Throughout time, our relationship with sound and vibration has been powerful and profound. Cultures have used singing, chanting, spoken words and instruments to unite, empower, deepen the spirit, uplift and heal. While we most often think of these experiences in the form of composed music and organized traditions, the essence of music — rhythm, pitch, and vibration—are extremely powerful healing tools by themselves. Today they are being used in treatments to help bring people back to wellness and wholeness.
My own use of sound and vibration in healing work began a few years ago. Though a musician and music teacher for most of my adult life, I left the musical world behind in 1998 and began energy healing work with no intention of using sound as a tool. But two years ago, upon introduction to this work, I quickly became intrigued with sound’s role in healing and convinced of its power to transform us and accelerate the healing process.
Tap, tap… silence… The activated tuning forks are placed on the client’s body; in chakras, acu-points, meridians, on a sore knee or aching shoulder. I shake the rattle as the client comments, “That makes me feel all fluffed up, expanded, and more open.” Tibetan singing bowls placed on the back and at the feet ring their sonorous tones. The client goes deeper and deeper into an inner place. The drum is rolled down the spine, down the backs of the legs, its rhythm massaging the body and grounding the client’s energy.
Sound work helps us on all levels of our being: body, mind, and spirit. Each instrument and vibration has typical properties that help specific problems. The tuning forks in the Acutonics system use the measured pitch of “om” (136.7 hertz) to help ground and stabilize.
Other forks are pitched in relation to certain earthly and celestial vibrations (think Music of the Spheres) and used to disperse or energize our physical and emotional ailments. Whatever the issues and problems, clients experience relief and progress, often at an accelerated rate, while greatly enjoying the process.
The ear is the first functioning sensory organ in the fetus, and the last of our senses to shut down as we approach death.
It is a pleasurable treatment. The gentle buzz of the tuning fork, the powerful beat of the drum, create a “sound massage” which usually leaves people in a blissful state of release and relaxation.
Why this work accelerates the healing process and why people are so attracted to it may be because of our innate connection to sound. The ear is the first functioning sensory organ in the fetus, up and running at four and a half months, and the last of our senses to shut down as we approach death. We are literally linked by sound into and out of our earthly lives. And our bodies, composed of about seventy percent water, conduct sound five times better than air. Though we hear sounds through our ears, our bodies can “hear” sound, or receive vibrations, much better than our ears do. Therefore placing instruments directly on the body and feeling their vibration is most certainly a strong, direct way to connect with sound’s healing power.
We are also learning through Quantum Physics that everything can be reduced to tiny, vibrating strings of matter. We are composed of many vibrations, not all of which resonate harmoniously each day. Perhaps we have a headache or are feeling irritable. As when a piano has a few notes that are out of tune, the overall sound is ruined. So it is with our bodies. Vibration work tunes us, and we come back into a place of personal harmony. We can then also be more “in tune” with each other and the Universe.
“As I lay on the table and heard and felt the singing bowls, beautiful golden light filled my imagination. I saw white birds surround me, and then became a bird, flying in the light, soaring joyfully. A sense of peace and calm came over me.”
Deep, inner healing experiences happen frequently in a sound treatment. Somewhat ironically, sound seems to be the bridge into silence. It links us into a place of deep stillness which is where we go when we meditate, that place where words mean less, where we are in a place of Being and less in a place of Doing and cognitive thinking. The client learns to trust this place (which can defy analysis) and comes back from it refreshed, restored, inspired and confident of its healing power.
Enter the world of sound and let go into stillness. Heal and return, reconnected with the Self and the Universe.