The Beginners Guide to Kirtan and Mantra

Across the country and around the world, people are chanting the names of God in foreign tongues including Sanskrit and Hindi. And they’re taking kirtan out of the temples and the yoga studios, and into dance halls, universities, cathedrals, and other unexpected places.

In the last decade, India’s ancient call-and-response form of chanting has been reinvented by modern devotional artists who are blending traditional kirtan with modern music genres such as rock, R&B, hip hop, and electronica—breathing new life (and new devotion) into yoga’s sacred chants. But what, exactly, are these chants about?

According to kirtan artist and bhakti yoga educator David Newman, kirtan means “to praise that which is exalted”—aka, the divine. The word “kirtan” also stems from a Sanskrit root that means “to cut through,” he says, so kirtan is also “a practice for cutting through the idea of separation, for connecting to our hearts and connecting to the moment through sound.”

read on at kripalu.org

SitaRam SitaRam
Hans(uman)
www.kirtan.nu
www.ecstaticchant.nl
www.ecstaticchant.eu
www.stemyoga.nl

Indian Harmonium

The indian harmonum or pump-organ is used in Kirtan, Bhajans and all kinds of other Indian music. In every ashram or temple you are likely to find one, and many people can play some songs on it. Also used in classical music it is very popular in indian folk and popular music.

Wikipedia on harmonum
During the mid-19th century, missionaries brought French-made hand-pumped harmoniums to India. The instrument quickly became popular there: it was portable, reliable and easy to learn. It has remained popular to the present day, and the harmonium remains an important instrument in many genres of Indian music. For example, it is a staple of vocal North Indian classical music concerts. It is commonly found in Indian homes. Though derived from the designs developed in France, the harmonium was developed further in India in unique ways, such as the addition of drone stops and a scale-changing mechanism.

If you want to learn to play the harmonium the Bhakti Breakfast Club provides instructional video's on playing harmonium with Kirtan

From the website keshav-music.com
About harmoniums: The harmonium, which was practically an unknown instrument in the USA as recently as 1989, has now become incredibly popular due to kirtan artists Krishnadas and Jai Uttal as well as Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. Harmoniums are showing up on recordings by Paul Simon, Tom Petty, Tom Waits, Beck . . . the list goes on forever. Originally the harmonium was frowned up in Indian music because of it’s foreign origins  but gradually it became accepted and embraced. Over time the harmonium has replaced the traditional sarangi, and sarod, as number one instrument for accompanying vocals, much to the chagrin of sarod and sarangi players. The harmonium is originally a French instrument. Harmoniums came to India in the 1800s and were used by colonialists for playing church music at home. Indians adapted the harmonium for their own use and developed different tunings for it. Traditionally harmoniums are tuned in what is known as “equal tempered ” tuning. But Indians with no experience of European tuning standards, developed what is known as “just” tuning. A “just tuned” harmonium is set up by tuning the middle part of the keyboard to a pitch specific to the singer’s vocal range. The remainder of the harmoniums reeds are then tuned by ear to match rather than by tuning meter. A just-tuned harmonium is only useful for playing in one key. Whereas . . . an equal-tuned harmonium should be tuned to A-440 from end-to-end. An equal-tuned harmonium will sound good in any key. Gradually, harmonium players in India are abandoning the “just-tuned” standard, and are more and more often playing equal-tuned harmoniums. The majority of harmoniums shipped out of India are continue to be “just-tuned” and many are as much as 15 “cents” sharp. A harmonium that is only say, 2 “cents” sharp will be sonically compatible with synthesizers and pianos. A harmonium that is 15 “cents” sharp will sound okay by itself, but will sound discordant when played alongside a synthesizer or piano tuned to A-440. Most harmoniums utilize two banks of male and bass brass harmonium reeds. Scale-changer harmoniums and other high-end harmoniums utilize three banks of harmonium reeds. Harmoniums with three banks of reeds are manufactured with sets of Bass/Male/Male or Bass/Male/Female and are usually configured with 3.25 and 3.50 octave keyboards. Harmoniums with four banks of reeds are rare. Delhi-built harmoniums and Calcutta-built harmoniums have distinctly different sound qualities. Delhi-built harmoniums use a different grade of brass making the harmonium sound brighter and sharper when new. This style of harmonium reed however becomes mellower with playing over time and gives a very distinctive sound, typified by the Signature 23 as played by Krishnadas, and on the very old Bina models played by Jai Uttal. Calcutta harmoniums utilize harmonium reeds made in Palitana or some equivalent alloy make-up that makes them sound mellower right at the start. Occasionally one hears of people looking for harmoniums with “French” reeds or “German” reeds. These types of harmonium reeds have not been produced in at least 70 years and simply are not available. We do on special order build harmoniums with what are called “English Reeds” which are a perfect copy of classic British harmonium reeds made to exacting standards from special steel harmonium reed materials. Steel harmonium reeds are not as warm sounding as brass harmonium reeds but are more stable. Steel harmonium reeds too, are very difficult to tune but hold pitch longer due to the stability of the steel alloy used in these harmonium reeds. Folding harmoniums are popular because of their small size, which allows the harmonium to be taken on airline flights as carry-on and stored in the overhead. Non-folding harmoniums however, will have a wider breadth of sound because they have double the wind-chest capacity and are often preferred by studio musicians for recording purposes. Scale-changer harmoniums utilize a mechanical device that allows the keyboard of the harmonium to be slid up or down for instant transposing. A well-built scale-changer harmonium can be trouble free for many years. A scale-changer harmonium built with “green” or uncured wood however, will warp and be a nightmare. Scale-changer harmoniums are better suited for players that will maintain them in one place like a home, studio, or a temple. The knobs or “stops” on the harmonium are generally set up 1st/ 3rd/ 5th/ 7th/ for the ones that activate the harmonium’s wind-chest sections that supply air to each bank of the harmonium‚s reeds. The harmonium stops in the 2nd/ 4th/ 6th/ 8th positions will be “drones”. Harmonium drones are traditionally tuned to the black keys as these are preferred for use in Hindustani style playing. Keshav Music Imports builds the Signature 23 Harmonium with the reeds in the white keys for our Western customers. Another feature on all our harmoniums is the octave-coupler. The octave-coupler mechanically connects the note played to the same note one octave above or one octave below. The majority of harmoniums produced in India are built with pine. However nearly all scale-changers and high-end harmoniums are built with teak. Pine produces a softer, diffused quality, whereas teak produces a deeper, and “darker” quality. Neither quality is “preferable” in a harmonium. The preferred quality for a harmonium's sound is subjective to the player. While Keshav Music Imports sells all Indian instruments, the harmonium has been and continues to be our main focus. Keshav Das has spent years working directly alongside the luthiers that build our instruments and learned tuning and repairs at the Bina harmonium factory, the DMS harmonium factory and the Monoj Kumar Sardar harmonium factory. He personally checks all harmoniums for tuning and keyboard set-up before they are packed.



SitaRam SitaRam
Hans(uman)
www.kirtan.nu
www.dezingendeziel.nl
www.dansenmetdegoden.nl www.stemyoga.nl

Hanuman Chalisa Marathon-Estafette

Sunday afternoon 20 october 2013 you can sing the Hanuman Chalisa for 5 hours with together with Hansuman in Utrecht.
You are all invited to join in!

You can find more information on this event in Dutch at the page Hanuman Chalisa Marathon at www.kirtan.nu

Puur Beweging
Bemuurde Weerd OZ 13, 3514 AN Utrecht
door open 11.40
singing:12.00-17.00
afterparty with food & drinks (bring to share!) until 18.00
suggested donation: € 15,-, low-income/students € 10,-

Send a email to me to keep informed about the latest news on this event


Later more marathons will follow in Nijmegen, Den Bosch and other cities (invite me!)

SitaRam SitaRam
Hans(uman)
www.kirtan.nu
www.dezingendeziel.nl
www.dansenmetdegoden.nl
www.stemyoga.nl

Searching new location in Utrecht for Kirtan

In Utrecht I'm searching vor a new location for the Kirtan singing, as the yogacentrum Utrecht (YCU) ceased to be.
There are some options already, but suggestionas are always welcome.
Obviously, making music and singing must be allowed there :-)
Kirtans in Utrecht are on sunday-evenings.
In Utrecht we will start again in Spetember.
In Groesbeek and Nijmegen in August.

SitaRam SitaRam
Hans(uman)
www.kirtan.nu
www.dezingendeziel.nl
www.dansenmetdegoden.nl
www.stemyoga.nl

newworldkirtan.com, kirtan podcasts

on newworldkirtan.com you can find podcast on western kirtan, krishna das, jai uttal, deva premal etc for free!
Give it a try!

SitaRam SitaRam
Hans(uman)
www.kirtan.nu
www.dezingendeziel.nl
www.dansenmetdegoden.nl www.stemyoga.nl

What is Kirtan?

quoted from www.newworldkirtan.com

Kirtan is a very different kind of music.  Based on ancient chants, it has the ability to quiet the mind if listened to with intention.  Everyone experiences kirtan differently, and it doesn’t have to be a religious experience.  You can think of it as a sing-along.  A kirtan concert is not your typical concert either.  Everyone sits on the floor, although chairs are usually available.  The performers are accessible, in fact there’s not much of a distinction between performers & audience.  The wallah (leader) sings the mantra, and the audience sings it back.  A single chant can go on for up to forty minutes.  As you sing with each other you experience a deep connection with the musicians, the other audience members and yourself.  And when the music stops, your mind is quiet.

Because kirtan has roots in India, many of the songs are sung in Sanskrit.  Some I choose for the New World Kirtan podcast are also in Punjabi, the language of the Sikhs.  If you’ve ever chanted responses in Latin or Hebrew in your religious tradition, then you know how powerful singing in an ancient, holy language can be.  You can be completely immersed in the sound, with no words to distract the mind.  The magic of the chants can then carry you within.

Kirtan is non-denominational, the Universal language of Spirit, the song of the Soul.


SitaRam SitaRam
Hans(uman)
www.kirtan.nu
www.dezingendeziel.nl
www.dansenmetdegoden.nl www.stemyoga.nl

24 maart feestelijke Kirtan-Happening in Utrecht

Zondagavond 24 mrt is er in het yogacentrum Utrecht een extra feestelijke Kirtan-Happening. Dan vier ik namelijk ook meteen mijn verjaardag (25maart). Het wordt een mix van "gewoon" Kirtan-zingen, "stembevrijdend Kirtan-zingen" en "Dansen met de Goden" : zeg maar "Kirtan-Anders" of "Kirtan-Happening".
Er zal in ieder geval gedanst, bewogen, en gezongen worden (zitten mag ook:-), er zijn extra percussie-instrumentjes, wellicht en harmonium, en het wordt gezellig.

meer info over deze avond
http://kirtan.nu/24-maart-extra-feestelijke-kirtan-utrecht/

Voorbeeldfilmpjes Dansen met de Goden
http://kirtan.nu/voorbeeld-videos-dansen-met-de-goden/

meer info over stembevrijdend kirtan-zingen
http://kirtan.nu/stembevrijdend-kirtanzingen/

Locatie: YCU, Lange Nieuwstraat 3, Utrecht (10 minuten lopen van Utrecht CS)
Route en kaartje http://www.yogacentrumutrecht.nl/kontakt.htm
Tijd: 19.30-21.30 uur
Deur open: 19.10
nababbelen met thee en lekkers tot ± 22.00 uur
entree vrij, bijdrage mag
En of iedereen wat lekkers mee wil nemen voor een paar personen,dan is er altijd genoeg voor iedereen, hoeveel er ook komen.

SitaRam SitaRam
Hans(uman)
www.kirtan.nu
www.dezingendeziel.nl
www.dansenmetdegoden.nl 
www.stemyoga.nl

Kirtan-Mantra -Carnival, febr 9, Den Bosch

Kirtan-Mantra -Carnival saturday, February 9, 2013, 13-15.00 , Den Bosch (nice if you dress up). All ages are welcome, so feel free to bring your children, parents, uncles and aunts, or grandfather's and grandmother's life. Sign Up via an email or the contact form on the contact page of www.kirtan.nu

Again in 2013 there is a "Dancing with the Gods" in Den Bosch with Carnival. Kirtan and Mantra's singing Kirtan-style call-response form (question-and-answer) with the possibility to clap-allong, move, dance and what else comes to you. Extacy alternates with serenity. Movement alternates with silence. Afterwards the already-famous vegetarian dutch peasoup, pancakes, and chai.
A Dutch version of this message at http://kirtan.nu/dansen-met-de-goden-carnaval-2013-den-bosch/

SitaRam SitaRam
Hans(uman)
www.kirtan.nu
www.dezingendeziel.nl
www.dansenmetdegoden.nl www.stemyoga.nl

Kirtan-Mantra-Carnaval 9 februari, Den Bosch

Kirtan-Mantra-Carnaval zaterdag 9 februari 2013, 13-15.00, Den Bosch (leuk als je verkleed komt). Locatie volgt later.
Alle leeftijden zijn welkom, dus neem gerust je kinderen, ouders, ooms en tantes, neeffjes en nichtjes, of opa’s en oma’s mee. Meld je aan via een mailtje of het contactformulier op de contactpagina

Ook in 2013 is er met Carnaval weer een “Dansen met de Goden” in Den Bosch. Kirtan en Mantra’s zingen Kirtan-style: call-response vorm (vraag-en-antwoord) met de uitdrukkelijke mogelijkheid tot meeklappen, bewegen, dansen en wat er nog meer opkomt. Uitbunbigheid wisselt af met Rust. Beweging wisselt af met verstilling. Na afloop weer de inmiddels beroemde vegetarische erwtensoep, pannenkoeken, en chai.

Kirtan-Mantra-Carnaval als opening van de carnaval, als (voortijdige) opening van een nieuwe lente, als opening voor de energie in alle chakra s, maar vooral om het leven te vieren en te genieten. Er zal ook een stuk stembevrijdend kirtanzingen inzitten, om een beetje los en (zonder alcohol) in de stemming te komen.

De lokatie van deze feestelijke happening is aan de van IJsselsteinstraat 11, Den Bosch, 1e verdieping (Yoga bij Maya).

lees meer op www.kirtan.nu

SitaRam SitaRam
Hans(uman)
www.kirtan.nu
www.dezingendeziel.nl
www.dansenmetdegoden.nl www.stemyoga.nl

Krishna Das over Kirtan-zingen

van een youtube opname

"In India zeggen ze dat wat we zingen bij Kirtan de Goddelijke Namen zijn, de Namen van God (de Bron, het Universum, het Licht etc). En ze zeggen dat deze Namen uit een plek binnenin onszelf komen. Dus door ze te herhalen te zingen, dalen we dieper af in ons eigen Zijn. En de oefening is heel eenvoudig: je zingt, en het moment dat je ziet of merkt dat je aandacht afdwaalt, dat je ergens over aan het denken bent, of dat je aan het fantaseren bent over iemand naast je, dan kom je gewoon terug naar het zingen. Telkens, en telkens, en telkens weer, je laat gewoon los inkomt terug. En dat is de hele oefening. Geleidelijk aanleren we om "dieper" in ons Zelf te zitten/zijn, en de gedachtes en emoties die ons weghalen, beginnen door ons heen te passeren, zonder ons te pakken. Je ontwikkelt een  innerlijke sterkte, en dat is wat we nodig hebben."


en uit een intervieuw in Onkruid
“Als je thuis zingt en het voelt niet goed, denk je al snel dat je het niet goed doet of dat de oefening niet deugt. Maar het gaat niet om het creëren van een fijne sfeer. Het enige wat telt is dat je begint waar je nu bent. We hechten ons aan mooie muziek, een goede sfeer, een fijn gevoel. Daar gaat kirtan helemaal niet over. Kirtan heeft niets te maken met het tijdelijk creëren van een staat van geluk of plezier. We herhalen de namen, zodat die namen hun werk kunnen doen. Ik kan het niet vaak genoeg zeggen: mijn oefening is niet zingen! Mijn oefening is proberen in het hier en nu te zijn, en zingen helpt mij daarbij. Kirtan is geen muzikale oefening."

Hij blijft mijn held... :-)

SitaRam SitaRam
Hans(uman)
www.kirtan.nu
www.dezingendeziel.nl
www.dansenmetdegoden.nl  
www.stemyoga.nl

Workshopmiddag Stembevrijding en Kirtan & Mantra-zingen op 27 Januari 2013

Op 27 januari 201 geef ik een middag van 13.00- 17.00 over stembevrijding en het zingen van Kirtan. Dit vindt plaats bij Yoga Maarssen, Nassaustraat 16-2. Later komt er ook een middag in het Cordium in Nijmegen, en wie weet ook Den Bosch.

In West-Europa wordt er vaak erg “beschaafd” gezongen: ingetogen, ingehouden,  voorzichtig, mooi en netjes. Er wordt veel rekening gehouden met de anderen, of je hen stoort, wat ze er wel niet van denken etc., past wat ik zing wel bij wat de anderen zingen?
In India wordt er vaak lustig op los gebruld, af en toe knijtervals, ongeremd en met volle overgave. Wat de anderen ervan vinden komt niet eens in ze op, en of je een ander stoort al helemaal niet.
Én: reik je tijdens het zingen uit naar boven, naar het Hogere? Of ben je met de voeten op de grond? Ben je in de Hemel, of op aarde? Hoofd in de wolken, of voeten op de grond?
Én: zing je zachtjes en voorzichtig, alleen voor jezelf, of hard en naar buiten met elkaar?
Én niet als laatste: zit je stil, beweeg je mee, dans je mee, of spring je mee?
Deze middag gaan we al deze uitersten verkennen, kijken we wat het effect hiervan is, en gaan we samen onderzoeken hoe we tot een persoonlijke mix en combinatie hiervan kunnen komen in het Kirtan-zingen: van naar-binnen-gekeerd en meditatief, naar uitbundig, vol overgave en expressief, en weer terug.

Kijk voor meer informatie hier

Kijk voor meer informatie over stembevrijding op www.stemyoga.nl

SitaRam SitaRam
Hans(uman)
www.kirtan.nu
www.dezingendeziel.nl
www.dansenmetdegoden.nl

Connecting Through Kirtan: A New Experience of Community

After a few moments, Manish gently broke the silence, “Listen to the waves, and then listen to the space between the waves. Find yourself in that space.” This is where the kirtan had carried us, to this space, this deep silence between the waves. As Manish spoke to us, I could still feel the mantra coursing through my bloodstream with each heartbeat, Snatam’s voice carrying on into the silence. I felt such a sense of joy, my heart wanted to burst. I looked around and saw my emotions mirrored in the expressions of the people surrounding me. And suddenly, there was no space between the person next to me and me. We became so deeply connected by that shared experience, that there was an intimacy created beyond explanation. I did not know these people before we arrived at this kirtan event, but we left as family.
This experience of deep connectedness and community is being expressed by people attending kirtan gatherings and concerts all over the world. For many, kirtan has become their favorite practice of devotion, but for some, kirtan is a completely new experience. The idea of chanting in a group is completely foreign to them.

lees het hele artikel hier
read the whole article here

SitaRam SitaRam
Hans(uman)
www.kirtan.nu
www.dezingendeziel.nl
www.dansenmetdegoden.nl
www.stemyoga.nl

Den Bosch, here we come.... 23 november UPDATE

UPDATE: het was een succes, nieuwe avond in februari of maart, datum volgt

Eindelijk is het dan zover: Hansuman komt naar Den Bosch voor een kirtan- en mantra-avond "de Zingende Ziel"!
Op vrijdagavond 23 november bij de zusters van JMJ, Vughterstraat 93 in Den Bosch, 19.15-21.15
Ruimte open vanaf ± 19.00 uur.
Bijdrag € 5,-
Zegt het voort!

wil je je aanmelden of meer informatie, klik hier om contact op te nemen

SitaRam SitaRam
Hans(uman)
www.kirtan.nu
www.dezingendeziel.nl
www.dansenmetdegoden.nl www.stemyoga.nl

Dave Stringer over Kirtan / on Kirtan

talk starts at 7:25, till that moment the song "Shivo Ham" (I am Shiva)
praatje begint op 7:25, daarvoor "Shivo Ham" (ik ben Shiva)



Shivo Hum ~ Dave Stringer Talking About Kirtan from Kirtan on Vimeo.

Video-kanaal van dave Stringer op Vimeo hier

SitaRam SitaRam
Hans(uman)
www.kirtan.nu
www.dezingendeziel.nl
www.dansenmetdegoden.nl www.stemyoga.nl

Nice words by Krishna Das (again)

pieces from an article in sufijournal.org
(...)
I don’t know what you know about my history. Twenty years had gone by since my Guru Maharaj-ji died. He died in ’73. And I hadn’t been chanting. I mean, I might’ve sung a little bit with friends and stuff but I wasn’t really chanting as a spiritual practice.
And I was standing in my room and I was struck with the understanding that if I did not chant with people, much to my chagrin, then I would never be able to clean out the dark corners of my own heart, myself. Chant was the only thing I had to do it with.
This was the only lifeline that was being thrown to me. There’s no question I was drowning. And I just knew that chanting was the only thing that would work for me. I mean I had been meditating, sitting with lamas, going to courses. I’d been doing things in my own way, but of course not allowing it to change my heart at all. That’s what we do. But then I knew chanting with people, that was the only thing I had.
It’s just what Maharaj-ji, my guru, gave me. I mean, we used to sing to him because he liked it, not because we were trying to be spiritual. He liked it and we got to spend time with him. We were, like, his performing monkeys, you know. When the Indians were giving him too much trouble, he’d call for the westerners to come in and sing.
(...)
What happens when you sing, when you use your voice? 
 I can’t tell you because I’m not there…What happens is my guru picks up this old rusty pipe, blows through it, and makes nice music. And when he’s finished he puts it down. And people in the room, they experience the music he plays. It’s just transmission of his presence. And that’s what people feel.
People come to sing with me, not because I’m the greatest singer in the world and this is the best music in the world. It’s not. Personally, I would rather listen to Bruce Springsteen, or The Rolling Stones, or Steely Dan, or Ray Charles, or Van Morrison. But here I am and here they are. And what we receive is the transmission of my guru’s presence, which is the presence that lives within each person, that being that lives within us—the indweller. That’s who he is.
So he’s bringing everybody into that presence through me. And I suppose it’s good for me. He just knocks me out of the way and does his thing, but of course I invite him. At least he lets me think I invite him. [laughter]
But as I see it, he’s doing everything. And I want to surrender completely to him, which I can’t do because surrender comes from grace. So when he’s ready, he’ll surrender me. And my job is just to get ready, to keep chanting the name, keep listening, keep hearing.
He didn’t tell me to do this. I’m doing this to save my ass. And on the strength of that everybody else who comes is doing this to save their ass. It’s not entertainment for me and it’s not entertainment for them.

In the Vedic tradition, there’s what they call non-dual Bhakti. It’s seeing the non-dual in the dual, without any holding back. It’s seeing absolute reality right there in the dualism. It honors absolute reality and relative reality. They don’t think one’s better than the other. They honor both.
You see this in Rumi and Hafiz so much, just seeing the absolute divine in worldly love and the things that happen in daily life. And there’s just no separation, you know, no mental concepts to keep you locked up. I find that kind of devotion, that kind of love so liberating. Devotion is just love. You can’t work at love, you know. You can work at cleaning up your act, but love is what it IS.
You can work at the things that keep you locked out of your own heart, but what’s already in there is exactly what’s supposed to be there. And my guru was like that. We don’t know much about his tradition, but he used to talk a lot to us about Kabir and also about Samarth Guru Ramdas, who was a great saint I think in the 1600’s. He found the non-dual through devotion to Hanuman, devotion to a form. He went though the form into the non-dual. And he always said to people this is the way to do it. You can’t do it any other way. That’s what he used to say.
And what I get from that is that you can fully embrace this world and the forms that are in it. You have to fully embrace this world and bear witness to this world and everything that’s in it—all the beauty and horror. You can’t hold back and say, oh, I only believe in that which you can’t see, feel, think of, because how the hell do you know what that is? It’s just an idea in your head, and an idea could never be what it is. So it’s very difficult.


SitaRam SitaRam
Hans(uman)
www.kirtan.nu
www.dezingendeziel.nl
www.dansenmetdegoden.nl www.stemyoga.nl

Dave Stringer on Kirtan and Kirtan Flightschool

SitaRam SitaRam
Hans(uman)
www.kirtan.nu
www.dezingendeziel.nl
www.dansenmetdegoden.nl

Leer Harmonium Spelen / Learn to play the Harmonium

Kijk op www.kirtancentral.com : resources fo the chant community.
Oa een dvd-set over " hoe harmonium te leren spelen"

hier al wat stukje hieruit op youtube video's

SitaRam SitaRam
Hans(uman)
www.kirtan.nu
www.dezingendeziel.nl
www.dansenmetdegoden.nl
www.stemyoga.nl

In America kun je zelfs een week op cursus :-)

hier een filmpje over wat je kunt leren

Hoe te dansen met de Goden / How to Dance with the Gods

Zo dus..... / Like this........

 Jai Uttal Live - Bolo Radha Ramana Haribol

SitaRam SitaRam
Hans(uman)
www.kirtan.nu
www.dezingendeziel.nl
www.dansenmetdegoden.nl

Zingen is allereerst luisteren!

Zingen is allereerst luisteren!
Wij denken vaak dat we iets moeten doen. Lekker zingen-doen bv. Ik ga ervan uit dat je voordat je gaat zingen eerst luistert. Bij Kirtan-zingen wordt er voorgezongen, dus dat lijkt voor de hand te liggen. Dit is niet altijd zo. Vaak luister je maar half, omdat je met iets anders bezig bent, of omdat je luistert naar hoe jij vind dat het moet etc.

Wat is dan luisteren?
Luisteren naar de anderen bijvoorbeeld, of luisteren naar wat er wordt voorgezongen. En dan is het pas echt luisteren als je er geen oordeel bij hebt. Dus als je er niet iets van vind, meestal dat bv anderen niet mooi zingen. Dat gaat namelijk over dat het anders moet, dat het eigenlijk niet goed is zoals het is, dat de anderen (of jijzelf mischien) beter zouden moeten zingen. Op dat moment ben je niet meer in het het NU.
Krishna Das hierover: Ik kan het niet vaak genoeg zeggen: mijn oefening is niet zingen! Mijn oefening is proberen in het hier en nu te zijn, en zingen helpt mij daarbij.

Hier en Nu
Je zou ook kunnen opmerken dat anderen anders zingen, en dat dat er helemaal mag zijn. Dan ben je in het Hier en Nu.
Uiteindelijk is luisteren dus helemaal in het Hier en Nu zijn, en dat wat er in het Hier en Nu aanwezig is, er helemaal mag zijn.
Voel je je ongemakkelijk, of stoor je je, blijf dan daarbij, en laat dat er helemaal zijn. Hou het bij jezelf: JIJ stoort je, JIJ voelt je ongemakkelijk etc. Dus niet "omdat iemand anders....".

Luisteren gaat dus ook over naar jezelf luisteren. Luisteren naar wat er in jou leeft, waar het stroomt in jou, waar het blokkeert in jou, en daar dan met zachte ogen naar kijken, met mededogen.

de Stilte
Luisteren gaat ook over de Stilte. De Stilte is er altijd, je hoort hem echter alleen als je luistert. Daarom zijnwe stil tussen de Kirtans. Om te luisteren! Luisteren naar de Stilte, en luisteren naar wat er in ons leeft, stroomt, blokkeert etc. 

De Stilte heeft geen oordeel, de Stilte is gewoonweg Stilte

geschreven door Hans(uman)
17-09-2012
www.kirtan.nu
www.dezingendeziel.nl
www.dansenmetdegoden.nl

Dave Stringer in Nederland, 12-10-2012

Dave Stringer komt ook in 2012 weer naar Nederland, en wel op 12 oktober in Maarssen bij yogastudio In-Ki.
's Avonds om 19.30 een concert, en voorafgaand een korte workshop.
Meer info op www.in-ki.nl

 alvast een voorproefje van 24 minuten :-)

SitaRam SitaRam
Hans(uman)
www.kirtan.nu
www.dezingendeziel.nl
www.dansenmetdegoden.nl