Sunday, June 24, 2007

basking in the light - IV

many of us know that guruji is a great lover of music. when he is listening to music you can see that he is in a completely different plane. he is able to deeply experience the music.

this is one of the reasons that some of the greatest musicians in the country are able to instantly connect with him. the common thread is the divinity that music invokes in them - the musician, the aficionado and the music. in its purest form.

one evening we were assembled in guruji's kutiya after dinner. guruji suddenly popped a question at us - what is the definition of music? he wanted each one of us to share our understanding and definition of music.

each one of us tried to outdo the other in trying to define music. some called it a pleasant rhythmic arrangement of sounds; some a garland of notes; while some other called it the voice of the soul. but everybody knew that none of these definitions were able to completely define music.

finally guruji defined music as 'the adornment of silence'!

he likened it to the adornment on a bride at her wedding. he said that the bride may be beautiful, but the adornments enhance and emphasise the beauty of the bride. similarly music helps us to appreciate the beauty of the silence. and the entire attempt of music is to help us focus on that silence and the divinity that lies therein!

this was the most profound and apt definition of music that i have ever come across.

- sandeepany sadhanalaya, 2006

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