This human body is a book of experience. Let me tell you something that comes close to the truth — the name of truth, and that name is the Supreme (Paramatma).
Goddess Parvati said: “O Lord! Even the sky is destroyed by Time (Kaal). That terrible Time is fierce and sovereign even over heaven. You once burned it, but when it praised you through many hymns, you became pleased and restored it to its nature. You told it: ‘O Time! You shall move everywhere, but people will not see you.’ By your grace it rose again and its influence greatly increased. O Maheshwara! Is there any means by which this Time can be destroyed? If so, tell me, for you are the crown of yogis and the independent Lord who takes form for the welfare of others.”
Lord Shiv replied: “O Devi! Neither gods, demons, yakshas, rakshasas, serpents nor humans can destroy Time. But the yogi absorbed in meditation, though embodied, can overcome Time effortlessly. This body is made of the five elements and dissolves back into them. The body made of earth returns to earth. From space comes air, from air arises fire, from fire comes water, and from water emerges earth. Each element dissolves back into its cause.
Earth has five qualities, water four, fire three, air two, and space one — sound. The qualities are sound, touch, form, taste, and smell. When an element gives up its quality, it dissolves; when it takes on its quality, it manifests. Therefore, O Devi, one who wishes to conquer Time must daily contemplate the elemental qualities at their proper periods.”
The knower of yoga should sit in a comfortable posture and practice pure breath control (pranayama). At night, when all are asleep, extinguish the lamp and meditate in darkness. Close both ears with the index fingers and hold for some time. Then an inner sound arises — like fire-born vibration. This sound digests food instantly and destroys disease and disturbances.One who daily realizes this Shabda-Brahman (the Divine Sound) conquers death and desire, becomes free in this world, all-knowing and accomplished. Like a thundercloud roaring in the sky, hearing that inner sound frees the yogi from worldly bondage. Gradually, that sound becomes subtler and subtler. Just as a farmer discards straw to obtain grain, the seeker of liberation abandons all bonds.
Even after attaining this sound, those who still crave other things are like people striking the sky with their fists. This Shabda-Brahman is blissful, the cause of liberation, beyond inside and outside, indestructible, beyond all limitations. Knowing it, one becomes free. Those who remain deluded by Time and do not realize this sound remain bound by death. Until the Supreme Reality is realized, beings continue to take birth. With its realization, birth and death cease. Sleep and laziness are great obstacles in practice. Conquering them, one should daily meditate on this sound. Even an elderly person practicing it lifelong becomes victorious over death and gains vitality. If this is so for the aged, what to say of the young? This sound is not Om, not a mantra, not a seed syllable, not a letter. It is Anahata Nada — the unstruck sound, arising without external contact. It is contemplated without utterance and is supremely auspicious.
Nine types of inner sounds are described: Roaring (ghosha), metallic cymbal sound, horn sound, bell sound, veena sound, flute sound, drum (dundubhi), conch, and finally thundercloud. Transcending these, one should meditate on the subtle “Tumkara.” The yogi who does so is untouched by merit and sin. The first sound purifies the self and destroys disease. The second can arrest motion and bind forces. The third relates to ritualistic applications. The fourth, like a bell, attracts divine forces. The fifth, like a veena, grants subtle perception. The flute grants knowledge of principles. The drum frees from aging and death. The conch grants the power to assume forms at will. The thunder removes calamity. One who steadily meditates on the supreme sound becomes all-knowing, all-seeing, free to move anywhere, unaffected by disturbance. Such a one is verily Shiva Himself — without doubt. Thus Shiva described to Parvati the full ninefold nature of Shabda-Brahman.
In my early years, I struggled a lot with the idea of hearing the Anahat Naad. It sounded mystical, but I was cautious. I kept questioning myself — what if it’s just tinnitus? What if it’s some medical condition that people mistake for a spiritual experience? I didn’t want to romanticize something that could simply be physiological. Because of that doubt, nothing really happened. No grand experience. No breakthrough.
Years later, during a phase of deep mantra chanting given by my Guru, I began noticing a very subtle buzzing sound — like bees humming in the distance. It would arise in deep silence while I was chanting. The strange part was, even when I stopped chanting and just focused, the sound wouldn’t go away. It stayed. Soft, steady, but intense in its own way. At times it felt as if that vibration was brushing through the body. This continued for months.
One day, instead of ignoring it, I focused on it. As I did, I became aware of the mantra repeating on its own — not from my throat, not mentally even — but around the navel region. It was moving at an unimaginable speed, like an automatic current. It felt like Ajapa Jap — the chant chanting itself.
On another path of practice, through my Guru, I had received a Shiva mantra meant for insight — a sadhana connected to inner perception. Without getting into what is personal between me and the deity, after six or seven years of steady chanting, something shifted. One day, I began hearing what I can genuinely call the Anahat Naad.
Not dramatic. Not theatrical. Just constant. I can hear it in silence. I can hear it in noise. In crowds. In stillness. It doesn’t depend on outer conditions. If there’s anything I’ve learned, it’s this: aim for what matures over time. Not quick fireworks. Not forced experiences. A single mantra, practiced long enough, can unfold layers you didn’t even know existed. And ultimately, Lord Shiv stands as the source of everything within this universe and beyond it.
I bow at thy divine feet.
Greetings! Love and Light from Aastha Musings~