iAwake Technologies – Beginner’s Mind (Neuroflow Series)

Description

This tape was played on a cloudy and cold Saturday in January. I was very interested in these tracks because they’re supposed to be designed to affect your brainwaves in specific ways. Format File: 6 MP3 1PDF

iAwake Technologies – Beginner’s Mind (Neuroflow Series)

Beginner’s Mind Review
By Michael Ericson

This tape was played on a cloudy and cold Saturday in January. I was very interested in these tracks because they’re supposed to be designed to affect your brainwaves in specific ways. Brainwaves are frequencies created by the firing neurons. Certain brainwave activity ranges correspond to certain states such as sleep or wakeful activity. This means that you can alter the brainwaves that affect your consciousness. Tapes like Beginner’s Mind Take advantage of this opportunity to offer new experiences, or to free your mind from a stuck state.

Before I get into the review, I should first introduce the concept of Beginner’s MindThis track is named after the poet, Beginner’s Mind Zen Buddhism is the source of this concept. It states that we should be open to experiencing the world in every new moment and not become stuck in the past. The expert is stuck in the past, and cannot adapt to new situations or techniques. A metaphor that Buddhists commonly use is that you can’t fill a cup that is already full. It is best to be a beginner and to learn from the world and its people. Have an empty cup, ready to receive life’s blessings, and experience each moment as fresh and new.

I ensure that I have a quiet place before I start listening. I also meditate throughout the listening process, closing my eyes and breathing evenly. However, I can tell you that this music piece is not a meditation. To get the best results, you just need to close your eyes and keep your mind clear. The tape is divided into six parts: Ichi (San), Shi, Go, Roku and Nana. Each part has a different musical style but all have the sound of thunder and rain in the background. One of the most interesting things about these tapes, is that music often repeats, like a chorus. But, as far as I can tell, nothing repeats throughout the whole tape. It forces you to always have a Beginner’s Mind because you never know what’s coming next.

The tapes made me feel a lot of emotions, and gave me a lot to think about. Sometimes I felt uncomfortable, but this led to a greater awareness. There were a lot of discordant notes that interacted in interesting ways and this had an effect on my mental processes that I didn’t quite understand. It led me to something deeper. Many times, during these tracks I’d be sad that the one had ended, but the next one would always offer something interesting and new.

The first tape begins with light rain and thunder cracks. The notes are played by a horn and a stringed instrument, but they are separated and held for a very long time. It’s very light and mellow and soothes. I get a sense that these sounds are linked to something from long ago, or something that’s been around for a long time. They’re strange and mysterious. The overall feeling is somewhat intense, but it’s still calming. Imagine being on a boat on the ocean during a heavy thunderstorm, but still being safe and dry. Being so close to powerful forces that can destroy, I feel as though I must always be awake, alert, and aware of the changing world.

The tapes’ instruments have a very unique style. They sound varied and the note progressions are different. It is reminiscent of Ancient Japanese music. The music seems to be from a people who live in the woods and thunderstorms are an integral part of their lives.

As I dig deeper into the tapes, I feel the music reminding me that the universe is older than we realize. Not only have people existed for thousands of year, but our galaxy has been around for much longer and is larger. It is full of rich and varied life. While the strange sounds might seem strange, it makes you think that there are more bizarre things in the universe than we realize. And the rain is always there, water is constantly pouring down in generous amounts. I found myself looking out to see if it was actually raining, as silly as that may sound. That just goes to illustrate how deeply our sensory perceptions are tied with our perceptions of reality. We can be tricked more thoroughly than we’d like to admit.

I’ll end here because I don’t want to have the entire journey for you, but I will say that I discovered and remembered some important things about what it means to exist in this universe. We start over every moment, and this can be saddening, because there are things we don’t want to leave behind. But we must keep moving forward. This track deserves 5 stars. The music was original and interesting. It made me think. The instruments made beautiful sounds, and there was no repetition. Each note progression was unique. I hope you’ll check it out for yourself.