Music as the Source of Existence
In the Brahma Samhita story written in Sanskrit the first born son of the creator god is called Narada which means Music. I take this as an acknowledgement of the importance of Music as one of, if not the, primary language and metaphor that creates existence. Music spans the gulf between the impersonal patterns of number woven into frequencies of sound and the very personal emotional response to the archetypes of embodied experience. It strikes me as interesting that it is not just being suggested that vibration is the source of existence but that it is the beautiful patterns that can be perceived within the vibrations !
Harmony as Simplicity of Relationship
Since at least the days of Pythagorus we have understood that harmony is dependent on simple numerical ratios of vibration. All cultures seem to have discovered the Octave, the extreme consonance of vibrations in the proportion of 2:1, and most cultures also discovered what we call the ‘fifth’ created by proportions of 3:1. Since no amount of multiplying by 3 will ever produce the exact same number as repeatedly multiplying by 2 once can never produce an Octave purely by a sequence of Fifths. The current western 12 note scale is created by averaging out the small difference between 12 Fifths and its nearest Octave so that each of the Fifths becomes very slightly sharp rather than perfect. This seems to work due to the tolerance of our ears that does not demand perfection in order to perceive harmony. Close enough is apparently good enough, though some diehards with a finer sense of hearing continue to disagree.
The Music of the Spheres
The phrase “the music of the spheres” comes from the attempt to fit the dynamics of the planets in the solar system into a pattern of music like ratios. Kepler was looking to prove his geometrical hypothosese when to his dismay he gave us the incredible breakthrough of realising that the orbits of the planets were not ‘perfect’ circles but ellipses. Whilst not accepted by main stream astronomers it is still an intuitively attractive idea supported by many sacred geometers. However in most current theories the proportions seem to be more based on the Golden Mean rather than whole number ratios of our musical scales.
More to come soon – but until then here is a collection of related materials …
Ani Williams – Geometry, Music and Healing
http://www.aniwilliams.com/geometry_music_healing.htm
These ‘musical temples’ were part of the medieval renaissance of sacred geometry, Hermetic mysteries and the flowering of art and music.
The Matrix of Creation: Sacred Geometry in the Realm of the Planets
Richard Heath, published 2004, 148 pages
The Sacred Geometry Of Music – Harmonisphere
http://www.harmonisphere.com/SacredGeometryOfMusic.htm
The Sacred Geometry Of Music by Andrew Lorimer. Musicuses the laws of vibration to manifest aurally what exists at the center of everything.
The Sacred Geometry of Sound – Spirit of Ma’at
http://www.spiritofmaat.com/archive/jan4/williams.htm
Sacred Geometry and the Structure of Music. Legend recounts how Orpheus was given a lyre by Apollo. By playing his lyre, Orpheus produced harmonies that joined all of …
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