Meditation and Music

I was wondering how many of you that practiced meditation also played musical instruments and how they compare the experience. I've mediated a few times and enjoyed the experience. I felt rested as if I had just taken a nap and time seemed to stand still. It was nice to take a break from the physical world and just relax for a moment.

While I don't have much meditation experience I do play music a lot. I probably play guitar anywhere from an hour to 5 or 6 hours a day. I find that my perception of time is greatly skewed and I lose touch with my senses other than my hearing. Once I start playing and get into it I seem to forget about my hands moving around or how to form or phrase the lyrics. I just think about the song and imagine it being painted in my mind. It's such a strong wonderful feeling. Sometimes when everything is just clicking I can feel physical warmth within my body. It'll start at my hands sometimes and move into my chest until I can feel it everywhere. The best comparison I could make is the calm, comfortable feeling of being in love, it's great.

I always wonder if playing music is just another form of mediation. I've noticed that musicians tend to share certain personal and philosophical viewpoints. I'm at a point in my life (i'm 23) where I feel like my mind is starting to expand and accept the world I live in. More and more I read lyrics that express these new found ideals of life, conscoiusness, choice, observation, and all sorts of things. It also seems like some are very interested in science and the philosophical implications of areas like quantum mechanics.

I just wanted to hear some of your feelings on the subject or how music and meditation have affected your life. Thanks.

I do not play music while meditating but I do listen to music, every night I will relax in my bed with music before falling asleep.

It relaxes me so much that most of the time I will be sleeping before the relaxation music is over.

I have been doing this type of meditation and relaxation for years and it does help with my over all well being.

I practice musical meditation both in practice and ensemble playing.
Many time groups fall into the "groove" and it seems as if the music is being created almost with out effort on the part of the musicians. I think this is a form of transcendence, with time distortion, incredible concentration but with a detachment and a feeling of Majic happening among the participants.

This "groove feeling" is why I practice so hard on my instruments; so I can play and not have to worry about the mechanics of playing.

Even practice can morph into a meditative state with repeated riffs, chord progressions, noise, dissonance or melody. Playing a new instrument can also afford a type of meditative state, but it is borne of struggle and total concentration to the exclusion of all outside stimuli.

My daily meditation also has a musical component with a simple mantra, repeated until I reach the state of absolute calm and peace.
Almost any activity can be meditative if approached in the right spirit.

Rock on!

[edit on 15-6-2006 by whaaa]

whaa

I love that feeling of being unaware. It's like I'm watching someone else move my hands and someone is singing the song through me. I have to completely relax to sing so I think just that even helps disconnect. My muscles aren't tensing and constantly reminding me that they're there. I feel more like 'me' in those moments than I normally do otherwise.

One of the curious things I have noticed is that when improvising on my sax or blues harp I almost feel a presence around me and somewhat in my body as if the spirit of the music or deceased musicians were using me as an instrument to play some of their riffs that maybe they didnt have the opportunity to play when alive.

This is probably an illusion but I have had my band mates tell me that It didn't sound like me playing as my phrasing, tone and general approach to the music was different. Maybe I was just unconsciously playing in another style I had heard somewhere. I love the mystery!

Rock on!!!

Originally posted by whaaa
One of the curious things I have noticed is that when improvising on my sax or blues harp I almost feel a presence around me and somewhat in my body as if the spirit of the music or deceased musicians were using me as an instrument to play some of their riffs that maybe they didnt have the opportunity to play when alive.

This is probably an illusion but I have had my band mates tell me that It didn't sound like me playing as my phrasing, tone and general approach to the music was different. Maybe I was just unconsciously playing in another style I had heard somewhere. I love the mystery!

Rock on!!!

it sounds like you are playing unconsciously but with PURE consciousness, like God is playing through you. Could you expand more on you physical and mental state when playing with your band, especially when you in that state. What is going through your mind? What do you feel? I feel we all have that pure consciousness that enables us to perform things not imaginable.

talking about music, here are some quick lyrics:

to find God you have to look deep within/ only then can it really begin/ pure conscious mind enables you soooo much/ things you thought were impossible are now within touch/ I suggest you meditate before every time you play/ you shall see the difference every day by day!!!!

TruthWay, had to think a minute about the physical sensations when in the "groove"

It's like being high but without the anxiety and nervousness I usually experienced. Basically a feeling of lightness and a disassociation [somewhat] from my body. I experience stage fright before performing so I usually have a couple drinks before we start the first set. It really helps. But it takes awhile for things to settle down, amps adjusted, sound levels set, instruments fine tuned etc. before the "real" music can happen. The Musicians I associate with [me included] really play off the audience. When they are dancing, and moving, that is an indication that they feel what we feel on stage.

At some point the audience [figuratively] disappears and sound, vibration and movement turn into ART, majic and transcendence.

One thing I have noticed is that when I play bass, the drummer and I develop a symbiotic relationship and get the "groove" almost immediately. When I play a melodic instrument sometimes I can never find that "sweet spot" Curious.

I think the oddest feeling of being in the grove is the disassociation. It really feels like someone else is playing. It's almost like I can step to the side and watch myself performing. I can feel my mouth moving but I don't feel like I'm giving the commands to sing. Although that may be caused by how relaxed one has to be in order to properly sing. It's the same with guitar, I feel like I'm hearing the notes I would like to play but I don't have to put any effort into doing it. My hands just know. I'm talking more along the lines of improvisational blues or soloing over my friend playing, not a memorized riff or line.

I watched a show on the Science channel that was called "Most of the Universe is Missing". They say we can only account for 4% of the energy/matter within the universe. That includes every single atom that we know off. I wonder if things like creative energy or spirtiuality have some physical universal basis that we simply lack the ability to 'sense', at least through mechanical means.