ARTICLES

Sacred Sound
Sound, the Creator and the Transformer

Every spiritual tradition of the world uses sound to facilitate the passage between states of consciousness. Sound is an integral part of the healing power of shamanic practices, and is extensively used in scientific research and integrative medicine as well. Sound supports the process of transforming energy patterns, reveals measurable effects in the physical body, and facilitates the connection with the spirit world.

As a fabric of breath, vibration and emotion, the singing voice can affect the body and mind more efficiently than any other form of sound. Vocal sounds are a primary source of energy, balancing and stimulating the brain. Chanting releases harmonic energy triggering a spontaneous identification with the sacred; a dimension of consciousness characterized by a healing release of boundless radiance, openness and love.

Sacred sound travels through consciousness and can transform everyday occurrences into a mythical dimension through modalities of vocal expression and rhythmic entrainment.

“In the most ancient Tibetan mythological cycles, sound is considered to be the original source of all existence. Sound which from beginning of time has vibrated in ineffable emptiness, arises through mutations of light, and then differentiates into rays of various colors from which the material elements which make up the entire universe originate. The complete sound that comes from the fusion of the expressive force of the voice, the drum and the bell, is able to cut through that type of membrane that separates different layers and textural states of consciousness, creating an atmosphere strongly permeated with magic and spirit.” Constantino Albini, The Magic Sound

Sacred chant is an integral expression of the healing power of the voice and the magic of tone. Chanting is an extremely satisfying sensory experience and can fill us with joy and love, purifying our senses and emotions, as well as our surroundings, leading us naturally to meditation, liberating a sense of divine light and happiness.

Sacred chant is rooted in ancient melodic movements, in India those scales systems are called ragas, “that which colors the mind”. These vivid tonal arrangements evoke specific spiritual qualities or states of being. The experience of breathing deeply, dwelling in one note, feeling the musical vibrations revitalizing the body, blending one’s own voice with other voices in essential harmonies, is deeply inspiring, offering rare glimpses of the sacred source.

In the Vedic and Bhakti or devotional traditions of music, the texts used in the chants are mantras, the are sacred words or divine sounds. Mantras serve as auditory centering devices which have the power to protect, purify, and
transform the emotional and consciousness states of the individual who repeats them. Mantra chanting usually induces devotion in the mind of the singer, activating a state of blissful liberation through sound.

By experiencing the spiritual nature of music we open our hearts to the deep longing of the chant, becoming familiar with “the enchanters”, those who journey through the magic of the song-word to attract the spirit power.

Silvia Nakkach