Nada: the sound within, without

2006·1.6 MB·English

by  Shruti

SHRUTl
Soundisanintegralpartoflife.Everyaudiblesoundvi~rationthat~ereceive~scon~ert~d
intoelectricalimpulses,whichmovethroughanauditory nerveIntothebrain,whichIn
tum, interprets these impulses, giving usthe "sense"of hearing. Science tells us that this
sound(electricalimpulse)gets storedinourbrainasmemory intheform ofchemicals. We
notice,thus,thatthesoundvibrationswereceive andemitchange forms ateverymomentof
our lives andthatapart from influencing us,they become the atoms and molecules of our
body witheverypassingmoment.
Ultrasoundaswellotherfrequencies ofvibration similarlyinteract, influence,transform
andbecomeapartofourbeingonthecellularlevel.Thiswhole spectrumoffrequencies in
manifestationiscalledNADAinSanskrit.
WecanthususeNADA-music,words,mantras,thought, lightwaves, aromainamanner
which can transmute our mind, psychological state and the physical body at the level of
organ, tissueandcell.
Letusexplore theworldofNADA(vibrations), includingthe science ofspeech,breath,
theVedicmantra,Indian seed sounds,the Indian Ragaandtheir uses inthe transformation
andhealing ofthemindand body.
NADAexistswithinusandinourenvironmentinelectromagneticaswell asothervibra
tions or vitality globules (PRANA), which is perceptible to us in the medium of breath,
audiblesound,syllablesandtone,physical shapesandsymbols.ItisalsotheflowofNADIS
(thesubtlenervouschannels inthebody), theCHAKRAS orcentral energy vortices, other
cyclic and waveconfigurations, conscious aswell assub-conscious thought, and in every
formoflifeoreveninanimateexistence.
Aconscious experiencing oftheconstant fluxofNADAinourinnerand outwardexist
enceandinterpersonal interaction on variousplanes ofbeing, followedby momentto mo
ment,simpletechniquesofthoughtandbrain wavetransmutation,attitudinalharmonisation
athomeandwork,healthcorrectionandholisticwell-beingistheessenceofNADAempow
ermentandHealing.
Infact,fromtheabovewecandeducewhatourancients havereiterated,whichisthatall
matterevolvesfromSound(Nada)anddissolves intoSound.Vibrations causeeveryharmo
nious and dishannonious state. Mankind is slowly discovering that the root of illness or
disease-and hence theroot of cure-lies inresonance and vibration.
TheMiracle ofthe VibratingBeing -NADA
Sound isproduced bytheconjunction ofheatenergy (agni) and vitalair (prana-vayu).Na-
Sangeet Natak Vol.XL. No. I, 2006
NADA: THE SOUND WITIIlN, WITHOUT 41
kara standsforPrana,(which is identicalwithAkasa)and Da-kara stands foragni or
heat-energy,Hence NADAsignifiesthecosmicSound-Energy,originatingfromtheether.
Anearofmindwithdrawn
fromtheoutward's rhymes
Discoveredthe seedsoundsof
theEternalWord
Therhythmandmusicheard
thatbuildstheworlds.
-SriAurobindo(Savitri)
Thejnanaindriyas(sensorytoolsofabsorbtionorknowledge i.e.nose,ears,eyes,skin
and tongue) bestowed to most humans andanimals facilitate theflowandabsorptionof
Nadaintheformofthe fivetanmatras- shabda(sound),sparsha(touch),rupa(sight),rasa
(taste)andgandha (odour)in the beingThese are then,assimilated andexpressed Ihrough
thekannaindriyas(organsofchannelsofaction)invaryingdegreesinaccordancewiththe
levelofconsciousnessinthe living being.
Oneofthesetoolso,fNADAisthesenseofhearing.sotheuseofsound,theuseofword;
wordasanenergy.wordasaconventionorasymbol;andtheuseofmusic.Beforelanguage
becameaconventionandasymbolic representation of meaningforattaining knowledge.
natureuseditsowninnatesensemeaningineverysoundtoteachhumanbeings.Waterwas
knownor'sensed' thusbythe seedsound, itcreated.
",at
Herewenotexplainingthemeaningofasyllable;wearefeelingtheelementalstateofa
naturalsyllableorsound.Itwasalogicofsensoryknowingratherthanconventionallearn
ingthat directed the people to attach meaningsto the sounds. And that was the beginning
oftheSanskritlanguage,wherethesounditscltbccarnethemeaning.Intellectinvolveditself
toaidtheuseofpureenergynottodistortit!Andacombinationoftwosoundsorenergies
becameaword.Itdidnothavetobethenexplainedintellectually.sincethewordsocreated
haditseffect atthe levelofenergy itself,
Childrenareperhapsmostsensitivetotheflowoftheseenergies.becauseoftheirinnate.
unadulteratedcapacityto absorbitandfeelit.againbecause societalknowledgeandcon
ventionallogichaslittlesignificanceintheirlife.
Oneofthemostmemorableexperiencesofthiswriterin introducing"Chanting"intothe
livesofyoungchildrenhasbeenwithaschoolcalledMirambika.Theyoungsterstherewere
taught few chams every morning, and though the meanings were explained, children re
sponded tothetuneandrhythm of the soundandnot tothemeanings attached toeach
chant.Once,whileplayingintheclass,ayounggirl,excitedlynarratedhowsheperformeda
miracle!Shesaid..•Didi,thisbirdhadfallendownonthefloorandwasnotmoving;itwas
dead.So Ipickedup the bird in my handand Ichantedtoit andyouknow what!The bird
new!"
Isn'tit interestingthat while Naturehas overthe ages. taughtman the artofhealingby
42 SHRUTJ
introducing him to his instinctive capacity, the human being, through this spontaneous
knowing.isusingthesame arttohealotherlivingcreaturesaround.
Let'scomeback10 theexample mentionedabove./lowdidthechildknow that thebird
couldbehealed bythecbant?Shewasnevertoldthatthischanthad healingpowers, hutit
issomethingthatthechildsomehow,evenatasubconsciouslevel.experienced.thatwhen
she chanted.she felt peaceful,she felt "good". So perhaps, she thought,if she chanted to
the bird, the bird would feel good and would be able 10 flyagain!This is something that
childrenleam throughsensation,notby teaching.
Thistakesusto the greatscienceofRaga.The raga is anordered law of notes,around
whichonecanbuildhoursofexpressioninmusic. Forinstance,ifyouhavean octaveof7
notes,thenyoucan have oneRaga that usesonly five notes. in aparticular arrangement.
Keeping thatarrangementintact,one can have any number ofpermutations and combina
lionsandsingthatragafortwohoursorthree hoursormore,withoutrepeatingoneself.Each
suchlawofnoteswhich isaragacaninduceanatmosphereofadifferent timeofdayandthis
isnOI somethingthathasbeen told,Ibis issomethingthaionecanexperience.
Asimpleexperiment, whichcan help the participantssee the powerofmusic. is about
usingthreedifferentragasforabouthalfaminuteeach.Itsbeendiscoveredthat,depending
uponwhetherwe"sense"moreor"see"more,wecanfeelthedifferenceinourmoods.Some
ofushaveastrongvisualimagination,sowemayseedifferentcolourswhereassomeof us
maysimplysenseitinourbeing. Butonecansensemorningoreveningor nightwitheach
of thesecompositions. It so happens that the combination of musical notes or sound fre
quencies. match the atmospheric resonance of the actual time of the day that the Raga
representsandeveninduces ourconsciousnessintoadifferentfeelofday as we listen toit.
The useof raga or even other forms of music can beused to induce different colours,
differentfeelingsandmovementsandevendifferentvisualsandphysicalscenesintheinner
eye.This stimulous of raga can then beused very effectively in generating or inducing
creativemovementwithinthechildandhelphim/herinexpressinghimselflherselfindifferent
hues. in art. craft. dance, theatrical expression and even writing, which is facilitated by
differentkindsofmusic.
Thepo...erofthe...ord-NADA.Shabda.Mantra
SoundandSpeecharecreative:theycreateformsofemotion,mentalimagesandimpulsesof
actionand reaction.The ancient Vedictheoryandpractice extended thiscreativeactionof
speechbythe useofthemantra.The theoryoftheMantraisthatitisawordofpowerborn
outofthesecretdepthsofourbeing whereithasbeen btoodeduponbyadeeperconscious
ness than themental,framed by the heart and notconstructed by the intellect, held in the
mind.againconcentratedbythewakingmentalconsciousness andthenthrownout silently
orvocally.thesilentwordisperhapsheldtobemorepotentthanthespoken_preciselyfor
the workof creation.TheMantra can not only create new subjective states in our selves,
alterourpsychicalbeing,revealknowledgeandfacultieswe didnotbefore possess,can not
NADA:THE SOUND WITHIN. WlTllOUT 43
onlyproducesimilarresultsinothermindsthanthatoftheuser,butcanproducevibrations
inthementalandvitalatmospherewhichresultineffects,inactionsandevenintheproduc
tionofmaterialformsonthephysicalplane.TheVedicuseoftheMantraisonlyaconscious
utilisationofthissecretpowerofthewordSriAurobind<>-TheUpanishads
Aswhen theMantrasinksinyogi'sear
Itsmessageentersstirringtheblind brain
Andkeeps inthedim ignorantcellitssound;
Thebearer understandsafonnofwords
And.musingontheindexthoughtitholds.
Hestrivestoread itwiththe labouringmind,
Butfinds brighthints,nottheembodiedtruth:
Then,fallingsilentinhimselftoknow
Hemeetsthedeeperlisteningofhissoul:
Theword repeats itself in rhythmicstrains:
Thought,vision.feeling.sense.the body'sself
Are seizedunalterablyandheendures
Anecstasyandanimmortalchange;
HefeelsawidenessandbecomesaPower.
Allknowledgerushesonhimlikeasea;
Transmutedby the white spiritualray
liewalksinnaked heavenofjoyandcalm.
SeestheGod-face and hearstranscendentspeech.
-SriAurobindo
SAVITRJ(BookIV,CantoIll)
Incommonparlance.toconveythesenseoftheAbsolute-touseasingleintegralsouod
asaninstrumentforelevatingandfreeingmanfromtheconfinementsofhislimitedouter
consciousnessinto the primordiallayers within.intothelasttruthandenormouspowerof
hisdeepestself-the Indianmindinvoked 'OM' -ThePranavMantra.
This is the symbol of the primordial vibration ofcreation- the NADAbrahman. The
vibratory potency of this sound is such that it opens new frontiers ofmindand thought,
enhances cellular rejuvenation. creation and transformation withinthe humanbody,and
correctsthe health of the physical, emotional andpsychologicalconsciousness.
Vedic Mantrasfor harmonizing. healing and empowering:
Healingandlransformingeffectsofrepetition(Japa)ofSanskritmantrashavebeennoticed
anddocumented by numerous scholars and scientists. These havebeenon atomswhich
haddeveloped distorted crystalline structures, 00 brain wave patterns, on the change in
electrical, magnetic orbioenergy bodies,on blood,onpulserateandondiseasessuchas
stress,anxiety,epilepsy,etc.
44 SHRUTI
Thesecretlies:
1. Intheinherentenergyoftheseed word orBeeja itself, whose elementalproperties
resonatewithdifferentpartsoftheenergybody.
2 Incompound wave-like words formed by 'Sandhi' Gaining) in Mantric verses, for
instance,Purnom +Adah becomes Purnamadah, and soon.
3. InChhandaormetreconnectedwith theearth's orientationwith theSun.Whenwe
chantmantras inchhanda.;we resonate with geocentric cosmic rhythms and thus
feelharmonizedfromwithin.
4. Intherepetition,Japa ofthree tone and single tone chanting which leads the brain
fromarestless beta-waverealm toan alpha (meditative and silent)state towardsa
theta(trance) state.Inthisstatethe outermindand body become 000- reactive and
transformation takesplaceinthe subtle,physiologicalandpsychological layers.
SHANTIPATH
Om
Puma Madah
Puma midam
Puma!PumaMudachyare
Pemasya PumaMtiddYQ
Purnamevavshishyayte
Psima madah - "That" (the transcendent creator who is beyond time and space) is
whole!eternal!infinity.
Pemamidam-This(whichiscreated,i.e.•allcreationintimeandspace)alsoembodies
thewhole!infinityortheeternal.
PumasPtimamUdachyate-From theinfinitetheinfiniteemerges,ie,allofusthatare
createdhavethequalityofwholenessandinfinityjustasthesourcefromwhichweemerge.
Pumasya Pumamadaya - Of this Infinite whole. if we take out a part, which is also
infinite.
Ptimamevdvashishyate-Theoriginalinfinity indeedremainsthesame.
Bija mantra
The seed soundof anyobject,phenomenon or condition is known as its bija mantra.By
knowingthisseedsound,itisbelievedthata stateofabsoluteknowledgeofthethingitself
canbeachieved,Likewise,byacertainuseofthemantra,thethingitselfcanbedestroyedor
changed-orcreatedifitdoesnotyetexist.
Byperfonningjapa,orrepetition,withabijamantra.wecreateaharmonicresonancewith
thebeingorelement whoseseminalsoundisthatbija mantra.
Inalinguisticsense,bijashavenomeaninginandofthemselves. Butmantra yogisfully
realizethattheShakti,orpotentvibrational force,istransmittedtotheonewhoischanting
themantra.
NADA, THE SOUND WITHIN,WITHOUT 45
The bija sound for theearthelement isLAM.The bijasound forwaterisVAM.The bija
soundforair isYAM.Fireisthe sound RAM. Ether,orakasha.hasthebijasoundHAM.
The firstletterofeachbijadenotesitsfrequency?whichrespondsonphysical.emotional.
mentalandother planestodifferentfrequencycenters or Chakras ofthebody.Thecentral
vowel of each is •A' - the action of Alpha,or the fatherprinciple. The fathercreates;the
mother seals the creation. Thisis alsoknown asthe principleofShiva andShakti, which
respond tothenegativeandpositiveenergychannelsofthe body.The threelettersofeach
bijaform meTrinity-theTrinitythat isalwaysnecessary tohaveaseed.
Abstract sound: The electromagneticpowerofmind
Many Psycho Kinesis (PK) enthusiasts point to the idea that it is possible, in varying
degrees.for thehumanbrain tointeractwilh hislherenvironment,Perhaps.somespeculate.
certain psychically gifted people can modulate their brain waves to achievecontrol over
eventsinthephysical world.
Tosomepsychic researchers,forexample, thestrange,unpredictablebehaviourofsuba
tomicparticlesseems tobesimilartocertainPKeffects.PK maybeattributedtoinvisible
energycontained in these particlesorperhaps insuch phenomena asheatandsound.This
showsthat,thehuman mindmightinteractwith suchforces,thusshapingphysicalevents.
Beta
Thesmall.closepeaksofBetawavesaremostoftenchartedwhe-npersonisawakeandalert.
\Valking,talking,dialingatelephone,areallactivitiesthatrequireBetatypebrainactivity.
Duringperiodsofanxietyorintenseconcentration,thebrainmayremaininBetamode,even
whenthe eyesare closed.
Alpha
nusisthestateofmindthatsomePKresearchessuggestisassociatedwithPKeffects.Each
timeaperson closeshisorher eyes,thebraingeneratesaburstofalphawaves,butitisthe
longer,sustained periodsofalpha thatsignify thealert,relaxedmoodinwhichapersonis
highlyreceptivetooutsidesignals.Thisstatecanbeinducedthroughhypnosis,meditation,
listening tomusic, and even watching television.
Theta
Inadults,thetawavesusually denoteadeep trance,amode thatsomemysticscanenter at
will.When theta waves dominate, sensation of pain may bedulled; thus, a yogi or fakir
whoseputtingforth theta wavesmaybeable toliecomfortably onabedofnailsorendure
piercing woundswithout wincing.
Delta
Delta waves, with their stretched out peaks, are slower than most other waves and are
46 SHRUTI
usually generated during sleep. Some neuroscientists believe that delta waves are also a
defence mechanism: When the brain isendangeredby injury or disease, it may lapse into
delta-waveemission.
NADA: Themicrobeofcure
Inrecent times,Scientistshave found outthatfor everydiseasethereisamicrobethatcures
it.Butwhatissoextraordinaryisthatthismicrobeisextremelycontagious,morecontagious,
thanthemicrobeofthemalady itself. Itgenerallydevelops under twoconditions: in those
whohaveasortofgoodhumourand energy and those who have a strong will togetwell!
When these people come in contact with those who carry this microbe, they catch the
microbeandarecured. Whatiswonderfulisthatifthereisonewho iscuredinanepidemic,
threemorerecoverimmediately.Andthismicrobeisfoundinallwhoarecured.
Butwhatpeopletaketobeamicrobeissimplythematerialisationofavibrationandawill
of another world. One might say, "Matteris progressing" it has become more and more
receptivetohigherwill. What istranslatedintheirscienceas "microbes"will be perceived.
ifonegoes totherootofthings,asbeingsimplyavibratorymodeinthe materialtranslation
ofasuperiorwill.Ifyoucanbringthisforceorthiswill,thispower,thisvibrationintocertain
given circumstances,itwillactnotonly withinusbutaroundusthroughcontagionandcure
the illsor distortedvibrationalformations that disease us.
Andthusthehealing andtransformationthrough NADAwill begin...