Someone at work was saying that the long, drawn out "OM" sound that's used in meditation is the sound that the universe makes, or the frequency of the sound that the universe makes, or something like that. But it seems that can't be right: the sound starts with the "O" and finishes with the "M," so is it the "M" that is the sound of the universe? And if so, how important is the "O?" It was then suggested that the "M" sound was very specific and could only exist having been preceded by the "O." I have my doubts. Couldn't the sound of the universe be "UM?" Are we really that sure about the opening vowel? I'm not blind to the fact that trying to compartmentalize the sounds in OM is extremely unOM, like as unOM as you can get.
The first time I saw a medallion with the OM symbol on it I thought it was a pendant given for 30 years of service, so that's how in tune with the universe I am.
7 comments:
I like to think that the universe in terms of a defining gesture, not a sound. I imagine the universe looking over its shoulder to see if any other universes saw what just happened.
For the record, here's the worst possible sound the universe could make:
http://www.javelinahunter.com/sounds/javlinasound13.wav
Best,
Pterry
Pterry here again. The wav was dropped off the link I posted above. That's all.
so long address.wav
because I live in Boulder and have eaten at the same indian buffet as some budhist monks (who, btw, who went back to the buffet waaaaay more times than I did), I can be considered an autority on these types of things.
om isn't so much the sound of the universe so much as the vibration. if you consider the theory that we are all just concentrated energy, om is the frequency/vibration on which everything exists, the core of being.
I think this is and is not sometimes true. for example, I have been in yoga classes where we do the om and it's totally a transcendental thing. but this morning in my yoga class, not so much.
This is why I can't do yoga. What does it mean to say that the universe vibrates at "om?" Is it the sort of vibration your lips do as they hold the M? What if you do it in a really drawn-out fashion, as in "OMM.MMM..MMM." OMinously. Also, the M is kind of hard to sustain. I think it would be better if the universe could vibrate on on something more effortless. Like, "LA." Or "SS." If the universe is collapsing, I bet it vibrates on SS, like air being let out of a balloon.
Pterry, I hate it when I'm at the computer and actually LOL. (maybe that's the sound the universe vibrates on.) Anyway, I think there should be a New Yorker cartoon contest where you have to provide the drawing, and that is the perfect initial caption. But it's more of an image than a caption. I guess what I'm saying is that I wish people would draw it.
This is why I'm glad to be an atheist. I don't have to take seriously the notion that the universe makes a sound.
signed,
grumpy atheist
word verification:
bkabdi, yet another sound the universe doesn't make.
you know, I kind of want to explain what I mean by the om thing but looking at it from an outside perspective, I think that's kind of scary.
wow, I've lived in hippieville too long. what's happening to me? I mean, I drank kombucha earlier this week because someone told me it would help restore my inner balance. I think about the karmic ramifications of my actions. and I've talked with friends about buying a communal lavender farm.
help me.
"Kombucha" gives me an idea for a boring variation of Balderdash - take a word like kombucha, and guess whether its something you plant, drive, ail from, inject, steer clear of, etc.
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