MAKING A DIFFERENCE


Sacred Earth


Barbara Brewster talks to Prem and Jethro of Sacred Earth about how they’re making a difference in the world through dedicating their lives to conscious communication, immersion in nature and music.


by Barbara Brewster


QUEENSLANDERS, PREM AND JETHRO Williams, are the creators of the exquisite music of Sacred Earth. Having sold over a quarter of a million albums, their sublime music and inspirational way of life is touching and changing lives across the world. As I park in the driveway of the


Eumundi Queenslander, a 4WD pulls up behind me. Sacred Earth, all five of them – Jethro, Prem, 17 year old Minjahra, nearly three year old Jai, and 7 month old baby, Jasi – bundle themselves from the car. They’d had a quick run to the beach for “a much needed respite in nature.” This is the first indication of their total commitment to being conscious of, and honouring, whatever the heart whispers.


BB: How did it all start? How did you meet?


Prem: We met 14 years ago at party at Crystal Waters Permaculture Village.


It was a very strong heart connection. Immediately we both felt very happy, alive, inspired – turned on to life. The music was the glue, a medium for us to communicate on a much deeper level, and so comfortable that we could explore, talk, sing, dance and laugh without any inhibitions.


Jethro: There was a soul recognition… A comfortableness. Then there was


a sense of this seems a bit too comfortable, how is it possible? However, rather than questioning what the Universe was putting in front of us, we dived in and said ‘yes’ because it felt like a great big YES.


BB: Was there a specific point when you realised that you were going to be creating and presenting music together?


Prem: We hosted music nights where friends and family came and we all played


music together – for no ‘outcome’; just for the pure joy of it. In a few months we started performing together. Actually, at one point we decided to give up music. We saw that the life of musicians within Australia wasn’t supportive of our life of family because, basically, the only venues we could play in back then were pubs, bars, clubs and markets.


Jethro: We said “no, we won’t be musicians. We’ll be yoga teachers”. We


didn’t realise that by going more in depth with mantras, yoga, and retreats the two would come together and our yoga would be our music. The evolution of our musical journey


was as natural as breathing. It deepened as we deepened; through our spiritual practice, studying to be yoga teachers, following the path of Bhakti yoga. Sacred Earth became our sharing of yoga – sharing our devotion and love of God through our music.


BB: Tell us about your practices and what it takes to adhere to them.


Jethro: Our personal practices include qi gong, meditation, observance of silence,


prayer, talking stick, mantra singing and yoga asanas, immersion in nature and honest, harmonious communication. These practices cultivate connection to our inner selves, to each other and to our


need to open, energise, move or still the body or mind, and enable us, despite our many demands, to maintain a connection to our inner selves.


BB: You recognised the healing power of mantra for you. How did you come to be sharing it with the world?


Jethro: I remember going to my first kirtan at 21. For weeks afterward I felt


somehow changed through chanting the mantras and I wanted more of it. I remember that moment, walking around noticing; I feel amazing and it’s because I did that singing. How did that work? In 2002, we started playing our music in markets, sharing mantra, singing to people who had never heard mantra before. It was a huge journey in trust. We did it, and we had the most unbelievable experiences. The results were profound. People would come with tears in


their eyes and say, “I have no idea what you’re singing, but I want to take it home with me.” Or people would meditate spontaneously or be with us in this really deep space. To watch the effect of mantra on people has been wonderful. Our fans use our music in their lives to help them sleep, to calm nervous energy, in challenging times, in joyful times, for birth and death, for yoga, and massage… It’s more than music. It’s a healing – transformative – presence.


BB: Do you have a story about anyone who might seem to be an unlikely person to show up and receive?


Jethro: Yes, many. Going to markets was always like a social experiment. The


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