ABOUT TONING MEDITATION
Dee Peters interviews the broadcaster and musicologist
JAROSLAV KOVARICEK
Q. Jaroslav, I know you work in the area of sonic and music therapy. How did you become interested in this?
A. I studied musicology (the science of music) at the Charles University in Prague and was specialized in music and media, especially production of TV music programs and films. I came to Australia in 1968 and joined the ABC. In 1975 I became a founding member of the ABC FM station, where I produced and presented programs of classical music. I was aware of the great power of music over people's lives and started further research in this area. The result was Dreamtime, a radio program of relaxation and meditative music. Many listeners found this program beneficial; it had also stimulated some young Australian composers to produce a great wealth of CD albums.
After I left the ABC I continued my research and developed my system of toning meditations.
Q. Can you tell us more about toning meditation?
A. The benefits of meditations are well known. I wish more people would practice it. Meditation not only heals but also improves the quality of our life. However, in our busy lifestyle it is difficult for many people to devote enough time needed for the traditional meditation. I tried to address this problem and developed a technique where only 15 minute sessions can produce some noticeable results. The essence of meditation is training the mind to gain more control over our thoughts and emotions, so that we can enjoy better control of our life. Toning is the practice of singing a single vowel to massage our body and mind from the inside out. It has many useful possibilities. The 5 vowels:
A, E, I, O, U, resonate in 5 important energy centers of our body, which are known as chakras and during the toning exercise we can feel them. They address important areas of our being - rational, physical, emotional, spiritual and intuitive. The tranquil mind is never unhappy and this is a good start. With meditation we can grow further and reach the higher states of consciousness. Here we talk about spirituality, but this is alien to most people of our secular materialistic world and I find it difficult to explain this idea to the majority of them. Yet, anyone can benefit from good control of mind and from relaxed body. In traditional meditation we concentrate on breathing and this helps us to chase away "the wild monkeys of our mental jungle". In toning meditation we work with our breath but also produce a tone and observe its sonic qualities. The aim is to sing a nice smooth tone, yet no one can get it perfectly fluent, not even Pavarotti could do it. Any minor mental disturbance gets reflected in the tone we sing. So we listen attentively, observe the tonal quality and try our best to develop a straight tone. This is a kind of controlling biofeedback mechanism, yet we do not need to use any expensive equipment, we can do it with the two great gifts - our voice and our ear.
Q. I believe this concept is based on ancient Yoga traditions. Can you tell us more about it?
A. Good question. I accept the fact that the mind is dominant to our physical structure. I try to get the latest information from the current medical and psychological research but always return to the ancient wisdom of Hindu traditions. Modern scientists are far too materialistic; hence they often miss the important psyche element, the mind. They believe that biochemicals affect our mental being, but often ignore the fact that the chemicals in our brain are secreted in accordance with our feelings, they are triggered by mental actions. Hence the power of our mind. I learned much from Nada Yoga, which was developed many centuries ago but seems to be largely neglected today. Nada Yoga is the yoga of sound. It helps to focus and relax, to restore balance and harmony to the mind and body.
I am always puzzled by the wisdom of ancient sages. I do not consider myself as inventing something new. I do my best to adopt those ancient concepts to the conditions of contemporary life. This modified technique of meditation may be much needed in our challenging and confused times. Like any other kind of yoga, Nada yoga can be of great benefit to anyone.
Yoga is about union - of the individual with God (or call it Ultimate Reality, Great Mystery etc, if you wish). We can perceive Harmony as a manifestation of God and toning in harmony assists us to realize the divine nature of our existence. Toning is spontaneous; it unites easily people of any age, gender, language, faith or race. This is truly universal phenomenon. If I would be given a chance to invite George W., Saddam and Osama I guarantee that these men through toning exercise would be in harmony within a few seconds. That's how powerful the law of Harmony is.
Q. Is your aim to help heal some conditions through exposing people to healing music and toning?
A. I do not like talking about healing as it promotes the feeling of illness. I prefer to promote living a happy life and thus avoid the need for healing. The modern health industry is very much based on the concept of healing, that's where the money is. The mainstream medicine prefers people with problems rather than putting more effort into prevention. To prescribe antidepressants is much easier than dealing with the complexity of human life and educating people about the basics of prevention. As yoga teachers would perhaps well know, it is hard to convince someone to practice a healthy lifestyle, no profits there. For example when a person gets cancer, it is easy to take his/her home away from them. We hate to admit this, but there is a lot of truth in it. With toning meditation we can develop healing strategies according to the individual needs. I helped people with sudden panic attack, sleeplessness, high blood pressure etc. Toning meditation helps to control anxiety and depression, but it is much more arduous when the adverse conditions have already developed. I prefer to inspire people to prevent those conditions by accepting their responsibility for their well-being.
Q. You use the laws of Harmony and Resonance in your work. Briefly can you tell us what that means?
A. These are the two basic universal laws. The creator was indeed a composer. The law of harmony is difficult to explain briefly. It means that all vibrations, the essence of reality, tend to get organized in certain relations. It is easier to prove it in a practical way. I start my workshops by asking people to think about a certain tone and then to start singing it at once. It takes a short time and the group sings in harmony, they are in tune. Anyone can try it and it always works. We have this inborn need to be in harmony, in tune, with ourselves and with the world around us. The law of resonance is about the transfer of energy. Hard to explain briefly, but I cover the topic in my workshops. I want people to understand what is happening, so that they can keep developing their own way, I do not want anyone to believe blindly.
Q. Do you compose your own music according to those rules?
A. Yes. I produce my music for this very purpose. There is plenty of beautiful music to satisfy our aesthetic needs. I would not dare to compete with Bach or Mozart in this regard. But my CDs are designed as functional music, to create a healthy sonic environment, both of physical and mental space. But to be effective, the listener needs to be willing to open the ear and the heart.
Q. How can we implement your ideas in our everyday life?
A. As many Yoga teachers know well, we can't help people who do not want to help themselves. Only then we can work together. Toning meditation is a gradual process of self-development. It has many wonderful benefits. We can learn how to master our own destiny, to a degree. We reduce anxiety by getting positively motivated. I suggest specific mantras to sing and every individual can originate them according to the given needs. It is very flexible and open-ended.
Recently I conducted a toning meditation workshop in Adelaide with a group of Yoga teachers. It was a wonderful experience. The practitioners of Yoga respond very well because they are already on the Path. They are motivated and understand well what I talk about. We also do practical exercises with various ways of toning, recognizing chakras developing attentive listening etc. My technique is not to replace usual Yoga practices but it can extend them.
I suggest that Yoga teachers use a brief toning session to start their classes. It helps to achieve better group cohesion. Toning is an absolutely natural phenomenon, something rather rare in our somewhat artificial world of delusions. I produced a CD with four toning meditations, which functions as a guiding tool. The CD complements my workshop where I explain how to use it. Once people start this course of meditating they can continue their own way, usually towards amazing self-discoveries. It is important though that individuals are prepared to accept responsibility for their own being. I find it hard to do anything positive with negatively fixed people but one has to keep trying, there is so much unnecessary misery in our world.
I am also qualified as a counsellor and discovered that doctors too often prescribe Zoloft to their patients to help them to cope with problems. The
problems need to be solved not suppressed. I am very skeptical about the modern profit-oriented medicine. We also need to be business-oriented, but only as far as we cover our expenses and make reasonable income. If it is to be of any higher value, our work must not be profit-oriented.
Just a few practical hints: Sit quietly and imagine any tone which may reflect your current mood, then sing it and observe how you are in harmony with the sounds and space around you. When driving and suddenly the red light switches on, instead of collecting another bit of stress just sing quietly EE and think about the given opportunity to relax and feel happy. I also recommend one simple Mantra to be used when some unpleasant thought troubles us - just sing to yourself: "Go away"! The troubling thought goes away in no time.
Q. Thank you very much for this interview.
A. I am happy to talk to anyone who is keen to do something to improve the life on this planet. May you all be well and happy.
Printed Article from "International Light" the Official Journal of the International Yoga Teachers' Association -- July to September 2006.
PhDr Jaroslav Kovaricek was born in Bohemia (a part of the Czech Republic) In his study of musicology he specialised in the field music and mass media. In Australia since 1968, he has worked as broadcaster, designing many innovative programs. Apart from over 3000 hours of music programs, he has produced numerous programs of poetry, soundscapes and radio plays.
He works regularly in Europe, producing programs for radio, giving lectures on media and workshops of his Psychosonica mediation methods.
He is keen on promoting a healthy sonic environment and educating about the dangers of sonic pollution.