Silent meditation works for you or it doesn’t. You can’t force yourself to sit still as a rock for 20 minutes at a time and expect to reap a worthwhile experience. However, there is more than one way to achieve a meditative state. Sound-induced meditation is an effective alternative to traditional meditation. Through chanting, brainwave entrainment or guided exercises, sound helps transport you into a state of meditative bliss.
Binaural Beats
Psychoacoustics -- a term coined in the 1970s -- describes a type of meditation achieved with sound. By using headphones through which you hear pulsating sounds -- or binaural beats -- at different frequencies, your brainwaves can be entrained to produce theta and delta waves that indicate the deepest level of relaxation. Many companies that produce brainwave entrainment systems offer free demo CDs or mp3 downloads to try before you have to commit to the purchase. If you wear a pacemaker or have seizures, err on the side of caution and use another form of sound-induced meditation.
Mantra Meditation
Many styles of meditation use sound -- sometimes spoken, sometimes silent -- in the form of a mantra to induce a meditative state. When learning primordial sound meditation, you’ll receive a sound or vibration -- to help you deepen your meditative state -- that you’ll repeat silently, though “audibly” in your head. Transcendental meditation also subscribes to the use of a mantra to invoke deep relaxation. Many meditation practitioners simply sound the word “om” -- called "the sound of the universe" -- as means by which to focus.
Tibetan Sound Healing
Through the use of five “seed” or “warrior” syllables -- a, om, hung, ram and dza -- in Tibetan sound healing, you can activate the powers of five of your seven chakras. You enter into a meditative state with the intention of invoking the “three excellences,” which means you formulate your intent, express openness and share the fruits of your meditation with the world at large. Accompanied by poses and breathing exercises, this style of sound-induced meditation will appeal to those who cannot sit in traditional meditation without fidgeting.
Guided Meditation
Being lulled into a state of relaxation and calmness is possible by listening to a guided meditation, which you can find free online. Your guide will help you create a deeply meditative state by urging you to focus on what you want out of life. Whether it’s to be less stressed or more grounded; whether you want to enhance your best traits and release ones that are not serving you, a guided meditation will help narrow your focus.
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