This technique mentioned in Vigyan Bhairav Tantra text uses the fading sound of musical instruments as a conscious tool to heighten awareness, leading the meditator out of the world of form and into the infinite consciousness of the Supreme Space.
Heightened Awareness: Listening to the Echo
The instruction outlines a specific method of auditory contemplation:
Listen with undivided attention, towards the end of prolonged sounds of stringed and other musical instruments. By staying with the gradual diminishment of the sound, one will obtain the form of the Supreme Space. (Verse 41)
Musical instruments, particularly stringed ones, are used because their sounds are beautiful, easily attract attention, and—most importantly—gradually diminish. This slow fading is what is used to train and heighten awareness.
Practice Instructions (Focussing on the Fading)
This is a seated practice to be done with eyes closed:
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Choose Music: Select a stringed (or other musical) instrument that one enjoys listening to. It can be played by oneself or by another person.
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Undivided Attention: Listen to the sound with “undivided attention”.
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Follow the Fading: As the sound ends, the practitioner must “stay with the gradual diminishment of the sound,” focusing on the subtle vibrations or echo that continue in the mind.
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Catch the Void: The echo/vibrations eventually end in the void, or silence. By carefully following the sound as it becomes more and more subtle, the awareness is forced to increase greatly.
From Subtlety to Supreme Space
The mechanism of this technique is based on how attention must sharpen to perceive the fading sounds:
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Awareness Increase: To hear the subtle sound and then to “catch the subtle vibrations” that continue, the meditator’s awareness must increase greatly.
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Silence is the Gate: Following the sound into the silence carries this increased awareness into the moment of no-sound, allowing a deeper experience of silence than if one had started there directly.
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The Result: Supreme Space: The goal is to “obtain the form of the Supreme Space”. The Supreme Space is equated with God—all pervasive, eternal, and silent. By dissolving the mind in the awareness of the subtle vibration and its transition to silence, one attains the state of God.