The “Spirituality For Everyone” Course Multimedia info
Chapter Nine
9 Chapter Nine: Nourishing Your Spirit (Read the full chapter)
9a Intro
9b Understanding Spiritual Communion
9c Prayer: Touching the Sacred
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This three-minute video shares an acapella performance of "Ave Maria," the holy Catholic prayer to Divine Mother. "Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women,and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and in the hour of our death. Amen."
9c1 Connecting through prayer
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When I prepared to sing at a local church one Father's Day, the Lord's Prayer arose as a good choice of what to sing, beginning with, "Our Father, which art in Heaven." But as I sang it through to practice, a response was revealed in my mind and heart, and so I sang both the traditional prayer and then the response, which you can hear in this four-minute video.
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This six-minute video shares an ancient Sanskrit prayer with onscreen English translation. The prayer is called Shiva Manasa Puja, which translates as the mental worship of the Lord. In these five verses, the legendary sage Shankaracharya describes an inner devotional ritual that includes flowers, fragrances, flames, jewels, sweet rice, camphor, musical instruments, and more. "O ocean of mercy, O master of bound creatures, I have imagined a throne of precious stones for You, cool water for You to bathe in, divine robes adorned with many jewels, sandalwood paste mixed with musk to anoint Your body, jasmine and champaka flowers and bilva leaves, rare incense, and a shining flame. Accept all these which I have imagined in my heart for You, O God."
9c2 Giving Blessings to Others
9c3 Be your own house of worship
9d Worshipping God in Form
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Listen to Chapter 11 of the Glorious Bhagavad Gita Sung in English, titled, "The Yoga of the Vision of the Cosmic Form," where Arjuna's divine eye is opened, allowing him to see an astounding vision of the entire universe as forms of the Supreme Spirit.
"The Holy Lord said: Behold now, O Partha, my forms, a hundred fold, a thousandfold, various, divine, and also of various colors and shapes."
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In this 18 minute clip, I share a humorous and inspiring experience that took place one day when I went to a store near the Ashram and met "Lord Krishna" in form. The sharing concludes with chanting of a Krishna kirtan. Here are the Sanskrit words if you'd like to chant along:
Shri Krishna Govinda Hare Murare, Hey Natha Narayana Vasudeva
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Listen to Section 5 of The Diamond Sutra Sung in English, titled, "Physical Characteristics of Tathagata (Buddha)," where Buddha teaches his disciples that a Buddha cannot be recognized by how his body looks. "Everything with form is unreal; if all forms are seen as unreal, the Tathagata will be perceived."
9e Creating a sacred space
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In this hour and eighteen minute video, California's Swami Bhajanananda, who worships many forms of Gods and Goddesses every day as a temple monk, gives an informal and scholarly talk about "Worship of Images," while seated in front of some of the images he worships. I knew Bhajanananda when he was a pre-swami college student, and have found him to be especially friendly and sincere in his spiritual practices and enthusiasm.
9f Singing to the Divine
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Italian monk Swami Nirvanananda is one of my favorite people to sing with. He travels the world singing devotional songs from many traditions, most with a focus on the saints, sages, Gods and Goddesses of India. His joy while singing is a great example of how to sing to the Divine. In this ten-minute video, Nirvanananda sings an ode to Lord Ganesh, the elephant head aspect of Divine Consciousness that blesses and removes obstacles. Many sing songs to Ganesh when they begin their day or inaugurate a new project. Here are the words, if you'd like to sing along:
Gam Ganapataye Namo Namah
Ganesha Sharanam Jai Jai Ganesha
9f1 Singing with a group
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This deliciously devotional eleven-minute video shows the devotional singing friends from India and I offered every Thursday evening for many years at the home of Prem and Sheela Trikannad in San Diego, with additional scenes from a concert we offered to raise funds for survivors of a large earthquake in Gujarat, India. Along with singing, you can see rituals that include the traditional waving of flames to an altar filled with saints, sages, Gods, and Goddesses.
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This is a two-minute video of another favorite chanter of Indian kirtans, Krishnadas, whose Guru Neem Karoli Baba inspired him to dedicate his life to leading delicious chanting sessions all over the world. I filmed this clip during one of his concerts in Encinitas, CA, and join in the singing near the end of the clip. The words are:
Sita Ram, Sita Ram, Jai Jai Sita Ram
Shree Ram, Jai Ram, Jai Jai Ram
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This is a 36-minute video of a small group chanting together in a friend's living room, with a bit of gospel and Amazing Grace. It is imperfect and informal, but shows how easy it is to gather together simply and enjoy the great practice of devotional singing.
Here are the Sanskrit words for the two main kirtan chants, if you're in the mood to chant along:
Hari Narayana:
Hari Narayana Hari Narayana Hari Narayana Hari Ram Ram Ram
Ayodya Vasi Shreeramachandra Anandarupa Jai Jai Ram
Om Shri Ram Jai Ram Jai Jai Ram Om Shri Ram Jai Ram Jai Jai Ram
Jaya Sita Ram Lakshmana Hanuman,Shri Guru Ram Ananda Bhagavan
Jagado Dharini Ma:
Jagado Dharini Mata Durga, Jagado Dharini Ma
Jago Jago Ma, Jago Jago Ma, Jago Jago Ma Janani
He Durga Devi Rana Chandi Devi
He Shiva Nayana Jago Ma, He Shiva Nayana Jago Ma
Jago Jagado Dharini Ma
9f2 Singing and your breath
