If you’ve ever dived into meditation or consciousness-expanding techniques, you may have heard about the Gateway Tapes or the CIA Tapes. The Gateway tapes, created by Robert Monroe, are a series of guided meditations designed to help you tap into altered states of consciousness, using special audio technology.
I’m not exactly sure how I stumbled upon them—possibly Reddit? It’s a bit of a blur, which is strange in itself. I didn’t read up too much about them beforehand; instead, I jumped right in. A kind soul shared the first tape with me, and from the moment I pressed play, I was hooked. Maybe it was Bob Monroe’s voice, that calm, vintage radio announcer tone, or the sense that this was crafted just for me, guiding me toward something new.
The Gateway Tapes: What Are They?
The correct name of the tapes is The Gateway Experience and this is what the Hemi Sync website says about them: “Some (users) discover themselves and thus live more completely and more constructively. Others reach levels of awareness so profound that one such experience is enough for a lifetime. Still others become seekers-after-truth and add an on-going adventure to their daily activity. The basic level of commitment is that you seriously consider the Gateway Affirmations are a possibility: that you are more than your physical body, that you can and do exist in energy systems that are not limited to time-space, that you can and do communicate with intelligence beyond your physical consciousness.“
The meditation works by expanding your mind and taking you into various “Focus levels” or focus states. Focus 10, for example, is described as “mind awake, body asleep,” a state that helps you disconnect from the physical sensations of your body and move into a deep mental space.
What sets these tapes apart is the use of binaural beats—audio tones designed to help sync the brain’s hemispheres. By playing slightly different frequencies in each ear, the tapes nudge your brain into certain states—anything from relaxation to heightened awareness. If you’ve never heard of binaural beats before, read this post.
They are devided into 8 albums, or 8 waves. Each album consist of 6 meditations and you’re supposed to do them sequentially since the tools you learn will build upon each other.
My Personal Experience with the Tapes
I had some time off work when I found the tapes—two whole weeks to explore, experiment, and lose myself in the experience. I quickly found Focus 10, and it felt like my heart rate dropped, my mind settled, and I was in a bubble of calmness for the entire week. The stress I’d been carrying around just melted away.
What surprised me was how easy it was for me to get into that state. I know for many, it can take time, but for some reason, the tapes clicked with me right away. Maybe it’s Bob’s voice, maybe it’s the tones, but whatever it was, it felt right. I loooved hanging out in focus state 10. It was so relaxing. My bodily aches and pains vanished in that state.
Mornings became my favorite time for listening—I found the clarity I needed when the world was still waking up. I started a routine: a session in the morning and another in the afternoon. But I avoided listening at night. Something about the evenings felt off, like I wasn’t alone, or someone was watching me. I don’t know if it was just me being overly sensitive, but it was enough to keep me from doing the tapes after dark.
Strange and Memorable Moments
Like any journey into altered states, I had some weird experiences. One of the strangest was during a tape in Wave I (though I can’t remember which one). After a long silence, when Bob’s voice came back, I couldn’t understand him at all. It was like he was speaking a foreign language, and I panicked. My brain just couldn’t process what he was saying—it was as if I had never heard English before. I sat up, rewound the tape, and of course, everything sounded perfectly normal again. Robert Monroe often said, “that’s perfectly normal,” but in the moment, it was anything but.
Another interesting thing was this growing feeling of intuition. I often knew what people were going to say before they even spoke. It wasn’t just a guess—it was like a deep, quiet knowing. During the period I did the tapes regularly I just felt different, both more aware and more distant at the same time.
Slowing Down and Reflecting
After about six weeks of daily practice, I reached Wave 3 and slowed down with the tapes. I repeated some of the earlier ones, lingering around Wave 2 that has some really cool “tools” I enjoyed practicing. While I love the tapes and their impact on my life, I’m sure I want to go all the way through the series, especially when it came to the concept of astral projection. Some of my experiences with it weren’t pleasant, and that hesitation made me pause. I now think that I would like to reach focus state 15 at least, decscribed as the “state of no time”. That is in Wave 5.
I’m very thankful for finding the Gateway Experience. I feel like I would really have missed out on something if I didn’t. It brought a sense of calm and clarity during a time I needed it most, and I think that’s the beauty of these tapes. Even if you don’t aim for out-of-body experiences or advanced states of consciousness, there’s so much value in simply learning to relax, focus, and open your mind and awareness.
Final Thoughts
If you’re curious about binaural beats, guided meditations, or exploring the depths of your own mind, you should definitely give the Gateway tapes a go. For me, they were a game-changer and an entry point into something much larger. Thanks to them I also discover binaural beats, had amazing experiences; I don’t know if they were dreams or reality.
If you’ve ever had experiences with the Gateway tapes, or if you’re thinking about starting, I’d love to hear your thoughts. Feel free to share in the comments or reach out—I’d love to hear about it!
