Lounge
Exploring the healing power of sound in a noisy world
Summary
Singing bowls. Sound gardens. Silent clubs. A wave of wellness and lifestyle trends and community initiatives are using sound—and the lack of it—to be heard over the constant buzz of a noisy, overstimulated world
On a September evening, yoga mats share space with clothing and jewellery displays at Amala Earth’s store in Delhi. The conscious lifestyle marketplace hosts various events at its Vasant Vihar flagship, and the day’s fixture is a yin and sound bath session. Yoga and wellness expert Riya Vyas takes a dozen or so participants through a 2-hour session, with a plethora of bronze and crystal bowls which, when played, seem to send sonic waves vibrating throughout the body. I feel heightened by the sound, as if my nerves and muscles are being hauled out of my skin. Surely how Doctor Strange must feel in the astral plane.
According to Vyas, the experience differs from one to another. Participants at the session exemplify her observation—one speaks of feeling relaxed, another says they felt entranced, and a third participant mentions how the sound evoked memories of their mother. Pankhuri Dhanjal, assistant marketing manager, Amala Earth, notes that sound bath sessions have received a positive response from visitors and are becoming a regular feature at the store.
Sound has come to occupy the crux of numerous emerging trends and initiatives that seek to offer solutions for well-being and mindful lifestyles. It is both antithetical yet apt in our world of endless sonic overstimulation. The silence of nature, and its sounds—birds chirping, wind and rain—fade into the background, as the racket of modern living amplifies. A Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) study last year estimated that vehicles can well be the biggest source of noise pollution in Delhi, exceeding industries and raising ambient noise around residential, public, and commercial spaces. In Mumbai, a citizen welfare group has been petitioning authorities to curb noise pollution from construction sites, though such complaints are hardly limited to one city. It is commonplace to violate noise-level regulations during festivities. The CPCB mandates that state governments undertake the maintenance of ambient air quality standards across four types of zones (residential, industrial, commercial, and silent), but implementation can be uneven and lacklustre.
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“The primary difficulty lies in the widespread noise pollution, especially in urban areas, where sounds from traffic, construction, and general activity are inescapable," says Vikram Chauhan, co-founder of Quiet Parks International (QPI). “In rural or remote areas of India, quiet can still be found in my experience, but this quiet is at risk of disappearing as rapid development encroaches on these spaces." A volunteer-driven non-profit, QPI awards certifications to wilderness zones, parks, trails, hotels, residences, and conservation areas for adhering to quiet standards. India is yet to have a QPI recipient, though the organisation’s website lists a few nominated destinations such as the Khangchendzonga National Park in Sikkim, the Vazra Sakla Waterfalls in Karnataka, and the Valley of Flowers National Park in Uttarakhand.
The impact goes beyond momentary disturbance. The onslaught of constant noise leads to an overactive and increasingly agitated mind, notes Mahesh Natarajan, COO of Ananda in the Himalayas, a luxury wellness retreat Uttarakhand. He says over the past two years, mental health issues have been a common concern among more than 50% of the property’s clients. “This wasn’t the case a decade ago. A significant part of this in-built stress is our external environment and noise. What has exploded is the inability to have downtime," he says. “People are more aware of visual overstimulation, but it can also translate to sound." Especially when one includes the added boost of music, podcasts and audiobooks, which people consume to relax and drown out external noises.
Bathed in sound
Put simply, sound healing, also known as sound baths, are meditative experiences rooted in the act of listening to concentrated, deeply resonant sound. Or, as Priyanka Jay Patel, founder of Sound Healing India (SHI), says, “Sound is a process of self-realisation, through inner reflections, that brings healing." Among early sound healing practitioners in the country, the Mumbai-based Patel founded SHI in 2016 and has watched the ecosystem evolve and the demand for such practices grow—before the pandemic, she would have four or five corporate clients a year; now, she partners with as many organisations each month, as well as individuals who sign up to immerse themselves in the resonating beats of her kansa bowls and other instruments.
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She began training in sound healing practices over a decade ago, and now also assists academic research on the history of singing bowls. Patel correlates the common materials of singing bowls with temple bells and kansa utensils traditionally used in Indian kitchens. When translated into tools of sound healing, hand-beaten kansa bowls, she says, produces a sound akin to the cosmic Om. “It makes one more aware of their inner sounds—emotions and thoughts—as well as their bodily sensation."
Sound healing is intertwined with diverse philosophies and traditional knowledge systems, from Nāda Yoga and chanting to singing bowls and sound instruments. Social media content about such practices is rising, especially since the pandemic, and customers can now choose from a variety of wellness rituals. Individual workshops and sessions cost between ₹800-2,000 on average, while multi-day programmes and wellness journeys demand a heftier fee.
Instrumental therapies often take the spotlight in sound healing. Apart from singing bowls, practitioners may also use crystal bowls, gongs, tuning forks, rattles, and chimes, among others. “One can use anything that has harmony, balance, is soothing to the ears, and also matches the concept or the theme of the workshop," says Vyas. A Delhi resident, Vyas has been practising yoga for a decade and often found music helpful for her work. Practising Nāda Yoga and chanting however lent more “clarity and stillness of mind," and she gradually discovered sound healing with instruments which she has practised more frequently over the last couple of years—a period that she notes has also spiked demand. “Since the pandemic, people have started understanding the importance of holistic well-being and are more drawn to such therapies." Vyas has even hosted sessions for a 60th birthday celebration and a baby shower.
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Sound baths seemingly find takers everywhere, in varying formats. Actor Shilpa Shetty’s post about attending a sound healing session in August led to a number of media articles on its benefits. In a more unusual setup, inmates at Karnataka’s Madikeri District Jail participated in a sound healing workshop in June. Bengaluru-based startup Nuvedo, which specialises in mushroom-based products, hosts Wellness Odyssey sessions in Bengaluru, which has participants using mushroom extracts for added benefits during sound healing. Meanwhile in London, wellness centres offer lunchtime sound baths on their service menu, expressly designed for professionals to schedule into busy days.
In Los Angeles, Altha—a wellness retreat helmed by Letizia Silvestri offering sound healing—has names like Ferrari, Google, and Gucci in its roster of clients. Closer home, automobile brand Range Rover’s luxury village in Alibaug, Maharashtra, which opened this year, hosted a sound healing session at its wellness sanctuary. Patel, who facilitated the session, has worked with many corporate clients and notes that organisations were among her earliest clients. “These organisations don’t opt for sound therapy because it’s a trend. They understand the science behind it and experience it first-hand." Patel has also hosted all-night sound baths, wherein the session begins around 10pm and continues for hours into the night.
Meditation and wellness retreats
Instruments are not the only tools of sound healing. Chanting and meditation can evoke similar benefits, and a number of wellness retreats and properties now incorporate these into their regimens and therapies. At Sitara Himalaya, the wellness retreat Paro Svasthi incorporates sound healing into its Mangalam Journeys—a programme combining yoga, meditation, and wellness rituals. Ananda in the Himalayas has long propounded the benefits of chanting and meditation, but the team has deepened its focus on sound over the past year. “Apart from group sessions, we do a lot of individual work offering one-onone sessions. We use instruments as well, but the mainstay of sound healing at Ananda is mantra chanting," says Natarajan.
At the property, days often begin with chanting sessions with experts and participants chanting mantras 7-108 times. Among other activities engaging sound, Natarajan also highlights the incorporation of mantras into meditative practices, and the practice of ajapa (spontaneous) repetition. Participants start with breathwork till it becomes spontaneous, following which therapists introduce a chant that resonates with breathing; for instance, the sohum/sohammantra, in which the syllables “so" and “hum" correlate to inhalation and exhalation respectively. “We start by mouthing it without a sound. Gradually, you won’t even need to mouth it—you just think of the sound, which is a unique concept. One always imagines sound to be audible, but here it translates into thought," he says.
For the mind and body
Sound healing isn’t posited only as a sensorial experience. According to practitioners and wellness experts, such treatment can have a positive impact on both mental and physical health. “We focus on emotional healing, and we’ve worked with clients who have come to us with colitis, diabetes, and anxiety, and have seen an improvement in their health," says Patel. Though she does not claim clinical benefits, Patel notes that sound healing can enable a better lifestyle and overall well-being. “We are working with neuropsychologists, and now we even see doctors supporting our work."
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Natarajan also mentions the use of mantras for chakra healing, though such advanced treatments demand considerable expertise on the therapist’s part and prior experience with asanas, pranayama, and meditation on that of the participants. Dr Pushpendra Nath Renjen, neurologist and senior consultant, internal medicine, Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals in Delhi, refers to entrainment, a process in which different sound frequencies synchronise, to explain the possible benefits of sound. “This may affect brainwave patterns, inducing states of relaxation, focus, or even altered consciousness. For example, binaural beats—which involve playing two slightly different frequencies in each ear—can promote relaxation and help reduce anxiety by aligning the brain to a calming frequency," he says.
Dr Renjen adds that sound can also impact autonomic nervous systems, which regulates functions like heart rate and digestion. “Specific frequencies may activate the parasympathetic nervous system, leading to lower stress, reduced cortisol levels, and improved emotional well-being," he says. “In addition, sound therapy may support pain management. The vibrations from sound waves can trigger the release of endorphins, the body’s natural painkillers, and may assist in healing injured tissues. Some studies suggest that sound can be a complementary tool for pain relief."
The correlations of sound and noise with mental and emotional well-being are easier to draw, and have been the subject of several studies. German researcher Wolfgang Babisch’s noise/stress concept categorises a dual impact of noise: direct pathways of high decibel noise which cause ear organ damage and indirect pathways which can hinder daily activities and sleep.
The decibel level around us is much higher now, says Dr Vipul Rastogi, Gurugram-based psychiatrist and the clinical regional head for the National Capital Region at the Sukoon Health chain of mental health hospitals. “We have so many people coming with lack of concentration, the inability to focus. People struggle and take longer to do things than they would in a quieter environment," he adds. “Even when we sleep, there’s still sound and it doesn’t allow the brain to shut down. One of the principles of sleep hygiene is to find a quiet place." Highlighting the subjective nature of stress and mental health issues, Rastogi notes that relaxation and treatment options have to be personalised as well.
Based on diagnoses, patients may be recommended escaping from stressors into quieter places and activities—be it vipassana and meditation, or a quiet holiday. But sound can also be therapeutic for some patients, and expert mental health recommendations may include learning a musical instrument or being part of a group activity such as chanting. “There’s a vibe that feels more positive," he says. As consumers lean towards holistic well-being, the demand for such healing practices is rising. Research on the field however is still ongoing, and Rastogi notes that randomised, controlled trials are needed before doctors can prescribe them to patients. Dr Renjen echoes this view, observing that evidence for sound healing, though promising, remains preliminary. “Most studies are small-scale or anecdotal, and further research is necessary to fully understand the therapeutic mechanisms and benefits," he says. “Sound healing offers potential therapeutic value, particularly for mental health and stress reduction, but it should be considered as a complementary therapy rather than a primary treatment.
Sound gardens
Beyond wellness retreats and therapy sessions, growing awareness of sound’s impact on well-being has sparked newer lifestyle trends revolving around instruments. Take for instance, sound gardens— immersive outdoor spaces where sounds of nature are combined with installations and instruments that offer rest and rejuvenation. Think forest bathing with a serving of wind chimes. A growing concept in India, sound gardens may not offer the long-term benefits of wellness programmes, but offer a glimpse of the therapeutic energies of sound and make such experiences more easily accessible to the public.
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In 2022, IIM Indore inaugurated Anunaad, a 12,000 sq. ft sound garden as part of an initiative to add more greenery on the campus. The space is filled with around 5,000 plants and custom-made wind chimes from Svaram, a research centre and institute of musical instruments headquartered in Auroville. Over two decades, Svaram’s community of local artists, artisans, and researchers, has crafted its “world music instruments" which have made their way around the world, including the “Mumbai Wings", one of the world’s largest tuned wind chimes installed at Mumbai Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport.
In February, Svaram inaugurated its own Sound Garden, at a two-acre site for its projected campus in the industrial zone of Auroville. Another of Svaram’s major collaborations in India culminated in a sound garden at the Indian Music Experience (IME), an interactive music museum backed by the Brigade Group, in JP Nagar, Bengaluru. The IME set up its sound garden two years before the formal opening of the rest of the museum which encompasses multimedia exhibition galleries and a learning centre. The sound garden marks the entrance to the space, filled with varied instruments. A humming stone, made of granite, features two resonators—one for adults, another for children—for visitors to hum into.
A metal and granite flower gong offers a shared experience; people can step inside the petals while an IME assistant taps the instrument with a mallet. A storm drum mimics a storm cloud’s rumble, particularly popular among children. Other installations include a sound railing, tubular bells, and melody and spinner chimes which bring to mind the tinkling music of smaller chimes at home. “The idea was to give visitors an experience of the science of sound, how it is actually created, and to make it accessible to people so they can play these instruments themselves before they step into the museum," says Preema John, director of IME . The sound garden is on of their most popular exhibits. The museum receives around 10,000 visitors every month.
In pursuit of quiet
To ensure the right ambience for its sound garden, and the overall premises, IME worked with local traffic police and government agencies to make the area a silent zone. “We did it not just for the sound garden, but also birds—the entire space is built and created around mango trees pre-existing on the plot," says John. “Loud music is great, but so is silent contemplation—we try and encourage that in our larger precinct and community." As everyday peace and quiet becomes elusive, the pursuit of silence has become both a lifestyle goal and a business proposition.
Meditation and sleep apps such as Calm, billed as the “Spotify of Sleep", draw millions of subscribers for paid services that capitalise on the popularity of audio content and podcasts. Signal noises, often named by colour— brown, pink, white—find a lot of takers as well. Silent discos have been around for a few years, where music plays via headphones rather than speakers; companies such as Silent Owl offer such services in India. In January, a wedding in Delhi found brief online virality for leading a baraat (groom’s procession) with participants dancing to music on their headphones.
In the age of social media, silence is often packaged into content. Vlogs and video content are eschewing speech. In tandem with the popularity of ASMR, a number of vloggers now label their content as silent, especially for travel and everyday activities. Since last year, a “silent walking trend" has been in the news thanks to influencers like Arielle Lorre and podcaster Mady Maio. In a viral TikTok, Maio says that walking without any music, podcasts plugged into her ears evokes a state of mind where “suddenly you can... hear yourself", sounding uncannily like sound healers.
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Social media activity is largely individualistic, while community initiatives offer cocoons of peace and quiet within a group. Take for instance Cubbon Reads, founded by Shruti Sah and Harsh Snehanshu in 2023. The quiet reading community invites people (no membership needed) to come and enjoy a book of their choice in Bengaluru’s Cubbon Park. Discussing the books is off-limits, and conversations in general are not necessary—a founding principle that, according to Sah and Snehanshu, “removes the anxiety of socialisation". “A quiet ambience in a public space, like a park, breaks the monotony of being at home and reading, or even the back-breaking strictness of a library," the founders add.
Cubbon Reads’ popularity is evident in its high participation, and more than 100 “Reads" chapters in India and internationally. There are also new extensions such as Cubbons Writes, Folds (for origami enthusiasts), and Knits (knitting and crochet), silence becoming the “thread running through them all". However, finding peace in public can be challenging in India. “To create quiet spaces in a country as dynamic and noisy as India, we need a multipronged approach," says QPI’s Chauhan. “This could mean stricter regulations on noise levels, setting aside designated quiet zones, and increasing awareness about the importance of preserving these spaces. It will also require collaboration between urban planners, environmental agencies, and local communities to prioritise quiet in both natural and man-made environments."
Wellness retreats and sound healing promise respite and holistic healing, but there is seemingly no escape from the cacophony of life. To achieve it, says Chauhan, “we need to be reminded of the value of quiet", its appreciation as a fundamental need of life.
Find your silence
Apps and digital tools are making soothing sounds accessible for everyday use
CALM: The health and meditation app made news for its “30 seconds of silence" ads during the recent US election results broadcast on American news networks. Calm’s popular Sleep Stories (starring voices of Hollywood A-listers) , music and ambient sounds and guided meditation reportedly generate around $7.7 million monthly in-app purchases. https://www.calm.com/
SOAAK: This sound healing app stands apart for its focus on frequency compositions, and claims to offer support for more than 20 health and wellness concerns. Created by an American technology company of the same name, which also offers clinics and virtual health services, the Soaak app’s library addresses stress and anxiety, digestion, migraine, PMS, and cardiovascular health. https://www.soaak.com/
HEADSPACE: Another popular app, Headspace promises a mix of meditation sessions and sound therapies. Its meditation course library includes beginner-focused and bite-sized sessions catering to specific moods and goals. In October, Headspace launched Ebb, an AI conversational tool offering personalised support and recommendations from the app’s content. https://www.headspace.com/
MIND AMEND: YouTube is arguably one of the easiest, and relatively free, platforms to access soothing sounds. Look up Mind Amend, a range of “brainwave entrainment audio sessions" by Jason Lewis, which includes music tracks, whale sounds, and brown noise—a form of signal noise which has found thousands of fans in recent years including the author Zadie Smith. https://youtube.com/@mindamend
BINAURAL BEATS: Playing two distinct sound frequencies in each ear creates a sound perception known as binaural beats, said to enhance concentration and a state of relaxation. Look for binaural beats playlists online, paid and free, on various platforms including YouTube and Spotify.
Sohini Dey is a Delhi-based writer and editor.
