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Meditation
People have various beliefs about meditation practice. Any activities that one performs which helps to slow down the pace of the active mind and brings one to a calm and peaceful state, can be considered a meditation practice. It may be physical exercise like yoga and stretching or even as simple as spending time in a garden or going on a hike. The trick is to be always present and mindful of any and every activity that you are performing.
As we become familiar with energy, we are able to sense, be aware of and generate this energy phenomenon within our body. Our body is very complex, made up of billions of cells and tissues yet functioning together as one. Knowingly or unknowingly, the body is, has and will go through transformations. Transformation caused by time is a natural phenomenon but transformation affected by physical, psychological, and emotional causes may be the result of external agents. If we are able to understand the effects from these external agents, one can prevent and ease suffering to the self and assist others through their healing.
When one is affected by the later circumstance, the individual develops distrust, frustration, anger and other blockages within them. This in turn constitutes the seven modes of suffering and is responsible for the blockages of the flow of Chi within the energy centers (Chakras). As a result one continuously experiences emotional blockages such as stress. Stress is a root cause of other physical diseases. Cancer, heart disease, digestive problems, sleep deprivation, depression, obesity and various other diseases have been related to chronic stress.
Meditation is one of the natural ways to promote internal healing. While meditating we not only give ourselves some time to slow down but more so we allow us the opportunity to understand things as they are. The best gift we can have is the Divine Wisdom by which we understand things as they are and this can only be achieved through self-understanding and awareness.
Sound Meditation
It is believed that the primordial sound, along with the vibrations it produces, is the source for the creation of the entire universe. Sound indeed is a very powerful tool for manifestation. Humans, animals, insects and living creatures have utilized sound for understanding and communicating with the world around them. For thousands of years, sound has been widely used for spiritual practice, worship and meditation. These activities have resulted in a positive outlook towards understanding the self and beyond.
Studies show how sound can alter the state of the mind. Light music can create a peaceful sensation while loud and distorted sound can be the cause for irritation and disrupt the natural state of the mind. Ancient eastern civilizations have explored and document both the benefits and the destructive properties of sound which science is slowly rediscovering and representing in Science Journals.
We use primordial sounds generated by using sing bowls, gongs, ting-shaws, bells, and many other instruments.
So how does sound and vibration work in the body?
When we use sound during meditation we are able to go beyond the chattering mind and achieve a blissful state of mind. The Om (AUM) sound is considered the first sound that was manifested. Just by understanding this three-syllabus sound, we can uncover the hidden secrets of creation as experienced by the eastern yogis. This syllabus contains within itself the creative force, the preservative/maintainer and the destroyer of ignorance. It is one complete sound. When using OM creating the A sound from the diaphragm, U sound from the heart and the M sound from the throat is recommended.
When one is not familiar with the tools that lies within the self, has an active mind and is easily distracted, there are various tools to help them create sounds and vibrations. Tools such as singing bowls, bells, gongs and tingshaws have been used for thousands of years and have been observed to be positively effective on the body. Sounds thus created, work in conjunction with the energy centers of the body, resonates them and thus in the process align and enable the flow of chi (energy) throughout the body which releases the blockages that lie within them.
When one allows themselves to be one with the universe, has an in depth understanding of actions and reactions, then one can break from the cycle of misery and suffering. Buddha describes suffering as follows: suffering is not what happens within the physical body but is that which takes place every time there is instability within our mind. When we have this deep understanding there is no suffering- it is just a temporary state that will also pass.
