Could meditation put you into REM sleep?

25 February 2008

Part of the show Science of Music

Woman asleep

Credit:

Public Domain

Question

I’m interested in meditation and I’ve noticed that when mediating or journeying with shamanic drumming that my eyes do something a bit like REM movement and I’m wondering if that has something to do with the sound or this particular sound and rhythm?

Answer

We put this to Dr Ian Cross:

Hmm. Not terribly certain about that. I suspect that there is evidence that there is some musically central or rhythmic structures, tempi, if you like.

There are certain structures that one can link into, one can entrain one's attentional pulse/attentional periodicities to. As to whether or not it requires it to be shamanic in order to happen, it's not a matter.