Aspects of Sound Healing: Toning, Deep Listening and Freeing the Natural Voice
The integration of sound into yoga practice is not just an enhancement of the physical experience, but a profound method of healing and transformation. Teaching yoga with a focus on sound healing elements, like toning, deep listening, and freeing the natural voice, opens up a new dimension of yoga therapy. This article explores these aspects, highlighting the importance of sound in yoga teacher training and yoga therapy online training programs.
The Power of Intention in Sound Healing
Intention is a fundamental component in sound healing. As noted by Steven Halpern, PhD, and sound healer, sound acts as a “carrier wave of consciousness.” Jonathan Goldman simplifies this concept with his formula: Frequency + Intention = Healing. This implies that a pure intention combined with a pure tone creates the right conditions for healing and transformation.
Toning and Its Benefits
Toning, a practice involving the creation of extended vocal sounds, has numerous benefits. It helps in releasing tension, centering the mind, lowering blood pressure, and stimulating bone conduction.
In yoga, just as āsana creates shapes with the body, toning creates shapes with the mouth, resonating within the body and affecting our physical, mental, and energetic states. “Tone is carried through the air to our ears, but it is the etheric which carries the real essence of the tone to our inner being,” Rudolf Steiner emphasized the spiritual connection toning provides, uniting us with our origins and involving our entire being in the process.
Sound and the Energetic Body
In yoga, bījas or seed syllables are used to move energy and tune our chakras. Each chakra has a corresponding seed syllable, such as LAM for the Muladhara / Root chakra or AUM for the Ajna / Third-eye chakra. These syllables are powerful tools in sound yoga therapy, impacting the energetic body and facilitating divine connection.
Tuning Forks in Sound Healing
Tuning forks, as explained by John Beaulieu, PhD, are tools in sound healing that induce a ‘still point,’ aiding in mental and physical pattern shifts. Beaulieu’s forks with overtones are particularly effective, aligning with the concept of entrainment where brain waves sync with sound waves.
https://solancha.com/understanding-sound-therapy-and-its-healing-effect/
Freeing the Natural Voice
The voice is more than a mere sound; it’s an expression of the soul. Hazrat Inayat Khan and Tom Kenyon emphasize the profound connection between voice, breath, and life. In yoga practices, like sound meditation or sound yoga therapy, using our voice helps in expanding breath capacity, releasing nitric oxide, and connecting with our inner selves. Regular vocal practice can lead to significant healing and unification of body, mind, and spirit.
Creating Your Own Sound Practice
To integrate sound healing into yoga practice, one can create a sacred “sound temple,” a space free from distractions where one can explore different sounds and mantras. This includes using drones and various sound entry points to achieve clarity and purification. This approach aligns with the teachings of Silvia Nakkach, “find ways to help you soften the mind and open you to divine intervention”. Focus on softening the mind and opening up to divine intervention.
The Practice of Deep Listening
Deep Listening, a concept developed by Pauline Oliveros, is about being fully present and attentive to all sounds, distinguishing between hearing and listening. This practice, which can be further explored at https://www.deeplistening.org/, emphasizes the importance of silence and attentiveness for internal and external healing.
Medicine Melodies
Medicine melodies are intuitive sounds that reflect a sacred unity with nature. They appear in various traditions as lullabies, chants, mantras, and healing songs. Engaging in deep listening allows individuals to tap into these melodies, transforming them into vehicles for healing and spiritual connection, as explained by Silvia Nakkach.
Integrating Sound into Yoga Accreditation and Training
Incorporating these elements into yoga teacher training and yoga accreditation programs is essential. It expands the scope of yoga from being merely a physical practice to a holistic healing approach. As yoga therapy online training becomes more prevalent, including sound therapy elements like sound meditation and sound yoga therapy enriches the learning experience, equipping future yoga teachers with a comprehensive understanding of yoga’s healing potential.
The Bottom Line
The fusion of sound healing techniques with traditional yoga practices offers a multifaceted approach to wellness. It’s not just about teaching yoga; it’s about imparting a deeper understanding of how sound can be used as a powerful tool for healing, transformation, and spiritual connection. As the field of yoga continues to evolve, incorporating sound healing principles will undoubtedly become an integral part of yoga teacher training and therapy programs, enriching the practice for both teachers and students alike.
Interested in sound yoga, sound healing and in learning how to incorporate sound into your yoga practice or profession? Join Jessica Caplan, Dana Slamp and more this spring – live and online – for Sound Yoga Therapy. CE’s with Yoga Alliance and credit towards our Yoga Therapy Certification. Call us at Prema Yoga Institute and advance your yoga teaching career today!
About Jessica Caplan
Jessica Caplan, an E-RYT200 certified yoga instructor and integrative Sound Practitioner, began her journey in yoga in 2006 with Pure Yoga Hong Kong’s teacher training. Specializing in sound therapy, she trained at the Open Center’s Sound and Music Institute under renowned experts. Jessica skillfully integrates soundbaths, meditative soundscapes, and voice and sound healing workshops into her practice. She co-created the audio meditation series SoundMind and co-teaches PYI’s signature course, Sound Yoga Therapy every spring online at Prema Yoga Institute. Jessica’s work, deeply rooted in a blend of yoga, sound healing, and various spiritual traditions, is accessible at www.jessicacaplanyoga.com.
