I like music. In truth the highly effective surges of pleasurable vitality that I used to expertise in my physique when listening to music as a youngster was one of many issues that made me curious to be taught meditation. These experiences of rapture (the Buddhist technical time period is “priti”) opened my eyes to the very fact that there have been ranges of expertise exterior of our regular expectations.
“Meditation Music” Is Not a Conventional Idea
The concept that you must take heed to music whereas meditating is quite common. However this most likely goes again to seeing meditation as little greater than a way of leisure.
Historically, the thought of listening to music whereas meditating can be utterly out of the query. In no Buddhist lineage that I do know of is there any type of musical accompaniment to sitting meditation.
The notion of listening to music whereas meditating is a really trendy one, and possibly comes from the truth that many different well being practitioners play enjoyable music within the background whereas performing their therapeutic arts. This music grew to become often called “meditation music” and the idea grew up that we should always take heed to music whereas meditating.
Historically there would merely be silence or ambient background noise to accompany meditation.
“Meditation Music” Stops Us From Going Deeply Into Meditation
So-called meditation music is supposed to be enjoyable, and naturally meditation does enable you to to loosen up too. However meditation goes past leisure and helps us to be extra alert and targeted. It additionally helps us to do issues like domesticate kindly or to deeply query the character of our expertise. Music is prone to get in the best way of these actions.
If you happen to’re attempting to concentrate one-pointedly to your respiration, then you may’t additionally take heed to music. And should you’re attempting to take heed to music then you may’t totally focus in your respiration.
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Music produces nice emotions, which is why we take heed to it and why music is now virtually ubiquitous, being thrust at us in shops, elevators, and even on the streets. If these nice emotions are being equipped by “meditation music” then we received’t attain deeper into ourselves to seek out our personal sources of happiness. So-called meditation music due to this fact is a type of crutch that hinders our observe fairly than serving to it.
If you happen to discover silence disquieting or disagreeable, then you definitely’re not capable of be at peace with your self. The way in which to get snug with silence is to observe being with it. On this approach we be taught to be at peace with ourselves. Listening to music whereas meditation makes that course of not possible. You’ll by no means be taught to be deeply at peace with your self should you’re depending on music.
In truth, as we get deeper into meditation, we cease registering sounds altogether. Our ears are nonetheless functioning, in fact. And the alerts they’re producing are nonetheless being despatched to the mind. However after we’re totally engaged with being conscious of our inside expertise, we merely cease listening to sounds.
Listening to music whereas meditating stops that depth of mindfulness from taking place.
Music As Meditation
Nonetheless, specializing in music is okay, and I wholeheartedly counsel that you just strive doing that, however I additionally counsel that you just strive doing it at a time if you’re not meditating.
I’d go additional and counsel that listening to music, if performed correctly, could be a meditation in itself, simply as strolling or washing the dishes will be. You possibly can take many actions and make them richer and extra satisfying by taking extra consciousness into them. Music, as we’ve seen, is only one instance. We’ve included hyperlinks to some glorious Buddhist music that makes an ideal focus for a “listening meditation.”
Listening to music as a meditation observe could be a very highly effective observe. As I grew to become extra accustomed to the expertise of the dhyanas (Pali, jhanas), that are very concentrated, calm, and blissful states of meditation, I noticed that I’d been experiencing these states for years whereas listening to western classical music. And I’ve discovered that I can expertise the entire dhyanas whereas treating music as a meditation object.
If you happen to’re going to take heed to music as meditation then it’s a must to take it critically as a observe. Attempt to not do the rest on the identical time. Don’t work, or learn, or steadiness your checkbook when you’re listening. Swap off your cellphone. Darken the room. Simply take heed to the music. Be sure you’re in a cushty place that helps alert consideration. Sit or lie down comfortably, and simply take note of the music. You’ll most likely discover that you just get pleasure from it like by no means earlier than.
Nature Sounds As an Accompaniment to Meditation
One auditory accompaniment to meditation that I do assume is affordable is recordings of pure sounds, comparable to water, birdsong, and so on. Within the Buddha’s day the overwhelming majority of meditation would have taken place open air. Even when meditation happened indoors, the buildings would have lacked glass home windows and silence would have been extraordinarily uncommon. So you may argue that meditating within the presence of pure sounds (or recordings thereof) is nearer to the unique observe of meditation. However, simply because silence was uncommon within the Buddha’s day doesn’t imply that individuals then wouldn’t have discovered silence helpful as a background for his or her observe.
Moreover, although, many people reside in very city environments the place listening to pure sounds is uncommon. I consider that contact with the sounds of nature fulfills a deep want for a way of connectedness to the pure world, and that recordings of these sounds can assist fill that want.
Additionally, pure sounds are extra random and fewer “catchy” than music, and the thoughts is much less prone to change into connected to and distracted by them. In truth, it’s simpler to tune out random pure sounds as we get extra absorbed in our expertise. We’re extra prone to get “caught” listening to music.
So at worst I’d say that pure recordings do no hurt, whereas at finest they could assist us to fill a necessity for the expertise of pure sound. Music alternatively is prone to be a distraction, or to artificially produce nice emotions, thus stopping us from discovering these nice emotions from inside.
Finally It’s As much as You
I’ll simply add that you just’re utterly free to decide on to take heed to music when you meditate. You’re free to take heed to the information when you meditate, even. However in making these decisions you’re additionally selecting the implications that comply with on from them — that you just’re taking away a possibility to be deeply at peace with your self. I’d counsel that selecting silence is a extra spiritually useful possibility. Even should you initially discover silence intimidating, you’ll get used to it. Hundreds of thousands of meditators have. And in time you’ll discover that silence is extra conducive to peace and tranquillity than music ever may very well be.
