The Integration of Qigong, Brainwaves and Sound forWell-being

Paras Kaul, April 1, 2026

When I was in grad school at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, I had the opportunity to do a video interview with Ravi Shankar, an esteemed musician from India. He was asked the question, “Why did you choose music to be your artistic medium?” He paused, looked up, and pointing a finger above explained that music is the most direct connection.

In March of this year, the Virginia Polytechnic Institute hosted a CPHE conference, Contemplative Practices for Higher Education. In collaboration with two colleagues from the Dewberry School of Music at George Mason University, I spoke about combining Qigong with meditative sound to enhance a Qigong practice.

My heart was warmed by the attendees at this conference who were bringing awareness of what they refer to as contemplative practices to the attention of universities and public education. Contemplative practices include Qigong, Tai Chi, Yoga, sound healing, meditation and more. Gaylon Ferguson, the Keynote Speaker,spoke about the many methods and practices available for “joining cognitive, emotional and somatic dimensions of being human”.

Among the contemplative practices, Qigong might be the least known to Western culture. A simple way to understand Qigong is to think of it as sensitivity training. As we know, Qigong is anything but simple because Qigong is a deep dive into our interoceptive, our inner vision. An advanced practice enables us to drop into intuitive consciousness to understand what is happening inside our bodies and within a universal energy field. Qigong training teaches us to move in coherent rhythms, creating harmony in motion that is synchronized with the breath.

Both Qigong and sound produce vibrations that resonate with our bodies. These subtle vibrations travelinstantly throughout the body’s nervous system where they resonate with the energy fields surrounding organs in the body and stimulate a collective energy field around the whole body—the Wei Chi field, as they refer to it in China. The feeling of wanting to move the body or dance to musical rhythms is evidence of these dynamic connections. Coherent rhythms direct our attention inwardly to deepen intuitive awareness in a Qigong practice.

For several years I’ve been using a Brain-to-Computer-Interface System with electroencephalographic software (EEG), to monitor and measure brainwave activity before and after multiple healing modalities, including Qigong. I see significant changes in the brain’s activity after a Qigong practice. When monitored with EEG after practicing Qigong, there is increased coherence between hemispheres in the brain with significant low frequency alpha and theta brainwaves. 

Synchronizing breath with the movements causes brainwaves to shift into a coherent state. Brain coherence is conducive to producing healthy conditions in the body. A consistent Qigong practice trains the brain to create familiar brainwave patterns for the practice. A neural network forms from the brainwave patterns created from Qigong practice. Regular practice reinforces the neural network.

Over time you can reach a state where the brain engages the neural network without conscious effort, guiding the body without the help of the intellect. Qigong practice becomes an effortless harmony between motion and breath. Adding meditative sound to Qigong can enhance a practice exponentially.

As a manager for the mind, the brain channels resources throughout the body. When relaxed, and moving and breathing in coherent, synchronized rhythms, the brain sends vital life stimulation to the internal organs for cellular repair and rejuvenation, which stimulates homeostatic harmony in the body. Those of us who practice Qigong or Tai Chi know the Chinese refer to this life force energy as Qi.

Qigong trains you to develop intuitive awareness—to go beyond the 5 senses and develop extrasensory awareness. Acting as an antenna for the mind, the brain responds to messaging from the mind. How you think affects brainwave activity by releasing either healthy or stressful stimulation that affects the body’s organ systems.

When you are in relaxed coherent state in homeostatic harmony, Qigong creates a dynamic, energetic state enhanced by practicing while hearing sustained audio frequencies in sound. Integrating this type of sound into a Qigong practice enhances rejuvenation in the body and the immune system, enabling us to perform at higher more efficient levels.