Sounds For Me and Sounds For You
Rasmussen's description of the "Public Soundscape" really brought the noisy atmosphere of Jakarta to life and clearly portrayed the contrast between the lifestyle in Indonesia and the lifestyle of those living in rural America. She describes the buildings themselves as being porous, inviting in all of the sounds from outdoors into the private lives of people in their homes. The concept of being willingly to mix the noise of daily life is completely polar to the Western concept of noise, which is, to avoid it even at high costs. She gave a particularly heart-warming description, noting that the culture of sharing your personal sounds at a high volume: songs, boomboxes, radios, conversation, is a way of showing your inclusivity of everyone. It allows for a feeling of community of unity when everyone is sharing in the same sensory experience.
I myself, grew up in in the middle of the woods. We couldn't even see our closest neighbors from our window and the only sounds permeating the air were the chirping of birds in the morning, the wind rushing past during a storm and the occasional car pulling into our driveway. Having grown up in such a quiet peaceful place I tend to find a loud conglomerate of sounds to be extremely overwhelming and uncomfortable. I felt quite amazed as I read about the lives of the Indonesians and how they tend to seek out lively social activity and sound which I would consider unruly noise and which they consider to be natural and comforting. This contrast highlights the conditioning that takes place in our bodies, and specifically our auditory system, to quickly adapt to our surrounding environment which begins the moment we are born. And how generally, the sounds and sights that we are most comfortable with are those that we experience at very young age.
I was really struck with the image from Ramussen's description of 50 women coming together and collectively reciting in gratitude, "for the next forty minutes, thirty individual voices improvise simultaneously in a dense cacophony that resembles the sonic texture of an orchestra warming up, children on a playground, or a hive a bees."(p.83) This picture draws clear lines between the vast mixture of comforting daily sounds and the incorporation of this comforting atmosphere into the ritual of worship. Being able to execute the holy words of Allah in the same manner that one experiences their daily life helps one to feel closer and more connected to their prayer and worship.
With the same idea in mind, when I want to feel connected to what I consider spiritual and holy, I seek out a place of complete silence and serenity, preferably outside in nature. In order for me to feel truly connected to something greater than myself I must surround myself with the greatest level of comfort that I know just as it seems those 50 women did.
One thing that I find really beautiful about the ordinary ritual of public recitation and the call to prayer sounding throughout the day, is that it gives everyone a moment to stop and think. It allows for people to take a breath and give thanks, which lends space for reflection on one's actions and how they relate to his or her daily goals, one's overall life purpose and even to remember why one's life is important. Imagine if we had daily rituals in our Western society that allowed for a moment of reflection and gratitude, that allowed for people to stop and think about their work and why it is important for them. Our society has become so stressful and competitive that most people often forget what really has motivated them to do the work they are doing in the first place. Just a few extra moments during the day, religious or not, could bestow an immense gift on humans, to help them refocus on the larger picture and remember what really makes them happy.
I myself, grew up in in the middle of the woods. We couldn't even see our closest neighbors from our window and the only sounds permeating the air were the chirping of birds in the morning, the wind rushing past during a storm and the occasional car pulling into our driveway. Having grown up in such a quiet peaceful place I tend to find a loud conglomerate of sounds to be extremely overwhelming and uncomfortable. I felt quite amazed as I read about the lives of the Indonesians and how they tend to seek out lively social activity and sound which I would consider unruly noise and which they consider to be natural and comforting. This contrast highlights the conditioning that takes place in our bodies, and specifically our auditory system, to quickly adapt to our surrounding environment which begins the moment we are born. And how generally, the sounds and sights that we are most comfortable with are those that we experience at very young age.
I was really struck with the image from Ramussen's description of 50 women coming together and collectively reciting in gratitude, "for the next forty minutes, thirty individual voices improvise simultaneously in a dense cacophony that resembles the sonic texture of an orchestra warming up, children on a playground, or a hive a bees."(p.83) This picture draws clear lines between the vast mixture of comforting daily sounds and the incorporation of this comforting atmosphere into the ritual of worship. Being able to execute the holy words of Allah in the same manner that one experiences their daily life helps one to feel closer and more connected to their prayer and worship.
With the same idea in mind, when I want to feel connected to what I consider spiritual and holy, I seek out a place of complete silence and serenity, preferably outside in nature. In order for me to feel truly connected to something greater than myself I must surround myself with the greatest level of comfort that I know just as it seems those 50 women did.
One thing that I find really beautiful about the ordinary ritual of public recitation and the call to prayer sounding throughout the day, is that it gives everyone a moment to stop and think. It allows for people to take a breath and give thanks, which lends space for reflection on one's actions and how they relate to his or her daily goals, one's overall life purpose and even to remember why one's life is important. Imagine if we had daily rituals in our Western society that allowed for a moment of reflection and gratitude, that allowed for people to stop and think about their work and why it is important for them. Our society has become so stressful and competitive that most people often forget what really has motivated them to do the work they are doing in the first place. Just a few extra moments during the day, religious or not, could bestow an immense gift on humans, to help them refocus on the larger picture and remember what really makes them happy.
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