Soundless
Sound --
The Tone That Fills The
Cosmos
From
"Yoga International" Magazine, Issue 36 July, 1997 (Originally In
English)
 |
 "Yoga
International" is a bi-monthly spiritual magazine published by
a non-profit organization called the Himalayan International Institute
that promotes world peace and harmony between religious traditions.
Published in the U.S.A. and distributed world-wide, the magazine
covers all aspects of what is regarded as Eastern spiritual practice,
including meditation. In the June/July issue an article about
Supreme Master Ching Hai and the Quan Yin Method entitled "Soundless
Sound" was featured. |
Supreme Master Ching Hai repeatedly says that
the Quan Yin Method is not Her invention; that in fact meditating
on the inner Light and Sound was perfected by all the great Masters
of the past. Throughout the ages, the practice has been called many
different names depending on the culture within which the living Master
lived. Surat Shabd yoga is one name that Indian Masters have used.
It is difficult to question not only the ancient universality of the
practice but also its scientific substance, as the following article
attempts to show.
"The
knower of the mystery of Sound knows the mystery of the whole universe."
-
Hazrat Inayat Khan
Most
readers would be aware of the different forms of popular yoga, namely:
Hatha yoga, Jnana yoga, Bhakti yoga, Karma yoga, Raja yoga, Mantra
yoga and Laya yoga. Regardless of the differing emphasis one tradition
of yoga places over another, all should have the same goal. That goal,
put simply, is to separate the individualized soul from mind and matter,
and unify it with the universal Soul (God or Brahma). There is, however,
one other ancient yogic tradition (some would go so far as to say
the most ancient), which generally speaking is lesser known, but which
aims for a no less noble objective. That tradition is called Surat
Shabd yoga, or the yoga of the celestial Sound Current.
Those precious beings who
have mastered this form of yoga profess that the universal Soul manifests
Itself into two primary elements, a lightless Light and a soundless
Sound. Although these two spiritual elements mirror the relationship
between mundane light and sound, in so far as light is sound of a
very high vibrational frequency, they are not equivalent. Because
the Light and Sound are part of the universal vibratory continuum,
if one is able to contact the Sound Current then one is surely on
the road to the Light that all the great past Masters spoke of.
In
fact, throughout history many great figures have made this distinction
between worldly sound and a wondrous celestial Sound, which at higher
vibrational frequencies is believed to have enchanting musical attributes.
For example, the ancient Egyptian Plotinus, who is regarded as the
founder of Neoplatonism, said: "All music, based upon melody and rhythm,
is the Earthly representation of heavenly music." Pythagoras believed
that we are constantly in contact with the "Music of the Spheres,"
which fills our inner ears from the moment of our birth. And the famous
fifteenth-century Indian mystic and poet, Kabir, wrote extensively
about mysterious "Unstruck Music" which delivers the soul into a state
of enchanting rapture:
There
falls the rhythmic beat of life and death:
Rapture
wells forth, and all space is radiant with light.
There the Unstruck Music
is sounded; it is the music of the love of the three worlds.
There millions of lamps
of sun and of moon are burning:
There the drum beats
and the lover swings in play.
There love-songs resound,
and light rains in showers;
and the worshipper is
entranced in the taste of the heavenly nectar.
Although
often unscrupulously edited, or misunderstood by well-meaning translators,
major religious scriptures still contain references to this heavenly
Sound. For example, in the Gospel of Saint John the divine Sound is
referred to as the Word: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word
was with God, and the Word was God." (John 1:1) This was substantiated
when the late Dr. Edmond Bordeaux Szekely, philologist, archaeologist,
and co-founder of the International Biogenic Society, accidentally
came upon secret Aramaic texts in the Vatican, which date back to
the third century after the death of Jesus. Dr. Szekely translated
a revealing document called the "Essene Gospel of Peace" in which
the following appears: "In the beginning was the Sound, and the Sound
was with God, and the Sound was God."
Almost
two decades of meticulous research convinced Dr. Szekely that Jesus
was a member of the highly respected Essene spiritual community and
therefore would have had intimate knowledge of their spiritual tradition.
As he relates in The Essene Jesus, "There was the Essene Brotherhood
at the Dead Sea which planted the Essene Tree of Life, whose highest
branch was represented by the Essene Jesus."
There
are numerous other references to the divine Sound in the Bible. For
example, from the Book of Revelation 14:2: "And I heard a voice from
heaven like the sound of many waters and like the sound of loud thunder;
the voice I heard was like the sound of harpers playing on their harps."
In
Buddhism's Surangama sutra, Buddha Shakyamuni agreed with his fully
enlightened disciple, Manjushri, when he deemed the divine Sound method
of meditation to be the only way to Nirvana: "All the Brothers in
this Great Assembly, and you too, Ananda, should reverse your outward
perception of hearing and listen inwardly for the perfectly unified
and intrinsic sound of your own Mind-Essence, for as soon as you have
attained perfect accommodation you will have attained Supreme Enlightenment.
This is the only way to Nirvana, and it has been followed by all the
Tathagatas (saints) of the past."
The
Upanishads, the vast ancient Indian philosophical treaty, uses the
terms Sabda Brahman, Akash Bani, Nad and Sacred Word, among others,
to refer to the primal Sound. For example, the Hansa Naad Upanishad
states: "Meditation on Nad or the Sound Principle is the royal road
to salvation."
Muhammad
perceived the divine Sound in the cave at Gare-Hira, and the original
Sufis called the divine Sound, Saute Surmad, which means "the tone
that fills the cosmos."
Lao
Tzu described the Tao, or Way, as "unimpeded harmony," and the source
of all things. He also wrote about the Great Tone "that goes beyond
all usual imagination." Chuang Tzu, who lived some three hundred years
after Lao Tzu, also expounded the merits of contacting the spiritual
Sound when he said: "Hear with the mind instead of the ears; hear
with the energy instead of the mind. Hearing stops at the ears, the
mind stops at contact, but energy is that which is empty and responsive
to others. The Way gathers in emptiness; emptiness is mental fasting.
"If
you have your ears and eyes penetrated inwardly, and are detached
from conceptual knowledge, then even if ghosts and spirits come after
you they will stop..."
In
the Sri Guru Granth Sahib, which is Sikhism's holy book and possibly
the most complete scripture available today, the terms "Unstruck Melody"
and "Word" are often used to refer to the divine Sound:
Blessed,
Blessed am I, that my God is my Spouse,
Within whose Court Ringeth
the Unstruck Melody (of the Word).
Night and day, I abide
in Joy, hearing ever the Music of Bliss:
Yea, no more in this
state is Pain or Sorrow, neither birth nor death.
Furthermore,
many ancient cultures, including the Aztecs, Eskimos, Malayans and
Persians, also support the notion that the universe has its origin
in Sound. Australian Aboriginals also believe in Songlines or the
"Way of the Law," which sang the world, and everything in it, into
existence. A modern day physicist would use the typically prosaic
phrase "Big Bang" to describe what certainly must be essentially the
same phenomenon.
Indeed,
the considerable scriptural evidence of a primal Sound or Vibration
is supported by scientific evidence which recognizes that the basis
of all matter is vibration: "All of Nature exists as a vast oscillatory
spectrum. . . That sound shapes matter and imparts structure was unarguably
demonstrated by Swiss scientist Hans Jenny in the 1960's. Using electronic
sound oscillators and sophisticated photographic equipment, Jenny
documented the reality of wave phenomena underlying matter (a new
field he called cymatics) by filming the instantaneous shaping effects
of tones, music, and vocal sound on various substances. . . spread
on a metal plate. He meticulously catalogued the symmetrical, geometrically
perfect structures and elegant sound mandalas that resulted from directing
hundreds of different frequency and rhythmic combinations, from single
tones and intervals to complex musical harmonies, through the plate."
Even
more recent developments in the field of vibrational/sound therapy
have produced some remarkable results, clearly indicating the significant
effects of vibrational frequencies on living organisms. As author
Larry Dossey relates, "A child psychologist recently reported his
experience with an 11-year-old boy who was diagnosed as a catatonic
schizophrenic. The child had not uttered a word in seven years. In
one session with him, the therapist played Bach's `Jesu, Joy of Man's
Desiring'. The boy began to weep. When the music ended he announced
through his tears, "That is the most powerful music I have ever heard;
now I can speak!"
If
worldly sound can have such profound effects on our states of consciousness
there can be little doubt about the potency and spiritual significance
of the celestial Sound.
As
my own master, I believe Supreme Master Ching Hai has perfected the
ancient art of Surat Shabd yoga after finally finding Her master in
the Himalayas, from whom She received the mastership transmission.
Her incredible search for a master, which spanned several countries
over many years, was punctuated with seemingly insurmountable obstacles.
The trials She endured made Her steadfastly resolve to make this ancient
yogic tradition easily accessible to all sincere seekers of Truth.
While many may find it difficult to comprehend the concept of a transcendental
Sound and, moreover, appreciate the spiritual significance of this
Sound, in a few simple words Supreme Master Ching Hai so aptly explains:
"The
worldly sound is very important for our sensual and mental comfort,
but the supra-worldly Sound draws us back to God."
"This
inner Sound is the Great Creative Force of the cosmos. It is a Vibration
that sustains and nourishes all things. Its manifestation in the outer
world can be heard as the natural melodies such as the sound of the
wind, the water, the birds, insects, et cetera. . . There are more
subtle and higher Sounds which are inaudible to the mortal sense,
because they vibrate in the higher dimensions. . . . To catch these
higher Sounds we must raise our own levels to those worlds beyond
our senses."
The
key to raising one's level of consciousness to perceive the divine
Sound is finding a living spiritual master who can genuinely initiate
spiritual seekers. Initiation is necessary to fully awaken one's God-nature
or master within. After initiation one needs to meditate, according
to the master's instructions, on the Light and the Sound each day
to make continued spiritual progress.
A
second and equally important role of the living master is to accept
the past-life karma of their neophytes. Hence the master must take
on a physical body to suffer the karma that would normally befall
their students. Without this incredible sacrifice by the master, the
neophyte's karmic burden would be too heavy to escape the endless
cycle of rebirth. As Supreme Master Ching Hai observes, "While a living
Master is on Earth he takes on some of the karma of the people, especially
those who believe in the Master, and even more-so those who are disciples
of the Master. . . .Therefore, the Master suffers for the disciples,
and for mankind at large, in his lifetime. . . he might be sick, he
might be ill, he might be tortured, he might be nailed on the cross,
or he might be slandered."
Furthermore,
the master's omniscient, omnipresent and omnipotent qualities protects
the initiate at all times because, once initiated, an eternal, spiritual
link is established between the master and initiate until mastership
is attained. This ensures the numerous pitfalls along the spiritual
journey are avoided. In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus alluded to the
precarious nature of the spiritual journey when He said, "For the
gate is narrow and the way is hard, that leads to life, and those
who find it are few." (Matthew 7:14)
Although
not as well known as other yogic traditions, the yoga of the celestial
Sound Current is regarded by some to be the highest tradition. The
compelling written evidence from ancient, wise philosophers and past
great spiritual masters certainly supports such a view. While therapists
are only recently discovering the healing effects of worldly vibrational
frequencies, for thousands of years the great past masters have imparted
the one unified Truth and the one path of celestial Sound and Light
through which to assimilate this Truth. The fundamental unity of their
message derides the superficial divisions that have taken root in
the minds of influential, but sadly misguided, religious fanatics
throughout the ages. Since the past masters are no longer with us,
a living master is the key to experiencing this Truth and to contacting
the divine Sound that pierces the dark layers of consciousness to
uplift the soul to a supremely blissful spiritual reality within us
all, where, we are told, the Light of millions of lamps of sun and
of moon burn eternally.
Supreme Master Ching Hai is a
female meditation master who espouses the essential unity of all religions
and initiates sincere spiritual seekers into the ancient spiritual
Sound and spiritual Light meditation practice, free of charge. She
calls the practice the Quan Yin Method because She gave her first
public lectures in Taiwan almost a decade ago (Quan Yin is a Chinese
term that means contemplation of the vibration). Supreme Master Ching
Hai's initiates agree to a life-long commitment to basic ethical codes
of conduct, including the adherence to a vegan
diet. She has meditation Centers in more than 40 countries.
For Further Reading:
Soundless
Sound -- The Tone That Fills The Cosmos