Sound Bath

Yep!  It's as "hippie" as it sounds.  The other evening, Jake and I participated in a sound bath at our yoga studio.  Allow me to describe this event.

Imagine a warm room.  At the front of it are 4 large gongs hanging in a row.  On the floor is a semi-circle of varying sizes of bowls.  You see a few projection lights that make it look like waves on the walls and ceiling.  In the corner is a long wind chime and a large rain stick.

Several people have already set up camp in an array of mats that continue the semi-circle giving the illusion of a flower with many rows of petals.  These individuals have pillows, sleeping bags, blankets and props to make their mat unique to their own tastes.  Jake and I find a spot by the wall to roll out our mats.  We use a couple of the blankets and bolsters from the studio.

The female instructor of the duo walks around asking if anyone would like some oil.  It's Mercury in Retrograde A.  So I apply it to my wrists and pass it on.  The male instructor is documenting the room with a few pictures.

Once the room is at capacity, they begin by asking us to get comfortable with our heads towards the front of the room.  The lights get dim and we close our eyes.  A rain stick is being used.  The person with it is walking around the room.  A few minutes into the rain, someone begins beating a drum.  (I didn't see that, so it surprised me.)  After the rain, I hear someone waking around with a sound bowl.  They are purposefully sounding it above each person on the floor.  The vibrations are very relaxing.

In fact, that is probably the best way to describe a "sound bath".  It's experiencing vibrations of different frequencies that relax you.  However, they also included a dialogue.  This part didn't help the relaxing too much.  The female instructor had a microphone, as to be heard over the gongs, drums and bowls.  Her monologue was very specific and I had a hard time imagining the details.

But in the end, I was very relaxed (due to the vibrations) and ready to go home and get a good nights sleep.