Longhouse Reserve's Sound Meditation

Stress and anxiety have become common elements in the American lifestyle. And finding time to relieve that stress isn’t always easy. But according to meditation expert Jim Owen, sound meditation can be the solution.

Mr. Owen, who will lead his 10th season of sound meditation at LongHouse Reserve in East Hampton, will coach attendees through meditation exercises every Saturday morning at 8 a.m., through September 3.

Participants will learn to foster mental alignment with the universe through the use of sound vibrations, focusing on entrainment, or aligning with the vibrations of a person, place or thing, Mr. Owen said. He will teach participants how to spiritually entrain with “the divine” inside of them.

Upcoming sessions will include “Breath” on June 18, “Walking Meditation” on June 25, “Rituals” on July 2 and “Chanting” on July 9.

The entrainment aspect of sound meditation—the synchronization of organisms to an external rhythm—will begin on July 16. First, the group will entrain with the flowers.

“We will learn to breathe with a flower and allow ourselves to feel those vibrations,” Mr. Owen said. “Then, we will invite the flower to feel our vibrations so we can communicate with it, feeling its essence.”

During the sessions, participants can also expect to entrain with trees, themselves, the divine, the world, a friend, negative people and the unwilling.

Mr. Owen has been meditating daily for 18 years and said that it has helped him to let go of his existential fear and feel “more at home in the world.” He has traveled to India three times, each time for several months, to study different forms of meditation.

“In my own search for the experience of the divine, I realized that I needed to feel it and that feelings come from vibrations and sound produces vibrations,” Mr. Owen explained during a phone interview on Wednesday.

He made sure to stress that the class is not about music but about vibrations that create sound.

“All sound has a vibration and all vibrations make sound whether we can hear them or not,” Mr. Owen said. “So when I wanted to feel the divine in my energy field, I found sound to be the most useful method.”

During the session, Mr. Owen demonstrates and the participants follow his lead. He said he has received only positive feedback from his students in the past, even those who originally weren’t confident that they would be successful.

LongHouse Reserve’s Executive Director, Matko Tomicic, has participated in a few of Mr. Owen’s meditation sessions and has always had a refreshing experience, he said.

“It is a wonderful way to start your weekend in the Hamptons by slowing down for an hour and focusing on the inner beauty of LongHouse and oneself,” he said.

There is a suggested session donation of $20, or $18 for LongHouse Reserve members for “Sound Meditation.” A season pass for all the classes is $200, or $175 for members. For a full class schedule visit longhouse.org.