Sound Healing – What is it?

Sound and music have been used since ancient times for healing and transformation. Indeed it is one of the most ancient forms of healing known to man and used by many cultures worldwide. The most well known traditions are those of the Tibetans with bowls, gongs and toning voices, Shamans with drumming and rattles and the Australian Aborigines with didgeridoo and clapsticks. But Egyptians were also devotees of vowel sounds in their rituals and Pythagoras used music as medicine in ancient Greece circa 500 BC.

However, today sound healing is more popular then ever before and is a rapidly growing field of energy medicine. Modern science now supports the belief that all matter comes from vibration or sound. The therapeutic application of sound is a powerful way of restoring health and wellness to mind, body and spirit.

So how does it work?

Sound healing uses the therapeutic application of sound waves and vibration to the body to awaken, transform and heal.

Resonance

Every cell in your body has a resonant frequency, a natural state of vibration. Indeed, everything in the universe is made up of vibrating matter and has it’s own home frequency. If we look at the body as if it were an orchestra, you are healthy when your body’s ‘orchestra’ is playing in tune. When you are unhealthy, a part of that orchestra is no longer in tune, causing the whole orchestra to sound wrong.

Our feelings, thoughts and actions all impact on our energetic body e.g. negative thoughts, feelings and emotions will create dis-harmony or dis-ease in the body and positive feelings, thoughts and actions will create harmonious energy patterns, health and wellness.

Resonance is one of the most important aspects of sound healing. The law of resonance is the ability of a stronger vibration to overcome a weaker vibration. Through using resonance with sound healing tools, we realign a person into their own natural balance or ‘home’ frequency. And since our bodies are composed mainly of water (about 70%), they are an excellent conductor of sound.

During a sound healing session, the use of pure frequencies, different instruments, vibration, different tones, timbres, musical intervals, rhythms, volume and flow are all used to realign the disruptive frequencies of a person so that the body, mind and spirit can return to health and wellness. The ‘orchestra’ is playing in tune once again. This can happen very quickly during a session and oftentimes quite staggering healing results are experienced within a short space of time.

Entrainment

This is another important aspect of sound healing. Entrainment is the capacity to induce different brain states through brainwaves. These are the brainwave states we can experience:

  • Delta

    (0.5 – 4 cycles per second)
    These brainwaves help us to go to sleep and sleep deeper and longer Also, going into Delta during a sound healing session can make you feel as if you have slept.

  • Theta

    (4-8 cycles per second)
    This is the relaxed state of daydreaming. It is the best state to be in for creativity eg art or music. Much deep healing occurs here.

  • Alpha

    (8-12 cycles per second)
    This can help with presence and relaxed attention. It is helpful for memory and mental acuity. It is the best state for learning.

  • Beta

    (12-20 cycles per second)
    This can help with mental processing, thinking and figuring things out. It is a state that many with ADHD cannot access. Listening to this frequency can help overcome ADHD.

  • Gamma

    (over 20 cycles per second)
    This is a very high state of meditation. It is a very conscious state where the world seems to slow down.

Intention:

In the healing process, this is a very important aspect of healing too. Indeed, one of the pioneers of modern day Sound Healing, Johnathan Goldman wrote:

“Frequency plus intention equals healing”

This is because sound is a carrier wave of consciousness, meaning that depending on where an individual’s awareness is placed when he creates a certain sound, the sound will carry information on that state to the person receiving it. As sound healers, we are vehicles for sacred sound to be carried.