by Sharon Davis-Troth, Ph.D.

Energy and Vibration
   
Harmonics, as was pointed out time and again by philosophers, historians, and scholars, made up the foundation of early philosophies.  The Pythagorean philosophy is a good example.  Pythagoras explained arithmetic, geometry, music, astronomy and ethics all through the use of numbers and their ratios.  From Pythagoras to Plato and then to Archytas (4th century BC), all of these scholars demonstrated the "numerical ratios of the intervals of the vibrating portions of strings."¹ More recently, Elizabeth Haich has written, "All energy, all forces of the Universe, are movements which emanate from one point - their own center - and radiate in circular waves in all direction, manifesting themselves as vibration or oscillations."²  

David Bohm, a physicist and physical theorist, studied in quantum physics and the discovery that matter, rather than being solid, is a body of particles and waves.  Bohm talked about the universe existing as "the implicate order" because it cannot be seen or measured.  Bohm believed this is true even down to each individual.  Space is not empty but full, and the universe is not separate from the "cosmic sea of energy," but only part of the foundation that has birthed everything through this implicate order.³ A loose interpretation of Bohm's concepts from Belleruth Naperstek is as follows: 
         

We are nothing more than vibration in a sea of living, intelligent energy.  Although we exist as separate entities of solid matter, at a much deeper level we are all nothing but interconnecting, interpenetrating energy fields.  These fields transcend time and space, with each vibration containing everything in the universe, each subatomic bit of us a hologram of all that is.⁴

To elaborate on Naperstek's view, the human energy field emanates an auric field that can also be called a vibrational field.  This field is unique for each person and contains specific information regarding an individual's physical and emotional health.  Pythagoras, in 500 BC, recorded this same view and referred to it also as the human energy field.
   
Energy fields are "nonmaterial regions of influence, of pattern information, and of action at a distance."⁵  These fields allow an effect of objects with each other even from a distance. 
Albert Einstein, while never showing any real proof, first formulated the premise and a vague explanation for what later would be referred to by some as the "Unified Field Theory."  He had five points on which this theory was based.  First, matter is organized energy, and second, the underlying energy patterns, referred to as fields, are representative of the universe.  Next, all matter stems from energy fields that form substance.  Quantum physics now reveals that everything is made of energy.  Einstein's fourth premise was that boundaries are absent from these fields and since there are no boundaries they continually send pulses of information back and forth at all times.  These fields go everywhere, evolve, and are not always in a state of equilibrium when they are in former higher states of complexity.⁶  Dr. Hunt states the most important level from which the world and human beings can be understood is the level of the field transaction.  Living things have dynamic fields that constantly and selectively interact with all environmental fields.⁷
    
DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) makes up the building blocks of the body.  This DNA, which is made up of atoms, is in a continuous state of vibration.  Every layer of matter that makes up the body, down to the smallest particle, has its own rate of vibration; therefore, individual molecules like DNA have vibrating traits, and the living cells that DNA make bear these same characteristics. If something vibrates, it does so at a specific resonant frequency, and anything that vibrates at a certain frequency can be impacted externally if that frequency is matched.  It is now believed that this is how vibration can affect DNA and cell functioning.  Vibrational patterns of DNA and cells might form the foundation for interacting patterns of electromagnetic radiation and sound waves with living tissue.  These same waves might impact humans in both a psychological and physiological manner
    
From a bioenergetics perspective of disease, healing on all levels is requisite on reharmonization and re-energization of the bioenergetic body.  True health can be seen as the perfect maintenance of a dynamic energy field which is constantly flowing and vital. The human energy field vibrates from low to high frequency as if there were many layered energy bodies all in one space bringing about one form.  Each of these levels of energy within the human energy field affect the functioning of the body, and can bring about healing if frequencies are properly matched from external and internal sources. "The healthy body is a flowing, interactive electrodynamic energy field.  Motion is more natural to life than non-motion . . .What interferes with flow will have detrimental effects."⁸
   
Itzhak Bentov, a researcher well respected by his peers and many scientists, discovered a special system of rhythmically tuned oscillators in the body that were driven by heart pulses.  During deep meditation, a correlation was found of energy changes in the heart and brain activity.  The signals of the heart to begin each continual beat bring about an acoustical standing wave of 7-hertz.  From here, Bentov looked further into both the physical and subtle-energy ramifications of these physical shifts.  He found that the physical body had a system of "tuned rhythmic oscillators," and during meditation, these were actuated by circulatory pulses from the heart.  As breathing slows during meditation, not only do brain waves slow down, but heart rhythms shift as well.  Bentov found these were not separate bodily functions, but a system of regulated wave cycles.  The signals emitted for this cycle to emerge were also precisely and perfectly timed for simultaneous rhythms.
    
The oscillitic rhythm of the heart was followed by further resonant up and down oscillations that caused the cranial vault in the skull to have the same movement.  This system also had within it frequencies of sound and vibration.  When up and down oscillation, resonance, and sound frequency were all active, these brought about a reverberating loop in the brain tissue of the cerebral cortex.  Since the brain is set up to control and affect specific areas in the body, these sonic vibrations created during meditation also caused a stimulation of the nerve tissues, which, in turn could affect the entire body.⁹
    
From a past focused on molecular science moving into a future of quantum science, a new theory has emerged called the String Theory.  In the 1930's, physicists had discovered that the atom could be broken down into smaller items - a nucleus, which has within its makeup protons and neutrons orbited by electrons.  By the 1960's, physicists discovered still smaller units they named "quarks" and "leptons," and these were said to make up all particles of matter.  Now, in the last few decades, physicists are discovering yet another piece to the story, that there may be beyond these quarks and leptons the real building blocks of matter - what they are now calling "strings of energy."  This theory is hypothesizing that the trillions of cells inside the body form a great symphony of sound and the body responds to vibration.¹⁰
    
These vibrating strings of energy (also referred to as the Superstring Theory) reside before the onset of atoms, before protons, neutrons and electrons.  This theory states that everything in the universe, from planets to the tiniest subatomic particle, is at its primary level made up of microscopic strands of energy.  This idea is germane to understanding why energy, sound and vibration are at the forefront of many fields, including the healing arts.  The process regulating these strings of energy can be thought of as similar to a guitar string.  Depending on how the string is plucked, a different note (or frequency) will be heard and these vibrating strings are, in essence, the foundation and fabric of all matter.¹¹
    
These "notes" are subatomic particles and the types of particles are determined by the "note" or level of vibratory energy being produced.  Residing in the deepest and most indivisible level of matter are patterns of vibration, and the vibrational pattern gives each particle its specific properties.   An important aspect of this theory is that researchers, health-care practitioners, and futurists believe vibrational energy may have a strong impact on everyday life.  If all matter is made up of vibrating strands of energy, then so are humans, which means our cells, tissues and organs vibrate.  Billions upon billions of ranging frequencies interact with each other and resonate within the physical form.  Since these vibrations change what happens both within a person and outside the person - in the environment-- then the sounds and vibrations that make up the environmental world can influence and change the vibrations within a person, affecting one's health for better or for worse. 
    
The ideas behind String Theory are based on the principles of vibration and energy flow, and the belief that sound can influence our health.  These ideas were presented ages ago by ancient sages of many cultures, both East and West.  Hermetic philosophers taught that one of the seven major laws of Hermeticism is the principle of vibration - everything is in a state of constant motion and everything vibrates.  Chinese healers (and modern acupuncturists) work to rebalance the flow of energy (chi) through the body's meridians.  Similarly, the Chinese believe specific healing sounds are associated with each of the five organ systems of the body and help balance the body and emotions.  Hindu, Buddhist, and Jewish sages taught that sound, through the uttering of mantras, divine names and prayers, would bring about a plethora of powerful healing effects, both external and internal.

Ravi Dykeman interviewed Jonathan Goldman, a leading expert in the field of sound healing and director of the Sound Healing Association, about how sound heals.  Sound, as a healing tool dates back thousands of years.  Currently, the field of sound healing is making headway in mainstream research and professional circles.  Goldman relates that sound healing falls within the branch of holistic healing as energy medicine.  Scientists today agree that everything is in a state of vibration, from atoms to distant galaxies, and this vibration can be perceived as sound.  This means also that every piece of the human body (tissue, organs, bones, blood, cells, and more) is creating a sound.  People who are healthy are vibrating harmoniously; those who are sick, inharmoniously in some part of the body-system.¹²  When asked what instruments are typically used for healing, Mr. Goldman responded that voice, the didgeridoo, Tibetan Bowls, bells, tuning forks, scientific instruments like a somatic instrument all have healing effects.  This process is very effective with learning disabilities and emotional problems.¹³  

Another mode for sound healing through vibration was discovered in the 16th century.  This phenomenon is called entrainment and means that one object will synchronize with another similar object, so that they are eventually in perfect harmony.  Robert Monroe researched entrainment in the 1960's, and reported that if a frequency is put in one ear (for instance 100 cycles/second), and a frequency in another ear (104 cycles/second), the predominant lobes of the brain would vibrate or entrain to the four cycle/second difference, and the left and right hemispheres of the brain, when measured with electroencephalogram, would synchronize together.¹⁴ The important point here is that Monroe's tests revealed a form of synchronization between the left and right hemispheres of the brain brought about with sound. 
     
Another example of entrainment would be to line up a number of grandfather clocks against a wall.  The pendulum of each clock would be swinging at its own individual phase.  Within a few days, energy transferred through the wall would allow the clocks to come into phase with one another.  Similarly, if a piano and a guitar are both in tune and an F was played on the piano, the F string on the guitar will also vibrate.  Frequency waves move the air and transfer the acoustical energy from the piano to the guitar.  While this information on basic physics is certainly well known, it is presented to maintain the premise that energy vibration is an aspect of sound, and therefore, supports the healing effects of sound.
    
Mitchel Gaynor, M.D., is the clinical professor at Weill-Cornell Medical College and the founder of Gaynor Integrative Oncology in New York City.  An article in the August 2003 issue of Spirituality and Health magazine related the success he had treating patients of life-threatening diseases, especially cancer, with sound therapy, including Tibetan bowls, crystal bowls and chanting.  Dr. Gaynor states:
         

If we accept that sound is vibration and we know that vibration touches every part of our physical being, then we understand that sound is heard not only through our ears but through every cell in our bodies.  One reason sound heals on a physical level is because it so deeply touches and transforms us on the emotional and spiritual planes.  Sound can redress imbalances on every level of physiologic functioning and can play a positive role in the treatment of virtually any medical disorder. ¹⁵

The late Dr. Randolf Stone taught that bodies are not solid, but are a "coordinated pattern of energy movement."  Dr. Stone found that sickness developed when the swirling movement and flow of energy is disrupted.¹⁶  Health is a delicate interaction of body, mind, emotion, and spirit.  Health is achieved when these elements function in harmony with each other as well as with the universe.  When parts of this whole are experienced as separate or conflicted, illness sets in and disharmony prevails.  Dr. Fritjof Capra presents the modern scientific viewpoint this way:  "The universe is no longer seen as a machine made up of a multitude of objects, but rather as a harmonious 'organic' whole whose parts are only defined through their interrelations."¹⁷
    
No other sense can register impulses as minimal as those that the ear registers.  They are smaller than the wavelength of visible light and even less than the diameter of a hydrogen atom.  The smallest stimulus the ear can just barely perceive would have to be amplified by a factor of 10 to the sixth power in order to reach the level of the highest volume perceivable, by a factor in the million range.  If a person amplified the smallest impulses our eyes can register by the same factor it would cause instant blindness.¹⁸
    
As Spirit beings, people operate on spirit, and spirit is energy and light.  All beings have different frequencies that both create them and by which they exist.  Sounds are capable of creating an effect on whatever they interact with and contact.  Sound is the vibration of light and energy.  As a vibration it does not merely bounce off objects, it can penetrate objects and
commingle with the molecules within the objects.  This is how it affects the human/spirit nature.    
    
The sound the rishis started with was Aum.  It is considered to be the sound of God; the sound God made to create the Universe.  An article was posted on NASA's internet website.  The Orbiting Shandra Xray Observatory was performing a study to try to determine what, if any, sound the universe makes.  They found the universe does make sound. This sound is a tone 57 octaves below middle C, far deeper than we can hear yet it permeates every living thing in the universe.  From these digital recordings into outer space vacuums, NASA reported that the sound which came back to them was "Aum."¹⁹
    
All energy in the universe is there for a purpose.  Nothing is random nor chaotic.  Every sound wave and every particle of light is designed specifically to produce some sort of "creative effect."  Bodies are being bombarded by these little packets of light and energy at the rate of trillions per second.  Neutrinos, muons, quarks, electrons, photons - all are hurtling through the cosmos at trillions of miles per hour and passing through our bodies and spirits as well.  This is how man maintains connection with the universe around him.  This is the secret of life.  Deep in this universe a sound is pulsing and maintaining a vibrate cosmic life.

The next article will address specific sound therapy disciplines.  "Stay tuned!"

Continue to Part 5






1 Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, Ernst Chladni, Retreived June 10, 2006 from
    en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ernst_Chladni.

2 Hans Jenny, Cymatics, (Newmarket, NH: MACROmedia, 1967), 279.

3 Jeffrey Thompson, The Clinical Use of Sound, 1999. www.healingmusic.org.

4 Elizabeth Haich, Initiation, (Garbersville, CA: Seed Center Publications, 1974), 212.

5 Donna Eden, Energy Medicine, (New York: Jeremy P. Tarcher/Putnam, 1998), 51-53.

6 Brain Snellgrove, Unseen Self, 11.

7 Valerie Hunt, The Infinite Mind, Science of the Human Vibration of Consciousness, (Malibu, CA: Malibu Publications, 1996), 43.

8 Valerie Hunt,  The Infinite Mind, Science of the Human Vibration of Consciousness, (Malibu, CA: Malibu Publications, 1996), 43.

9  Barbara Crowe, Music and Soul-Making, (Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Press, Inc., 2004) 197.

10 Ibid, 198.

11 Valerie Hunt, The Infinite Mind, Science of the Human Vibration of Consciousness, 48.

12  Patricia R. Spadaro, The Body's Symphony of Sound and Vibration, Part 1, 2005. www.cymatherapy.com.

13 Ravi Dykeman, An Interview with Jonathon Goldman, The Sound of Healing, 2003,
   www.healingsounds.com/articles/nexus.asp.

14  Ibid., 2.

15  Ibid., 3.

16  Ibid., 4.

17 Diane Mandle, How and Why Sound Therapy Works, 2004.

18 Ibid., 2.

19 NASA Orbiting Shandra Xray Observatory, Retrieved on January 16, 2006 from www.NASA.com.