The Psyence of Sound
Written by: Janux
Janux@soundspecies.com-- This essay begins with a scientific angle and then merges & translates the concepts into a new-age analysis--
"Dancers are god's atheletes" - Albert Einstein
Before we can even get into the technicalities of what sound might be in relation to the universe we must first dig deep into two major concepts and clarify the true nature of these concepts. The first being time & space, specially on the macro level. The second being the make up and building blocks of this universe on the micro level. Only then will we be able to see the profound implications of sound.
The theories and teachings of quantum physics and special relativity reveal many things about the universe that question the fundamentals of everything. One of the most revolutionary concepts born from this way of looking at the world, is a concept called 'spacetime'. Spacetime is a representation of how time does not stand on its own as a linear forward moving line.
Before we de-construct time into a non-linear phenomenon, lets look at the linear nature that we humans have given it. The concept of time as we know it is completely a human tool. It's a system of reference that we link ourselves with, so we can find patterns in the world around us, and so we can all reach 'work' at the same time. It is not an incorrect system we have created, because at the level we use it on, it does actually appear like a linear straight line made up of past, present, and future. However when we study the nature of the universe on extreme micro and extreme macro levels, we begin to see how what we call time, is not really what it seems at all.
Through tests run on micro particles, and mathematical speculations created to replicate macro events such as traveling at great speeds, or the effects of gravity on an environment, Einstein and his peers discovered that the physical properties of a space directly effect the passage of time. The discovery and study of black holes is the single best example to illustrate this space-time relationship.
A black hole is a point in space that has such high gravity that it is infinitely dense. The gravity is so high that nothing can escape from a black hole, not even light. The center point of a black hole, called 'singularity' has so much force that it is infinitely dense and also infinitely small because even mass ceases to exist because of the gravitational force.Since mass does not exist in a black hole, time does not exist. This means that mass and time are completely dependent on one another. This black hole phenomenon shows us that the universe is made up of a fabric and a black hole is literally like a hole in this fabric. Where the fabric ceases to be, so too does time cease to be.
Einstein theorized that the relationship of mass to this spacetime fabric is that any mass exerts a pressure on this spacetime therefore curving it / bending it. Picture the spacetime fabric as a sheet of cloth stretched out in the air, and a planet is a heavy ball laying on this cloth. The cloth will sort of curve around the ball as it is pushed down.
This curve / slope of the cloth is an actual curvature of space and time and also accounts for the increased gravity around the planet. A black hole is just an amount of mass with such an extreme density that it creates a hole in the cloth. It might be hard to visualize the universe through the analogy of a cloth, specially because a piece of cloth is in essence one dimensional. Now just convert this piece of cloth into a three dimensional phenomenon and then apply all the balls, curves, and holes and a more accurate illustration of what this spacetime fabric actually is will appear. Now this three-dimensional image you have in your head, is still only one of the planes of this universe, and it is theorized that phenomenon such as black holes, white holes, and worm holes are situations which lead to other dimensional spacetimes within the universe, opening up the discussion of time travel. Where time travel is not literally traveling to a different time (because time does not exist on its own) but traveling to such a far away space through the means of an irregularity of the spacetime fabric (blackholes etc) that we in fact avoid a great deal of space travel. Time travel = extreme space travel.
Hence statements like 'traveling above the speed of light takes you to the past' have arisen. Though even this statement is inaccurate, it is just putting the scientific realization into ordinary terms. Let me explain.
Everything in the universe attracts and bounces off different levels of light. Our observational position to this light puts us in a place we call the present. However if one were to travel faster than the speed of light you would be overtaking the light coming at you from objects and would be seeing light coming at you from an earlier time. I know. You are confused. Take any object in the room. Look at it. What you are seeing is a pattern in light which reveals that object to you. I am looking at my computer mouse. Now the light from the mouse is traveling at me at the speed of light. If I were to travel faster than the speed of light I would be going faster than the light approaching me and would be seeing light that had already been emitted by the mouse at an earlier 'time'. Therefore theoretically I would be 'seeing' the past. Yes I would not actually be 'going' to the past - this is only a theoretical situation because the mass of the object would not have changed time, again because they (mass and time) are not independent of one another.
In other words there is no past and future either. The only thing that exists is the now.
This 'now' however, is more of a philosophical concept. In more concrete terms; there is no space, and there is no time. The universe around us is made up of spacetime, a situation where what we call space and what we call time are directly dependant on one another. Where the physical properties of a space and the time of that space are one and the same. In other words by affecting the physical properties of a space, one is directly effecting time. On a philosophical level then, even the 'past' and 'future' exist only in the now, because now is the only thing that space knows. Where do you think the word 'knowledge' comes from? Break it down : now-ledge. 'Ledge' is to read, hence, the 'reading of now'.
Hinduism's way of illustrating the 'reading of now', is through the Nataraja(Lord of dance / Lord of rhythm / dancing Shiva) In the same way that Einstein says 'Dancers are god's athletes' The dancing Shiva is supposed to drive away human illusion (The demon that Shiva dances on is 'Maya' - human illusion).Our illusion - the separation of space and time (leading to linear time)Nataraja's task - To illustrate that the action based nowness and circular nature of things by interacting with it. By dancing with it.
So what does all of this have to do with sound? What role does sound play in this quantum universe?
Before we continue, let me drop a hint - One of the Nataraja's hand's is the symbol of creation. In that hand Shiva holds a drum.
Well first we must go deeper into the physical properties of this universe. We all know that everything is made up of configurations of atoms and sub-atomic particles, and even smaller particles that make up sub-atomic particles. We know that the main difference between the air and a rock is the density of these particles. The atoms in a rock are closer together than in the air. What many of us don't realize however is that the density of a single atom in itself is very low. In other words if you were the size of an electron, the next electron would be hundreds of miles away. In more practical terms, an atom is 95% open space. Now that means that even the most solid substance imaginable is 95% open space. So now imagine how much power something such as sound, which is not a particle force, has over physical properties. One would say that sound passing through an object will actually physically move and effect the object. The truth however, is even more interesting, sound is the actual moving of the particles in an object. That movement is not caused by sound, the movement is sound.
Use your hand to hit the table for example. It made a sound. That sound was the billions of particles in the table (and your hand) moving. How can one prove this? Hit the table harder, and it will generate a louder sound. This is because by exerting more force, you moved more particles in the table. More accurately, the impact between hand and table moved particles in both, the particles moving in both caused a domino effect and moved particles in the air surrounding them, the particle movement in the air made its way to your eardrum, which then moved (vibrated) and your nerves sensed it. So what we call sound isn't some 'wave' moving through the air. Sound is in fact the actual action of the universe around us. In understanding this, a sound engineer is able to design a speaker, which basically through its vibrating surface, moves the particles in the air around it, which then create a domino effect and eventually reaches an eardrum. If you look at it simply, a speaker is basically the equal opposite of an ear drum.
So what?
None of this information is very ground breaking even though it might be new to you. Now take this next twist and then ponder about space, particles, and sound.
All this time we have assumed that the deeper and smaller we go, we will eventually find the smallest particle and then our picture will be complete. Physicists have been constantly searching for particles and they never seem to find the end, there is always one more. Their studies and experiments have lead to places called 'string-theory' that suggest that the building blocks of the universe have nothing to do with particles or individual bodies. In fact deep quantum physics has come to a point were we question why we thought about particles at all. This is where string-theory was formed, a theoretical model of the universe who's basic building blocks are 'strings' that run through spacetime. One may say well a 'string' could be a particle too, however notice I said '2026are strings that run through spacetime'. The abstraction that the term 'spacetime' brings to mind is the abstraction one should use when trying to understand what a string is.
Time to step outside the box. When we consider an atom we notice patterns of behavior and other properties of the atom, according to these behaviors we give it a number of protons, neutrons, and electrons, then we get into an electron, and notice certain behavior, so we name the quarks inside. Then within the quarks we notice some other behaviors, so we realize that there must be a particle within the quark. We also name sub atomic particles such as gravitons, bosons, and fermions according to patterns in our micro cosmos. Do you see a pattern here? Our scientific methodology is following a system that we notice a behavior / property and assign it with a name, hence it becomes a particle. So it could be that these 'particles' have nothing to do with individual bodies, but are just labels for certain ways in which the micro universe works. In other words, on the micro level, there may be no particles at all!
So then how do we explain what sound is? It makes the phenomenon of sound even more illusive, just like finding the smallest 'particle'. Another profound relationship, is that the only way to describe and visualize the nature and properties of 'strings' from string theory, is to compare the 'string' to a guitar or violin string because the tension of the guitar string dictates what 'sound' is emitted when that string is plucked. In other words the nature of a (string theory) string (the building blocks of a non-particle universe) is dependant on what vibrational properties it has or, in simpler terms, on what sound it is.
Basically it seems that everything is sound. Even a rock is sound, maybe one would be able to 'hear' the vibrational existence of a rock if one had the correct kind of ear-drum.In other words everything is just different densities of vibration / different frequencies.
Could it be the same thing the Hindus thought of when they used OM to represent the universe? OM is actually just a certain sound / a certain vibration. In Hindu philosophy OM is the all encompassing sound of the universe, the vibrational equivalent to the core of whatever this universe is.
Now that we know that sound has profound effects on the physical properties of a space - so profound that one could say that the vibrational qualities of sound and vibrational qualities of mass are one and the same - what does this have to do with space and time? and why did I even speak about 'spacetime' to begin this essay?
You will remember that the spacetime concept shows us a world where time is not an independent entity, rather time is just a property of space. In the second part I described how sound effects the very essence of the materials that make up space, and then went on to conclude that on the micro levels the building blocks of these materials seem to be mere vibrations, which is what sound is anyway. Yes my friends, thus I am saying that sound is in fact the building block of the physical universe. Since time does not stand alone and is part of the fabric of the universe, therefore, what we call sound, has an actual effect on what we call time.
In fact many religions and spiritual groups state that the universe was created with light and sound. Many scientists believe that the first event was the 'big bang' an event that would have been very bright and very 'loud'.
We have gone very far, deep, and abstract to get to the point we are at now. Yet we still have to live and feel things in our every day lives. So now one must bring these profound implications that have been discovered on the macro levels of space, black holes, and big bangs, and on the micro levels of atoms, strings, and vibrations, to where we are, in the middle of all this. Yet even the points we human's hold in this universe are extremely unique because we offer the ability of perception, memory, and consciousness, which enables us to interact with spacetime in a way that even spacetime could never dream about doing. Perception is our strength and weakness. Strength because it allows us to observe the world around and within us. Weakness because even our perceptions are limited (by our senses and their limitations) and we often forget this and assume that what we understand of the universe is the core truth. Often it is not, it is just the apparent truth. Our linear construction of time for example, is just the apparent truth from our point of view. Yet it is something we have incorporated into our lives, and have used it well. Yet sometimes over centuries or decades of working within a constructed system we forget about the possibility of other truths and core truths, and often we loose subconscious knowledge of the universe, or make life unnecessarily complicated.
The reason I have traversed all over the macro and micro universe is to illustrate the core workings of the world and discover what sound really is in relation to that, and then bring that sound concept back to our everyday lives so we can use it as a 'portal' to be in touch with the core workings of the universe.
Everything is sound.
Humans have been subconsciously in touch with this concept for hundreds of years, and many of the eastern religions illustrate this by what is called a 'Mantra'. A mantra is basically a certain pattern of sounds that is to be repeated so that a certain audio frequency pattern can be established in the spacetime around. The philosophical angle is that one uses Mantras in order to either focus ones energies towards something, for healing purposes, to empty the mind of superfluous thinking and 'noise'. An old-world scientist might say that it is all rubbish, and that how can just repeating some sound have any actual tangible effect?
A new world scientist, or you, would immediately recognize that when a person makes a sound, the sound is first of all not just coming out from their mouth. The body is generating the sound, the sound is affecting the entire body physically because the whole body experiences the frequency of the sound, and then the surrounding spacetime undergoes the same frequency change. In other words when generating a sound one is aligning ones body frequency to a certain frequency that already exists within spacetime. Thus many different mantras are created, each to link up or align the physical body to certain vibrations that already exist within the universe. Through centuries of trial & error, research and development, and observing patterns and changes, it is possible that spiritual practices have been able to pin point certain frequencies in spacetime and the effect these frequencies have on the human psyche and body.
Another astonishing way to look at how one person's sound can effect the universe. Take the simple idea of domino effect and see how it applies to chaos-theory where: a butterfly flapping its wings in NYC may effect the weather patterns in Japan three months later. The butterfly's wings create tiny changes in air current, which then effect the micro temperatures of the space, which then create a larger wind current, and so on and so forth.Now when one makes a sound, one physically effects the space around with changes in frequency, movement of particles / strings, which then effect others, and so on and so forth. So its possible that a mantra you utter creates a galactic storm in a far away galaxy.So if a word can have such an effect on spacetime, imagine how much power a 147 bpm beat pumping out at 50,000 watts could have on the universe.
Lets take a party as an example of communal mantra. The music is loud enough that basically the whole environment / dance floor is at the same frequency, and all the people involved are in synch on the same frequency. To add to this the dancing is a physical response to the frequency of the party's spacetime vibration. Now just as sounds create a domino effect in spacetime, so does movement. So this party is actually a communal action mantra that is projecting a certain frequency of human existence into the universe.Apart from the sounds and movements going on at this communal event, is another factor, specially since humans are involved. Thought.
Certain mantras work on their own to create a balance, for example OM. Other mantras are more powerful when they are used towards a certain reason, with an objective, with something in mind when uttering the mantra. For example trying to heal a physical problem one may have. Like people say, 'to change the world you must change yourself'. Yet you and the world are the same thing, just like space and time are the same thing, so one can also say 'change the universe to change yourself'. That's what a mantra is for: projecting a frequency that will change the universe in a way that will change you too.
Therefore, the thoughts in your head that are being effected by the sounds, and the thoughts that are effecting your movements when you dance, and the movements that effect your thoughts, are all equally powerful in terms of their potential to effect you and the universe. Have you ever felt the therapeutic potential of music and dance?
This is something that humankind has been in touch with since our early roots. Every culture's tribal roots has ceremonies based on repetitive drum beats, music, and dance. The tribe's healers, shamans, wise-men, and mystics all had their own versions of audio-action ceremonies that acted as a type of portal, whether it was to summon spirits, expel something negative, heal someone, find a solution, or any kind of ritualistic linking to the world beyond our five senses.
In fact music and dance is one of the things common to all humankind and acts as a universal language within our species specially since there need not be any translation. Sound and movement are what they are and mean the same thing subconsciously to any listener or viewer. Einstein, in his deep search for the core workings of the universe understood the human relationship to the core through our use of music and dance, he said, "Dancer's are god's athletes". In Einstein's world 'god' is not some single individual somewhere, his idea of god is probably more like the basic core workings of this system that keep it alive and running. For Einstein god is the fact that this amazing universe can exist without someone having created it. In saying that dancer's are god's athletes, he clearly is saying that in physically embodying a sound (our dance is in response to music / sound) we are tapping into and interacting with the basic essence of what this universe is made up of.
Its as though life on this planet has a purpose, and that purpose is to recognize the universe around us. No matter how intricately complicated, or how amazingly simple the universe is, the one thing it cannot do is be aware of itself. Slowly over time in random spots in spacetime, situations on planets (Earth being one, the other's if there are, we don't know about yet) have arisen where spacetime has taken a form (even you are just a chunk of spacetime) where it has the ability to become aware of itself, and in some cases 'voice' itself. There is a whole range of species on this planet, most of these species make sounds, some of the species have the ability to be aware of themselves, some do not, most of the species use sound as a form of communication, some species do it better than others. The human species is the species that seems to use sound on a more evolved level than the other species. One can see this in our creation of languages and music. The one major thing that puts humans ahead of the other species on the planet is our ability to 'talk' in the complex manner in which we do. Now if you think about it, all talking is, is a complex system of manipulating sound. A human speaking, is spacetime talking back to itself. After speaking we then manipulated sound into what we call music, possibly a more evolved method of communication because it can 'speak' on a deeper level than words. Words are like our tools of interaction within our linear universe where space and time are separate. Music and similar manipulation of sound is our interaction with the core non-linear spacetime nature of the universe. Sound is our portal between the apparent truths and the core truth.
With no one to be aware of it, the universe itself would not have known that it existed. Now it does, and through knowing itself it can actually have an affect on itself, which is why the use of sound has so much power, because in essence when using sound, or moving to sound, we are the universe actively acting upon itself. And so it goes, if you want to change the world, change yourself. This is so because at the core there is no self, there is just sound.
I would like to propose a statement that is a simple summation of a lot of what has been said, and when dissected actually holds many of the angles covered by this exploration of the nature of the universe and what sound is in relation to this.
"Through music and dance we interact with the oneness and now-ness of the universe."
The key part of this is the phrase:
"Interact with the oneness and now-ness of the universe"
Interact = 'act' = action. : There is nothing that is not action - even sound, that we visualize as some sort of wave, is actually the action of the matter of a space acting against one another2026 our dance is our action with matter.
Oneness & Now-ness. : This section is just describing the true nature of the universe.That in the core truths of the nature of things is that there are no lines dividing things, i.e there is no space without time and visa versa. And that this 'time' is not some linear forward moving straight line but only one of the properties of a space, thus we are always in the now.
Another interesting pattern: all words are just sounds. And very often the inverse of one word becomes the sound of another, often when their meaning are the same:I am speaking of the relationship between 'One' and 'Now'
The inverse of 'Now' is 'Won', and 'Won' is the same sound as 'One' Now = Won = One.
Showing that Now and One are the same. Time being now, and one being space
Another interesting relationship is that the meaning of 'won' in a way describes a way of acting / action that puts one in a stronger position in spacetime.Who won? Is like saying who is in one with the universe?
So to interact with the one/now of the universe
To dance with with one/now of the universe.
Which brings us to the last word in the statement ; 'Universe'
Uni = one. Verse is a word used in context of song, sound, and rhythm.
So Universe = One-Sound, or One-Song, or One-rhythm.
So finally: To interact with the oneness and now-ness of the universe.
To interact with the now of the one-sound.
Interact can take on whatever your role is2026 whether it's the music or the dance.
To dance with the now of the one-sound
Is that what the Nataraja is meant to symbolize? The dancing-Shiva statue, one of the oldest symbol figures of the Hindu philosophy. The Nataraja is supposed to hold the balance of the universe in its symbolism. The ring around the Dancing Shiva symbolizes the universe. The Nataraja Shiva has 4 hands. Two of the hands do not hold anything, and are posed in symbols of protection.
The other two hands: One holds a flame, which symbolizes destruction.
The other hand holds the symbol of creation: A drum!
The dancing Shiva is standing on a demonic creature that looks like a human.
This creature is a symbol of Human ignorance. Or Maya = illusion
Is this ignorance or illusion our misconception of the true nature of the universe?
Is this ignorance our view of linear time and all its implications?
Shiva is said to be dancing away our illusion.
Dancing to sound is an act that Shiva is using to show us the core truth of the universe.
A universe who's creation is symbolized by a drum.
This brings me to another interesting question. Why a drum? Why not a flute?
The answer, is 'Rhythm'. (Nataraja can also be translated as 'King of Rhythm')
Rhythm is fundamentally the same thing as 'repetition'. In the Nataraja-spacetime school of thought, repetition is used to symbolize the infinite, the non-linear nature of time. It is the rhythms and repetitions of the pattern of nature that reveal to us timelessness. Its through these patterns and repetitions that we derived linear time, and its also through these patterns and repetitions of nature that we catch a glimpse of the infinite. How? Because these rhythms and repetitions cause cycles. These interweaving cycles of nature join together to form a 'spiral' - a cyclical movement and progression which is curved in nature (like spacetime), and that though is always moving, is always at the same place. Always in the Now.
In short. A repeated rhythm is a portal leading to the true nature of the universe.Which finally answers the question of why we feel the way we do about psytrance music, and its why humans have always used rhythmic rituals to tap into deeper aspects of life.
Symbol of creation = Drum = sound = creation.
Creator in Hinduism = Brahma. Self in Hinduism = Atmaa
Which brings us to an old Indian saying.
'Atmaa is Brahma, Brahma is atmaa' = "You are sound, Sound is you"
