Do You Hear What I Hear?
The beach is everyone’s go to place to relax. Whether it is the sand in between our toes or sea breeze in the air, you can almost feel your stress release. Though the best part of all is the ocean. The way that the waves sound when crashing against the beach on its own could simply help clear one’s thoughts. Just like a dramatic scene of a movie when the lost romantic sits on the beach to sort out his or her emotions and mind. We never truly understand the catalytic effect that sound has on us. There are plenty of items created to fill our environment with sound to help clean our energy and surroundings.
Close your eyes and listen for the sound of waves. Focusing hard enough you could almost feel the ocean breeze; and hear the seagulls screeching. Many, including some scientists, believe that the sound of the ocean greatly affects the human mind. Simply hearing the waves play through a video can bring a sense of calm and perspective. The constancy of the oceans movements and sounds helps de-stress and clear one's mind. The sound of the ocean is a very popular sound to sleep to as well. The calming trance it can put you in is great for an uninterrupted eight hours of sleep.
One of the most popular instruments to help center oneself is the singing bowl. Dating back as far as 5000 years in Mesopotamia, it is a popular idiophone. When struck, shaken, or scraped it will sound through vibration. The strong sound helps to promote healing and meditation; as well as invoking relaxation. Some suggest that it helps synchronize the left and right side of the brain. The first singing bowls found were made of copper and believed to be used for medicinal and musical purposes. However, monks were known to be using them as well. Though they would never speak to anyone about the bowls. It is believed that they would use them in sacred spiritual rituals deep in nature. The rituals were kept secret, many believing that the vibrations from the bowls helped them to astral project.
Benefits of using a singing bowl are:
Promote deep relaxation.
Reduce stress and anxiety.
Chakra Balancing
Helps improve circulation and blood flow.
Native Americans are known for the beautiful sounds they create because of their attunement of the sounds to nature and being able to replicate the rhythms they hear. Whether they were singing, beating a drums, or flipping a rain stick , they are always creating a type of melody to dance along with the energies of the universe. One instrument that they created was the rain stick. A rain stick is made to mimic the sound of raindrops splashing. They use them in an effort to remind ‘The Great Spirit’ that people on Earth need rain for crops, animals, and thirst.
Another popular instrument used by the Native Americans is the drum. This is usually the go to thought when thinking of their powwows. Drums symbolize the heart beast of the ‘Indian nation’. When drumming it is important that the drums and vocals are unison. They help call the spirit/nation together; and bring the physical and mental side of a person back to their spiritual self.
The wind moving through the air tree doesn’t normally make a sound. Sometimes it is silent only able to notice it due to the trees dancing so perfectly with it. That is unless you hear the beautiful sound of the wind chimes greeting it. Wind chimes are said to have originated in China back in 1100BC. The sound of the bells helped promote peace and good health. They were there to call for protection from heavenly deities. In Southeast Asia wind chimes were made from either bone, wood, bamboo, or shells. Their purpose was to ward off evil spirits. They also were used as warning signs when natural forces were going to impact the environment (tsunamis, hurricanes, etc). Wind chimes are also said to have a positive impact on your health! The calming sound of the chimes helps reduce stress and promote relaxation. It helps heal the mind and body by creating a sense of balance in life.
Humans are stimulated everyday with all the senses but the one they say is last to go when we pass away is hearing so it must have a great catalytic effect on the human. Sounds have such a strong effect on us and in using certain rhythms and noises to trigger the human body we are able to tap into things beyond our physical realm. Tapping into our spiritual bodies, certain sounds, just like certain herbs, help us activate things spiritual and physical. So next time you are passing through port town or see a Native American shop, go inside and see which instrument suits the music to our ears...or should I say your soul!
Check out some of our other articles:
Works Cited
Akta Lakota Museum & Cultural Center, aktalakota.stjo.org/site/News2?page=NewsArticle.
“DID YOU KNOW? ABOUT RAINSTICKS!” Mystical Horizons, 30 Oct. 2017, mysticalhorizons.ca/did-you-know-about-rainsticks/.
“History of Wind Chimes.” Wind Chimes Australia, www.windchimesaustralia.com.au/history-of-wind-chimes.php.
Joshi, Nikunj, et al. “The Magic of Wind Chimes Revealed – Realty Guide, RoofandFloor.” RoofandFloor Blog, 28 Jan. 2019, roofandfloor.thehindu.com/real-estate-blog/magic-of-wind-chimes-revealed/.
“Singing Bowls: Complete Guide (Updated 2020).” Shanti Bowl, 10 Sept. 2017, www.shantibowl.com/blogs/blog/history-of-singing-bowls.
Smith, Diana. “How the Ocean Affects Human Mental Health.” Thrive Global, 13 May 2019, thriveglobal.com/stories/how-the-ocean-affects-human-mental-health/.
Thomas, Damien. “6 Amazing Benefits Of Using A Singing Bowl.” Your Positive Oasis, 10 Apr. 2020, yourpositiveoasis.com/6-amazing-benefits-of-using-a-singing-bowl/.