Chanting

by Arthur Gillard

Why Chant?

We chant to join our voices to the voices of countless seekers, worshipers, mystics, and lovers of life, in every time and in every place, who have shared in sacred song.

We chant to fill our hearts and fill our homes with loving and peaceful vibrations of sound.

We chant because it's fun.

We chant to help the stress and freneticness of our busy lives melt away.

We chant for the sheer joy of letting our God-given voices sing out.

We chant for the heartful communion that we feel with others when we come together in song.

We chant our prayers to God, so that our lives may be graced by more intimate Presence of the One known by so many names.

- from Chanting: Discovering Spirit in Sound, by Robert Gass, p.10

Chanting may be defined as “a short, simple series of syllables or words that are sung or intoned to the same note or a limited range of notes,” but chanting covers an amazingly diverse spectrum of musical expression, and serves many purposes – telling stories, healing or casting out disease (e.g. when used by shamans or ayahuasceros), conveying instructions, inducing trance, quieting the mind, mourning the dead, opening the heart, relaxation, communing with others or for the sheer enjoyment of it.

Chanting is a form of meditation, and may be synergistically combined with other practices. Chanting in groups can be a very powerful bonding and healing experience, fostering feelings of communion. It is also often a form of devotional practice, a heartfelt prayer, as illustrated in the following quote by the 13th century Catholic lay sister Mechtild of Madeburg:

As the Godhead strikes the note,
Humanity sings.
The Holy Spirit is the harpist,
And all the strings must sound
Which are touched in love.

In addition to the spiritual and meditational aspects, chanting has many measurable physiological benefits as well – and may be used for its physical benefit alone. For example, the repetitive nature of chant induces deeper, slower, more rhythmic breathing, and the sound vibrations of chant resonate throughout our bodies in a kind of internal massage. Brainwave patterns are measurably altered, in a way that is correlated with states of relaxation or heightened creative response, and blood pressure and heart rate are lowered. Eastern traditions believe that chanting frees up the vital bodymind energy known as chi, prana, or kundalini, with very positive impacts throughout the body.

Exercise: Simple Chants

The simplest way to try chanting is to play a chant recording and sing along with it. There are many samples available for free on the Internet – see the reference section for some useful links.

Here are two examples:

Om Namah Shiviya (this may be translated as “I bow to Shiva” or “I bow to the god within”) and is one of the most popular chants in the world today. Samples of this chant are available here.

Om Tara Tu Tare Ture Svaha (“Homage to you, Divine Tara, Radiant Mother of Compassion and Great Protector”).

Track one ("Tantric Tara") of Jonathan Goldman's excellent “Trance Tara” CD is an unusual and particularly powerful version of this chant. A sample is available here.

References

1. Robert Gass, Chanting: Discovering Spirit in Sound (New York: Broadway Books, 2000).

2. Robert Gass, Chant: Spirit in Sound (CD companion to above). [This is perhaps the best single introduction to the variety of chant practiced throughout the world.]

3. Jonathan Goldman, Healing Sounds: The Power of Harmonics (Rockport: Element Books, 1992).

4. Don Campbell, The Mozart Effect: Tapping the Power of Music to Heal the Body, Strengthen the Mind, and Unlock the Creative Spirit (New York: Avon Books, 1997).

5. For information on icaros, powerful chants used for healing in Ayahuasca ceremonies, including samples you can listen to, go to http://www.biopark.org/peru/icaros.html.

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This article was written and contributed by Arthur Gillard.

see also:
Toning
Infinity Hymn

The Integral News and Views blog aims to explore accessible and practical integral perspectives for people who are interested in getting beyond fragmented worldviews, who desire intimacy with all that they are, and who wish to help the world, themselves, and others evolve and thrive in a mutually beneficial and sustainable manner.





This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License.

Toning

by Arthur Gillard

“Toning is the use of the voice to express sounds for the purpose of release and relief...It is nonverbal sound, relying primarily on vowels, though it may incorporate the use of consonants to create syllables as long as they are not utilized to create coherent meaning. Sighing, moaning, and humming may also be recognized as forms of toning.” - Jonathan Goldman, Healing Sounds

Toning may be simply defined as “to make sound with an elongated vowel for an extended period.” Simple in concept and easy to practice, it is nonetheless a powerful tool which may be used for such diverse purposes as pain relief; releasing emotions; resolving past trauma; balancing the flow of energy in the bodymind and restoring harmony.

At a very basic physiological level, toning facilitates deep breathing because in order to release the sounds, the belly and diaphragm must be expanded; deep breathing slows the heart rate and calms the nervous system and thus promotes deep relaxation. Toning facilitates meditative states of consciousness and is believed by many to help clear energy blockages in the chakra system (energy centers in the subtle body).

Simple forms of toning include moaning and groaning to relieve stress or pain. One can adopt a playful attitude and experiment with making diverse sounds using the freedom of your voice, and optionally incorporating other sound-making practices such as banging drums, gongs, pots and pans, etc. In toning the main “rule” is that the sounds should be devoid of conceptual meaning, otherwise you are chanting or singing – certainly worthy in their own right, but not the same practice.

In the following introductory exercise, don't worry about toning on particular notes, rather take an intuitive approach. When the instructions say to change the note, simply make your voice tone deeper or higher as feels right to you.

Toning Fundamentals Exercise (from Sounds of Healing by Mitchell L. Gaynor, p. 99)

Inhale through your nose. Release your breath through your mouth while making one long sustained sound. When you run out of breath, inhale again through your nose and exhale through your mouth, again making a long sustained sound. Repeat this procedure as often as you like.

You can stand, sit in a cross-legged position on the floor, or sit on a chair. Be sure your spine is straight and your diaphragm and abdomen are unobstructed. If you're standing, imagine that the sound is coming up from your feet. Relax your jaw. When you make a sound, let your jaw hang open.

Tone a vowel on the note of your choice for as long as your breath allows. Repeat several times.

Tone the same sound on a different note.

Tone a syllable on the same note. Repeat several times. (Example: Tone OM, LAM, or HU.)

Tone the same syllable on a different note, and repeat.

Find a syllable-and-note combination that you like, and tone it again and again.

References

1. Mitchell L. Gaynor, M.D., Sounds of Healing

2. Jonathan Goldman, Healing Sounds: The Power of Harmonics

3. Jonathan Goldman, Healing Sounds Instructional CD

4. Linda L. Nielsen, Ph.D, Microtonal Healing: Spirit of the Healing Voice

5. Don Campbell, The Mozart Effect

6. Deborah Van Dyke, Traveling the Sacred Sound Current

7. Simon Heather, The Healing Power of Sound

8. Renee Brodie, The Healing Tones of Crystal Bowls

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This article was written and contributed by Arthur Gillard.

see also:
Chanting
Infinity Hymn

The Integral News and Views blog aims to explore accessible and practical integral perspectives for people who are interested in getting beyond fragmented worldviews, who desire intimacy with all that they are, and who wish to help the world, themselves, and others evolve and thrive in a mutually beneficial and sustainable manner.





This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License.