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Awakenings I
nfluential spiritual leader Ram Dass has described Krishna
Das (Jeffrey Kagel) as an example of someone whose “heartsongs” open channels to God. The Grammy-nominated kirtan artist, long con- sidered yoga’s rock star, consistently plays to sold-out crowds worldwide. The Long Island native’s journey has gone from being a member of a popular rock band to going to India, where as a student of spiritual leader Neem Karoli Baba, the trajectory of his life and music shifted and expanded. His 1996 debut album, One
Track Heart, focused on updated chants from the ancient tradition of bhakti yoga, followed in 1998 by Pilgrim Heart, with a guest appearance by Sting. Since then, a steady stream of 14 albums and DVDs produced on his own label have provided the soundtrack for yoga classes every- where; the soothing rhythmic chants performed in a deep, rich timbre com- plements instruction in the spiritual element of the exercise. Das’ specialty, kirtan, updates an
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38 Long Island Edition
ancient tradition of devotional chant- ing as meditation accompanied by instruments. A kirtan concert invites audience members to join in the experience through chanting, clapping and dancing and is characterized as a journey into the self that also connects us with each other.
www.NaturalAwakeningsLI.com
How would you introduce
your music? Across the country and around the world, yoga practitioners are chant- ing the names of God in tongues including Sanskrit, Hindi, Punjabi and English. They’re
taking kirtan music out of the temples and the yoga studios and into dance halls, universities, cathedrals and other unexpected places.
In the last decade, India’s tradi- tional call-and-response form of chant- ing has been reinvented by modern devotional artists blending traditional kirtan with modern genres such as rock, rhythm and blues, hip-hop and elec- tronica—breathing new life and devo- tion into yoga’s sacred chants.
What does kirtan mean to you? For me, kirtan is all about the music. The more ways I practice sustainable health, balance, love and music and immerse myself in a spiritual life, the more I realize that all issues distill down to simple facts. Everyone wants to be loved and happy, and to avoid suffering and being judged. Looking at our lives, we start to see
how we hurt ourselves and others and how what happens to us in daily life can be difficult to deal with. We recognize that we must find deep inner strength so we don’t get destroyed by the waves that come and try to toss us around.
with Krishna Das Kirtan Music Transports
Inside the Chant
Listeners to a Deeper Place by Robin Fillmore
Photo by Payal Kumar
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