by Thomas Váczy Hightower
In the first part of The Sound of Silence we have mainly investigated the broaden concept of motion, the pendulum and its strange behavior at the quantum level. Now we will explore other meta physical aspects of music and sounds.
Standing waves is an essential
phenomenon in the creation of the musical
tone. In my page
The Creation of the Musical Scale there is a description of
standing
waves.
Here
we will just state, that standing waves automatically divide the length of a string or
an air column into an integral
number of half wave-lengths. It is only then, a standing wave can be
sustained. That pattern is the most energy effective form nature can provide. (A
similar pattern is the rhythm entrainment, where random oscillation after a
while begin to oscillate in unison).
Standing
waves can not exist unless they divide their medium into an integral numbers of
half waves with its nodes. A standing waves having a fractional wavelength can
not be sustained.
On the quantum level sound does not have meaning, but standing wave does still perform order, when we are looking at the orbiting electrons in an atom. In the early 20th. Century spectrum analysis showed 7 levels or series for the orbiting electrons, but it was unclear how the electrons was able to maintain they fixed orbits. The quantum physicist de Borglie came up with an explanation, when he in 1923 proposed, that the electrons not only existed as particles, but also behaved as waves of matter, which interfered with themselves as standing waves. By this order the numbers of electrons are maintained in their orbits. de Borglie's theory was later proved by experiments.
The orbit is only stable if
it meets the condition for standing waves. The
circumference had to be an integer number of the wavelength. The consequence is
that only special values of radius and energy is allowed for the electrons, if
they stay stable and do not emit energy. They are quantized.
Niels Bohr's
atom theory stated in contrary to the classical law of electrodynamics, that
the electrons do not emits energy, photons, as long as they energy integers are
in accordance with the properties of standing waves.
Table of the Elements
The periodic tables of
Elements
reflexes the wave pattern of atoms. Usually the table is displayed with 7
series of quantized atoms, where the first level contains the lightest atoms,
Hydrogen and Helium. The atomic weight depends mainly of the number of neutrons
and protons in the nucleus and is increasing down the diagram. I have changed
the periodic, vertical level with octaves.
If we look at the atomic weight, which is not indicated in this table of
elements due to clarity, we will notice, that the law of
octaves to a great extent is displayed by the double atomic weight for
each descending octave. In addition, each main octave contains inner octaves on the horizontal,
group
level, so we can view the Table of Elements as a
square of octaves.
This way of viewing the table of elements as a square of octaves does not have a
scientific value. The atomic weight numbers do not in many cases show a strict
octave behavior.
However, I find in the general display of the table
of elements too many coincidences of octave patterns, that I dare bring this
point of view. Nature does not reveals itself as a finished, perfect framework.
There are flaws everywhere, cracks for the light to enter and space for the
continuous creation.
Just think about is: the
universe as we at the present time can observe: it is only a fraction of what
really is out there. Literally speaking only the top of the iceberg. The empty
space is loaded with invisible matter and energy, the "dark matter", which
only indirectly can be detected and calculated by the rotation of galaxies. It
is mind shaking, that science still have to figure out what kind of matter, that
occupied most of the Universe.
In accordance with the cosmogony and the theory of the Big
Bang for about 13,5 billion years ago, only Hydrogen and Helium existed in the
new born Universe. The gravitational pull in clouds of those two elements shaped the stars,
and the
creations of the following elements slowly began under heat and pressure in the plasma. By the dead of
a star, the new elements was and is continuously released into the inter
stellar space. Some of the heavy elements can only be produced by Super Nova's.
I like to view the on going creation as a big decending cosmic octave, where the
first notes was Hydrogen and Helium.
In western tradition the legendary Orpheus, the Greek inventor of the 7 tone
scale about 1200 BC, created the music in order to open the hearts of men for
the divine 7 Rays. How the music actually was played in ancient Greek is
speculation other than it was a sacred ritual, as in the East. They played
the music differently, but the aim was the same.
It was first in the end of the 15th Century, when the change in the
Western society with the Renaissance, the alteration in the focus became prominent.
The close attachment to the church became more detached as the need or demand
for music serving kings and the rise of rich business dynasties. The music changed more and more to the honor
of man and to the glory of his outward manifestations.
The development in musical practice from monophonic to polyphonic and after the
Renaissance to fully "harmonious" music, made it necessary to have
especially the third harmonized. The Pythagorean third (81:64) is a
syntonic comma larger than the harmonic third (5:4). The need for harmonizing
the third in the part-songs became imperative as the polyphonic music became
predominant.
New musical scales was developed to serve that requirement, such as
the Just Intonation.
In the East the music remained as a tool for letting the heart
sing its praise for the sublime God, the one inside as well as for the
Universe.
The question remains: does music have a power that is above cultural
differences? Does objective
music exist?
Reijo Elsner has written an interesting article about Russian Icons: "Are
Icons a form of Objective art?"
It is general knowledge, that the notion of harmony comes from
the ancient Greeks word, harmonia. It was a key
word of the Pythagoreanism and meant primarily the joining or fitting of things
together. Originally it was connected to the concept of cosmos. Its musical
meaning was established by the early fifth Century B.C. according to professor
Guthrie ("A History of Greek
Philosophy", Vol. I,) first seen from Pindar.
The numerical explanation of the universe was a generalization from the
discovery made by Pythagoras himself and revealed the numerical ratios which
determine the concordant intervals of the scale. We find it clearly in Aristotle's explanation of Pythagoras' harmony of the spheres and also in
Plato's statements. (see my page The
Harmony of the Spheres)
However, as Burnet notes, there was no such things as harmony in our sense.
Harmonia meant tuning, or scale or octave. Classic Greek music was melodic,
modal, without use of harmonious chords as we are used to.
Plutarch (44-120 B.C.) stats that for Pythagoras and his
disciples, the word harmonia meant "octave" in the sense of an
attunement which manifests within its limits both the proper fitting together of
the concordant intervals, fourth and fifth, and the difference between them, the
whole tone.
Moreover, Pythagoras proved that whatever can be said of one octave can be said
of all octaves.
The essential point was, that the three intervals, the octave, the fourth and the fifth, were regarded as primary and fixed; as the element out of which any musical scale or composition was build. The other notes was not fixed and could move accordingly to the different modes.
Order
and beauty - the concept of cosmos - was imposed by the three fixed notes
with the ratio of 1:2, 2:3 and 3:4 on the chaotic range of sounds from the other
untied notes.
This is for me a graphic display of hamonia; an integration of order and
chaos. Harmony does not in my interpretation means pure harmonious tones, but permitting
dissonance between the column of consonance creating harmony.
In our time
there is a tendency to disregard the dissonance in the harmony concept
making it to a sentimental, sweetish stuff. This is an unhealthy denial of real
life consisting of chaos and order - dissonance and consonance.
The ancient Greeks had a profound understanding of balance and proper proportions. It was not
accidental that they chose words on the temple of
Apollo as "Nothing too much" or "Observe limit".
Chaos meant for the Greeks unlimited - evil. Limit stood for order, moderation -
beauty.
The Greek genius in thought and art, represented the triumph of ratio, meaning
on one hand the intelligible, determinate, measurable, as opposed to the
fantastic, vague and shapeless. There had to be a proportion of things both in
themselves and as related to the whole.
The integers 1,2,3 and 4 add up to 10, which was considered perfect and
contained in itself the whole nature of numbers. This number was graphically
represented by the figure known as the Tetratys, which became a sacred symbol
for the Pythagoreans.
One have to notice, that already the ancient Greeks had observed the number 10
as prominent, about 2000 years before the introduction of the decimal system by
the Muslims, who imported it from India.
Numbers was responsible for "harmony", the divine principle that
governed the structure of the whole world. For the Pythagoreans the numbers had
and retained, a mystical significance, an independent reality. Phenomena were
secondary, for the only significant thing about phenomena was the way in which
they reflected numbers.
That attitude was utterly different from
that of a mathematician of today. Mathematics had for the Pythagoreans and also later for
Plato a metaphysical as well as a purely mathematical significance. See
Lambdoma
or the Pythagorean Table and Barbara Hero.
Mathematic and art has since Pythagoras discovery of the connection
between numbers and tones had a deep relationship.
The golden
section, the Phi ratio, was considered by the ancient Greek as the most superb
proportion and a cornerstone in art. Plato considered this proportion as a part
of creation. In the Middle Age it was called the divine proportion and associate with the Trinity. The Golden section combine nature,
mathematic and art in a wholesome unit with transcendental and eternal properties.
The outstanding feature of the golden section is the unique way, it can decrease
or increases by
keeping its exact proportions. The grow pattern in Nature
reflexes this fixed proportion, which also is common in five-sided, pentagonal symmetries, that also
contain Phi ratios.
The Golden Section has a geometric as well as an arithmetical expression, and basically it can be define as a specific way of dividing a line. When the whole line (a+b) relates to biggest section (a) as the biggest section relates to the smallest section (b), we have a Golden Section. The arithmetical expression is a mean proportional: a+b/a = a/b. It is a quadratic equation, where the roots of the ratio a/b = 1+5˝ /2 = Phi = 1.618034....
Calculations of the quadratic equation: a+b/a = a/b ↔ ab + b2 = a2 ↔ a2 - ab - b2 = 0. Since it is the ratio a/b, we shall calculate, we have to divide the last equation with b2 which is: a2 /b2 - ab/b2 - b2 /b2 = 0; paraphrase as (a/b)2 - a/b - 1 = 0; the square roots of a/b = 1 ± 5˝ /2. Since a and b is positive lines only the positive value is used. The approximate value of Phi ratio is 1.618034... The negative value is - 0.618034...The reciprocal value of the decimal is the same, or a/b - 1 = b/a.
There is a lot to tell about the Golden Section.
The practical application in art and architecture is well known, e.g. Leonardo
da Vinci. An example in
our time was the architect le Corbusier, who developed a system of modules based
on the golden section.
In music the Phi ratio does not show importance
properly due to the intangible nature of music. (The Golden Section for an octave lays close to a diminished
sixth.)
One of my readers, John Pritchard, has kindly made me aware of the special relationship The Golden Section and its Phi ratio has to our Solar System. The ratio that separates the 9 planets plus Ceres (in the Asteroid belt ) is nearly an exact match with the Phi ratio. The calculation can be made in different ways, but they come to the same conclusion. Their mean distance from the Sun follows the grow spiral from the Golden Section. http://solargeometry.com/DistCalc.htm ; http://www.goldenmuseum.com/index_engl.html
It is astonishing, that astronomers, who dedicated so much effort in studying the Harmony of the Spheres, such as Kepler, did not see the Phi ratio. (More details in my page The Harmony of the Spheres.)
I will leave the awesome Phi ratio, and move to the Fibonacci numbers, which also reflex's the growth patterns in Nature, and in a strange way is connected to the Golden Section.
A famous Italian mathematician, Leonardo of Pisa, also called
Fibonacci, issued in 1202 BC a book, "Liber Abaci", which at that time contained
the knowledge
of mathematics using only the new Arabian number system. It was here
he presented a series of numbers which was a solution of a problem dealing with
theoretic rabbits breeding.
It was first later, that the magnitude of Fibonacci number
sequence became known by great mathematicians as Euler and Bernoulli and later
by Binets in his formula for Fibonacci numbers.
The peculiar thing in Binets' formula is the irrational number - square root 5 -
where Fibonacci numbers only are whole numbers. We remember square root 5 in the
Phi ratio, the Golden Section, and the awesome fact is, that the limiting value
of the coefficient series (progression) of Fibonacci numbers is the Phi ratio:
1.6180341.... or Fn / Fn-1 when n is going towards
eternity.
It is thought-provoking, that nature has chosen the Fibonacci
progression for its principle of growth among the innumerable. However, it is a
very simple additive progression: one number is the sum of the two previous
numbers, and it possess the characteristic of approaching the Phi ratio most swiftly.
The two first numbers is the same, namely 1, them starts the addition.
By displaceing the Fibonacci sequence with the nearest previous number, a
sequence of ratios are produced. You can see for yourself, how farst the ratio
of Fibonacci numbers are approaching the Phi ratio:
1/1, 2/1, 3/2, 5/3, 8/5, 13/8, 21/13, 34/21....Fn /Fn-1
....Phi.
1, 2, 1.5, 1.66... 1.6, 1.625, 1.615..1.619...Fn /Fn-1....Phi.
The sequence of Fibonacci numbers are displayed in Nature in
numerous ways, whether it is the position of leaves and seeds or the spiral of
growth in a snail shell, which is similar to the Golden Section spiral. What is more
surprising is the Fibonacci numbers appearance in probability calculation and Pascal's
triad, which was discovered by a theorist of numbers, Edoward Lucas, in the
19th Century.
The use of Fibonacci numbers can be seen in architecture, a few times in modern literature and especially
in modern dodecaphonic music, where the tonal order has been disintegrated and occasionally
a new order was formed by Fibonacci numbers in the sequence of tones.
(I have seen web pages, which
claim that the Fibonacci numbers produce a musical scale by repeating the
beginning numbers. I am not able to see such scale fits the practical
needs in common music)
A famous example in modern music was the Hungarian composer, Béla Bartók, who
searched for "principles which can be serve as a law" (le Corbusier)
by using the golden section and Fibonacci series as the underplaying principle
in all the musical elements and especially the proportion of duration of movement
in music.
The voice is an indication of the developmental
level of a human being. It carries the signature of the being, who is speaking.
The voice is our breath, the essence of our
very life; our being, with sound added to it. The voice is therefore a true
mirror of inner health and mental stability, or lack of it. It reflex the full
range of emotional excitement
or disinterest. For those who can hear, the voice resonante the spiritual attainment
of the speaker.
The same can be said about the way we
laugh.
The tonal quality of our speech has more significance, on a subtle
level, than what we actually say. Words are idle, if they are pronounced without
the resonance of internal concord. The voice reflexes our whole being and our true intent.
Any child can hear that, when we are scolding them.
Sound has the property of affecting the listener more direct and emotionally than sight, which is process in the brain as an distant object. Sound influences the receiver in a closer, more subjective way. It attains deeper emotional levels other places in the ancient brain. Smells have even a more instintive, (sexual) impact. Sounds and smells are received as a molecular input, while sight is an electronically transmission.
Chanting, intoning or singing is therefore a
part in rituals or ceremonies of any culture through time. Singing together is a
old and simple way of tuning the hearts and minds to a common aim.
There are also highly personal songs, belonging only to the individual through whom they
come. Healing Songs, Life songs, mantra are examples of such.
Soul song is another personal sound therapy, which Andrea Arrowsmith,
Inner Sounds of Light Institute
so kindly have made me aware of.
She states, that almost deaf she have all her life
heard and played music on inner realms. Nature and all living things have
keynotes and soul songs from inner realms, that she is able to "hear". Keynotes
resonates from the soul level, always interwined with angelic choirs and music
of the spheres.
The most important is the intention that is conveyed in the sounds. Although we might not verbalize our true thoughts, they emanate from our unconscious mind as we sing, and our own feeling are often purified in the process. This has been experienced by keen overtone singers.
Both these practices are ancient and have been incorporated in one form or another into the songs of major religions. The call to prayer heard five-times daily in Muslim cultures is a type of chanting combined with Toning.
Toning is a system of healing that utilizes vowel sounds to alter vibrations in every molecule and cell in the body. I have read it is simple to learn and extremely powerful. Toning fills the atmosphere with sounds that reverberate long after the singer has quit. People find themselves inwardly silent and often unable to speak once the Toning process has been directed at them. When they do return from the mild trance the sound has placed them in, they are quiet and at peace and restored to balance internally and externally. They say the sound excites them, releases emotional trauma and physical discomfort, at the same time instilling mental unity and spiritual love.
The chanting of Tibetan monks is replete with harmonics in a highly rare manner that affect and stimulate the chakras.
In the western world Throat singing is also called overtone singing, harmonic singing, or harmonic chant. The most known Throat singing is the Tibetan and Mongolian chanting, but also many other regions in the World are practicing a similar type of singing, that manipulates the harmonics resonance's created as air travels through the human vocal folds and out the lips.
The harmonic frequencies created by the human vocal apparatus are harnessed in throat singing to select overtones by tuning the resonance in the mouth. The result of tuning allows the singer to create more than one pitch at the same time, with the capability of creating six pitches at once. Generally the sounds created by throat singing are low droning hums and high pitched flutelike melodies.
Since I wrote about the Tibetan
"One voice
chord" and Mongolian chanting, Hoomi singing, I have received several mails
from Westerner practicing singers, who teach and perform throat singing, and
they all tell me, that the technique actually is easy and do not require deep
studies of Buddhism, still less spiritual enlightment, in order to perform the
deep chordal chanting.
They point out that Western musicologists and scholars in their research of
Tibetan chanting are infatuated by a well meaning but often incorrect
fascination of the mysticism of the chanting monks.
Concerning the widespread propensity to mysticism among Western scholars of Tibetan chanting, I will quote a mail from a well known practician, Steve Sklar, who is a longtime student, performer and teacher of Tuvan Throat-Singing and Tibetan voice. He has a much more down to earth approach. He has even made on-line lessons in Throat Singing. Steve Sklar wrote:
"Since
our earlier correspondence, I've tried to further investigate this issue of the
monks' voice. I have indeed received some criticism for saying that there is
indeed a technical basis for their peculiar chant voice. My point is that the
voice can be understood and that there is no need to perpetuate myths about it.
The Tibetan voice is a powerful and beautiful thing, valid in its own right, and
not in need of romanticizing.
The actual technique simply involves the use of the ventricular folds in
addition to the vocal folds, and often a lowering of the
larynx / trachea, enhancing the deep sound by lengthening the air column of the
vocal system.
Conversations with Tibetan monks and ex-monks still point to learning by
exposure to and imitation of the elder monks. Some can produce the sounds as
young boys, prior to joining the monasteries. Some, including some very highly
regarded monks, cannot chant in the low chordal voice.
The Tibetans DO sometimes mention a reincarnational propensity towards various
practices, such as memorizing texts or being good at chanting. Some have
mentioned a belief, that I may have been a monk in a prior life, hence my skill
at producing the tones and teaching."
Healing by sound has become a growing field, which already Edgar Cayce predicted a half century ago as the "the medicine of the future". This do not mean, that I overlook thousands of years practice of healing by music and sounds. There are multitude of cases in any culture, where music was applied to ease the distress or release the pain. I am referring to the many electronic devices that have been developed to heal with much more precision and direct effect.
Before we start the intangible topic of healing by sound, the
placebo effect has to be mentioned, since it actually is in the domain of alternative medicine
with its mobilization of mental energy.
It started in 1955, when H.K.Beecher
was testing new
medicaments and made a control group with plain chock tablets and discovered
surprisingly, that on average 35% of the patients reacted positive to the
"useless" tablets. He published an article, "Is the placebo powerless?, and
caused a lot of turmoil. He concluded, that the power of imagination had an significant effect
and the placebo effect became soon a factor in modern medicine.
Placebo is Latin meaning "want to please" and the interest for placebo has
historical roots. In a medical connection it appeared first time in 1772. The
physician William Cullen described in a lecture, how he as a last resort
prescribed a placebo for a doomed patient to please him, and as a
scientist to
see what might happen.
I modern medicine the pleasing function of placebo is considered un-ethical. The testing function is carried out as a double blind test to eliminate possible, suggestive influence by the doctor. However, the New Age holistic paradigm has opened the interest of the medical establishment in the mental power of spontaneous healing. It recognizes the psychic regeneration of the immune systems and do not rule out unknown factors in microbiology.
When a doctor is able to make a diagnosis, the
patient has a disease, and a treatment can commence. However, in this
post-industrial age a
astonishing amount of disorders or ailments, which are not able to be diagnose by
regular medical findings. The symptoms are complex and un-specific: Chronic fatigue,
back pain, despondency or weak depression, whip-lash, fibromyalgi or
chronic pain syndrome, unaccountable paralysis.
We are talking about ailments, where the social circumstance is the major factor
in producing the psychic, somatic disorders. This is still surround by taboo,
since the side effect of modern, high effective work is considered as an acceptable
price for the common good. Especially women has been hit by this new
"diagnosis".
(Infants families where both parents are full time working are under inhuman
strain, especially in Countries, where the wage of maids is high and homework
is considered low status.)
A century ago a common "diagnosis" for such disorder was hysteria, and the treatment was
hysterectomy. To day this kind of fashion diagnosis mainly apply to women with
work injury. They need a diagnosis for their insurance case or the early
retirement pension. In Scandinavia about 40 % of the workforce, mainly women,
has been labeled unfit for full time work.
In short, when we are talking about disorders, we have to face the social
circumstance.
Now we can start the brief introduction to healing sound. A more in depth account can be found in The Power of Harmonics.
Ono of the pioneers in using sound to heal was an English osteopath, Dr. Peter Guy Manners, MD. He became aware of Dr. Jenny's cymatic experiments, a Swiss scientist, who spent ten years observing and photographing the effects of sound upon inorganic matter. He himself was inspired by work of Ernest Chladni, an eighteenth-century scientist, who put sand on a glass plate and vibrated them with a violin bow creating harmonic patterns.
Dr. Manners, working under the premise, that disease is an "out of tune ness" of some aspects of the body, created a cymatic therapy and utilizes the Cymatic instrument, which contains thousands of different composite harmonics designed to place the body back into alignment and health.
An other example among many is an American MEd, Sherry Edwards,
who has developed a bioacoustics healing system called "Signature Sound
Works".
The human voice is in fact unique in its sound pattern, as good as a
"finger print". Sherry Edwards used this feature to analyze voices of sick
and healthy people by advanced electronic devices in order to find a correlation
between voices in disease and physiological and psychological disorders. After
having found particular frequencies in distress or simply missing, she chose
those frequencies, generated them and loaded them on tape. Those frequencies are
by earphones sent into the hearing system of the brain in order to manipulate
brain waves and seemingly trick the brain to simulate dormant brain waves so the
delinquent frequencies can be canceled or modified in the body/mind integration
process and reconditioning. Brain
waves as octaves
Robert Monroe, known for his books and
research about out-of-body-experiences, has used specific low frequencies in a
two-channel mode in order to produce "difference tones" (which means 2
sound waves that are subtracted from each other, and the result is a low
frequency) in the brain, evoking synchronization of the brain’s two
hemispheres.
Most solids can be affected to oscillate. The wave it produces, its frequency and shape, depends on the form of the body, the weight, and the material. A string e.g. swings in certain standing modes depending of the length of the string, its thickness and kind of material. The same applies to the sounding board of musical instruments that resonates and amplifies the oscillation of the string. With wind instruments the standing waves in the air pipe is the resonator.
A solid has also its own natural oscillation, which frequencies
can be in a narrow or broader band depending on material and construction. The soundboard
of many musical instruments has a broad bandwidth, e.g. the piano, in order
to resonate and amplify the wide number of octaves.
The violin has a smaller bandwidth, which produces a stronger
resonance, though especially with bad violins the frequencies of its own natural
oscillation will be re-enforced by resonance and a strong howling tone will be
made. The vibration of the string has hit the sound boxes own vibration and a
resonance is made.
The heart
and aorta formed a special resonant system when breathing is ceased for a while. Then the
heart beat seems to wait until the echo returns from the bifurcation (where the
aorta forks out in the lower abdomen). Then the next heart beat sets in. In this
synchronous way a resonant, standing wave of blood is established with a
frequency about seven times a second. This harmonious mode requires for its
sustenance a minimum amount of energy, which is an intelligent response from the
body. In deep meditation a similar mode is established.
It is interesting to
notice that this mode of 7 Hz is closed to the Schumann
resonance.
The reason I introduce the resonance phenomena is to extend its scale to our Earth in order to introduce the Schumann resonance.
The space between the Earth and the Ionosphere forms a cavity,
which can support electromagnetic standing waves with wavelengths that are
comparable to the planetary dimensions. Within the lower atmosphere to a height
of 60 – 70 km above the Earth’s surface the finite electrical conductivity of
the atmosphere is maintained primarily by cosmic rays.
The combination of the nearly perfectly conducting terrestrial surface boundary and the highly conducting, but dissipate, ionospheric outer boundary separated by an insulating layer of non conducting air, creates an approximately spherical concentric cavity, the "Earth-ionosphere cavity" with electrically conducting walls.
These resonance's, called Schumann resonance's, have been observed at many different locations and can, in principle, be detected from any place on the planet with a radio receiver tuned for extremely low frequency (ELF) range of frequencies 3 – 300 Hz.
The resonance's are very weak and are easily obscured by nearby lightning and numerous other unrelated sources of man-made noise. However, away from these unrelated disturbances, the Schumann resonance's constitute the principal component of the natural background of the electromagnetic spectrum over the frequency range 6 – 50 Hz.
Resonance properties of the Earth's ionosphere cavity were first predicted and discussed theoretically by W.O.Schumann in 1952. Schumann and König made the earliest experimental detection of the resonance in 1954.
In the following decades, extensive studies and development of
advanced electronic devices have displayed slight variations of the Schumann
resonance due to the time span it is monitored and where and how the antenna is
constructed and placed.
Mark Barner has kindly send me updated information about Schumann Wave:
"There
has been a lot of misleading information regarding the value of the
"Schumann Wave". There is no one specific value for it, due to the
ever-changing nature of the Earth's ionosphere. Conclusion: Any modal
frequency of the "Schumann Wave" phenomenon may vary by as much as
22.5% (or more) over an arbitrary span of time. This is due to changes in the
minimum and maximum height of the ionosphere, it's composition and it's
thickness. Note also that beyond the 4th modal harmonic, all wavebands will
increasingly overlap. Therefore, to declare the value of 7.83 Hz as the
"absolute, correct and only "Schumann Wave" frequency is to
commit an error."
http://www.bwgen.com/presets/desc45.htm
The most common order of the Schumann resonance is in
Hz: 7.8, 14, 20, 26, 33, 39, 45… n,
where 7.8 Hz is the fundamental frequency and the following
frequencies are the squeezed or overlaping harmonics of the standing wave.
These non-hertzial electromagnetic standing waves of terrestrial
resonance's are interesting, if we look into the human brain wave pattern, EEG,
and the human heartbeat displayed on ECG.
Scientists who want to incorporate spirituality and
consciousness into their science have found, that
harmonic geometry and the frequency window of heart coherence during meditation,
is to be in a
similar bandwidth (1-30 Hz), which characterized not
only transcendence in brain EEG and heart/aorta resonance, but also the Earth's natural
electro-magnetic resonance
frequencies (Schumann resonance). See more at Heartbeat2000
indexmain.
Maybe Mother Nature has not chosen this as a mild coincidence. The Heart, the Brain, and the Earth all have their key information broadcasting on the same channel!
Now we have devices to test and measure the Earth's magnetic ELF frequencies actually falling into resonant alignment with a powerful and coherent human heart intention.
Nikola Tesla, who died mysteriously in 1944, had already
discovered the electromagnetic standing waves (Schumann waves) in the "Earth-ionosphere cavity"
in the late 19th century. Tesla’s wireless power system is well
documented - both in patents and available literature. The idea, as I understand
it, was to treat the Earth as a spherical capacitor, and to charge the ground
with standing electric waves. Tesla tested this system at his Colorado Springs
lab in 1898-1899. He then designed a full blown functional and complete system
to be built at Wardenclyff on Long Island.
Marconi's theft of his radio, the refusal of JP Morgan to
finance something he couldn't charge everybody for, and the advent of the World
War I, prevented the completion of the project.
It is difficult to know to which extend the scientific
establishment really understands Tesla's "free energy" system.
Some are of the opinion that the "Magnifying Transmitter" would tap energy out
of the electrical field of the atmosphere, thereby "becoming" a "free energy"
device. However, J.P. Morgan's refusal to continue financing was based on the
fact, that any fool could receive the power without having to pay for anything
more than an antenna.
Tesla was the most famous, but not the only one, who struggled against hostile
condition, when the development of real unconventional energy sources began to
be possible.
More about
vortex energy
- multi dimensional, "free" energy machines and the pioneer work.
All sorts of bizarre claims have coalesced around Tesla,
probably as a result of his unique combination of brilliance and eccentricity.
He was the closest thing to a stereotypical mad scientist this century has
known. The stories about his discovery of amazing suppressed inventions only
obscure his genuine legacy.
He
invented: AC power, induction motors, generators,
transformers and transmission; HFAC power, radio and wireless communication
& transmission; automobile ignition systems, capacitors, neon &
fluorescent lighting, arc lighting, blade less turbines, air-core resonant
transformers ("Tesla coils"), oscillating shuttle circuits...
The
different rhythms of the body may also be changed by sound. This is known
as entrainment and involves the ability of the more powerful rhythmic vibrations
of one object to change the less powerful rhythmic vibration of another object
and cause them to synchronize their rhythms with the first object. Through
sound, especially chanting or overtone singing, it is possible to change the
rhythmic pattern of our brain waves, as well as our heart beat and respiration.
1.
Beta
waves, from 14 to 20 Hz, which are found in our normal waking state of mind.
2.
Alpha
waves, from 8 to 13 Hz, which occur when
we daydream or meditate.
3.
Theta
waves, from 4 to 7 Hz, which are found in states of deep meditation and sleep,
as well in shamanic activity.
4.
Delta
waves, from 0,5 to 3 Hz, which occur in deep sleep and have been found in very
propound states of meditation and healing.
How the brain really works is not figured out by science since there are many basic unsolved questions. Brain Research index
An independent researcher,
Steven Lehar, former Professor of Cognitive Psychology,
presents on his webpage a harmonic resonance theory, that could explane the
spatial brain problem: "the harmonic resonance theory of spatial representation finally offers a
plausible solution to the profound spatial problem in the brain, that
circumvents the combinatorial problems inherent in a neural network or spatial
template solution to this problem, a spatial standing wave pattern".
In a mail he wrote:
"I have a theory that the patterns of our experience
are expressed in the brain in the form of standing waves. In other words, the
operational principle of the brain is more like a musical instrument than a
computer, and the "input" to that instrument is the same as the input to a
musical instrument, i.e. it is like the damping of fingers on strings or over
holes that control the pattern of resonance in the instrument, and the "output"
is both a musical tone, and a spatial standing wave pattern in the body of the
instrument."
Every organ, bone and tissue in the human body has its own separate resonant frequency. Together they made up a composite frequency, a harmonic, that is your own personal vibratory signature. This signature encircle the body with a field, which some gifted people can see as an aura and it can be recorded by means of Kirlian photography.
There are different names for those fields around the body, that could serve as a connection or an intermediary to higher worlds, such as Auras, Astral bodies, "the higher bodies of Man" or chakras above the 7th.
But we can turn to a more scientific terminology by looking into the
oscillating fields, that surround our body.
The electromagnetic and electrostatic fields making op and shaping our body are
relative strong and serve to hold our atoms and molecules together. They weaken
as they move outside our body. There is a relative strong field about 4 inches
outside the body. Then it weaken strongly and fade slowly out to 20 inches. The
strengths of the field depends much on the vitality of the person. If the
vitality is low by sickness or depression, there will be practically no field at
all.
Actually, it is a electro dynamic field caused by the motion of the body. The
heart/aorta system is the main supplier of the pulsing motion of the body. It is
between 6.8 and 7.5 Hz. This motion is spread to the whole body. Even the brain
oscillate a little.
Looking at the hearing faculties of a human being, we know,
that the input to the hearing center in the brain is around 1 million bits per
second. One bit is the smallest piece of information there is, namely 1 or 0,
yes or no, first formulated by the Hungarian scientist, Leo Szilard.
The input from the 5 senses is about 11 million bits per second. No wonder the
head is so warm! What an enormous work to process and get rid of all the
unnecessary information from that huge input. So the big question that has
puzzled scientists for many decades is, how can the brain handle all this
information so only relevant messages reach the conscious part? In this context
consciousness means the ordinary state of mind where the necessary information
for maintaining orientation in life is taking place.
Sophisticated laboratory tests performed by many different
scientists has shown, that normal consciousness can process only around 16-20
bits per second. Depending on what kind of intellectual work they are testing,
the number of bits differs a little but the upper limit is 50 bits/sec.
Especially the American scientist Benjamin Lebet (German
origin) has done pioneer work in that field. Even during open surgery in the
brain he has performed many tests while the patients are awake and
communicating.
Professor Helmar Frank’s approach differs from the general
empirical method by looking at the central maximum stream of consciousness as a
subjective time quantum (Subjective Zeit Quant, SZQ), the smallest moment of
perception. That quantum fits well with humans' capacity of hearing and seeing.
Sound impulses up to 16 beats per sec. are heard separately, but over 16 beats
it's merged into a continuous sound. The same applies to the speed of pictures.
Over 16-18 frames per sec. will compose a smooth movement.
It is an astonishingly small capacity - about 16 bits per sec.
the conscious mind can process. On the other hand, it has access to a large
memory bank.
Please note that the above mentioned tests are limited to one channel at a time. The tests do not reflect the many other channels of information, we receive simultaneously. Though they may not be noted, they still "color" the few bits of information.
The sub-limit perception - meaning all the input from our senses the consciousness is not aware of, are enormous; about 11 millions bits/sec. As it is stated in the theory of information-entropy: the more information the more entropy. So the big work of the brain is to throw away information - to forget, which is done by heat. About a million times less information is allowed to enter the consciousness.
What is interesting is also the delay in real time (0.5 sec) and the simulation of data the brain performs. The most surprising for me is the simulation of referring the events back in time to the moment, where the actual registration of the event occurs. EEG can record that as "the readiness potential" 0.02 seconds after the action or simulation.
I do not of course refer to the instinctive or moving parts, that react almost instantly, but to the intellectual part that interprets those few bits, that are made available, when the millions of bits are thrown away as heat.
When one thinks about it, it makes sense. It takes time to
process the 11 million bits/sec and only make the intellectual part aware of
what is relevant for orientation in life. When a tiger is after you, the
information about a beautiful flower you are passing, cannot in that
situation be considered worth paying attention to!
We have to bear in mind that the above-mentioned small numbers
of bits apply only to the intellectual capacities of the brain. The sub-limit
perception from all our senses and the processing from the other centers of
intelligence - instinctive, moving and emotional – add enormously to the small
amount of intellectual data.
A more extensive account of man as a cybernetic system:
Information
theory.
In an ordinarily state of mind humans perceive the world as 3
dimensional, the 3 space dimensions. The 4th dimension manifest it selves
as an entirely new direction giving space to a new realm. In mathematics the imaginary
numbers containing the negative square root can be regarded as such.
The 4th
dimension is called time, and can usually not be seen or directly detected. (see
the 4th
dimension and Möbius tape).
The
mathematician Minkovski officially pronounced it as a physical fact in 1904 and
the physical constants have to be 4th dimensional, e.g. Planck's
constant in quantum physics. Later Albert Einstein made good use of the
4th dimension in his Theory of Relativity.
Due to our particular size we can observe
movements of a certain magnitude or speed, e.g. the hand of a clock showing
seconds can be seen, but not hours, or watching the clouds move but not be able
to see the grass grow. The perception of time must change due to size or cosmos.
A May fly will perceive a thunderstorm entirely different than a human, which
life span for the
sun will be detected as a spark!
Time seems to be very unlike in different cosmos' unless we look at the amount
of breath a being makes in a lifetime. It mounts
up to be about the same for every being, while the duration of breath differ enormously.
In Genesis it is said, that God created the world in 7 days. To comprehend this
timetable the human time perception is not useable.
"Time is breath", as Gurdjieff pronounced for his students in Moscow during WW1.
The reason I have presented some logical deductions of the nature of the 4th dimension is to establish an idea of higher Dimensions inserted into lower Dimensions. In doing so I want to expand the notion of worlds within worlds, and further on to consider a human as a multidimensional body beyond the third and fourth Dimensions. Several traditions refer to such realm as the astral and mental body.
In the Western culture we traditionally discard, what we
are unable to measure physically and what we are not able to repeat in
controlled environments.
Although that method surely establish a solid foundation in science and have had
an immense success, it eliminates other more intangible phenomena such as consciousness and
the whole being of man.
History shows that
scientists first had an intuitive grasp of what is going to unfold,
when a major breakthrough in science was made.
Technology has provided humans with extra capacities by means of
devices and at the same time diminish human's own by birth abilities. The mechanical
clock, e.g. withers away ones own faculty to estimate time, or electronic tools
substitute human's own hidden abilities to communicate, e.g. telepathy.Aboriginal populations and native tribes over the world have in
many cases demonstrated "miracles" such as shape shifting, moving the
"body" to
another location in an instant, clairvoyance and remote seeing, time traveling, etc.
I have myself looked into that subject. The Australian
Aborigine’s ancient culture had a long tradition of what we will call magic. A
highly valuable book on that matter is "Aboriginal Men of High Degree" by the
Australian professor in anthropology, A.P.Elkin.
Higher vibrations - a misleading new age concept.
In the East the Tone Zodiacs is much older than in the West. The oldest
Western Tone Zodiacs is that of Ptolemy’s ”Harmonics ”(2. Century AD), in which
the circle corresponds to the Greek two-octave system. He did several books
about the synthesis between music, the psyche and the cosmos. The Tone – Zodiacs
signs was one of his many analogies, properly rooted in the Babylonians
tradition of astronomy and numerology. (The Babylonians divided the circle into
360 degrees and placed the Zodiac on the circumference.)
The different Tone Zodiacs was actually correlated with the whole tone
scale in circular temperament. The problem is, that the many non circular
temperaments had to be modified to fit the circle. The ancient Chinese e.g.
eliminated the ”Pythagorean Comma”, the 12th Fifths produce, in order
to fit the notes to the circumference.
Since music theory in most cultures are one octave base, Tone-Zodiacs
generally correlate the twelve signs with the twelve notes of the tempered chromatic scale, where the half notes are the same frequency either
they are sharp or flat e.g. F# = Gb.
Trine (planets 120 degrees apart), ratio to whole to greater part,
360:240 degrees = 3:2. Interval: Perfect Fifth.
Square (planets 90 degrees apart), ratio of whole to greater part, 360:
270 degrees = 4:3. Interval: Perfect Fourth.
The three most powerful aspect are expressed by the same ratio as the
three perfect consonance’s in music. One can amplify this to make a complete
table of aspects in modern astrological use and find the musical intervals
corresponding to them.
Comma means in Greek, incision. It alludes to the little rest that arises from the 7 octaves and the 12 fifths in the acoustic, mathematical calculation of the 12 chromatic notes in an octave. In the 7 octaves span the 12 fifth's does not fit completely, they are about 23.5 cents bigger. (Cents is a logarithmic unit common used in acoustic) The ratios in vibrations are stated in dictionaries as 524288 : 531441 or approximately 80 : 81.
We can quickly see how these numbers are made: 7 octaves are (2:1)7 = 128. 12 fifth's are (3:2)12 = 129.74634… ; 128 < 312 /212 ; 212 = 4096; by multiplying with 4096 on both sides of the < we have: 128 x 4096 = 524288 < 312 = 531441.
The ancient Greeks believed in simple small numbers. Their holy
tetractys expressed among other relationships the 3 sacred ratios 1:2, 2:3, 3:4
in a triad symbolizing the realm of Nature, the world of Humans and the realm of
the Divine. The square symbolized the reunion of humans and the
divine.
These 3 ratios were considered holy intervals. Music is
derived from a Greek word, which means "Any art over which the Muses
presided." A muse was any one of the 9 sister goddesses, daughters of Zeus and
Mnemosyne.
The discrepancy between divine music and earthly ears, called a
Pythagorean comma, was deeply understood by the ancient Greeks.
Pythagoras is said to be the first who formulated this schism
between pure mathematical divine intervals and the practical, human need to have
a scale available in musical practice.
(See also the page The Calendar and the
Pythagorean comma. and Time and
the Technosphere: The Law of Time in
Human Affairs by José Argüelles)
Music was a cornerstone in ancient religions and was considered as an important tool to educate and tune the human mind and heart for the divine, thereby shaping the civilization.
The Pythagoras Comma was an indication that there IS more than
humans are able to conceive. For the comma was not a slight interval less than 7
octaves, but in excess of them. In the ancient world this fact was widely
conceived of as a symbol of renewal. The cycle of twelve perfect fifths did not
close and finish a cycle of seven octaves, but exceeded it, and thus, as it
were, spiraled upward in the cycle of fifths.
Pythagoras' comma, then, can be seen as being
God's own anagram written into the very laws of the universe and physics. It is
by the name of this anagram that man is heir to the promise of eventual
resurrection and ascension out of the dim caverns of mortality.
The audible music was imperfect and low in vibrations compared
to the divine, the music of the Spheres - though a faint echo of the divine
music was able to reach the earthly world.
The Comma could indicate a beginning of a new and higher realm,
a gate to the spiritual world, or a seed of the divine in humans.
In Christian tradition it could refer to the
dormant seed of Christ planted in every human.
The cycle of fifths can continue much further than the twelfth
fifth (note 13), where we are back to the fundamental but it is 23.5 cent higher
(5.88 savarts) than the fundamental, a Pythagorean Comma higher. The following
12 fifths will place themselves one comma above the former ones, so the 24th
fifth (note 25) will be one comma above note 13, or 2 commas, 11.74 savarts, above the
fundamental, C++.
In this way successive series of twelve fifths will be placed one
above the other at one comma intervals, up to the 52en fifth (note 53).
At this stage, after the 52nd fifth, the octave is filled up (52 x 5.88 savarts) and the 53rd fifth,
(note 54) comes out of the octave and inserts itself between the
fundamental and the 12th fifths, thus forming, above the fundamental a small
interval of 0,84 savarts.
Thus begins a new cycle, which in its turn, with a period of 53 fifths, will divide
the octave into small intervals of 0,84 savarts
The next cycle will appear during the seventh series of 53 fifths, when the
359 fifths (note 360) comes out of the octave and forms with the fundamental, a
new even smaller interval of 0.47 savarts.(since the comma of 0.88 savarts is 7
times smaller, 7 series of 53 fifths is needed to fill the octave).
Then there is a cycle of 666 notes with a basis interval of 0.035 savarts.
When we come to the cycle of 25,524 notes with a basic
interval of 0.002174 savarts, it begins to be interesting, since this cycle is
near the precession of equinoxes or the Pythagorean Great Year, which is 25,920
solar years. (The numbers of fifths are based on Alain Daniélou's
calculations in "Music and the Power of Sounds").
Cousto has in his book, The Cosmic Octave, an interesting observation on this matter. He relates the Kung to the frequency of the Platonic Year. The duration of the Platonic Year, (The Pythagorean Great Year) is about 25,920 years and it represents the amount of time the axis of the Earth takes to complete a full rotation. The vernal equinox is the point at which the equator (of Earth) intersects the ecliptic (or zodiac), which is the position of the sun at the beginning of spring - March 21st.
The vernal equinox takes an average of 2,160 years to travel through one sign of
zodiac. This period of time is known as an age. It is not possible to state
exactly when one age is ending and a new beginning, because the signs overlap to
a certain degree.
The journey of the vernal equinox through each of the 12 signs of the Zodiac
equals one great year of approx, 25,920 years. (Presently we are on the
cusp of Aquarius as the age of Pisces is ending.)
The precession of equinoxes cause in the span of
millenniums do not only change the fixed stars inter related position, but
there have to be a shift of sign in regard to the equinoxes as well as
Solstices.
Since the (vernal) equinox takes an average of 2,160 years to travel through one
sign of zodiac, means that for 2,160 years ago, when the ancient Chinese looked
at the zodiac, the "beginning" sign in the vernal equinox was one sign
away from that it is now. Or two signs away for nearly 4,500 years ago, when the
Egyptian ISIS was known.
As I mentioned previously it is most likely a coincidence,
that the Platonic Year is close to the high number of generating fifths, when we come
into a cycle of 25,524 notes.
It is however a wonder for me, how the ancient Chinese could tuned their sacred fundamental tone, Kung, so it could be in accordance with the Platonic
Year and choose the great rhythm of the Earth. So far, I choose to think,
that the Chinese manifested a great awareness and intuition in cosmic
influences.
Cousto calculates the note of the Platonic year to be F in the Western Equal Temperament pitch, which is found in the 48th octave with a frequency of 344.12 Hz. or in the 47th. octave to be 172.06 Hz.
Calculation: 31 556 925.97(the tropical year in seconds) *
25,920 (Platonic year). Since the length (of a vibrating string, or the period
of time) is in reverse proportionality to the frequency, the length of the
Platonic year in seconds shall be the denominator. The frequency is very low, so
we will raise the frequency to the range of hearing by multiplying with the
necessary amount of octaves, e.g. 48 octaves, so we arrive to 344,12 Hz. (47
octaves will be the half, 172,06 Hz.)
If we want to reach the spectrum of light, we multiply with 89
octaves which leads us to a frequency of 1/31 556 925.97 * 1/25 920 * 2 89
= 7,56 * 10 14 Hz. corresponding to a wavelength of 0.396
micrometer, which we perceive as violet near the
ultra violet. This is the color of the Platonic Year. The complementary color to
violet is yellow. The Chinese called their fundamental tone "the yellow bell".
Through the ages, civilizations have often wrestled with the
dilemma of whether to put up with unpractical musical pitches to keep the pure
idealism in their system of pitch-calculation, or to depart a little from
alignment with the heavenly ideal by taking the practical path of slightly
adjusting their notes in order to harmonize them.
Though there were individual
figures who dissented, the ancient western cultures generally opted, in their
idealism, for heavenly alignment at the expense of having slightly imperfect
relationships between their notes.
However, by the seventeenth century AD the
Western world would have begun its entry into the present era of science and
logic. This era was marked not only by an attitude of heavy materialism, but
also by a most useful pragmatism. The heavenly alignment in the sacred tuning
was abandoned for the sake of expanding music’s harmonic
possibilities.
Surely in the following centuries a new era of sublime harmonic music was composed in the deep intent to praise God in the music. However the focus was laid in the heart of each individual instead of the tuning of instruments and temperament of the scale.
The ancient Chinese culture was a
model for a strict, collective system of tuning of instruments. The reference
tone, Kung, relates to the frequency of the Platonic Year. The note of
the Platonic year is F in the Western Equal Temperament pitch, which is found
in the 48th octave with a frequency of 344.12 Hz.
The Indian ancient music had a less rigid system, where improvisations was
allowed within the bordes of certain inviolable modes.
The fundamental OM sound, according to Cousto, corresponds approximately to the C sharp in
the small octave of the present day tuning system (136 Hz) and corresponds to
the 32nd octave tone of the Earth year.
Numerous Chinese legends attest to the power of music and sound. Here is a quote about the music master Wen of Cheng and how he learned to control the elements:
In this story the four outer strings of the zither, and the four
seasons, are symbolic of the ancient conception of the four aspects of man: his
abstract mind, his concrete mind, his emotions and his physical body. (The
European alchemists called them Fire, Air, Water and Earth)
Master Wen could not play until he was able to master his own
four aspects of Being. The vital outcome of the mastery of mind and body was the
ability to play these four outer strings in unison and hereby also learn to play
the central Kung string – corresponding to his Higher Self. From the four-sided
base of the pyramid of life, he had raised himself up to the very apex of
perfection.
The moral of the story is twofold: first, we must master our four-fold nature, before we can attain self-realization. Secondly, only by doing so we can begin to perform music, which is sublime and divine.
The ancient Chinese believed, that music could influence the harmony of the society, and they were very keen on right tuning with the celestial influence, so order and harmony could prevail. The Chinese imperial culture manage to flourish for 4 thousand years, before a decline began in the 19th. Century. The taste for a modern style in drama and music was beginning to replace the ancient traditions. The great classical modes were supplanted by styles which were more popular, noisier, cheaper and imitative. The Western influence may have played a part, since its music was begun to be appreciated and played on the expense of their own traditional music.
The fact remains, that the decline in music was paralleled by a
general decline in the culture itself. The emperors of the last dynasty
attempted to direct music back to its former state, but without success. In 1912
it was replaced by a republic. Yet from its beginning the republic was rocked by
instability, Japanese invation and civil wars, untill the Communist China in 1949 was
founded.
In this Century, we are begining to see the outline of a new, powerful Chinese
culture.
The general assumption is, that music is a product of the society and a reflection of its culture. This may be so in many cases, but history has also examples were new music has been the initial force to alter the society and even change the cause of history.
A good example is the American revolution and Independence War
against the British colonial regime. Several years before the actual uprising,
resistance songs began to appear in print and swept the colonies with extremely
popularity. The inspirational, freedom songs was the gathering force for organizing
resistance gropes and the mean for shaping their vision for the future of
their land.
The "Freedom Song" by John Dickinson in 1768 was one
of the first and set the pattern for all those songs, which fueled the minds and spirit
years before the actual physical movement began.
During the Independence War the "Yankee Doodle" was a favorites of
favorites, sung in defeat as well as in the final victory.
Many of the political leaders of the emerging New World, such as Francis
Hopkinson, Thomas Paine and Benjamin Franklin, were among the songwriters, in
addition to being Freemasons.
The history of USA shows how powerful music
can be. The Americans has in my opinion a special
talent for
entertainment and music, which has manifested itself as a world captioning force in
the 20th. Century.
Music has the power of uniting people as well as dividing
them. It can be the medium of creating uplifting (sublime) emotions, unite
disagreeable parts or at least for pacifying the common man.
Music can
support people in their idea of an identity, which clearly is manifested in the generation gap or sub grouping.
As a music teacher cried out: "Beatles is as remote for the young kids as
Beethoven!"
What is new is the shot amount of years
between generations. 5 years can easy separate youngster by fashion of music.
The new popular music has created strong space in the mind of the modern youth creating an idea of identity and
affiliation with sub groups.
Before music had the power to unite people. Now it
seems to divide.
There is a long tradition for fueling
the national or political affiliations by music, such as the national
anthem and party songs. Sometime music even can built
the bridge between hostile groups, though the have not meet.
The concern a regime or an establishment has against new music,
demonstrate what power music is considered by the rulers to have on the mind of
the people.
A modern example is the repression of
Western music, the Communist Russia and similar dictatorships executed with zealous
strength by censorship and persecution.
The established hierarchy and control can be questioned or threatened by the new
music introduction to novel modes of consciousness into the society. Classical
music from the earlier imperial zar-regime was aloud, since it encodes and
articulates the structure of a centralized political-economic system similar to
the communist dictatorship. Music composers during the communist regime was
forced to obey the party guide lines and praise the establishment.
The Western music, however, reflects in its structure a less
rigid form of
hierarchy (democracy), which allows much more creativity and innovation. The
rock n' roll music has in many ways become a powerful medium for the propagation
of the lifestyle of the Western world. Totalitarian states worldwide try to
prevent its youth to hear it well aware of its liberating force.
An example
could be the use of rap music created by the young generation in Iran as a
protest against the strict religious government. On the other hand, in the
Muslim ghettoes of France, the rap is about their alienation and hate at the
police.
In many historic battles the
music had the function of encouraging the fighting spirit. The Scottish bagpipe
was famous in many WWII battles. During the Vietnam war the eclectic guitar and
the protest songs was a powerful weapon for the drafted youth against that war.
The electrification of the music made it possible to reach a big audience in
live concerts, when the record companies tried to band the protest songs.
Also,
in the general battle against the establishment, the new culture of youth
personify in rock bands had great success in capturing the mind and shaping the
new identity. The "Hippie" movement or the "Beat" generation was supported by
the explosion of new music, which subverted the old structure in the society by
praising "freedom" and "individuality", a.s.o.
The entertainment industry is bigger and more powerful than ever. For better and
for worse. I like to say,
that entertainment is stronger than military force. There is much truth in the
joke about, what made the communist Russia to collapse? It was the soap TV series
called "Dallas"!
Of cause the so called sex liberation had a powerful "weapon" with the new music. It
was more sexy to be a
musician than an engineer! Popular music became the fast lane to fame, sex and money for
underprivileged, ambitious people.
In the course of time the corruption became
obvious. Few had the backbone to withstand the cult status and displayed an abusive behavior and a depraved example
for the fans.
When old rituals are removed, the
empty space has to be replaced by something else. The vacant space has in my
opinion been taken over by "the lord of the flies"(W.Golding's
book). The tyranny of formlessness! When parents e.g. have resigned their
authority, the children
make their own regulations even more tyrannical.
Rituals give a concrete shape, color and zest to many abstract spiritual ideals. A wisely planned and solemnly conducted ritual prepares the ground, creates the atmosphere, suggests the mood and predisposes the mind so that we may easily detach ourselves from the three dimensional (+ time) worlds and feel the mysterious presence of the higher intelligence and the Supreme universal power.
The greatest men in life, the most
wonderfully developed in spirituality, have all come through the
discipline of the rituals.
Magic and rituals have long been connected. There is magic in any
ceremony that we do, whether it of a routine nature, such as making a
wish on our birthday, or whether it is a sophisticated ritual involving
all kinds of movements, lights and music.
In both cases we are using the
power of the ritual in order to obtain something in our life, or to
enter higher dimensions.
An actual definition of magic is difficult. Scott Cunningham states: "Magic is the projection of natural energies to produce needed effects." In other words, every time that we consciously connect to the universal energy in order to direct it to a specific result that we wish to manifest in our life, we are utilizing the so called magic.
Rituals are the tools by which we are utilizing and harnessing the
power of the universe. The purpose is to demonstrate the connection
between nature and its laws. Rituals are a reminder to us that we are an
intricate part of this vast universe. Ritual is the form and structure
that enables our spirit to enter higher dimensions. It is the safe space
that allows us to open to the deepest part of ourselves.
Ritual is transformational. You commence a ritual in one state of being
and end in another. The result is always a shift of consciousness.
Ritual contributes to your wholeness by allowing enough safety and
freedom for all the parts of yourself to be expressed.
Considering how much indifferent, space filling "music" has occupied the
modern environment, I would say, that "music" has become a destructive
force itself, preventing one to think and feel for oneselves and make one numb.
Silence has
become a care commodity.
The history shows how music (and art) served those
institutions, that had the power and money in the society. This statement might
sound a bit overstating for those thinking, that art has its own agenda, but in the
long run the economy rules the art.
For a long time the
church sponsored the art. When the king got the upper hand, the art began to
reflect a more mundane expression. With the rise of the middle class (and
introduction of democracy), the art began to fulfill their need for entertainment,
since they had the money to pay for it.
After World War II
an entirely new segment of the society began to have money available for
entertainment especially for music,
the teenagers. Rock n' Roll and later Beat music shaped a new
anti-authoritarian culture of youth,
which changed the structure of the society, when that generation entered the
institutions.
Read more at my page about
music and society in this age of the fatherless society, where dreams and feelings
are the engine in the society, not the physical needs. The
virtual world is here to stay!
My sole concern in these pages
has been the positive aspect of music and sound. How it has the capacity to
elevate, enrich and feed the body and soul for its dormant potential. Music has
the ability to soak and clean ones innate strength. However, it can not create gold,
if there is no gold in the first place, as the old alchemist belived. There have
to be a seed, which music can enrich. Failing this the music is futile.
As a keen music lover it has
troubled me to read about the use of music in Nazi concentration camps. Fine classical
music was played for the waiting prisoner doomed for destruction. The commandant
of Auswitzs was a music lover and
played his violin to the thick smoke from the crematory. Adolf Hitler was
inspired by Richard Wagner's "Parsifal". I am too. Does this make me or Wagner to
a monster?
The great Father of the
Church, Aurelius Augustinus, 354-430 AC, used an example to illustrate the evil. He will
not steal the pear in the garden of the neighbor for the pleasure of eating the
pear, but because it was forbidden. He wished the evil, because it was evil.
"I
stole, because I had a dislike for doing the right, and it urges me to sin," he
confessed.
Humans has their freedom as a birthright given by their creator. Hence, they make their own choice between good and evil. "The drama of liberty" as the post war German philosopher, Rüdiger Safranski, label it in his book, "The Evil".
Since the legendary Cain killed his brother, mankind has tried to deal with its enigmatic freedom.
Through millennium religion's, philosophical systems and ethics has attempted to moderate the
boundless liberty of man with more or less success.
In regard to the twentieth Century chaotic bloodshed, Safranski articulate a
question about our modern, technological civilization:
Does it in reality
eliminate
the freedom
to act for the modern man?
The deeds of the individual
human is still possible as before, but they are now woven into so many complex
systems, that the desired effect is far from the final result. Has the dynamic
of our complex technological civilization now reached a point, where it has its
own inherent logic, and man is going to be "burnt" by its own civilization?
Safranski asked, if this
degree of civilization has become disastrous and therefore evil?
Man has liberated himself from Nature by means of institutions and civilizations. Now the question is: has civilization disengaged its self from man? Is humanity still in control and is able to make choices between good and evil? It can make weapons of mass destruction, but does it have a simillar level of consciousness and devolopment of the heart? Has our modern technology liberated its self from man and is now rolling as an avalanche down in the pit?
Augustinus stated, that the nature of mankind stands
between God and the rest of the Nature, which solely was created by the will of
God.
Man has his own will, which stem from his given liberty. A will which in
arrogance can lead Man to believe, that he is his own foundation.
God is able to
create out of noting, "creatio ex nihilo". The human will can not do. It can
not
even do what it desire. When it thinks it has done something "good" with the right hand, the left hand
did not know, what harm it has done.
Man is imperfect in contrast to Nature, whish in its own way is what it is.
Man has to figure out, what he is going to be. In this continued process, he has the tendency to fall
down to be less, than he can be due
to the original sin as the scripture states.
As Augustinus confessed, it was arrogant and dangerous to refuse Gods offer to
be a part of His will. To deny the spirit of Man to be one with the spirit of
God, means that the spirit of Man is too fond of its self.
He commits a treachery against himself, since he denys the chance to reach
beyound his own limited foundation.
This was a major break from the way of thinking of
the Antiquity. Contrary to Augustine the philosophy of the Antiquity was
convinced, that Man could be a goal for its self, and true knowledge was able to
change Man to a better being.
"Know yourself" so you know, what you can, and only want, what you are able to
do. It was imperative to know ones
limits, so one only aspire to what was possible. When the will and the ability to
do has the same extent, the limitations creates
harmony.
In the time of
Socrates the harmony between being and doing still might have had sense.
The modern man does
not have such understanding. There is no longer a synchronization between being
and doing. His knowledge is far more, than his real being actually can understand. His wishes goes beyond, what he is able to
manage, e.g. bloody revolutions fueled by idealistic theories, and he is able to
do
more than he wants, e.g. ecological disasters and social collapse.
The modern Man is deeply
disturbed. First he rejects the transcendence by not aiming for powers above
himself, and now he does not even know himself and his limitations.
"A priori one can claim, that all perceptions and responses, all
categories of behavior, all learning and genetics, all neurology, physiology and
endocrinology, all organization and all evolution, can be considered
as communication. This broad field can all be subject to the laws of communication."
In fact, it is impossible not to communicate. We are born into the world of
communication, we are a part of it willing or unconsciously, and even after our
death it continues as legacy.
As mentioned in Information
theory, Bateson made use of the mind concept in description of complex
cybernetic systems, including the unconscious mind.
Bateson was an anthropologist and his use of mind in complex living systems has
nothing to do with the common idea of a "religious" mind in Nature. He
did not accept the notion transcendence, as the keen scientist he was, but
considered control and self-regulating as a mental
aspect, which did not belong to a part of the system, but was inherent in the
whole system.
The individual mind, which is immanent in the
circuit within and outside the body, is only a subsystem of the supreme mind.
This larger mind is not some transcendental deity. It is still immanent in
the total interconnected social system or planetary ecology.
It is an entirely self adjusting unity, which "think, act and
determine" and the boundaries do not coincide with the organisms or parts
involved, but is weaved in or incorporated into the whole system.
For Bateson the mind concept was a description, a model, a
map, which should not be confused with the landscape. In science as in daily
life the mistake of categories is common.
He liked to rephrase Pascal's expression, "the heart has its own reason
which is unknown to the intelligence", to "the heart has its own
precise algorithm".
Algorithm is a mathematical recipe for a process or calculation, also used in
computer programming. Bateson used this statement to explain the underlying premises
for our perception, thinking and acting, which is unable to be captured or
understood by the algorithm of the language.
He considered art, music and religion as examples of pre-verbal
thinking, a bridge over the gap between consciousness/mind and pre-verbal
perception. This immanent supreme deity, which he jocularly called the god, Eco,
is permeating man, nature and the universe.
Jesus Christ said: "My words are spirit and they are life and they do accomplish that whereunto they are sent."
Spirit is the creative cause in the Universe and our words are
potent only as this same spirit is seen as the operative force behind them. It
is the activity of the force of Nature, that makes the seed grow for no seed has
power within itself. It is a container or vehicle of that force.
So it is with words.
Our consciousness or awareness of Spirit is the
focal point in the power of the word.
Idle words are impotent and do not create; though they, in a
sense, may add to the state of hypnosis. To fear negative words is to add to
their hypnotic energies and thereby adds to the influence of the negative
words. The power of ignorant or idle words is only, that they may intensify the
hypnotic state of man’s mind, but they do not alter the creative cause in the
least.
The power of the negative words is only the modernization of the
old idea of the devil, and is a direct violation of the fact, that there is only
the power of God.
When one begins to assemble in his consciousness the activities
of any principle, he begins to say, "I am …" This is the centralizing of
the authority of the principle in him. "I am" renders the mind dynamic instead
of letting it rest in potentiality. It becomes dynamic the moment we focus
thought upon I AM. The focal point is the center always and from it emanates the
authoritative commands that control and determine the entire status of the man
who is capable of manifesting the actualization of his/her command.
This name "I AM" was God to Moses. It has come down through the
ages as "I AM". To the Hindus it is AUM, which means the same. Likewise to the
Christians’ "Amen". The Chinese use it as TAU.
It has been hard for me to conceive the power of thoughts, though many reliable sources through time have expressed so.
An explanation might be, that our thoughts usually are chaotic.
They are happening without any real control or focus, whirling around without
any consistent direction or deep purpose. It is an army where the soldiers are
marching against each other instead of following the direction given by the king.
The powerful army
cancels itself out!
When I read Baird Spalding books "Life and Teachings of the Masters of the Far East", vol. 1-6, I became quite astonished over what those holy men could do. It surely demonstrated the miraculous potential humans possess.
Anyway, we are unaware of the miraculous power of thought. I guess, we have fallen asleep to it! What we experience is the response to stimuli mainly from the outside world. We call it physical reality and it can be real tough, but mainly it is a subjective reality. Who has not experienced the change of reality by a shift in mood or emotion? One can say, that thoughts works as the mediator or a lens that shape your reality.
Music and sounds that are created from the heart and have the intention to communicate to other hearts, carries emotions about God and is a reminder of the divinity deep inside us. Such music put the brain to "soak" so the daily "noise" is dissolved and give space for deeper emotions and thoughts, so the real self has a chance to be present. This is the meaning of real music.
We are born into this Earth with a limited consciousness and have lost the memory of what we are and from where we come. The Fall of Man as the scriptures tells, has caused a separation from the mighty Creator God.
The purpose with this life is to remember and recreate
WHO WE REALLY ARE. We
recreate under difficult conditions and heavy laws, by our own choices, that
divine being our Father Creator has given to us as our
birthright.
Some say that we are Physical Angels, who carry all the elements of the holographic universe within us; we are ONE spirit in ONE body.
Usually we are not aware of our multi - dimensional body, so we feel lost and alone. The freedom to choose between right or wrong is often difficult and we are tempted to blame our Farther for our misery, forgetting that unconditional love give us the sole and exclusive right to choose. Our consciousness is our guide.
Music contains a secret power, which can shape the mind of man
and alter societies or nations. It is a two-edged sword. It can bring us in alignments with God and our deepest,
real self or diverge us from the supreme influence of our mighty Creator.
The ancients believed, that music in the hands of the "evil" or
ignorant, could only lead the civilization to an
inevitable doom, but in the hands of the illumined, music was a tool of beauty
and power, which could lead the entire society into a golden age of
peace, prosperity and brotherhood.
Even in recent time in Western Europe this belief was expressed.
As Andrew Fletcher, the writer and orator, stated in the Scottish Parliament of
1704:
"I knew a very vise man, who believed that if a man were
permitted to make all the ballads, he need not care who should make the laws of
a nation."
There are many paths to re-member and re-create oneself
and hereby become one with our Creator.
Hence, you too can sing
your song to the Uni-verse.
This dissertation has focused on music and sound, which has the potential to open the gate to the multi dimensional realm of man and let the heart sing its song in harmony with the Uni-verse. As you may have noticed, this does not apply to the music, we usually clutter our empty space with.
Copyright © 1998-2009, Thomas Váczy Hightower.
The privious part I of The Sound of Silence
See the first part of The Musical Octave, The Creation of the Musical Scales
Send me a comment: mailto:hightower@mail.dk