Invaluable guidance with respect to singing done by Sadguru (Mrs.) Anjali Gadgil

Guidance in music by Sadguru (Mrs.) Anjali Gadgil

1 A. Points to be noted when practicing singing

1 A 1. When singing arti it is spiritually appropriate to do so in a lower pitch

Listening to the arti sung by the original artist in high pitch we were trying to imitate him. When Sadguru (Mrs.) Gadgilkaku heard this she said, “By singing arti in this way the sound of the arti does not reach the singer and the listener, it remains outside. The lower the pitch of a song the more beneficial it is spiritually.”

1 A 2. A song should be rehearsed at the level of Divine Consciousness (Chaitanya) and spiritual emotion

When Saint Meerabai sang devotional songs (bhajans) God would actually appear before Her. So when practicing singing we need to note for how long God appeared there. Singing should be done with this perspective. Rehearsing any song should not be mere singing, it should be enriched with Divine Consciousness and spiritual emotion. The song should be charged with so much spiritual emotion that it should evoke spiritual emotion in the singer and if that happens then spiritual emotion is evoked in the audience as well.

1 A 3. When singing a song you have to rehearse such that you go deep into the song and into your subconscious

When singing a song remember you are singing for yourself, not others. Practice it such that you go deep into the song and the song goes into your subconscious. If while practicing this does not happen, then as an atonement rehearse it till it gets charged with spiritual emotion.

1 B. To add Shabdabrahma (God Principle in words) to
Nadabrahma (God Principle in sound) diction of the lyrics should be appropriate

1 B 1. If a singer pronounces the lyrics in a song appropriately then that sound strikes the spiritual energy system (kundalini) within the singer activating his energy. This inturn affects the audience by activating their spiritual energy spontaneously, taking them into meditation state.

When singing an arti or any other song if the words and emphasis on them are laid appropriately then God manifests through words, for example if alphabets such as tha, bha arising from the navel are pronounced appropriately then they strike the spiritual energy of the singer thus activating it. Once the spiritual energy of the singer gets activated it has an impact on the audience inturn activating their spiritual energy spontaneously. As a result listeners automatically go in state of meditation.

1 B 2. Sadguru (Mrs.) Gadgilkaku said that a singer should assess for how long Divine thoughts remained in his mind and try to enhance them

1 C. The Nirgun-Sagun-Nirgun forms of God experienced during arti

‘Before starting arti of any Deity, its non-materialised (nirgun) form is present. After you start singing the arti the materialised (sagun) Principle of that Deity gets activated and after the last alphabet in the lines of the arti is uttered the non-materialised Principle gets reactivated eg Jai Lakshmiramana, Swami Jay Lakshmiramana from the time before the first line in the arti of Deity Shri Satyanarayan is sung, that is before the singing, its non-materilaised Principle is present there. After a line from the arti is sung this Divine Principle becomes manifest in words and once completed it becomes non-materialised again is what we experienced. Hence the last letter in the line of the arti (eg na from the arti) should not be emphasised upon. The vibrations of those notes remain and lead towards Nirgun. Thus singing arti in this way is the journey from Nirgun to Sagun and Sagun to Nirgun.’

– Miss Tejal Patrikar and Mrs. Anagha Joshi, Music section Maharshi Adhyatma Vishwavidyalay, Sanatan ashram, Ramnathi, Goa

Source : Dainik Sanatan Prabhat