Over the last few years, I have created, borrowed, and purchased various binaural beats to use as a meditation aid to consciously shift to the out-of-body state. Below are a few of the beats with which I have had some success. Finding a beat that works well for you is a matter of trial and error. So, the beats below may be useful for some, while not at all for others.
If you are unfamiliar with binaural beats or want to know more, this post by Tom Campbell on the My Big TOE discussion forum is a great intro:
http://www.my-big-toe.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=5056&p=22957&hilit=binaural+beat#p22957
http://www.my-big-toe.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=5056&p=22957&hilit=binaural+beat#p22957
Tom also discusses binaural beats in his Calgary lecture on youtube. The actual discussion begins around 5 minutes into the video. However, I would recommend just starting from the beginning as it contains pertinent information.
Also useful is wikipedia’s entry on the matter:
About the binaural beat files:
These tracks may cause sleep or deeply relaxed states. Do not listen to these files while driving or during other situations in which your full waking consciousness is required.
Each file contains a mix of the binaural beat tones, the sound of ocean waves, and white noise. All audio fades in very slowly (and out), so you will need to go to the middle of the track to set an appropriate volume level before beginning. A low volume will work fine - louder is not necessarily better. Use what is comfortable.
At about 2 minutes into each track there is a light, single bass tone. This is a reminder to make sure that you are comfortable and to begin quieting your thoughts and letting go of any intellectual chatter.
At around 35 minutes the binaural beat fades out. At 36 minutes, there are three short tones followed by a simple song played on a bass guitar. These tones are to help bring you back to full waking consciousness. The short song is to give you a few moments to reorient yourself.
The name of the files below represents the tone used and the difference in hertz. Example: "100_3_8.mp3" has a 100 hertz tone in one ear and a 103.8 hertz tone in the other ear. The result is a 3.8 hertz binaural beat. Remember to use headphones.
The files:
These last two files (below) were created by Targobaath on the My Big TOE forum and are based on suggestions given to Tom Campbell by “Thor” (during Tom’s early years working with Bob Monroe). To listen to the audio in which this advice is given, you can visit the Explorer Series page on The Monroe Institute's website. The specific recording is entitled “Explorer Series # 16 Male/Female Principles Within the Self.” The instructions come up at about 8:25 in the audio. The Explorer Series are always interesting!
For those that have some experiencing with binaural beats and/or meditation and don’t mind an abrupt start and end, this first version contains no ramping or fading. It is a solid 1 hour mix of a 200 Hz, 50 Hz, and 4 Hz binaural beat.
In the second version of the above file, the primary binaural beat ramps down over several minutes from 12 Hz to 4 Hz, and the other frequencies are slowly faded in. This can help aid a smooth transition in and out of the session. This version would be the better option if you are new to binaural beats or meditation.
As Tom mentions in the video and post above, these binaural beats are just tools - comparable to training wheels. As you become more familiar with what at good meditative state “feels” like, you will no longer need them and will find that they can prevent further progress. However, they are a great way to jump start a good mediation practice and seem to work well for most people.
Happy exploring.
1 comment:
I’ve recently begun experimenting with using binaural beats to help me focus while reading and writing. I came across them while looking for ways to block out distracting sounds in my household.
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