Resonance - An Exploration
What happens when we replace the question of “What should I do?” with “What am I in resonance with?”?
Underlying every thought, strategy or identity, there is frequency and rhythm. It is a subtle, yet constant exchange between us and the world around us. We are not separate from it, but vibrating within it. And the quality of our life may depend less on effort and more on what we are tuned to… This week I want to explore deeper with you what my work - and actually a lot of the whole human experience - is about in its very core: Resonance.
These days, we use the word often. “That resonates.” “I feel in resonance.” But what does it actually mean?
In physical terms, resonance occurs when a system vibrates at its natural frequency in response to an external stimulus. When the incoming frequency matches the system’s own frequency, the amplitude increases and energy is transferred efficiently. The system comes literally alive. Every structure has a natural frequency. A violin string. A bridge. A building. Even a cell. Brain waves. Heart rhythms. When the “right” tone meets the “right” structure, it responds. It simply recognizes what is already inherent, familiar, true. Not by force. And not creating something new. It amplifies what is already there.
Our own natural frequency
Like every physical system, we also have our very own natural frequency. To be in resonance with ourselves means that our actions match our inner truth. We have a clear yes, a clear no and carry less friction. Our nervous system is steady and stable.
When we are out of resonance, we might experience, and often subtle at first:
persistent fatigue
irritation without clear reason
saying yes while the body says no
living at a tempo that is not our own
Dis-resonance is not dramatic, but it is draining. We might try to solve this by pushing harder, adjusting strategies, changing circumstances. But resonance cannot be forced. We can only find it. We don't have to wonder about how to become more. How to feel different. What to do. But we can think about what our natural frequency is.
Resonance in sound work
When we work with a gong or other overtone-rich instruments, resonance becomes tangible. A gong does not produce a single tone. It produces a spectrum of frequencies. The body, which is conductive and largely water, responds to this spectrum. Here, two processes are working simultaneously. The first is sympathetic resonance: When a frequency in the instrument matches a frequency in the body, that part of the body begins to vibrate in response. Like one tuning fork activates another. The second is entrainment: Rhythmic systems synchronize over time. Heart rate, breath and brainwaves can begin to regulate towards a dominant, coherent rhythm.
We have to be aware that the sound itself does not impose healing, but offers a stable frequency that invites the organism to reorganize itself around coherence. Healing, in this sense, is not something added from the outside. It is more a remembrance and restoration of internal resonance.
The group field
When people gather in a group for sound work, more layers of the work become accessible: Groups - held in a sovereign, clear and strong field - move into collective resonance where breathing patterns begin to align, nervous systems influence each other and a shared rhythm forms.
In other contexts, this can happen unconsciously, like f. e. in crowds driven by fear or anger. Consciously, we can use this principle to anchor and amplify presence and intention in shared spaces.
The quality of the field depends less on technique and more on coherence. The facilitator’s nervous system matters. And so does the clarity of intention and the stability of the frequency offered into the room. Beyond our ability to follow words, we respond more quickly, more directly to coherence. And in this way, sound work is not only about instruments. It simply means tuning the field. And this does not only work in group sessions. It also applies to our collective tuning - Which frequency are we tuning into and how can our own frequency offer a resonance field for those around us? What is our part in the collective tuning into frequencies of peace, presence and inner stillness?
Resonance and sovereignty
Taking this idea to an even deeper level, we can see how resonance asks us to connect to and practice our own sovereignty.
We are always resonating with something, whether it is
... the pace of the culture.
… collective anxiety.
... inherited beliefs.
… digital noise.
… or something quiet. Stable.
Resonance itself is neutral. It amplifies whatever frequency is present. Trauma resonates with trauma. Fear spreads because it finds matching structures in dysregulated systems. In this context, sovereignty means discernment in choosing what we resonate with. It does not mean to isolate, but to be sharp in noticing when we are amplifying a frequency that is not truly ours. And to consciously withdraw from it, returning to our own tone and being available for resonance that matches it.
Resonance and a larger intelligence
And to give it all an even broader view, we can look at the universe itself as being vibratory in its essence. From the smallest oscillations in quantum fields to the movement of galaxies: pattern and rhythm are everywhere. Being in resonance with a higher intelligence, does not need to be mystical. It simply means that we align our being with patterns that create coherence rather than fragmentation.
This can feel like:
moving into clarity without forcing
experiencing precise timing
taking action without internal struggle
being “in flow” where things just feel “right”
It feels like simple alignment without drama, where intensity can still be present, but has lost its grip on ourselves. In this sense, the “awakening” can be understood more as a refinement, a tuning, that brings us deeper into our humanness instead of transcending it.
Simple practices
What if we took a few moments each day to ask ourselves:
Where in my life do I feel coherent?
Where do I feel slightly out of tune?
What am I currently amplifying?
And is it strengthening me?
Resonance is about getting to know ourselves. Becoming truer. Finding our natural frequency. From here, life does not necessarily become easier, but clearer. Energy moves with less resistance and decisions require less force.
Sound teaches this directly. Making the invisible visible, it shows us that alignment is not an abstract idea. It is a physical principle. Awakening, then, may be the ongoing process of tuning. And sovereignty may be the willingness to choose, again and again, what we allow to resonate through us.