Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Quranic Recitation and Healing Effects Part 2

Frequency of Sound Waves

Sound is basically a compression waveform at a certain frequency. Sound can move through air or other materials like water or solids. It causes vibration in the object it strikes.

Sound is a primitive & powerful force. It has been used to blast off mountains; in medicine Radiologists use it for scanning the body in the form of ultra sound and Urologists use it to break Kidney and Gall Bladder stones. Creation of the earth was through a massive sound when Allah All Mighty said the very powerful word "Kun"; and its end, the doomsday will also be through an extremely powerful sound form called 'Soor' that will destroy the whole world. As Qur'an reveals:


And when the trumpet shall sound one blast; And the earth with the mountains shall be lifted up and crushed with one crash (Al-Qur'an 69:13-14).


For when the trumpet shall sound; Surely that day will be a day of anguish; Not of ease, for disbelievers (Al-Qur'an 74:8-10).

For centuries, healers have intuitively used sound's therapeutic powers. In ancient cultures, many examples of use of sound and vibration as treatment are found. Numerous tools have been used since the beginning of time to create music that aids healing: planetary gongs and Tibetan bowls, didgeridoos, rattles and drums.

Even today, a growing number of medical professionals are embracing sound as an effective tool for healing. It has been proved that the entry of sound waves into the human body is not just through the ears. We also hear and perceive sound by skin and bone conduction. We are sensitive to sounds in ways that most people do not even consider. It passes through the body and in the process the human tissues transduces pressure waves (sound waves) into electrical stimuli primarily by means of the pacinian corpuscles (a special type of mechanoreceptors). The frequency range in which the human tissue can transduce sound waves lie between 50 and 800 cycles per second while the human ear is sensitive to sound waves between 20 and 20,000 cycles per second. Now lets see what sound waves do when they enter the body:


Entry through Ears - The Hearing Effect

Ears are extraordinary organs. They pick up all the sounds around us and then translate this information into a form that the brain can understand. A remarkable aspect of this process is that it is completely mechanical. On the other hand the senses of smell, taste and vision all involve chemical reactions.

The pinna, the outer part of the ear is like an antenna. It "catches" the sound waves. Outer ear is pointed forward and has a number of curves that determine the direction of a sound. Sound reflection by pinna alters the pattern of the sound wave. Your brain recognizes the distinctive patterns and determines whether the sound is in front of you, behind you, above you or below you. Once in the ear canal, sound waves vibrate the tympanic membrane (eardrum). This vibration translates through a group of 3 very small bones (smallest bones of the body), the ossicles into a force that acts as a piston creating waves in the inner-ear fluid to represent the air-pressure fluctuations of the sound wave.

The ossicles amplify the force from the eardrum. This amplification system is extremely effective. The pressure applied to the cochlear fluid is about 22 times the pressure felt at the eardrum. This pressure amplification is enough to pass the sound information on to the inner ear, where it is translated into electrical information that is transmitted by the cochlear nerve to cerebral cortex, the part of brain that contains the hearing center and provides us with the final perception of sound.


Entry through Body Tissues - The Vibratory Effect

The Bible equates "the Word", a form of sound, with God and creation: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." (John I: 1-2).

Waves in sound move at certain frequencies. Sound in itself is a frequency just like light, aroma, vibration, music, brain waves or nerve impulses. Everything, as its most common denominator, is frequency. In reality, there are no solids. We exist in a universe that consists entirely of energy at different frequencies. Einstein proved this. Frequency defines it.

Everything in the universe is in a state of vibration creating sound waves at variable frequencies. Each celestial body, in fact, each and every atom, produces a particular sound frequency on account of its movement, rhythm, or vibration. This includes the human body. Every organ, bone, tissue and other parts of the body have a healthy resonant frequency (vibratory rate of an object). When that frequency changes, that part of the body vibrates out of harmony and this is what is termed disease. If it were possible to determine the correct resonant frequency for a healthy organ and then project it into that part which is diseased, the organ should return to its normal frequency and healing should occur. Our body is receiving and absorbing sound frequencies all the time from its surroundings. These external sound frequencies together with the vibration of the body organs make up a composite frequency, a harmonic that is your own personal vibratory signature. This signature encircles the whole body with a field, like an aura.

How does the body know what to do with all of the frequencies it receives? The body hears frequency. The ears change that sensory input into biochemical impulses and send that information to the brain. The eyes feast on frequencies of light input, change those impulses into biochemical energy, and send that information to the brain. The nose receives frequencies of aromas and changes it into biochemical input and sent it to the brain. Each sensory organ collects information as frequency input and changes that input into biochemical impulses, which it sends to the brain. The brain in turn digitizes the information and redistributes it to systems and functions of the body to maintain homoeostasis.

When sound at different frequencies enters the body it is not only translated into electrical signals but it also comes in contact with the body cells and alters their basal vibratory resonance that can be detrimental or beneficial for the body depending on the frequency of sound.

Researchers are desperately trying to find the healing frequencies. There's plenty of scientific proof that it can be effective for everything from enhancing the mental faculties, reducing stress and boosting mind-power. Many studies in recent times have shown that music (sound) can reduce pain and ease anxiety during surgical procedures. In a German study there were lower levels of stress hormones in the bloodstreams of patients having endoscopies when they listened to the music of their choice during the procedures. At the Bethesda Naval Medical Center in Maryland, USA, doctors found that men who listened to music during sigmoidoscopies felt more relaxed during this uncomfortable examination.

Sound therapy can make you smarter too - at least temporarily. A study at the University of California, USA, found that college students who listened to Mozart for 10 minutes scored eight to nine points higher on intelligence tests than they did after sitting in silence for the same amount of time. However the effect lasted only 10 to 15 minutes, after which the scores returned to normal.

Another study from Louisiana State University in Shreveport, USA, concluded that listening to slow and easy music lowered heart rates and allowed longer training sessions in a group of 24 young adults. While listening to hard-driving rock music had the opposite effect: heart rates increased and workouts were shorter when the subjects tuned in to rock 'n' roll. A new branch of sound therapy, called Music Thanatology, has evolved that seeks to ease the emotional and physical suffering of terminally ill patients through soothing sounds at specific frequencies.

In one of the few medical studies conducted on listening to the recitation of Holy Qur'an Dr. Ahmed E. Kadi and Associates (Cairo), have shown a reduction in blood pressure, heart rate, and smooth muscle relaxation in Muslims as well as non-Muslims.

There should be no doubt that the sounds of the words of Allah have divine healing powers. Allah has made the work of scientists easier by revealing the healing frequencies: "And We sent down in the Qur'an that which is healing and a mercy to those who believe; to the unjust it causes nothing but loss after loss" (Qur'an 17:82).

The sound of recitation enters the body just like all other sounds or frequencies:

- Through the ears into the brain, and

- Directly into the organs and tissues.

All of us are familiar with the first type of entry mechanism as this is what we hear; its effect is the audible sound, which in case of Qur'anic recitation would result in pleasing and positive effects mediated through unknown processes taking place in the brain.

The second mode is entirely different. In this case, sound wave frequencies pass right through the body organs and tissues, in the process altering the vibratory resonance of the body cells into a healthier pattern and getting converted into electrical stimuli.

Prophet (PBUH) always stressed reading Qur'an loudly and not silently by saying: "The comparison between a silent reader and a recitor is like a bottle of perfume when it is closed and when it is opened".

Allah has also emphasized reciting Qur'an slowly (with pauses) for complete absorption of its effects. That means that if we recite very fast then the frequencies can overlap and mingle up resulting in a vibratory chaos thus rendering the beneficial effects useless.

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