Listen to a fading sound

What the Method Is

The core instruction for this meditation method is: “In the beginning and gradual refinement of the sound of any letter, awake”. This technique guides the practitioner to use sound, specifically its origin and its gradual fading, as a means to achieve alertness and inner awakening.

How It Is Done

This meditation involves a conscious and sustained awareness of a sound from its inception through its dissolution, with practical steps that can be initially practiced externally before moving to inner sounds:

  • Choose a Sound: While the sutra mentions “any letter,” the general principle applies to any sound. External sounds like a gong or bell are suggested for initial practice, and then an inner sound (like “Aum”) can be used.
  • Prepare for Alertness (External Sound): Before initiating the sound, become totally alert. This state of alertness should be as intense as if your life depends on it, or as if facing imminent death. Crucially, wait until your mind is without thought and completely clear before proceeding.
  • Initiate and Follow the Sound: Strike the chosen external sound (e.g., a bell or gong), and do not miss its very beginning. Then, with sustained and unwavering awareness, move with the sound as it gradually becomes slower, subtler, and subtler, continuing to follow it mentally until it completely disappears.
  • Observe Both Poles: Be acutely aware of both the beginning and the end of the sound, ensuring nothing is missed in its entire trajectory from emergence to fading.
  • Practice with Inner Sound: Once proficiency is gained in observing external sounds, the technique can be applied inwardly. After achieving a vacant (thoughtless) mind, create any sound inside (such as “Aum”) and meticulously follow its journey from creation to complete disappearance.
  • Commitment to Practice: This process requires dedicated effort and time, typically at least three months, for one to become increasingly alert through its practice.
Commentaries and Insights
  • Sound as an Awakening Tool: The core principle is that any sudden event, especially a sound, has the power to jolt a person into alertness. This is why Zen masters have historically used sudden screams or unexpected actions to awaken their disciples from their ordinary “sleepy” state. The method targets the pervasive “sleep” in which most people live, even while performing daily activities.
  • The Primacy of Alertness: The sound itself is merely a means to an end; the true objective of this meditation is to attain profound alertness. Osho emphasizes that simple methods might seem deceptive, but their efficacy lies in their ability to cultivate this deep awareness, revealing that one has been “asleep your whole life”.
  • Mind as the Barrier: Thought is identified as the primary barrier to alertness. When genuine alertness is achieved, thought naturally ceases. The mind, being “tricky,” can deceive practitioners by simulating awareness or introducing thoughts, thus preventing true awakening. Techniques like counting breaths can expose how easily the mind wanders even when attempting to be alert.
  • Avoiding Hypnosis: A crucial warning is against allowing the repetitive nature of sound-based meditations (like mantras) to induce a state of sleep or auto-hypnosis (yoga tandra). For the technique to be effective for spiritual awakening, the practitioner must maintain an alert inner ear, consciously listening rather than passively drifting into a trance.
  • Transformation and Beyond Thought: Successfully practicing this method leads to a significant personal transformation, making one a “totally different person”. The subtle nature of the sounds, particularly as they fade, necessitates intense attention, which inadvertently leads the mind beyond its usual thought processes. This serves as an “indirect way to bring you out of your head”.
  • Sound, Soundlessness, and Oneness: Tantra explains that sound can only exist because of its opposite, silence. By using sound as a “jumping board,” one can plunge into “soundlessness” or “soundfulness” – both terms describing the same absolute state of total awareness. This state signifies a profound omnipresence, where the individual ego dissolves, and one becomes “everywhere” or “the all,” losing their finite point-like existence and merging with the infinite.
  • Tantra’s Scientific and Amoral Approach: Tantra is presented as a science of subjective experience, focused on “how” to achieve spiritual truth through practical techniques rather than philosophical “what-ifs”. It is amoral, not concerned with good or bad actions, but solely with cultivating alertness. Whether one is a “sinner or a saint,” the key is to transform sleep into awareness.
  • The Role of a Master: While these are generalized methods, personalized initiation from a master can significantly enhance the process. A master can assess the individual’s type and needs, tailoring the method, and even transmitting it at a “right moment” (e.g., during sleep or trance) for deeper penetration into the unconscious. This makes the method “alive” and more effective, potentially leading to immediate enlightenment.
  • Challenges and Ego’s Resistance: The simplicity of Tantra’s techniques can be a barrier, as the ego tends to seek complex and arduous challenges for a sense of accomplishment. Fear of the unknown or of perceived “madness” (the disruption of the familiar ego-structure) can also hinder practice. Osho advises starting with easier phenomena and gradually moving to more complex ones to build awareness.
  • Effort and Spontaneity: The initial stages require conscious effort to break old habits and develop awareness. However, the ultimate aim is a state of effortless spontaneity where being is enough, and no further “doing” is needed.