FIND YOUR SOUND
Hey Yogi-in-Training. Hope your week was sweet. 😉
Today’s yoga quickie is inspired by the music streaming services of Spotify.
I just fired up my account and got to scrolling through some beautifully curated sets of tunes designed by its experts to shift me into any desired state of mind or mood. Let me see, do I need help getting my sorry ass out of bed, or be inspired to go kick some creative butt? As I have already won the war to wake, I’ll go for the latter option. Thankyou Spotify.
A cool way of communicating with your central nervous system.
But It got me asking, who really needs a microscope or a science degree to see that sound can be a very cool way of communicating with the central nervous system?
Which is what I want you to remember as we dive into this week’s yoga quickie which is all about using sound or vibration to access heightened states of awareness, clarity and consciousness.
First up let’s just ask what is sound?
Sounds are waves or vibrations that ripple through the air. We are surrounded by sound all the time. The whole universe, that includes us, consists of energy and information that’s hurtling out of quantum space and making one heck of a symphony. It’s noisy out there.
A mantra is an instrument of the mind. In the ancient Indian language Sanskrit, “man” means mind and “tra” means vehicle. It is a vibration or sound used for quieting and calming the mind which allows us to connect or travel more deeply within, to our true Self, our inner essence, or our source – or to put it simply, to helps us go behind the noise.
A place of heightened awareness
When you do this, you move into a place of heightened awareness, and potential. If this is feeling a little to woo woo, please keep with me. I’ll try and explain. Simply the mantra helps us to journey to a place where our ability to pay attention and be aware increases.
We start to see the choices we make in our lives and recognise when something isn’t working, or aligned with what we want, and that means we can change it.
Here’s the kind of stuff you might be looking to change.
- Eating patterns
- Sleeping patterns
- How you workout
- How you deal with conflict and arguments
- How you manage stressful situations
Any of that need changing?
We can break from patterns of behaviour, conditioned living, and states of mind that don’t serve us. We can get off the treadmill that’s taking us nowhere, out of the groove that keeps playing the same tune and focus on those things that matter, inspire and make us most happy, whole and well.
In Primordial Sound Meditation, which is my practice, you get a personalised mantra, which has no meaning so that the mind isn’t focused on an outcome. But you can begin with the yogic mantra “so hum” (so = I am and hum = that).
So Hum is a reflection of the sound of the breath but also refers to mystery of how we are all one with creation and not separate.
As you inhale you silently repeat the sound “so” as you exhale silently repeat the sound “hum”.
Now you have the foundations of your meditation practice. Set a timer, make sure you are not distracted and enjoy. Easy! Great choice.
BONUS MATERIAL.
Want more help? Go grab the free 7 Day Meditation Challenge that’s waiting for you here.
Each day I invite you to take on one small challenge that will move you slowly in the direction of your meditation mat and hopefully, in small easy steps, to a daily meditation practice.
Hope it serves you, have fun diving in to some stillness…
Good vibes with hugs
Josie
P.S Please share this stuff, it really works.
