When I saw The Tao Of Sound my first thoughts were “this book is a work of art,” and if Marshall McLuhan is correct, and the medium is the message, then I am in for a great read.
When reading The Tao Of Sound the reader is asked to enter Fabien Maman’s reality. He is a musician, acupuncturist, and sound healer whose focus throughout the book is on creativity and spirituality. His organization, Tama-Do. means “The Way of the Soul. Fabian integrates his creative musicality with the rigor required for an accountable healing practice. He begins with chapters on his experiments with cells documented through Kirlian photography. Although Kirlian photography is not an exact science I believe that Fabians photos of different instruments and tuning forks clearly show the dramatic effect of sound at a cellular level.
I was most interested in the next chapter where Fabian exposes cancer cells to sound using a Xylophone, Guitar, and Voice. Again what Fabian presented is not exact science, however it is a gateway into the need for more research. We have found similar results in our lab when exposing SHY cancer cells to tuning fork sounds. I found it inspiring to see his photographs and agree with his thoughts on the importance of quality overtones necessary to effect a healing response. Let us hope that one day the finances will be put in place for the research necessary to take Fabian’s work to the next level.
The rest of the book can be summarized as fascinating reading as Fabian maps his views of music and sound to the Taoism, Acupuncture theory, and the cosmos. I found his writings and quotes to be a “thing of beauty” provoking Zen quality contemplation. Fabian perceives what he calls “an amazingly organized ‘way’ in which cosmic energies travel, from star to cell…..” He then proceeds over many chapters to lay out in great detail “the way”.
There are many ideas and mappings of “the way”. I have no idea what “the way is” and in Taoism it is said that “He who knows the way does not know the way”. However in Fabian’s case I believe he saves himself from this dilemma through both the artistry of his presentation and beauty of his thoughts. The way he presents leads the reader into a wonderful and magical space. It is a “work of healing art way” with an emphasis on the poetic. Fabien has his opinions and there can be no doubt about them, however they are presented within a magical reality where dreams can come true. And it is this reality, amplified by the beauty Terres Unsoeld’s input to the book design, which gives rise to being inside Fabian’s internal reality. It empowers the Tao Of Sound to be so special, both a healing book and a work of art.
I recommend The Tao Of Sound to all those serious about Sound Healing. One can literally “get lost” in this book in order to rethink and rediscover. I do not agree with everything Fabian says and I think this is good. What I do not agree with makes me think and reflect. I also agree with a lot of what Fabian says and there is no doubt he is a master of his craft. However beyond agreements and disagreements there is something that all musicians and sound healers need, and that is profound creativity and the magic of sound within a context of accountability.
Please read and reread The Tao Of Sound. My recommendation is to read it in any order the way one might allow ones eyes to gaze upon a painting.
Dr. John Beaulieu, N.D., Ph.D.
Author of Music and Sound In The Healing Arts and Human Tuning
