Divine Cymatics: Ontology of Sound and Sacred Architecture of Being

Prologue

One spring, our pet hen laid a clutch of eggs. Some we returned to her for incubation, and others initially meant for consumption were later placed under artificial lights in a cupboard, simulating warmth and safety. Both sets of eggs genetically identical and yet, when they hatched, the difference was unmistakable. The chicks born under their mother’s wings were vibrant in their markings and aesthetically appealing while the others, nurtured under heat lamps, emerged dull and dark, lacking radiant grace as that of their siblings.

I was enchanted, how could such a stark difference emerge from the same genetic blueprint? Both had warmth. Both had shelter. Yet only one had presence. It wasn’t the degree of temperature that mattered, it was the frequency of subtle clucks, the rhythm of the hen’s breath, the murmur of her body over the eggs which weren’t identical. The difference, I sensed, lay not in code, but in communion.

And so, I began to wonder: What is nurture, truly? In the age-old debate of nature versus nurture, we often think of nurture as nutrition, environment, social input. But in the case of the hen, what constitutes this mysterious force? Is it the warmth of the body? The ambient sound of clucking? The rhythm of breath? What if nurture is not just what is done, but what is sounded, vibrated, resonated? Presence discloses itself through many registers, and in my article, I seek to explore the auditory one.

This simple observation in a cupboard full of eggs opened a deeper inquiry into the unseen architectures of life. What if form responds not only to mechanics, but to vibration? What if the cluck of the hen is not just a maternal call, but a sonic blueprint, tuning the embryo’s emergence? What if sound itself is formative, shaping bodies, emotions, genetic expression and even worlds?

The Science of Formative Sound

Cymatics, which is the study of  visible sound and vibration, is derived from the Greek word kyma, meaning “wave.” Modern Cymatics investigates how sound frequencies influence the formation of geometric patterns in physical mediums such as water, sand, or metal plates.  Sound can’t only be regarded as an auditory perception, mediated by the ear, but must also be considered as a vibrational force—one that shapes our interaction with the environment and maybe even carries a form of conscious energy.

Every frequency has a corresponding pattern or forms it generates when interacting with matter. Cymatics intersects fields like acoustics, fluid dynamics, wave physics, and morphogenesis. It reveals how invisible vibrational fields influence visible structures.

Cellular Response to Sound: How Sound Shapes Biology

Studies suggest that sound vibrations can influence the behaviour of cells, including growth, movement (chemotaxis), and even gene expression. Low-frequency sound waves have been shown to stimulate tissue regeneration in some experiments. Example: Mechanical stimulation, whether in varying amplitudes, modalities, or durations, plays a crucial role in guiding cell growth and differentiation, offering a subtle means to influence the lineage commitment of stem cells (Horner et al., 2019;¹ McDermott et al.², 2019; Ruehle et al., 2020³). The emerging field of mechanobiology explores how cells sense and respond to mechanical cues, translating external physical forces into internal biochemical signals (Fu et al., 2020)⁴. Cells are not only attuned to direct mechanical forces but also to the mechanical properties of their surrounding extracellular matrix (ECM). This process, known as mechanotransduction, begins with superficial mechanoreceptors detecting mechanical cues, which are then conveyed to the nucleus via the actin cytoskeleton or chemical signalling pathways (Dewey et al., 1981)⁵. In response, the nucleus modulates the expression of genes associated with mechanical stimulation, subtly shaping cell behaviour and fate (Kirby and Lammerding, 2018)⁶. Such findings suggest that even delicate, low-frequency vibrations—akin to sound—could act as guiding forces in cellular development, opening intriguing possibilities for the interplay between physical resonance and biological processes.

The First Symphony: Prenatal Sound and Neurodevelopment

The human ear begins to form by the fourth week of gestation. By week 19–20, the auditory system becomes functionally active, reflecting the primordial role of sound in shaping neurological and emotional development even before birth. The foetus begins to hear and respond to the mother’s voice, heartbeat, and rhythmic bodily sounds, filtered through the amniotic fluid.

This early exposure to sound, what Alfred Tomatis⁷ called prenatal listening, forms the basis of the Tomatis Method, which proposes that the foetus is neurologically shaped by high-frequency vibrations of the maternal voice. For Tomatis, the ear is both a sensory and energizing organ, vital to the formation of attention, language, and emotional balance. That the human being is first formed in sound affirms a deeper ontological truth: before we see, speak, or remember, we hear and are shaped into being.

Psychologist David Chamberlain⁸, a pioneer of prenatal consciousness, described the womb as a world of sound, where the foetus, long before it sees, is already listening, memorizing, and emotionally responding. His work affirms that sound is not a secondary sense but a primordial field of relational and ontological imprinting. 

Michel Odent⁹ emphasized that the foetus in the second and third trimesters is not only capable of hearing but is affected by the quality of sound, rhythms, tones, and emotional atmosphere. He suggested that harsh, mechanical, or loud sounds can create stress responses in the foetus, while soft voices, music, and maternal speech offer a soothing imprint.

This resonance continues beyond the womb. Imām Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq (ʿa)¹⁰ is reported to have said:

“When a baby cries, place him on the right side of his mother’s chest, and he will calm down.”

This isn’t merely a physiological recommendation, it is a recognition that the newborn already knows that sound. The rhythm of the mother’s heartbeat is not foreign but foundational. It is the first rhythm the soul learns to trust, the first drumbeat of embodiment. To rest again against it is not to discover, but to remember, a sonic memory imprinted before language, logic, or even vision.

This also affirms that sound is not just stimulus, it is mnemonic and relational. The child responds not to generic noise, but to a specific auditory signature formed in the womb. Just as sacred sound later calibrates the soul, the maternal heartbeat initially orients the infant to a world of coherence, safety, and presence.

Michel Chion¹¹ deepens this insight by suggesting that voice, especially when heard without a visible source, possesses ontological power. For Chion, voice in cinema overrides vision, reshapes time, and anchors memory, because sound, unlike light, penetrates and envelops. Transposed to the prenatal world, this means the foetus is not only surrounded by voice but formed within it. His notion of the acousmêtre, the unseen voice, speaks directly to the foetal condition: the mother is not seen but heard, and her voice becomes a field of presence, not just a signal. Vocal articulation—whether soothing or dissonant, becomes a vibrational womb within the biological one, sculpting the auditory cortex, imprinting emotional tone, and orienting the emerging self toward coherence or fragmentation. Thus, voice is not expressive, it is architectural. It lays the groundwork not only for future language, but for the neuro-ontological texture of being.

Cymatics as Revelation: Sound Giving Form to Matter

Within ontogenesis, auditory perception emerges prior to visual function, indicating that human development is grounded in acoustic resonance—evoking theological models where creation is initiated through divine utterance.

This vision resonates with a foundational Qur’anic truth: that creation itself is brought into being through a divine utterance. “His command is only when He intends a thing that He says to it, ‘Be,’ and it is”¹². This recurring phrase—Kun fa-yakūn—is often interpreted as a command of effortless creation. But when viewed through the prism of cymatics and vibrational science, it becomes clear that this command is not just a fiat, but a sonic event, a vibrational unfolding of reality itself.

The divine imperative, then, is not exclusive to the Arabic “Kun.” Across sacred traditions, language is a conduit for this same ontological act. In the Hebrew Bible, creation begins with “Yehi or “Let there be light.” In Aramaic, spoken by Jesus, the imperative havveh mirrors this structure. Sanskrit identifies the primordial sound AUM as the very vibration from which the universe emerges. Among Indigenous traditions, such as the Navajo, chants and sacred utterances are tools not only for healing, but for manifesting harmony and world order. These diverse sonic articulations of the divine command affirm that, while the language varies, the metaphysical principle remains the same: sound is the medium through which the immaterial becomes real.

Apocalyptic Reverberations: Eschatology in Sound

But sound does not only inaugurate creation. It also announces its end. The Qur’an presents the trumpet blast of the angel Isrāfīl as the event that dissolves the world: “And the Trumpet will be blown, and all who are in the heavens and all who are on the earth will fall dead…” (Qur’an 39:68). Here, sound is not generative, but apocalyptic. It is the mirror of Kun, reversing being into non-being.

This metaphysical power of sound to mark both the thresholds of beginning and end is not confined to Islamic cosmology. In Christianity, the Book of Revelation speaks of seven trumpets, each sounding a catastrophic judgment upon the earth. In Hinduism, the end of a Yuga—a cosmic age—is heralded by the resonant blast of Shiva’s damaru drum or a celestial conch. Tibetan Buddhist traditions recount cosmic upheaval announced by divine gongs and the roar of messianic armies. In Ancient Egyptian myths, divine utterance both wards off chaos and, when misused, can unleash it. Norse mythology similarly anchors its end-times—Ragnarök—in the echo of a horn blown across the cosmos. Across civilizations, the sound that births also ends.

If even the tiniest oscillations can guide cellular fate, mechanical vibrations can guide cellular behaviour and gene expression, one is invited to a broader reflection: could sound, in its most primordial form, have shaped matter itself? Cymatics, the study of how vibrations organize physical patterns, offers a compelling metaphor, suggesting that the principles guiding cellular fate may echo, in miniature, the formative forces at work throughout the universe.

From an Islamic perspective, these provisional findings deepen the significance of dhikr¹³—the rhythmic remembrance of God. If secular frequencies can influence the human genome, how much more potent might be utterances infused with divine meaning, uttered with intentional reverence? Dhikr, then, is not only remembrance, it is resonance.

In sum, the phenomenon of cymatics unveils a truth long held sacred: that sound is not incidental to reality, it is formative, transformative, and eschatological. It calls worlds into being, holds them in coherence, and ultimately returns them to silence.

Sacred Sound as Epistemology: Towards a Cymatic Anthropology

Cymatics reveals a forgotten ontology: that the human body is not merely biological matter, but a resonant vessel, intricately responsive to vibration, frequency, and meaning. When sacred sound, whether the recitation of Qur’an or dhikr, flows through this vessel, it does more than soothe emotions or calm the mind; it orders the inner waters, aligns the heart’s rhythm with cosmic patterns, and brings the soul into remembrance. Prayer and dhikr are not merely cultural practices; they serve as profound tools through which sound can harmonize the body, mind, and cosmos, guiding growth and alignment at both individual and ontogenetic levels.

Sound, Genes and the Inner Cosmos: Prayer as Epigenetic Alchemy

Can we say that the rhythmic utterance of Quranic verses, dhikr, hymns, or chants transcends mere abstract notions? Perhaps these sounds resonate with something deeper within us, subtly shaping attention, emotion, and consciousness. When considered through the lens of Divine cymatics—the formative patterns of cosmic resonance—one might extrapolate their effects to the epigenetic alchemy of mantras, meditative practices, and sound therapies, where vibrations guide neural rhythms and cultivate inner harmony. In this light, sacred sound becomes a living cinema of resonance: a space where body, mind, and cosmos seem to attune, leaving it to each listener to experience, reflect, and discern the depth of its impact.

The age-old debate of nature vs. nurture has evolved in light of epigenetics, a field revealing that our genetic expression is not solely dictated by DNA sequences, but is deeply responsive to environmental inputs. Epigenetic mechanisms, including DNA methylation and histone modifications, play a crucial role in regulating gene activity, determining which genes are turned on or off, and thereby influencing cellular function and development. These regulatory switches are not static; they are sensitive to diet, trauma, emotions and sound.

Can acoustic stimuli, particularly in the form of music, chants, and meditative vocalizations, influence neurochemical pathways and, more remarkably, modulate gene expression? Mantras and sacred recitations produce coherent vibrations that entrain brainwave patterns (like alpha and theta states), reduce cortisol levels, and activate genes associated with cellular repair and anti-inflammation.

From an Islamic metaphysical lens, dhikr (remembrance) is not mere repetition but a vibrational invocation. In this view, the Qur’anic utterance is more than sound: it is ontological nourishment.

Across spiritual traditions, sound has long been more than expression, it has been medicine. In Hinduism, mantras are not merely chants but vibrations believed to attune the self with cosmic harmony. In Christianity, hymns and Gregorian chants are known to bring about deep inner stillness and emotional release. In Islam, the rhythmic recitation of Qur’anic verses or whispered duʿāʾ are practices of remembrance that calm, ground, and orient. While these traditions differ in theology, they converge in one lived insight: the body responds to sacred sound.

Michel Chion’s notion of the acousmêtre—a voice heard but not seen—disrupts our sensory expectations. It is a voice without face, a presence without body, and yet it commands attention, emotion, and belief. Across religious traditions, this structure is mirrored in the experience of the divine voice behind the veil. Whether it is the voice from the burning bush in the Hebrew tradition, the Logos or Word through which all things are made in Christian theology, the Qur’anic revelation recited to the Prophet without the visual presence of God, or the primordial sound AUM in Hindu cosmology, we find a recurring pattern: what is most real and most sacred is not first seen, but heard. These unseen voices carry authority not through visibility, but through resonance. They speak the world into being, sustain memory, and call the self into coherence. In this way, the disembodied voice, whether divine, maternal, or poetic, becomes a formative vibration, shaping inner and outer worlds before form takes shape.

Sacred Sound and Cellular Memory

There are traditions, like those in Islamic Irfān, Ayurveda, and Christian mysticism, that understand the body as a temple, responsive to pure frequencies. In this view, dhikr and prayer do not only remind the mind—they recalibrate the being, possibly down to epigenetic levels, influencing what is expressed or silenced in our inner biology.

If sound holds the power to shape water into symmetry, to guide embryonic cells into coherence, and to call entire worlds into being, then what of our everyday speech? What of the voices that raise us, the tones that thread through our homes, our prayers, our silences? Every word we utter—to a child, a partner, a stranger—carries vibrational consequence. We are, each of us, sounding boards for one another’s formation.

The hen’s cluck, the mother’s heartbeat, the Prophet’s recitation—all converge in this truth: that nurture is not just what we do, but how we speak, how we vibrate, how we intend. Words do not merely describe reality; they participate in its construction. They wound. They mend. They create memory in flesh.

And if intention undergirds sound, if the heart’s motive precedes the mouth’s movement, then we must turn to theology. In Shia Islam, the intention (niyyah¹⁴) is not a legal formality. It is the origin of action, the internal vibration that determines the reality of any outward deed. Imam Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq taught that actions are judged by their intention, and that God regards the heart before the limbs. In this view, even a whisper carries weight—not because of its volume, but because of its source.

So, the question that remains is not merely what we say—but why we say it, how we say it, and who we become through saying. In a world saturated with noise, perhaps our healing lies in rediscovering the sacred science of resonance beginning, not with another utterance, but with intention itself.

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Notes

1. Horner C. B., Maldonado M., Tai Y., Rony R. M. I. K., Nam J. (2019). Spatially Regulated Multiphenotypic Differentiation of Stem Cells in 3D via Engineered Mechanical Gradient. ACS Appl. Mater. Inter. 11 (49), 45479–45488. 10.1021/acsami.9b17266 [DOI] ↩︎
2. McDermott A. M., Herberg S., Mason D. E., Collins J. M., Pearson H. B., Dawahare J. H., et al. (2019). Recapitulating Bone Development through Engineered Mesenchymal Condensations and Mechanical Cues for Tissue Regeneration. Sci. Transl. Med. 11 (495), eaav7756. 10.1126/scitranslmed.aav7756 [DOI] ↩︎
3. Ruehle M. A., Eastburn E. A., LaBelle S. A., Krishnan L., Weiss J. A., Boerckel J. D., et al. (2020). Extracellular Matrix Compression Temporally Regulates Microvascular Angiogenesis. Sci. Adv. 6 (34), eabb6351. 10.1126/sciadv.abb6351 [DOI] ↩︎
4. Fu J., Liu X., Tan L., Cui Z., Liang Y., Li Z., et al. (2020). Modulation of the Mechanosensing of Mesenchymal Stem Cells by Laser-Induced Patterning for the Acceleration of Tissue Reconstruction through the Wnt/β-Catenin Signaling Pathway Activation. Acta Biomater. 101, 152–167. 10.1016/j.actbio.2019.10.041 [DOI] ↩︎
5. Dewey C. F., Jr., Bussolari S. R., Gimbrone M. A., Jr., Davies P. F. (1981). The Dynamic Response of Vascular Endothelial Cells to Fluid Shear Stress. J. Biomech. Eng. 103 (3), 177–185. 10.1115/1.3138276 [DOI] ↩︎
6. Kirby T. J., Lammerding J. (2018). Emerging Views of the Nucleus as a Cellular Mechanosensor. Nat. Cel Biol 20 (4), 373–381. 10.1038/s41556-018-0038-y [DOI] ↩︎
7. Alfred A. Tomatis (1920–2001) was a French otolaryngologist and founder of audio-psycho-phonology, best known for the “Tomatis Method,” which posits that listening—particularly to high-frequency maternal vocal vibrations—shapes neurological development even before birth. His work began with opera singers suffering from vocal fatigue and auditory strain, and though widely influential in alternative education and therapeutic contexts, it has been criticized as lacking empirical rigor and is often regarded as pseudoscientific by mainstream medicine. Nevertheless, his insights offer a metaphorically rich framework for considering prenatal resonance and the ontological impact of sound. See The Ear and the Voice (2005). ↩︎
8. David Chamberlain (1928–2014) was an American psychologist and pioneer of prenatal psychology ↩︎
9. Michel Odent (b. 1930) is a French obstetrician and early advocate of natural childbirth. He emphasized the psychological and physiological importance of the womb’s acoustic environment, suggesting that soft, rhythmic maternal sounds support fetal development. His views, though influential in alternative birthing models, are not widely adopted in mainstream obstetrics. ↩︎
10. Imām Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq (702–765 CE) is the sixth Imām in Twelver Shia Islam and a pivotal figure in Islamic intellectual history ↩︎
11. Michel Chion (b. 1947) is a French film theorist and composer known for his work on the philosophy of sound in cinema. He introduced the concept of the acousmêtre—a disembodied voice heard but not seen—to explore how sound shapes perception, memory, and presence beyond the visual field. ↩︎
12. (Qur’an 36:82) ↩︎
13. Dhikr (also spelled zikr) literally means “remembrance” in Arabic and refers, in Islamic tradition, to the spiritual practice of remembering God. ↩︎
14. In Islamic thought, niyyah (intention) is the inner orientation behind action. In Shia theology, niyyah is not merely a legal or ritual prerequisite, but the ontological seed of action—what determines its spiritual reality ↩︎