HEALING RHYTHMS

EPISODE XI

SCIENCE  BEHIND  SUPERSTITIONS

Sounds of Healing

Is there any  benefits of listening to devotional songs

Music has been a part of our lives – whether after our birth, to make the baby sleep or, after death to make the soul to rest with god.

Our ancestors were insisting a culture of prayer where they believed that  their praise and ragas  will be  heard by the Almighty, make accepting their submission, which ultimately alleviate their sufference. 

Our women are aware of the right lullaby which is endowed with a certain rhythm, pitch, intensity and purpose, to make the infant sleep.

Our ancestors even knew the impact of sound and they depicted that sound can break inanimate objects- the old literature tells us about a poet Kalamegham who could break a lock/metal object by the pitch of his song, to make  open it to get into the temple.

Sound , Music ,Mind, Life and Object are interrelated words in any form of life- whether human , animal or plants as sound can become music and music can effect  a mind and even an inanimate object. 

Sounds is power!

A soulful melody  sometimes opens the flood gates of old memories, make us to remember which leads to  a beautiful reverie?

We have felt sometimes  so overwhelmed by a mellifluous strain that tears have streamed down our eyes in a wave of catharsis? 

Sounding good?   That’s interesting!

A sound is measured as db- (decible) like what we use the words like litres,centimeters,gallon.

While whispering sounds at 30db,  a sound below 20 decible can't be heard by human ears (but rat can hear) and, a  normal conversation (at 3-5 feet) happens at 60-70db.

CAN SOUND INFLUENCE THE PHYSIOLOGY OF LIFE-THE ORGANS,THE HEART ?

CAN SOUND BE USED AS A THERAPY TO CURE CERTAIN DISEASES?

If so at what decible? And, to what  extent it relates to the devotional songs (irrespective of religious belief)

Let us discuss.

It is discovered that these special songs are in between 70 to 90 db and could influence the functioning of life organs. Not that only the human mind get relaxed but it is proved that when these songs are played in the early morning hours even cows give more milk yield and plants grow better.

The songs that are sung for praising gods are called Bhajans or Kirthanas or Devotional Songs. Temporary freedom of mind and body is the thing that is wanted by everyone. If a person is in need of peace of mind,  listens to devotional songs.

Our ancestors, at their old age  diverted  themselves to religious activities and listen to more devotional songs  to get peace of mind and relax, and they got together in the evenings,took part in group prayers to seek the blessings from the Lord.

Bhajans are songs that fill the soul with peace and are known to calm even the most short-tempered. It brings balance and daily work does not seem cumbersome once you are at peace with yourself. When bhajans are chants that are repeated verses they are termed as kirtans. There are many who have brought light to this form of music. In the medieval ages there was Tulsidas, Surdas, Kabir and Meera Bai.

These bhajans also help in meditation as one has to close their eyes and concentrate on the words and the music of the bhajan. As the body sways from side to side all tensions seem to release and mind goes into deep meditation. 

Throughout history, music has been used to facilitate healing. Aristotle believed the flute in particular was powerful. Pythagoras taught his students to change emotions of worry, fear, sorrow, and anger through the daily practice of singing and playing a musical instrument. The first accounts of the influence of music on breathing, blood pressure, digestion, and muscular activity were documented during the Renaissance (Munro and Mount, 1978).

Vibrations of sounds were employed to alleviate physical pain and relieve psychosomatic disorders in the past. 

Music therapy rose to prominence during World War I and World War II; at that time musicians were employed to render appropriate musical notes to alleviate mental trauma and physical pain to veterans of war. The response was so good that many hospitals began to employ musicians. 

During the 1960’s,  musical vibrations were used to heal, Popularly called as music baths, clients in  Scandinavia ,Britain and Norway were bathed in sound and music. 

The recent form of music therapy called as vibroacoustic therapy, is an extension of music baths, where sound is transferred directly from the air into the body of the patient. Certain medical conditions like cerebral palsy, asthma, constipation, abdominal pain, and sleeplessness have responded well to the treatment. 

Today, hospitals are beginning to use the magic of music and which acts as a complementary procedure  to the modern system, in conjunction with other treatments to ameliorate certain illnesses and in helping the patients to destress,regularise blood pressute,enhance memory, in pain management, Alzheimer's disease and other dementias( Selecting music from an individual's past may evoke memories of times, places, and persons as these memories can contribute additional information to the treatment of the individual),and as Communication for those with autism or communication disorders.

Research accomplishments

Thousands of specific research studies have been undertaken in the clinical uses of music in medical and dental treatment, a many others are currently in process. Among those clinical uses are the following:

• As an analgesic. 

• As a relaxant and anxiety reducer for infants and children. 

• With Burn patients. Burn patients experienced alleviation aesthetic sterility and distraction from constant pain. 

• With terminally ill individuals. Cancer patients, 

• With persons with cerebral palsy. As early as 1950, music therapy together with physical therapy was shown to reduce the neurological problems of children with cerebral palsy.

• With individuals who have had Strokes or have Parkinson's disease. 

• With persons who have Sensory impairments or AIDS. Many studies have explored the applications of music therapy to individuals who have sensory impairments (visual and hearing), mental retardation, or AIDS. 

• With Elderly persons. In 1991 the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging convened a hearing on the therapeutic benefits of music elderly persons as both a supportive and a preventive health service. 

• With persons with Brain injuries. Specific music therapy intervention on empirical measures of self-perception, empathy, social perception, depression, and emotional expression in persons with brain injuries

Sounds influence the complete human energy system, increasing our response to them, which is perhaps one good reason why we are also called ‘Musical Beings’. 

The songs whether devotional or non devotional creates positive vibrations and is a must  to relieve and elevate you  in  today's mechanised life style.

CAN SOUND BREAK INANIMATE OBJECTS?

Let us meet again.