For many students, practicing yoga in silence in a room full of people is an awkward experience. As a result, many teachers play music during class to help students feel comfortable. I’ve heard all sorts of music in yoga classes, from classic chants straight out of India, Classical, World, New-age Hippie, to actual Hip Hop. There are as many choices as there are teachers and student tastes.
Of course students gravitate towards teachers who play music they like. Listening to music that one can’t stand would make it impossible to find an internal yoga zen. However, I have noticed that sometimes loving the music can be equally distracting, when it draws a student’s attention away from the breath and their ability to still the mind. So I wonder, does music in yoga classes help, or hinder our progress?
For better or for worse, music is incredibly manipulative.
Have you ever noticed that you can close your eyes to prevent yourself from seeing, but there is no way to close your ears to prevent yourself from hearing? Even if you use your fingers to “plug” your ears, music travels to us through vibrations in the air – music literally moves people. This is one reason why unpleasant noises can be incredibly irritating, and noises we find pleasant can be ecstatically joyful. Because when it comes to sound, we don’t have tools to block it from our senses. We can only attempt to ignore it.
One of the best parts of a yoga practice, is it’s whole person approach to health – health for both body and mind. And, music and sound are actually important facets to a complete yoga practice through the forms of mantras and chanting. We all have experienced music’s de-stressing qualities. And if we happen to find kirtan and chanting mantras more unsettling than calming, why not use music in the way that works for us?
Manipulation is not always a negative.
According to Psychology Today, in an article on music therapy, music helps adults maintain mental-emotional health through lowering blood pressure, improving sleep, boosting memory and cognitive function, among other benefits.1
And, I recently read about a study done on mothers who sing to their children, and how the singing affects the child’s emotional state. The conclusion of the study found that “infant-directed singing helped babies learn how to regulate their emotions, which allowed them to later navigate socialization” in all sorts of contexts, including school and professional workplaces.2
In the article, music therapist Shannon de l’Etoile says, “Children who don’t [self-]regulate well are lacking in resilience, and they may have problems later in life, like obesity, addiction and aggression.” Here, we can see how music plays a vital role in our mental-emotional health, even from as young as infanthood.
Yoga was the original form of therapy, predating the physical therapy and psychotherapy we are familiar with today.
The word yoga is frequently defined as “to join,” and refers to joining together body, mind, and spirit. But, when are our minds not in our bodies, and our spirits even somewhere else? I suggest a less literal translation of harmonizing describes the process of yoga a bit more clearly. When we arrive at the state of yoga, we arrive at a state of being where there is no conflict between how the body moves, what are minds plan, and what our souls believe. And, that state of harmony, that yoga, brings us inner peace.
Music may be powerfully manipulative, but we can harness that power to bring health to all parts of our being – body, mind/heart, and even soul. So, whether you enjoy turning on music to relax, to practice yoga, to pray, or simply to enjoy in any multitude of ways, I propose we embrace more use of music! We might just dance our way to enlightenment.
1 Neuroscience News
2 Psychology Today
Photo by Jason Rosewell on Unsplash
3 Responses
Hola Michelle!!! Que sentido más profundo tiene la palabra Yoga do que simplemente una palabra que significa Unión. El silencio siempre reina en un espacio que sostiene o que permite toda clase de expresión, sea del cuerpo, sea de la mente o sea del espíritu. El sentido de la música como instrumento de trabajo para quién enseña el sendero del Yoga, irá siempre depender de la capacidad intuitiva de quien enseña. Así como la energía atómica sirve para muchas cosas buenas también sirve para la malas, dependerá de la consciencia de quién la utiliza. La sociedad en si tiene el silencio como algo antagónico al ruido, pero la enseñanza del Yoga va más allá de estés dos polos, enseña el silencio como espacio ilimitado donde surge toda clase de manifestación incluyendo estés dos polos: silencio y ruido.
Hola Michelle!! Que sentido más profundo tiene el Yoga que solamente el significado de la palabra “Unión”?. El silencio de lo cual se refiere al Yoga va más allá de la dualidad de los sentidos de las palabras. El silenció para los que siguen este sendero, es el espacio infinito que permite o sostiene todo tipo de manifestación; sea del cuerpo, sea de la mente o sea del espíritu.
Cuanto a la música como instrumento de trabajo para los que enseña este sendero, va depender siempre de la capacidad intuitiva que tiene aquel que enseña. Es como la energía atómica; puede servir para un motivo constructivo o destructivo dependiendo de la conciencia que tiene aquel que lo utiliza.
La sociedad en si enseña que el silencio es antagónico al ruido, pero el Yoga enseña más allá de estos dos polos. El silencio es el espacio donde puede surgir toda clase de manifestación, incluyendo estos dos polos; silencio y ruido.
Personally, I love silence when I practice and also teach. Sometimes, though, I’ll play some music just to remind me the depth of silence once the music stops. 🙂