defined, entrainment is the tendency for two oscillating bodies to lock into phase
so that they vibrate in harmony. It is also defined as a synchronization of two or more rhythmic
cycles. The principle of entrainment is universal, appearing in chemistry, pharmacology, biology,
medicine, psychology, sociology, astronomy, architecture and more. The classic example shows
individual pulsing heart muscle cells. When they are brought close together, they begin pulsing
in synchrony. Another example of the entrainment is when women live in the same household, often
they find that their menstrual cycles will coincide. Entrainment is very evident in music.
Examples of musical entrainment are: rhythmic entrainment, melodic entrainment, and dynamic entrainment.
Entrainment music has the potential to:
- resonate with the listener's feelings
- transform the negative into the positive
- promote a state of liveliness or serenity.
Certain sounds, in specific sequence can help bring the listener from one state of consciousness
or awareness to another. It can also bring our cells in our body into a state of joy where they
actually pulsate with the vibration and become more healthy. Fabien Maman, in his studies of the
affect of music on various types of cells, actually witnessed healthy cells that become more
vibrant and radiant as they were exposed to the sounds of music.
"The seed of the spiritual is found in the physical. In the heart of the cells, in the spiral of the DNA, is written
the divine story. When scientific research, spiritual practice and artistic expression work together, heaven and earth are
in resonance. This is the vibratory promise which is the giftof our musical universe."
- Fabien Maman
This is a picture shows a healthy hemoglobin cell exposed to a voice singing of the note G '392'.
The cell clearly is pulsing with vibrancy and life as it entrains to the frequency of the sound,
becoming clearly more alive and healthy. It appears to actually soak up the sound, until it
eventually pulses and emits the sound.
Our bodies automatically adjust to the pace, rhythm, or pulse of the music. How many times have you
walked into a room with other things on your mind and heard music playing? You stop to listen for a
few minutes and all of the sudden, your foot is tapping to the music or you are swaying your head
or body with the beat. Or, a certain piece of music evokes memories of a time when you heard the
music before, and the feelings of that time come immediately back into your awareness? In
scientific terms, our psyches and bodies become entrained to the sonic environment created by the
music.
Entrainment is a powerful tool in behavior modification. In effect, the principle of entrainment
directly relates to the Greek word isomorphic (commonly referred to as the iso principle).
Isomorphic means same form or appearance. Therefore, musical entrainment is actually a process of
joining with feelings conveyed in the music and sensing the feeling of commonality with it. One
might almost have an experience of feeling a connection with the composer or performer by sharing
emotions and feelings conveyed in the music, either through its creation or through the
performance itself. Music in this sense can be a powerful tool in both positive and negative ways
to the listener. Music entrainment is more than just a tool to be used for behavior modification,
however. Music has the power to integrate the whole person, allowing for profound healing. Music
is one of the few experiences that can touch a person on all levels of consciousness. It is a
potent sensory stimulus that can work simultaneously on the body, mind, and spirit.
The second way in which sound and music can be used in healing is through diversion. Sound and
music are used to take the attention away from an unpleasant or unwanted situation. An example
of diversionary music is the playing of bright, happy, energizing music when the listener feels
down in the dumps. Music, in this sense, can be used in a therapeutic situation to reduce anxiety
and pain, transporting the listener to another reality temporarily during the healing process.
For centuries shamans have used drums and vocal sounds as an integral part of healing practices
in indigenous cultures. The shaman uses the sounds as a tool for entering into a trance themselves
as well as an actual tool in the healing process.
When Music is used "as medicine" in this way, it is used to directly affect the health of the
patient. An example is the use of music in "audio-analgesia". Music is used in this way to
alleviate or lessen pain, and can be used, at times, in lieu of pain medications. In this way
music is seen as a necessary component in affecting the outcome of the treatment. Vibrational
therapy sessions can be used to affect physiological changes such as lowering of blood pressure,
heart rate, lessening muscle tension, decreasing ACTH (stress hormones), and relieving nausea.
How Does Sound and Music Heal?
It has been proven that music affects us physically, psychologically, emotionally and spiritually.
We know that our responses to music are far more complex, subtle and far-reaching than can be
proven scientifically. However, science has measured observable physical effects, such as
changes in blood flow through the fingertips or the speed of muscle reactions to sound. New
areas of understanding in the field of blood chemistry, show the connection between the body's
release of endorphins and neuro-peptides and changes in emotion.
Studies show that music helps to increase the seretonin and growth hormone levels as well as
decrease the ACTH or stress hormones. Music can transport people from a Beta (waking) brain
state to Alpha (deep meditative) brain state while remaining awake. Music can affect blood
pressure, pulse rate, circulation, brain wave activity, metabolism, and countless other physical
and emotional responses. It is also during the theta state when people are the most receptive
to healing.
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- Amrita Cottrell, Original Article
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