“What do you believe is the spiritual significance of music?”
Ah! An interesting question I was asked recently by Justin St Vincent, author of The Spiritual Significance of Music. This is the answer I shared.
“As a singer/songwriter immersed in writing a new song, I perceive no separation between music and divine spirit. Creativity means spirit is speaking directly through me, and the essential me is more present in those moments than at any other time.
As the world moves faster and faster our souls are longing for those moments of divine connection both within and with others. In moments of fear and anxiety it’s easy to perceive other people as being separate from us or even a threat to our well-being. Sharing the universal language of music moves bodies, joins the beating of our hearts, melts boundaries, and gently awakens our awareness of Oneness. It moves us to deep feeling, inspires us to our best creative work, and merges deeply with our souls to renew us. When we open ourselves to the experience we cannot help but be changed.
It matters not whether we are the composer or the listener, the singer or the dancer. Whatever our role, we are of equal importance in the equation. Whether we compose or listen or sing or dance, the music inspires us to make the inner shifts toward joy and fulfillment. When music moves us to say, ah, I see more clearly, I know what that means in my life, we are touching our own divine essence.”
Justin St Vincent is editor of the music webzine XtremeMusic, and an experienced DJ, producer and music journalist.
For his book The Spiritual Significance of Music he has obtained exclusive interviews with one hundred and fifty authors and over five hundred musicians. In order to explore the relationship between music and spirituality he asked each of them that simple question: “What do you believe is the spiritual significance of music?”
The responses of many of the world’s most visionary artists and writers provide a unique insight into how we understand and respond to music in the context of our changing and challenging world.
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