More and more people are beginning to understand and acknowledge that everything is in vibration. Another way of saying this is that everything is in motion.
Imagine taking a journey inside your own body to view the smallest part of yourself – an atom. An atom is like an ultra miniature solar system. The nucleus in the centre is like the sun in the centre of our solar system. Electrons and other tiny bits whirl around the nucleus like the earth and the other planets orbit the sun.
The planets don’t go whirling off into the darkness of space. They are held within the solar system by gravity and their gravitational fields. In a similar way, electrons don’t go spinning off from the nucleus of an atom in your body. They are held in place by their electromagnetic fields.
Sound is vibrational energy. It pushes against atoms as it travels. Sound is a physical energy!
Imagine standing in the waves on the seashore. Your feet feel secure in the sand and the waves move back and forth around your legs. You can feel the push of the wave as it crashes into your legs and you can feel the pull of the water as it moves back into the sea. The effect of sound is similar.
Here is an easy experiment to watch the movement of waves. Fill your kitchen sink half full of water. Let the water become still and then drop one drop of water into the sink from about one foot above.
Watch the waves move out from the drop, hit the side of the sink and then bounce back to move toward the middle of the sink.
Here is another easy experiment. Fill your kitchen sink half full of water and set the faucet to drip one drop of water at a time. Watch the rhythmic patterns of the waves as they move out to the side of the sink and back.
Sound is very similar. It pushes and pulls like the waves of water as it moves. Actually, sound can’t move at all unless it has atoms or molecules to push.
Not everyone knows that sound travels through the human body about four times faster than it travels through the air. Yes, we hear the sound – like a knock on the door – but it is also traveling through our bodies – creating waves as it travels.
Sometimes, if the sound is a really low sound, like the deep bass of a sub-woofer (an amplifier of low sounds) we can feel the sound move through our bodies. The next time you go to a movie, check in with your body. The sound at movies is usually quite loud and so are the low sounds of the music. See if you can feel the vibration in your body as the sound moves through it.
If I am watching a movie with the sound of explosions in it (my family loves “Star Trek” and “Star Wars”) I can feel that sound moving through me. Especially if the volume is set high.
Some sounds traveling through your body are beneficial. Some are not. Do you know the difference?
Harmful or Beneficial Sound? How to Tell the Difference.
Some of these sounds you hear are beneficial, and some are not. Do you know how to tell the difference?
Here is an experiment that offers you a physical experience of two contrasting sounds:
- Take a deep breath. Release the breath slowly with a big sigh.
- Check in with your body. How are you feeling right now? Don’t judge it. Just notice. NOTICE BODY – MIND – EMOTIONS
- Click on the track below to listen to its sounds. The track is 22 seconds long.
- Check in with your body again. Do you notice a difference from how you felt before listening to the track?
- Click on the track below to listen to its sounds. This track is 45 seconds long.
- Check in with your body again. Do you notice a difference in how you respond to these sounds? MIND? EMOTIONS?
The next time you go shopping for groceries, notice the music playing. Decades of research have shown that music with a slow beat can increase sales by up to 40% in grocery stores.
The next time you go to the mall, listen to the music played in the various stores. Most retailers know what music will keep customers in their store longer. If the store belongs to a national or international chain, the type of music played may be determined by company policy and sent to all stores.
Popular restaurants may also have similar policies depending on whether they want to keep diners at their table longer or turn over tables faster. Does fast music make you chew faster?
We need to remember that sound is a nutrient for YOUR NERVOUS SYSTEM. It feeds us. As you become aware of how you respond to sound at all levels, physical, mental, emotional and spiritual, I encourage you to ask whether a particular sound feeds you or whether it doesn’t.
If you live in an area of the world where sound inundates your day, developing an awareness of how that sound affects you can make a difference in how you choose to maintain good health and wellness.
HOME EXPLORATION FOR THIS WEEK – notice the sounds around you and how they affect you.