1) Exercise 5: Eye Exercise or ‘Surfing’ the Mechanism

a) As the eye and the mind coordinate, the information of the event goes through the cognition mechanism and takes a specific moment of time to do so.  The mind/matrix is refocusing.  Constantly moving the eyes before the cognition mechanism is completed, creates a condition of non-choice and no ‘subjective event’ in the mind/matrix.¹  The mind/matrix is constantly refocusing before it finishes a cycle.  With listening to music, you are doing the eye-exercise with your ears.  The mind is constantly refocusing on each note.
b)  The result of doing this for an extended period of time is your mind/matrix starts over after you are done – resets.  You are ‘seeing’ with the ears while resetting the mind.  Herein is a major effect of listening to music; it is a release or stepping out of the mental processes.  This is how music can be cathartic.

2)   Meditation Exercises 8, 9, and 10

a) Previous applications stated that it is hard to keep an empty mind or a blank mind indefinitely.  However, it is much easier to do the blankness in short ‘bursts’.  Rather than to keep an empty mind and do it for 5 or 10 minutes, it is easier to do ‘bursts’ of blank, blank, empty, empty, empty.
b)  When first emptying the mind, there is a focus on an initial effort to have an empty mind; and then, a focus on maintaining the emptiness.  These repetitive ‘bursts’ can be seen as a repetitive initial effort (as opposed to making the effort to be empty and holding it).
c)  These applications introduced the idea that with chanting and some meditations, you can use the words as the vehicles for this emptiness or blankness.  With instrumental music, you can introduce the emptiness or blankness with each note or sets of notes -- chords.
d)  In the case of music and with a singular instrument, the emptiness can also be initiated between the notes.  This can also be done with multiple instruments and following a melody.  Your mind introduces ‘bursts’ of emptiness between the notes of the melody.  You can use the notes and words.  Listening to music the music serves as a vector to one point focus -- meditation.  This has numerous applications.

i) Filling the mind with each note or word
ii)  Emptying the mind with each note or word
iii)  Emptying the mind between notes

e)   For the beginner though, it may be easier to learn to do an empty focus with only instrumentals.  That way there are no words to distract or to initiate any mentation.
f)  Be advised, that repetitive use of the mind’s focus on emptiness is a similar use of the mind as the eye exercise already mentioned.  It is also similar to the quick repetitive use of a word as was introduced with meditation entries to the series.  And…a one-point focus of performing this act/event makes this a meditation.  All of these are combined in one exercise.

3)   Exercises 1aand 4, the effect truth has within the mind

a) Earlier in this series, it has been mentioned that truth has an effect on the mind.  From Exercise 1a to ‘pumping’ truth through the mind or weaving thought forms, Truth can alter consciousness.  Taking the two previous examples of how music can alter consciousness through a constant reset and having an empty mind for a window of time (a  delta t -- Dt), ‘pumping’ truths through that same altered mind will augment the effect of the previous two conditions. 
b)  This is the power of verse.  The one-point focus on the words of the music serve the same purpose as the one-point focus on the words of a chant.  In addition, it introduces to the mind a sequence of concepts that will alter consciousness depending on how much Truth is in these concepts – weaving thought forms.

4)   Exercise 4 and Chapter 2 of I AM A I, introduced how a logic system can create something ‘alien’ to that logic system…

a) Remember that the concepts of infinite and finite or eternal and temporal are mutually exclusive.  Anything created which is alien to a finite temporal mind – mortal mind, must be infinite and eternal related.
b)  The mortal mind can be used to step out of mortal mind activity.

5)     What ever you give to Love, Love will use.

a) There are many ways to build a house.  Yet, every house must obey the laws of physics – of matter.
b)  This God’s Love arrangement allows us to custom design our own spiritual trip.  Religious contemplatives agree; all spiritual journeys work with the same internal mechanics.  They all say you have to basically do the same things.  The individual changes the constructs and how they are applied -- the forms.  The end is the same.  Love dictates that we will be aware of our union with God.  It is a closed system.²  It is only a question of time.

          With this exercise and its passive use of music, each note is accompanied with focus and blankness.  You ride the music out.  All you are doing, is riding out each note, and existing quietly, waiting and being patient, until the song is done.  No thought in the mind is appropriate until the music is done.  In this way the song acts like the kitchen timer in the meditation exercises.  The music itself becomes your objective time keeping mechanism.
          Instead of using a timing device as mentioned in meditation exercises, one can use the length of the song as the timing device.  And…as in meditation exercises, having a specific time window for an exercise can help bring your focus back.  “I am going to do this exercise until the song (or album) is over.”

      Exercise 9 introduced the idea that with chanting, you can use the words as the vehicles for this emptiness or blankness.  With instrumental music, you can introduce the emptiness or blankness with each note or sets of notes -- chords.
          The meditation exercises presented the idea that it is hard to keep an empty mind or a blank mind indefinitely.  However, it is much easier to do the blankness in short ‘bursts’.  Rather than to keep an empty mind and do it for 5 or 10 minutes, it is easier to do ‘bursts’ of: blank, blank, empty, empty, empty.
          As stated in 2b above, when first emptying the mind, there is an initial effort to have an empty mind.  Then there is an effort to hold the mind empty.  These repetitive ‘bursts’ can be seen as the recurring effort to initially empty the mind.
          The previous meditation exercises – Exercises 8-10 -- also introduced the idea that with chanting, you can use the words as the vehicles for this emptiness or blankness.  Introduce the emptiness or blankness with each note, as stated in 2a above.

          For the beginner, it may be easier to learn to do an empty focus with only instrumentals.  That way there are no words to distract or to initiate any mentation.  The author first learned this exercise with jazz and long rock and roll instrumentals.
          There are numerous modalities of using music as a meditation aid.  Many of them are variations of some of the exercises presented in this series.  The intention of this article is to introduce the concept and have you do (or devise) your own exercises. 

          Starting with drums can be helpful.  Sit or lie in a relaxed position and, first, do a passive application of focus to music.  Learn the passive exercise before doing a dance application.  This should be done for at least fifteen minutes  . 
 

• ==> This homework assignment is for you to pick four pieces of instrumentals music (two preferably drums).  The pieces should be ten to twenty minutes long. 
• ==> Find a place where you will not be disturbed and get in a comfortable (but not too comfortable) position.
• ==> Do a short period of slow deep breathing, set your intention for this exercise, turn the music on, and enter. 
• ==> Focus on emptiness, or if you use effort, a re-occurring ‘blankness’ of mind with each instrumental note.
• ==> Do this once for each piece of music
• ==> After each exercise, sit and be still for several minutes, and notice any thoughts or sensations and perhaps record them in a notebook or journal.

• Optional Exercise 1: ==> Do the above application; then, physically dance to the music.  As the mind empties to the music, your body is moving to it (or in it).
• Optional Exercise 2: ==> If you are a musician, pick a song you know well and do not allow any mentation – no thought – as you are playing for the entire length of the piece.  Be as empty on the inside as your instrument is empty of sound before you pick it up.

1] Remember the Cognition path is a high priority survival loop.
2] Due to God’s All Encompassing Love.