I had an amazing experience at Sound Healing Meditation class by Rick Batyr Music last weekend at Point Lookout Yoga Club on Long Island, New York. This class used gongs, drums and Tibetan singing bowls, which date back to being used in ancient history. These instruments are ‘stuck and sung’ in specific rythmic patterns to create vibrational sound harmonics. These vibrations from the sound frequency impact the sympathetic nervous system. During the class, your brain waves synchronize to the vibrations of the instruments being played. The harmonic vibrations engage the relaxation reflex and slow down the respiratory, brain and heart rate and create a deep sense of well being.
I was extremely relaxed during the class. I have been to meditation classes before where my mind has difficulty not wandering and staying focused on the meditation. During this class, my mind was clear of distracting thoughts. I felt relaxed and at ease. I really like the bong sounds. It was hard to have a wandering mind when something that loud and vibrational was being played. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀
There was also a Reiki practitioner in the class who did Reiki during the meditation. Reiki, meaning “universal life energy” in Japanese works with the goal of improving the flow of life energy in a person. Reiki practitioners are trained to detect and alleviate problems of energy flow on the physical, emotional, and spiritual level.
Below is an interview with Rick Batyr. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
D’s Hampton Organics: Could you tell me more about what you offer as a service?
Rick Batyr: I am a musician/sound healer/teacher, with a background in studying shamanism, reiki, meditation and the science of sound.
I perform live group sound meditations using gongs, singing bowls, percussion, synthesizer and field recording’s from nature all combined with the above practices. The sonic landscapes I create has helped many to detach from the ego self which allows you to gently slip into a deeply relaxing meditative state. The intention behind all my work is to honor each individuals unique vibration, guiding them into a state of self awareness, joy and compassion.
As a musician I create fully produced meditation music combining traditional sound healing modalities with artful sonic exploration. Each song infuses many forms of sounds, blurring the lines of genre and taking the listener on a healing journey.
D’s Hampton Organics: How did you originally get involved in what you do?
Rick Batyr: Using music as a therapeutic tool began early on for me (A drummer in my teenage years). I would always turn to music in times of stress, playing music and being immersed in sounds would simply take me away into a sort of trance like state.
When I was about 16 yrs old I began meditation and spiritual practices. From that turning point the next 10 years focused on self discovery, growing spiritually and delving into the science and spiritual use of sound. In the studio I was creating bin-aural beats, studying music from around the world and learning how the brain responds to sound.
After graduating in 2000 with a degree in audio engineering I began working full time in Manhattan for major recording studios and artists and would often attend group meditations around there. The deeper I went down the spiritual path, the further I started to step away from the commercial side of the music industry.
When my wife Mariko began to train me in Usui Reiki it all seemed to collide together. Reiki broadened my awareness of energy and brought another layer to the energetic use of music that I was discovering. With the years of studying the science of sound, along with these new spiritual tools, I was set on a path to share the healing power of music with the world.
D’s Hampton Organics: Why do you like meditation/sound meditation and what differentiates the two? Why is sound special?
Rick Batyr: I love meditation. In its simplest form its great for heightening your awareness, acting mindfully and balancing stress/emotions. On the deeper level It allows you to step beyond the ego , heal and explore the more complex levels of the inner self, enhance creativity, and connect to divine source.
When you add carefully crafted music to meditation, it greatly enhances the experience on multi-dimensional levels. The Meditative use of sound dates back thousands of years, in many forms throughout the world. Music and rhythm is ingrained into our being from the the earliest days of our existence (16 weeks in utero) . Listening to the beats of our mothers heart, hearing the swish of air into the lungs,etc. We are designed to respond and resonate to sound. We are all divine instruments that constantly need to be “tuned up” as we change and evolve. Using music helps to quiet the mind during meditation, lowers blood pressure, improves sleep, enhances your listening and focusing abilities. Sound can help to reveal our inner emotional, energetic, physical/mental patterns and blocks.
D’s Hampton Organics: Could you further explain Reiki and how you use it in your classes.
Rick Batyr: My wife Mariko Zervos Batyr (www.zersai.com) has been practicing and teaching Reiki for many years, With a deep connection to her Japanese heritage, she has this incredible ability to bring fourth Usui Reiki in the most respectful, egoless and pure manner I have seen. Learning Reiki from Mariko truly opened me up to a new layer of understanding energy as a healing modality. Since music is also energy, I began using reiki energy while conducting sound healing sessions, as well as during the writing process of my recorded albums. Before I begin a sound healing session or compose music I give all my instruments reiki, with the intention that as I play that energy is carried out into the listener along with the sound waves of the music.
D’s Hampton Organics: Could you further explain chakras and how you use them in your classes?
Rick Batyr: The chakra system is often misunderstood in the west. Here, we boil an ancient yogic practice down to a single set of 7 chakras that govern the body, when traditionally the original practice used many many more sets of chakras. Since the chakras mainly deal with our energetic non physical bodies the locations and notes that pertain to the chakra system can fluctuate based on the individual. With that said I do not use one specific note or frequency for every single person as many chakra systems in the west teach. If you believe, as I do, that every human being is beautifully unique in his/her grand design, then applying the same prescription to everyone just simply does not work. I use mostly metal singing bowls because they provide complex overtones and harmonics that crystal bowls do not. It is those overtones and harmonics when struck in certain patterns or scales begin to create a wall of sound that encompasses many notes and vibrations that help to cover not just the main western whole tones associated with the chakra system but many of the sounds in between those notes. As the conductor of these deep sonic journeys I feel its my responsibility to cover as many modalities and sounds as possible regardless of personal beliefs, so that I can assist as many as possible with this work.
To attend one of Rick’s classes on Long Island, or New York, check out his website below or Instagram. All of Rick’s music can be purchased digitally online at:
Itunes : https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/rick-batyr/id592838841
my website: www.pranasoundstudio.com
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/1JwmuVJOLocdS9Vckg3RyN
Facebook: www.facebook.com/pranasoundstudio
Instagram: @rick_batyr_music
Photography by:
