Brainwave entrainment is a process whereby the brain is synchronized with a very low frequency waveform, usually in the range of around 10Hz and below. The brain is synchronized in this manner because studies have shown the brain generates its own waveforms dependent on what activity it is doing.
Activities such as meditation, hypnosis and even deep sleep all result in a brainwave in the ranges below 7Hz, in states called Theta (4Hz to 7Hz) and Delta (0.5Hz to 4Hz). By synchronizing the brain with these frequencies a person can (often within minutes) enter a deep meditative state.
When a person meditates in the normal manner they are more susceptible to outside influences and distractions. Brainwave entrainment simply involves putting on a pair of headphone’s and listening to some specially produced music that synchronizes the brainwaves. Simply using headphones to momentarily shut off the outside world can help to focus the mind tremendously.
The most common form brainwave entrainment is with binaural beats. These use two similar frequency tones, one in each ear. For example if one ear was played 500Hz then the other may be played 510Hz. The brain would perceive the difference between the two as 10Hz and begin to synchronize itself with the resulting waveform.
By gradually changing the tones a person can be brought down into a lower state and begin to enter deep states of meditation quite quickly.
Of course a person can not just sit back and expect this to happen for them. There has to be a conscious decision to follow the tones and it is advisable to be as comfortable as possible, and to also regulate the breathing, just as you would with normal meditation. However the benefits of learning brainwave entrainment meditation are clearly felt, even for more experienced practitioners of meditation
David D Lewis is a therapeutic music producer from the Pennines in the North Of England. He has been fascinated by the phenomena known as brainwave entrainment for the past 20 years. To find out more about brainwave entrainment meditation and the various methods of brainwave entrainment visit his website at http://brainwavemind.com.
