The Ancient Power of Chanting (Mantra)
Validated by Modern Science
Written By: Sayer Ji, Founder, GreenMedInfo LLC
May 11th 2017
This article is copyrighted by GreenMedInfo LLC, 2017
Chanting (mantra) is an ancient technology that modern science reveals connects us in a very real way to the farthest reaches of the universe.

I love chanting mantras, and I do so daily as an integral part of my kundalini yoga practice. I don’t need to know the specifics of how it produces a calming and sometimes even transcendent effect on my consciousness, but I’ve always been deeply curious about the mechanisms that may be at play beneath the surface of my awareness.

This is why I am both deeply grateful and amazed by the work of John Reid, the UK inventor of the cymascope -- a technology that renders sound visible. In an article published on his website titled, “Cymatics -- A Bridge To the Unseen World”, John and his wife Annaliese reveal facts about sound that are simply mind-blowing and worthy of far greater dissemination.

First, did you know that sound is actually not a wave but a spheroidal phenomenon?

In their words:

“Before looking at cymatics more closely, let us dispel the popularly held misconception that “sound is a wave”: it isn’t. All audible sounds are, in fact, spherical in form or spheroidal, that is to say audible sounds are sphere-like but not necessarily perfectly spherical. For the sake of simplicity we’ll call these spheroidal sound spheres “Sound bubbles.”

Take a look at the ultrasound beam produced by dolphins:

As you can see above, the sound is not produced in wave form but as a spheroidal beam. If you were to slice horizontally into the beam and look at the cross section it would appear to contain geometric patterns that contain a type of cymaglyphic information analogous to hieroglyphs. In other words, these sound structures carry information as real and meaningful as words do in human language. 

John’s dolphin research using the cymatoscope has revealed groundbreaking information about how dolphins communicate and “see” with sound. If you are interested, you can drill deeper into this discovery by reading his landmark paper published in the Journal of Marine Sciences: Research and Development titled, “A Phenomenon Discovered While Imaging Dolphin Echolocation Sounds.”

John and Annaliese go on to explain one of the most amazing facts about the ‘sound bubbles’ that we produce, which I find most compelling in connection to many powerful experiences I have had with mantras, both listening and reciting them, in the yoga tradition:

“Our world is teeming with beautiful holographic sound bubbles that envelop us in shimmering patterns of acoustic energy, each bubble rushing away at around 700 miles an hour as new bubbles form from the source of the sound. Whether the sound is emitted from your voice or from some other source, such as a musical instrument, this ‘bubble-in-a-hurry’ leaves a fleeting vibrational imprint on the surface of your body: every cell in the surface tissues of your body actually receives sound patterns from the bubbles that surround you.”

Did you get that? When we speak or chant, we are producing sound bubbles that attain speeds of 700 miles per hour. But it gets better. Check this out:

“You create infrared light even when you speak...The atoms and molecules of air within this expanding bubble are bumping into each other, each collision transferring your voice vibrations to the nearest atom or molecule. As these ‘bumps' occur they cause infrared light to be created due to the friction between the magnetic shells of the air particles. The infrared light carries with it the modulations of your voice that rush away at the incredible speed of 186,000 miles per second. Unlike the sound of a voice, which becomes inaudible after about one mile, the infrared light created by your voice rushes out into space, where it travels for eternity, carrying your words or songs to the stars.

Thus, there is a direct relationship between sound and light and in fact there can be no light in the Universe without sound because light is only created when atoms collide with each other, and such collisions are sound. So light and life owe their existence to sound.”

What I find so amazing about this is that kundalini practitioners have long made claims about the power of mantra to connect us to the universe that on the surface may appear like pseudo-science. But the science that John Reid is speaking to -- the actual empirical phenomena -- now lends scientific support to at least some of these claims.

Here is Yogi Bhajan, founder of the American tradition of kundalini yoga, making statements that make more sense in light of the mechanisms discussed by John Reid:

“Every element of the Universe is in a constant state of vibration, manifested to us as light, sound and energy. The human senses perceive only a fraction of the infinite range of vibration, so it is difficult to comprehend that the Word mentioned in the Bible is actually the totality of vibration which underlies and sustains all creation. A person can tune his or her own consciousness into the awareness of that totality with the use of a mantra. By vibrating in rhythm with the breath to a particular sound that is proportional to the creative sound, or sound current, one can expand one’s sensitivity to the entire spectrum of vibration. It is similar to striking a note on a stringed instrument. In other words, as you vibrate, the Universe vibrates with you.”

“What is a mantra? Mantra is two words: Man and tra. Man means mind. Tra means the heat of life. Ra means sun. So, mantra is a powerful combination of words which, if recited, takes the vibratory effect of each of your molecules into the Infinity of the Cosmos. That is called 'Mantra.'”

“By vibrating in rhythm with the breath to a particular sound that is proportional to the creative sound, or sound current, one can expand one’s sensitivity to the entire spectrum of vibration. It is similar to striking a note on a stringed instrument. In other words, as you vibrate, the Universe vibrates with you.”

"Mantras are not small things, mantras have power. They are the mind vibration in relationship to the Cosmos. The science of mantra is based on the knowledge that sound is a form of energy having structure, power and a definite predictable effect on the chakras and the human psyche."

We live in a remarkable time where what was once purely the stuff of myth, and considered magical thinking and “woo" by skeptics the world over, is starting to receive validation through the 'hardest of sciences'.  For instance, the concept of the body radiating light is now also accepted through the discovery of biophotons, which we reported on in a previous article, and even the ritual of burning medicinal herb sage to 'ward off evil spirits' has been found to have powerful cleansing properties.

That said, the most powerful way to understand information like this is to experience it directly. I encourage readers to experience the tradition of mantra directly. Listen or recite them, and visualize the sound actually moving at tremendous speed and producing light that is extending out into the farthest reaches of the universe. Perhaps then the aphorisms of spiritual masters like Yogi Bhajan will no longer seem strange and unattainable.

For more evidence-based research on the therapeutic value of chanting use our database on Chanting.

To learn more about the CymaScope and a related project Sayer Ji and John Reid are partnering on, take a look at SystomeBiomed.com.

Try the kundalini mantra lesson below to directly experience the power of mantra.

Kirtan Kriya - Sa Ta Na Ma - by Tera Naam
Sat Nam Europe
Published on May 11, 2015
Original Kirtan Kriya Kundalini Yoga Meditation with the Mantra Sa Ta Na Ma. Duration: 30 minutes.
Music and Meditation performed by Tera Naam.

KIRTAN KRIYA - how to do it:
Sit straight in Easy Pose.

EYE POSITION: Meditate at the Brow Point.
MANTRA: Produce the five primal sounds (Panj Shabd): S, T, N, M, A, in the original word form:

SAA: Infinity, cosmos, beginning
TAA: Life, existence
NAA: Death, change, transformation
MAA: Rebirth

Each repetition of the entire mantra takes 3 to 4 seconds.
This is the cycle of Creation. From the Infinite comes life and individual existence. From life comes death or change.
From death comes the rebirth of consciousness to the joy of the Infinite through which compassion leads back to life.

MUDRA: This mantra can be done in many different mudras.
Most common is to begin in Gyan Mudra. The elbows are straight while chanting, and the mudra changes as each fingertip touches in turn the tip of the thumb with firm pressure.

On SAA, touch the first (Jupiter) finger
On TAA, touch the second (Saturn) finger
On NAA, touch the third (Sun) finger
On MAA, touch the fourth (Mercury) finger

Chant in three languages of consciousness:
Human: normal or loud voice (the world)
Lovers: strong whisper (longing to belong)
Divine: mentally; silent (Infinity)

TIME: Begin the Kirtan Kriya in a normal voice for 5 minutes;
then whisper for 5 minutes; then go deep into the sound,
vibrating silently for 10 minutes.
Then come back to a whisper for 5 minutes, then aloud for 5 minutes.
The duration of the meditation may vary, as long as the proportion of loud, whisper, silent, whisper, loud is maintained.

TO END: This sequence will take 30 minutes. Follow with one minute of silent prayer. Then inhale, exhale. Stretch the spine, with hands up as far as possible; spread the fingers wide, taking several deep breaths. Relax.

COMMENTS
Each time the mudra is closed by joining the thumb with a finger, the ego “seals” the effect of that mudra in the consciousness.

The effects are as follows:
1st finger: Gyan Mudra - Knowledge
2nd finger: Shuni Mudra - Wisdom, intelligence, patience
3rd finger: Surya Mudra - Vitality, energy of life
4th finger: Buddhi Mudra - Ability to communicate

This meditation brings a total mental balance to the individual psyche. Vibrating on each fingertip alternates the electrical polarities. The index and ring fingers are electrically negative, relative to the other fingers. This causes a balance in the electromagnetic projection of the aura.

Practicing this meditation is both a science and an art. It is an art in the way it molds consciousness and in the refinement of sensation and insight it produces. It is a science in the tested certainty of the results each technique produces. Meditations have coded actions to their reactions in the psyche. But because Kirtan Kriya is effective and exact, it can also lead to problems if not done properly.

Yogi Bhajan said at Winter Solstice 1972 that a person who wears pure white and meditates on this sound current for 2-1/2 hours a day for one year, will know the unknowable, and see the unseeable. Through this constant practice, the mind awakens to the infinite capacity of the soul for sacrifice, service and creation.

(Source: The Aquarian Teacher, Manual. © Yogi Bhajan Teachings.
© ℗ YogiPress Sat Nam Media. www.satnam.eu)

Listen to one of my favorite mantras below:
Gayatri Mantra Tina Malia
Amparo Bandera
Uploaded on May 25, 2011
Benefits of the Gayatri Mantra:
Sharpens the ability to acquire knowledge.
Alleviates disease.
Avoid all miseries.
Wish fulfilling.
It protects us from harm.
It provides state of fullness.
Ensures a bright and auspicious future.
It provides you with inexhaustible strength to overcome all obstacles.
Released from the wheel of birth and death.
Clean mind.
It is the key that unlocks the door of cosmic consciousness.
Confers wisdom, prosperity, purity and liberation.
Removes all fear.
Destroys karma.
Disclaimer:
This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of GreenMedInfo or its staff.
About the Author:
Sayer Ji is founder of Greenmedinfo.com, a reviewer at the International Journal of Human Nutrition and Functional Medicine, Co-founder and CEO of Systome Biomed, Vice Chairman of the Board of the National Health Federation, Steering Committee Member of the Global Non-GMO Foundation.
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