The healing science of the Native American flute has a long and valued history. Numerous types of wind instruments have been utilized to treat people and the environment ever since Aristotle’s time. Flute playing was one of the first instruments that a man is known to have played. As early as 2000 BCE, when Stonehenge was finished, our ancestors were playing the flute. The sounds of the first flutes have been heard in many parts of the world, from America to Asia, in ceremonies, art, and entertainment. It makes sense that listening to such comforting, familiar sounds instantly soothe the mind and relaxes the body. According to studies, when we hear the music of a Native American flute, our heart rates decrease, and our bodily reactions become better.
Alpha and theta brainwave patterns will increase because of Native American flute playing, which also induces a contemplative mood. Your mind and body will automatically relax when you use your breath. Your brain can be stimulated by more rhythmic and expressive noises. It is when anxiety, stress, or other strong emotions frequently experience an emotional release, leaving your body. It’s a wonderful idea to just keep breathing through the experience as it occurs. You will have a renewed sense of energy.
Everything in our immediate environment vibrates, including light, music, objects that are solid (like rocks and trees) and even our thoughts. You might just be “out-of-tune” and require some calibrating when you are out of sync with your higher state of awareness. Our ears can hear and are impacted by waves of frequencies created by sound instruments and music. It all enables us to refocus and reconnect with who we are.
Flute of the Native Americans: Spirituality and Healing
There is not a lot of information available on the Native American flute’s ability to heal. The subjectivity of spirituality, which is an individual practice, is seen to be the cause of this. Nobody other can guide you in what you should do, be, or say regarding your spiritual journey. The path can only be guided by the Spirit and your heart. Your role is to simply adhere.
Some people will claim that the flute has healing properties. This may be true to a certain extent; however experience has proven that the flute helps to calm the mind, allowing the essence or Spirit of one’s actual identity to heal by restoring harmony to the body.
It is straightforward to draw conclusions about how listening to and playing the flute connects with their scientific perspective because the therapeutic power of the flute explores the healing potential of the heart, mind, and body. Science seems to be rewriting and correcting what has been taught about how life functions and the role of human potential in shaping our lives through our ideas and emotions merely in the last 20 to 30 years.
Information on how life functions, how our ideas and feelings shape our current experiences, as well as resources for learning more about “Who you are.” Once you have a basic grasp of the aforementioned topics, two studies that show the effects of Native American-style flute playing and listening on the human body will be presented.
Who or What Heals
Making a person whole is one way to define healing. The body-mind connection is highly valued in our culture. The relationship between the spiritual components of who we are and how they affect our lives is barely touched upon in the media. Simply put, everyone is aware that they are human. They probably have a good understanding of their human side, but what about our being, our spiritual selves?
When the body, mind, soul, and emotions are all working together, it may be easier to define what it means to be whole. Imagine a wheel that has been divided into four equal sections around the perimeter. Body, mind, and spirit each make up one part, with emotion making up the final one. Two spokes will intersect if you draw a line from each segment to the other side. Peace may be said to be in the wheel’s core. The wheel does not move smoothly and peace, which has lost its center, is unstable and wobbling if one of these attributes is lacking or flat.
This would be an excellent time to introduce the term “spirituality.” Being preoccupied with the human spirit or soul rather than the world of forms is a sign of spirituality. The change in priorities enables us to embrace our spirituality more fully. Beyond our view, what is our identity? Spirituality is typically something that an individual does. Some people mix up spirituality and religion. Religion is typically centered on groups of people and entails adhering to a number of laws as well as accepting certain ideas. Spirituality, on the other hand, is considerably more flexible and allows the individual to follow Spirit and the variety of life experiences. When one recognizes their Spirit, the question “Who am I?” becomes much trickier.
Using Native American Flutes for Sound Healing
There must be some connection between sound healing and Native American flute. Numerous music CDs and streaming services mention the therapeutic benefits of Native American flute music. Music therapy has grown significantly during the past few years. The flute is being used by VA groups to help veterans who are suffering from PTSD.
Undoubtedly, playing the flute is enjoyable, simple, and engaging. But it also has a transcendent voice that can calm the mind, promote relaxation, and aid in emotional recovery. Anyone who has a strong connection to the flute has experienced instances of bodily and/or emotional healing. The significance of slowing down brain waves from beta to alpha, and occasionally to theta, has been demonstrated scientifically.
Physiological reactions to Native American flute playing and listening were investigated in a small group pilot research. Participants were asked to listen to various musical genres and play the flute while having their heart rate variability (HRV) parameters monitored. Heart rate variability (HRV) increased by 84% when the flute was being played. Beta waves decreased as theta and alpha waves rose. The results of the study support the idea that Native American flutes, especially the one slower pitch, may have a role in music therapy situations by showing improved HRV, boosting slow-wave rhythms, and decreasing beta. Research concludes that the Native American flute might benefit from being used more frequently in music therapy and that further research is needed to determine how playing the flute affects various clinical conditions, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), asthma, anxiety, and major depressive disorder.
The effects of listening to a specific piece of music played on a Native American flute on self-reports of anxiety and perceptions of interconnectedness with people who have been diagnosed with a trauma-related condition are the subject of research. The research was both statistical and qualitative. When the heart, mind, body, and spirit are all in harmony, there is interconnectedness. When one or more components are out of sync, it is called dissociation. For a long time after experiencing a trauma, for instance, a person may be unable to confront that trauma without again feeling or reliving the event. One instance is PTSD.
Music played on a Native American flute demonstrated a better reduction in anxiety. There was a noticeably higher rise in perceptions of connectivity after listening to Native American flute music. Additionally, it was shown that listening to Native American flute music improved feelings of connectivity, which consequently reduced anxiety. According to analysis, there was no statistically significant mediation impact for the associations between music and anxiety or music and interconnectedness.
Sound healing therapy has no boundaries, and neither do the instruments we might employ to harness the healing power of their sounds.
The Origins of Native American Flute Making
Native American flutes represent a 3,000-year-old sonic development. The Anasazi flute from the American Southwest is one of the oldest flutes in North America. Flute use spread throughout many Native American tribal societies as time went on. From the elderberry flutes of the Penobscot tribes in Maine to the courting flutes of the Great Plains, a variety of distinctive sounds arose. Handcrafted flutes had individual tunings that varied depending on the size of the flute maker’s hands and forearms.
Native American flutes have been developed into standardized instruments with a variety of therapeutic uses. Nowadays, most flutes are tuned to the minor pentatonic scale at 440 Hz or 432 Hz.
The Native American-Style Flute and Your Practice of Sound Healing
The stunning Native American-style flute is a wonderful tool to incorporate into your sound healing practice as well as for meditation and relaxation. The three sections that follow explain how to use transitions to include this unique flute in healing practices.
Client Relationship
The client connection at the start of a 1-2-1 sound healing session with a client is possibly the most important stage. There may occasionally be some reluctance or a barrier to connecting, particularly if it’s a new client. The sound healing practitioner can observe the client’s response to sound while also assisting the client’s relaxation by introducing the flute at this portion of the session.
Breathwork has a number of advantages, including the following:
- lowering stress and depression
- decrease in heart rate
- promoting health and happiness
This situation calls for the breathing technique known as “3-4-5 breathing.” Invite the client to take a deep breath in for a count of three, hold it for a count of four, and then let it out for a count of five. Repeat this pattern with them numerous times.
Start playing your Native American-style flute lightly as soon as the customer starts breathing (2–3 feet away). Pay attention to their reaction immediately. Do they become tense? Do they start to breathe differently, becoming more relaxed?
Keep tracking the 3-4-5 breathing pattern while timing a number of slow flute notes with their 5-second exhalations. The client benefits from feeling a musical accompaniment to their release while maintaining their attention on their breathing. Lay down your flute and start the client connection process as soon as you notice the client’s muscles relaxing.
Making the Switch to Other Instruments
One-on-one sound therapy sessions and sound baths frequently involve the use of several instruments in rapid succession. Use the flute to accompany clients as they travel and stroll along the sound trail you create with your healing instruments. Start the session with the flute playing a straightforward tune for two to five minutes, and then add your other instruments.
Play the same well-known tune on the flute when you go from one instrument to another, such as when you are preparing to switch from a gong to tuning forks. Clients will remain interested and anchored thanks to the constancy. Flute players can readily move about a therapeutic environment while playing because flutes are compact and portable. Flutes can be utilized while hitting a singing bowl or gong because they can be played with one hand as well.
Sound Healing Session Conclusion
The flute can be a wonderful method to re-energize clients after a sound healing session. The flute can be used to create a cheery melody to gradually bring a client out of a profound state of relaxation. Other grounding instruments (such a shaker or ocean drum) can be used to end the session after the flute has played for 2 to 5 minutes.
Final Reflections by Doc T Elliott
The flute is possibly the best instrument for expressing emotion during a healing session. As you inhale into the flute and listen to its tune, you will notice a noticeable difference in people. I have personally experienced the profound serenity that this instrument can provide as a sound healer, and I heartily urge others to allow the Native American style flute to speak through them as well.