2. Understanding Eastern culture
Again starting from Khan’s words, we continue the journey that takes us from Eastern culture (with emphasis on Tibetan bells and mantras) to the understanding of Chakras.
“It is not true that one hears sound only with the ears; one feels it with every little pore of the body.
Sound permeates the whole being and depending on its particular influence slows down or speeds up the rhythm of blood circulation; it awakens the nervous system or calms it down; it stimulates a person to higher passions or calms him down by bringing him peace. Depending on the sound and its influence, a certain effect is produced. Knowledge of sound can thus give a person a magical tool with which he can charge, tune, control and use another person's life in the best way.
The singers of ancient times could first experience the effect of their spiritual practices on themselves.
They would sing a note for half an hour and observe its effect on the various centers of their body, noting what vital current it produced, how it opened the intuitive faculties and created enthusiasm, how it gave more energy, how it calmed and healed. So for them this was not a theory but an experience.”(1)
Related to this focus on the beneficial effect of a single sound is the discussion of Tibetan bells. This is a relevant stage of the research because I have had direct experience of the practices described below in some of the yoga sessions with my teacher Tiziana Fiore, and I was able to personally discover the beneficial influence of a specific sound with a certain part of the body. It is important to dwell on this topic to finally address the discourse on energy centers called "Chakras."
“Tibetan bells (literally: singing bowls) are a very ancient musical instrument used in Buddhist religious practice to reproduce the sound of the original OM and thus serve as an aid to meditation and prayer. Currently, Tibetan singing bowls are used in addition to religious practice in Buddhist monasteries, yoga practice, music therapy and individual meditation. They are very ancient instruments originating in Tibet and then widely spread to India, Bhutan, Japan, Korea, Nepal and China. The bowls are forged from an alloy of 7 metals (antique ones often include gold, silver, copper, zinc, iron and nickel) and it is the composition of the alloy and the harmonious proportion of the shape that allow, through the sliding on the outer edge of a special wooden clapper, a deep sound vibration to propagate. The vibrations that Tibetan bells produce, vary in intensity depending on the size and thickness of the bowl.
The flow of energy within the physical body is regulated by the proper functioning of the seven main chakras. These vital centers need to be regenerated and rebalanced whenever our physical and psychological state becomes debilitated, a sign of the presence of energetic impurities in the flow of the chakras. There are several methodologies for regenerating the chakras including meditation [...] and the use of Tibetan bells. They are special, hard-to-find objects that reproduce the sound of the original OM. OM is the original mantra, the mantra of Creation, which embodies all the energy of the universe. Its sound is very short, consisting of the vowels A, E and U and the letter M, symbols of the Divine Trinity. Tibetan bells reproduce the vibration of this sound through the use of a clapper with which a blow is exerted on the outer edge of the bell and the corresponding vibration is generated by spinning the clapper around the edge of the bell. The effect is to rebalance the chakra for which it was used.
Tibetan Bells therefore produce sounds in harmony with the vibrations of the celestial spheres, and they transmit these vibrations to those who play them or even simply listen to them. This phenomenon is called, in technical terms, 'phase concordance', and it is the same as placing two pendulums side by side: after a certain period of time they begin to follow the same rhythm, like two waves that tend to unite and vibrate in unison. Thanks to this phenomenon, when a Tibetan bell is struck, strong vibrations are created that propagate along the arm (if the bell is held on the palm of the hand) or along the point where the bell itself is placed (in the case, for example, of it being placed on the chakras), massaging it deeply. A phase concordance is thus created between the bell and the person in contact with it, usually producing a state of deep inner and outer stillness that can go far beyond simple relaxation to the theta and delta waves of the deepest meditative states. [...] The human body is a set of vibrations and waves, and if the organs are healthy, they vibrate at the right frequency, while the diseased ones have a disturbed frequency. The vibrations of the Tibetan bells recall the original harmonious frequency and thus stimulate the body, which becomes attuned to its frequency by independently regaining its own harmonious frequencies.”(2)
Here is mentioned for the first time how certain frequencies can stimulate specific parts of the body related to vibrational centers called "Chakras". The next chapter will go into more detail on the issue, but I think it is important to conclude the chapter by quoting some sections of the article: "how classical music impacts your body's energy centers". The considerations reported below further broaden the view on Eastern culture and represent a confirmation of what has been said so far about vibrations and music thanks to direct testimonies and examples.
“Even our ancient temples have had bells of different shapes and sizes to signal the arrival of devotees along with gongs and conches—all with the purpose of creating sounds at different frequencies. That frequency is important, and can have a host of different influences. Vedic literature venerates classical music or Shastriya Sangeet [Indian classical music, Ed.], which, when played in its purest form, has the power to influence nature itself.
In the book ‘The Healing Power of Indian Ragas’, Indian classical music therapist and author Rajam Shanker explains how indigenous music has been used as a tool for education, entertainment, healing and mood management since Vedic times:
‘Vedic chants, Beeja mantras and music were rendered with utmost care as each intonation, inflection of voice and rhythm were a source of healing and spiritual upliftment. Music was a means of attaining spiritual or devotional bliss followed by emotional and physical wellness.’
It's for this very reason Shastriya Sangeet prescribes different types of music and mantras for different times, seasons and phases of life. For instance, Garbha Sanskar, which literally translates to 'education in the womb' is an ancient Ayurvedic learning system of mantras and music that is known to aid foetal development. It's now proven that a foetus responds to sound and can even distinguish voices in the later months
A 2018 study—one of many—published in the Asian Journal of Psychiatry concluded that regular Om chanting produced favourable effects in the nervous system and regulated heart rate, blood pressure, metabolism and other bodily functions.
But while there may soon be reams of research on the therapeutic power of music, its beauty lies in the feeling it invokes.
For Ojas Adhiya, tabla player, music is a means to connect with the almighty:
‘While I cannot comment on the scientific reasoning, I can share my experience. When I do riyaz, I forget what's happening in the outside world and go inwards.’
Perhaps the divinity of music is best understood with an anecdote Adhiya shares about a coma-ridden patient who loved Raag Darbari Kanada. The medical practitioners probably didn’t understand the science behind it, but when the notes and vibrations of Raag Darbari Kanada were played to him, he was out of his stupor the very next day. [...]”(3)
(2)"Campane tibetane e di cristallo" by Alan Perz, SubLimen, last access: 18 November, 2024, translated by the author, https://www.audioterapia.net/sublimen/dossier/campane-tibetane-e-cristallo/
(3)"How classical music impacts your body’s energy centers" by Shweta Vepa Vyas, Darbar Arts Culture Heritage Trust, last access: 18 November, 2024, https://www.darbar.org/article/how-classical-music-impacts-your-bodys-energy-centres