Sat Nam _/|\_
I learned of Nada Yoga today. I want to learn about it from two angles. One thing I want to know is how the idea of sound/vibration inspired the gurus. I found the word "naad" at Sikhi Wiki. It is described there as "the Immaculate Sound Current". What I'm finding in a Google search don't seem to tell me too much, at least from sources I might typically find as the most worthy resources.
Seriously though I would like to learn more about how the gurus understood this concept. It seems like they stripped the yoga away from it and gave it a more subtle (yet profound) place in the Guru Granth Sahib.
What is the understanding of others regarding this concept? I would like to keep this thread free of the current debating so we can really dive into the subject.
When I was young, I would hum with the vacuum cleaner and feel my heart vibrate. Was this the naad?
How can one align with it and become more deeply connected with it?
japposatnamwaheguru:
Nam Jiwan
Nam Jiwan ji, I will try to give you some help.
Understanding what the sound or naad really is, is quite difficult to explain in one go.
Unfortunately, I don't think there is any good resource that can answer all your questions. Most of us understand by getting bits from different resources and putting them together along with your own experience and hence coming up with a personal conclusion.
Firstly, you have to understand that everything is vibrations in terms of science.
Then you have to understand that these same vibrations must come from somwhere, I mean what initiates them or what's the origin ?
-This is when you realise what ''Naam'' actually is.
Now, there has been some mention of naam on this thread already and in all honesty it is misguiding!!
I'm not going to try and explain what Naam is as there are already a few posts that are active. I have given some input on these and you may check there.
Once you begin to understand that every wave of vibration has the same origin throughout the universe, then you will understand that it takes effort to get back and vibrate at the origin wavelength and at the same frequency or in harmony.
-This is where the 'sounds' come in.
Now, your question of the Gurus realising this and using yoga tools by stripping away the more outward physical aspects is on the right track in a way.
Here, you should first try and understand what ''Nirgun'' and ''Sargun'' are and how they apply to ALL of sikhi.
Once, you get the hang of these, you will understand that the yoga practices and rituals the Gurus got away from where the ones that were more associated with 'sargun'. ie. the ones more outward and empty.
You wil also understand that the Gurus were NOT against ritual practice or gurmantar or chanting or anything, but they went for the option where both Nirgun and Sargun approaches were applied to ALL these practices.
For eg. when chanting you should have an inward element more than the outward element..etc or both ''form'' and ''formless'' approach.
I'm sure that some other members can explain this concept a little better.
When you understand these vibrations and how doing simran can get you in harmony with every single cell in your body and little hair on your body into the same tune of ''waheguru', such that every microscopic part is vibrating with the ''waheguru'' - then this is called 'rom rom simran'.
This itself is another advanced stage of simran coming after the celestial sounds.
You could imagine it as, the celestial or anhad sounds as being in tune or harmony with the sound waves that are already produced and ''rom rom'' as if the sound is coming independently from the initial source for every minute cell in your body.
(again, these are my personal explanations from what I understand and you will find differing definitons from other people)
I hope that can help answer your questions a little.
To become more aligned to it and to get deeper as you asked, takes a lot of practice. Practice, practice, practice.. and the grace of the Lord when the time is right.
When people start with simple naam jap or simran, they just recite and recite. At first it seems difficult to go within and all seems like a physical practice- this is not the gurmat way, but you have to start somewhere!!
Once you practice this, then you slowly start to get attuned and go inward in a more nirgun approach.
This is what Gurmat is all about- believing both dualities !!
It's just like any other practice such as 'matha tek' which is bowing to the Guru Granth Sahib when entering the Gurdwara darbar.
As a kid, you don't understand what it all is and you take the sargun or outward approach. Then with time and repeated practice as you get older you learn to be inward and close to the lord. Thus you start taking a more nirgun approach.
In a similar way this is how you start with chanting which leads to gurmat simran and then naam simran !!!
