There are enough people I know who have gotten really tired of all the misinformation about sound and sound healing that has manifested on the Internet. In the interest of trying to remedy this situation, I would like to initiate an ongoing column focusing on some aspects of the science of sound and sound healing.
I think in order to begin to approach this immense topic, it’s important to define science. Why? Because a lot of the people writing a lot of the misinformation about sound are claiming to be scientists. In fact, they are not only claiming to be—many of them are scientists. But the question is: are they scientists of sound?
There’s a lot of different definitions of the word “scientist “The British Dictionary” which states that a scientist is: an expert in Science, especially one of the physical or natural sciences” or “a person who studies or practises any of the sciences or who uses scientific methods”. The “Oxford Dictionary” explains that a scientist is: “a person who is studying or has expert knowledge of one or more of the natural or physical sciences.” “Merriam-Webster Dictionary tells us that a scientist is: “a person who is trained in a science and whose job involves doing scientific research or solving scientific problems.
Next, of course, we have to ask: what the heck is science. Webster’s tells us that science is: “The intellectual and practical activity encompassing the systematic study of the structure and behavior of the physical and natural world through observation and experiment.” Okay. Enough already. It’s obvious that a person who practices science is a scientist. And that includes anyone studying aspects of the world that they have observed. Great! On one level, we are all scientists.
But as noted in the early part of this writing, there are a lot of people who are scientists—even professional doctors, dentists, astronomers, micro-biologists and all sorts of assorted and sundry types. However, I would like you to contemplate that while doctors, for example, may spend many years at college, post graduate and medical school, as well as interning in hospitals, etc., just because they may have extraordinary training in treating the body or specific parts of the body, this does not mean that they know any more than the average person about sound. They may not be familiar with sound waves, the study of binaural beat frequencies, the work of Alfred Tomatis, M.D. or that of Hans Jenny, M.D., (creator of Cymatics).
I mention these last two, because both were medical doctors who made extraordinary in roads in the field of sound. And with Dr. Jenny, his remarkable discoveries with Cymatics (showing how sound effects matter) were done in his spare study, almost as a hobby and unrelated to his work as a physician. Thus, while both Tomatis and Jenny were MDs, they are the rarity and not the model for those who know and work with sound. I’d like to suggest that just because someone has a number of initials after their name does not necessarily make them an expert in the field of sound nor sound therapy.
With regard to science, I just synchronistically found a quote in a news weekly magazine by Nobel Prize (1965) winning Physicist Richard Feynman, who (double synchronicity) was a great advocate of Tuva, home of “Hoomi” or throat singing, a type of vocal harmonics which happens to be one of the subject of my first book HEALING SOUNDS. While Feynman apparently never actually made it to Tuva (he first spoke of it in 1964—a time when Tuva was virtually unknown—truly), he was one of the first people to bring awareness of “Hoomi” to the West. Here is the quote from Feynman, a man who was called “the Best Mind since Einstein”, about science: “Science is the belief in the ignorance of the experts.”
When I read this, I laughed out loud. It does suggest that just because one studies science doesn’t mean too much. If you’re interested in a truly intriguing man, google Richard Feynman. He was the type of individual who received his answers first and then had to spend time getting the math (or whatever) to prove it. Seems a bit like Nikola Tesla, the father of many modern inventions, including the radio (yes—Marconi was told how to build it by Tesla) and the man responsible for AC (alternating current). Apparently Tesla would often see or receive the vision of the completed product he needed to create and then found it necessary to figure out how to produce it.
Regardless, we have the greatest respect for people of science. And we also have the greatest respect for people of spirituality. And most of all, we have the greatest of respect for sound. Thus, in the columns following this one, we will be focusing on aspects of sound that seem to either have been forgotten or somehow have become distorted. Rather than go into any of this material now, I’ll just suggest that we’ll be examining some of the “nuts and bolts” of sound—everything from sound waves to why certain scales and different keynotes developed.
From my perspective, fluidity is one of the most important aspects of evolution. And as we evolve and develop, we must not hold too heavily to certain beliefs—otherwise we won’t be able to disprove them if it’s possible or necessary. And we indeed will be manifesting the “ignorance of the experts”. At the same time, it’s important for us to also realize that here in our 3 dimensional world, there are certain things that are mandatory to acknowledge. Like gravity. No doubt, someday, we’ll all be levitating and floating around. But, if I may paraphrase the words of comedian Bill Hicks: “If you think you can fly—be like a duck and try to take off from the ground. Don’t jump off the building in order to prove it.” Thus, we’re going to be taking off from the ground with this column, working with some very fundamental and important principles that many may have forgotten. Things that are important to remember!
Enjoy!
What is sound? Music is part of sound or is sound part of music? Some years ago I took a workshop from a French ‘scientist’ (don’t remember his name) on osteophonie – osteo = bone and phony = sound. He would put a small electrode on the bone behind the ear, and then send out different sounds from high to low pitches. I had to tell him where I was hearing each sound. It sounded that some were coming from the left side, front, top etc. Actually, all the sounds were coming from that bone behind the ear. As sound travels much faster in the bones than in the air, pitches I did not like were being pushed away and by the time the sound reached my ear drum I was hearing them coming from different places. Some of those negative pitches may have come from words pronounced in a harsh way that affected me at one time, like a reprimand, and as I don’t like that pitch I am pushing it away. To correct or remedy, he had us use different phonetic sounds that corresponded to the pitches I heard elsewhere than from my inner ear. As it turned out I had some difficulty pronouncing those sounds. (I assume just like you wrote, listening to music you did not like). According to this ‘scientist’ European French language vibrates in the torso, English vibrates in the head, French Canadian vibrates from the belly button to just below the nose (because we use a lot of English words I suppose). Russian language vibrates all over the body. Well, that left me reminiscing. As a French Canadian brought up in the English Province of Ontario and having lived in French Europe, I could relate to this very well. I observed that the French-only speakers have a hard time pronouncing the English TH, a sound coming from the head. The English-only speakers have a hard time pronouncing the French ‘R’ which comes from the pit of the stomach. When I speak French I am now aware that my inner organs get massaged with sound and when I speak English, it’s what’s in my head that gets attention. Is that why Indian and Mexican hot food are more popular with the Anglos? Is it to get the organs in their torso stimulated? There is a small boutique specializing only in hot food, mostly sauces, of all sorts in the Ottawa Market (Anglo speaking) and it is quite popular. This boutique would never survive in a French district. Do you see where I am getting at? You specialize in music. Are words pronounced not considered some kind of music to one’s ear, whether good or bad? Would it be interesting to figure which language or sound combined with a certain music would work for healing different parts of the body? Or emotions? What have you found in this regard? Could it not be possible to work with sound and music to help us learn another language faster? When we immerse ourselves in learning another language, we enter the soul of a people we would never discover otherwise. I would not like to see this world with only one language. English seems to be becoming so. English people don’t mind this at all, but most non-Anglos would certainly not want to see this in their life-time. As for me, I see the difference when I speak one particular language for too long. I need to also speak the other one as well with French as my base. Latins are known for their passion.
Ahhh (sigh of relief). Thank you, looking forward to this column.
no,we wont be levitating. Planet Earth 3d is purely to experience and enjoy the limitations of relativity. Yes we are evolving, remembering, but we are here to experience what truly being a dense physical incarnation is all about. Yes, we will experience the wonders of lighter dimensional lifetimes, but not until we fully embrace and ACCEPT this life, warts and all. Daily we are exposed to things we dont like, dont want to happen, but as cruel and insane as it is, it is just relativity. Yet we judge, we condemn, which feeds the energetic matrix that creates this reality. Science can only gives us bandaids because it works within a.limited framework. Albert Einstein said it was God have gave him Science.
Of course help, when you can, be compassionate, desire change, but do not, i repeat, do not add to the energy of limitation, division, separation, prejudice and injustice. Accept everything, you may not like it, or agree with it, but everytime you encounter something like this, you are being blessed. It is giving you a chance to BE, to Share LOVE. When you see an atrocity, send the perpetrators love, tell them you love them. THis force, this energy of love is the Universal Song that when sung by enough, can and will bring about wonderful changes. I feel it in my fingers, I feel it everywhere, Love is all around me and yes I feel it grow. All you need is love, love, love is all you need! So be Love- we live for love.
Thank you for this insightful article. I believe in color, sound, vibrational healing work and know that it is the “new frontier”.