Round and round and round

         In circles he goes ,

 The busy whistle of life at intervals, blows.

   Amidst the chaos a pretty heart he finds

But the search is hopeless, and he feels like giving up before time.

His heart stutters and he falters at his chores.

     At the back of his mind, he thinks, 

      ' If only I could find a shore ! '

    He sits down ,  one moist afternoon 

 Sipping on his tepid tea, pondering on how, the future is like an unchartered sea.

      He stirs the tea with his finger 

    Only to encounter his once stagnant                   thoughts linger.

' What is the use of all this ? ' , he wonders.

     ' But only to play your part well ', 

   Something said from his deepest corner.

 He pulled down the curtain of his eyelids

            And looked Inside, 

      Well, how long could it hide.

With the spectacle of the lights and sound of  nature

      He set out to find , to venture.

        With a flash, he could see ,

A play, and actors, just as they were fit to be.

He sat alone, amidst the emptiness of the hall,      

To find that he stood amongst them all.

    The play went on, he played his part. 

      Now it was time for him to depart.

He looked around to meet the playwright,

    But Oh! What ! He is out of sight! 

With a heavy heart he thought of leaving, 

    Only to hear heartful carols beaming.

The actors he made friends with came to greet,

With the assurance ,

           ' We will surely meet! ' 

Someone said , ' You see, He has asked you to be in the next play! '

he said  with compliance, 'As he may!'

With heavy steps he was walking away,

When someone pulled him to ask, 

             'How did you like the play?'

He thought he saw it all in a simple glance,   

 Just as his tea-cup feel on the floor to break   his trance;                 

   He looked around, to see the changed hues.

             The clouds had sailed                           And the sky was blue.

   As he looked at the fading rainbow , 

           He said to himself, 

          ' Just enjoy the show '

' The play of Life '

Sound has a profound influence on us. We are intricately weaved with the element of sound. If you hear a divine Carnatic set , or the tunes of the sitar playing amidst heavy showers with thunders in the background, you tend to feel transcendental. 

Sound  or perhaps music, corresponds to our emotions as well.

When we hear a sad guitar or a jolly good tune , we start feeling likewise . Everything around us is intertwined with sound vibrations.

The fact that the maestro of Akbar's court , one of his Navaratna's, Tansen , could bring rains after his revitalise not even a little bit of exaggeration.

How when a heart ful song is sung and the strings of the heart are plucked , eyes become moist. How can the overwhelming song of the Soul keep the sky from shedding its tears and giving everything a sense of utter completeness - like a vessel filled to the brim.

We have often seen how devotees on Chanting the Lord's name:

       " Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare" 

The transcendental bliss of Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu

Are completely engrossed in Bhava or ecstatic bliss, and shed tears profusely. They become one with the essence of the mantra , they become one with their beloved and there is none. They taste the infinite . This is indeed , absolute conpletion . The fulfilment of life, cessation of desires and hence the end of all misery.

When you hear a piece of music, any music, did you ever feel you became one with the music , so much so that you forget all about yourself. These moments when we forget ourselves bring unnatural joy. . When we forget ourselves , we are not  Someone , we are but our True Selves. 

 Sound is fundamental to everything that exists. We live amidst vibrations all the time , but our conditionings prevent us from perceiving it. 

Everything is fined tuned. The thumping of our heart, the surge of blood in our veins , the silence - laden  ascent and descent of our chest when we breathe, the stomp of our steps, the flick of our hair, the  ceaseless closing and opening of our eyes , everything is in an undescribable harmony,  dancing to an unheard tune. 

It is a symphony , one that cannot be recreated no matter how big a musical prodigy you are. 

Om - the eternal hum

Yogis have often talked about the " Anahata "- the unstruck sound . The cosmic vibration of  Om is meditated upon to bring the senses in alignment with that of the tune of the universe.

The cosmic form of Nataraja - in perfect balance , symbolises the dance of destruction and rejuvenation. He is necessarily destroying everything in his dance to the tunes of the eternal hum of  Hiranyagarbha ( the golden egg).

Nada brahma or shabda brahma is the essence of consciousness. 

Mantras mean infinity. The sound vibration is beyond the cognition of the mind , and mind naturally moves into a meditative state. 

   " Mañana Trayete iti Mantra "

- a mantra is that which saves you from repetitiveness. A repetitive thought is a worry . A mantra breaks that chain and the vibration eventually brings you to a more restful and  serene state of mind. 

A Mantra , sung in the right metre , knocks the right doors and eventually flings it open.  It is like programing your brain to a particular thought. When the meaning associated with the mantra is imbibed while chanting it , we programme our brains accordingly.

The entire Sama Veda , is dedicated to music. 

The beautiful vedic hymns, if  constantly sung in metre, brings a sense of transcendence .

Chanting or sound vibration is a way of programming the mind in an affirmative way- making it disciplined and eventually still like an unflickering  flame. With such a mind one can attain anything desired.