The Mind Meld Between Yoga And Music

Whether it is at a party or a music festival, music always makes us sway and go with its flow. From the hard beats of a music festival to the soft lilting music that envelops a yoga session, music undoubtedly affects us.

After all, music gets into the deepest nooks and crannies of our minds before transporting us to another realm. Now, different kinds of music make us feel different things and transport us to different realms.

But here, we will talk about a specific effect of music- the effect that the combination of yoga and music has.

The Connection Between Yoga And Music- The Om Chant

Yoga is considered a spiritual art, discipline, and exercise. With the help of various meditation techniques, the adoption of body postures, and breathe-controlling exercises, yoga aims to relax the body and mind. 

But yoga also offers more than relaxation. It creates a harmony of the body-mind as well as of the individual and universal consciousnesses. So yoga aims to bring about self-realization and oneness between body-mind and soul-nature.

Music creates something similar. Music is thought of as divine in many global cultures, especially in Hinduism, where yoga originated from. Know that the 'Om' sound has been said and chanted for more than 4000 years. This sound is considered divine and the source of all creation.

Also, this sound is thought to be calming to the mind and soul. To amplify the effects of this sound it is chanted during yoga asanas as well. So the combination of this sound with yoga reduces stress, blood pressure and connects the mind with the universal consciousness.

But this isn’t the only connection between music and yoga. Many yoga classes have gone beyond the sound of Om. Nowadays, yoga classes are introducing yoga playlists that improve the ambiance of the place.

Going Beyond Om: Music And Yoga In-Depth

The combination of yoga and music offers more than just an uplifting ambiance or mood. Music in itself is therapy or alternative medicine as well. Various studies have shown that music has notable psychological benefits. It has been found that music holds the ability to reduce cortisol and decrease anxiety.

So combined with yoga (which is considered an alternative medicine as well), it forms a powerful and soothing medicine. Here's how music enhances the yoga experience:

1. Improvement In Meditation

Previously it was thought that meditation should ideally be done in silence. But anyone who has meditated before knows that this isn't true. For one, there will always be sounds that will distract an untrained mind.

Secondly, our minds tend to deviate from negative or positive thoughts whenever we shut our eyelids and close out our vision. But this is where music can help. It will calm these volatile thoughts by giving our minds something to focus on.

So meditation with music will help bring about the stillness of mind that will help you find peace.

2. Music Improves Movement

We discussed before that music helps transport us to another realm where things become easier. Now practicing asanas can be difficult and one might need a lot of help when it comes to accomplishing them.

Here music can help by taking you to a place where things become easy. So, being in a positive state of mind makes it easier to complete the asana. Moreover, it will help you think of the yoga asanas as a dance rather than enacting some postures.

3. Music Helps Stimulate Memory

We experience a lot of emotions- good and bad both, in our everyday lives. These emotions sometimes fade away, but mostly they stay connected to the memories which gave rise to them. Due to this, at the end of the day, most of us sit with our thoughts and evaluate our actions.

Often we find it difficult to reconcile our actions or even accept them. But yoga along with music can help us experience inner peace. Note that this isn't a guarantee, but yoga with music will certainly help you calm down and make it easy to face the constant inner turmoil.

4. Creating A Positive Environment And Mood

We all have bad moods, but you must have noticed that listening to your favorite songs or rather your favorite playlist instantly improves your mood.

Know that when you opt to meditate in a bad mood, chances are that you won't be able to relax. But you can lift yourself out of that funk by playing music while meditating.

Note that this is because the electrical signals of your brain get affected according to the mood. So music can alter those electrical waves by improving our mood as well as mental health.

How To Choose The Right Yoga Music?

There are different kinds of music, but not all are suitable for yoga. After all, rock music will most probably not give you the inner peace you are running after. So to help you out, here are some music types that will work well with your yoga sessions:

1. Natural Sounds

Many of us can't meditate in a natural setting, but it's certainly possible to bring nature into our house. So, natural music like that of a river flowing, birds singing, waves crashing, etc., are perfect accompaniments to yoga. This therapeutic calming music will reduce stress and improve your mood.

2. Classical Music

Classical music is generally orchestral with a little solo voice. We all know how soothing and melodious classical music can be. As such, it will help calm your mind and allow you to carry out the asanas without any intrusive thoughts.

If you aren't too familiar with classical music, you should start with the greatest composers in this genre, like Johann Sebastian Bach, Mozart, and Claude Debussy. Later on, you can move on to others and explore their music. It's advised that you don't limit yourself to just these two. If you are indeed familiar with a broad variety of music, you can go with other genres like acoustic, reggae, etc. It's encouraged that you look through calming playlists online and choose the music that relaxes you. Know that yoga and music are powerful instruments alone. But when brought together, they provide a fulfilling mental and emotional experience.