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Event Review: Raise Your Vibrations Through Kirtan (Mantra & Chanting)

February 23, 2014 By Monica Stone 1 Comment

I can’t remember when I attended my first kirtan, which is strange because I love it so much. It’s hard to explain, but it just feels so good in my heart and I smile instantly when I start singing and chanting. From the first time I realized how good it felt, I started to crave it, and I just kept looking for kirtan events to attend. Then, I became a kirtan junkie. Eventually life got busy, and my attendance at kirtans and even yoga workshops started to decline.

You know how people say, “You don’t know what you had until it’s gone?” Well, this past Friday when I attended the kirtan hosted by David Newman (aka Durga Das) at Harmony Yoga Studio in Maitland (Orlando / Central FL), I immediately realized how much I missed this in my life, and how healing it is.

Chanting is awesome

What brings me immense happiness in life are yoga and blogging, and I have been able to find a great balance of giving enough attention to both of my passions. But, change is inevitable, and my life has gotten super busy to where I haven’t been able find that balance! I almost didn’t go to the kirtan because it was a Friday night after work, and I was exhausted from the build up of the busy work week. It would have been easy to just cook some soup and hibernate at home, but I had been looking forward to this for months. I knew I didn’t want to miss it and I am so glad that I made myself go. Walking into the yoga studio just felt so good, and it was so great to see so many friendly faces!

Friendly Faces

In the past I’ve tried to explain kirtan to my friends, and it probably sounds a little cult-like. It’s “call and response” chanting in Saskrit to music. The person who leads the kirtan will chant something, and then the audience follows. Each chant continually gets faster and faster, and eventually you lose the call and response and chant together. Then, the music slows down, and instead of clapping, you sit in silent meditation with the energy and vibrations that were just built together in the room. Usually there are pillows on the floor and a few chairs set up. You can sit in meditation position, but it’s also fun to get up and dance.

The video below is a good example of what a kirtan event is like and how it all works. 

 

David Newman and his band came in and sat down in the front, and kind of explained how it all worked. He had a great sense of humor. He said whenever he goes to the gym he sees a sign that says, Judgement Free Zone. He said that we can sit if we want, but if we feel the need to move or get up and dance then we should do that, and that “This is kind of like the gym. It’s a judgement free zone.” It really is that way, and that’s one of the reasons I’ve always loved kirtan. Everyone just feels the bhakti and love and you can take it however you want. No one is judging your singing or dancing. We’re just all in support.  

raising the bhakti

The chants are all really popular and well known mantras in Sanskrit, so you can attend kirtan after kirtan by different musicians and be able to eventually chant along. It’s different than a concert because it’s actually a practice. Similar to how yoga postures are not really exercise, but a meditation practice. The mantras are chanted to open up the chakras, open the heart, and raise the vibrations in the body. 

Right when the music started playing, my eyes closed, and I felt my heart open.

I was about to cry, but instead I smiled.

It was lovely.

 

The very last song was in English. He said that he wrote this mantra and song for people who need healing and love. The practice was for us all to chant this beautiful and healing mantra together, and then think of someone that we need to send healing energy to. It was time to put down my phone and stop taking pictures and really open my heart to healing. It was so beautiful because we were all chanting together, so the whole room was essentially sending healing energy to everyone together.

Here’s how it went (I hope I got this word for word, but if I didn’t, it still works):

Be Bold, Be Free, Be Beautiful. Believe, Be Loved, Be True to You. As Far, And Wide, Remember there is always someone thinking of you. We are all thinking of you. 

Do you have someone in your life who needs healing? Why not make this a practice before bed? 

chrsitinas shot
 
 
David Newman & his wife, Mira, are founders of the Stay Strong Project
Other affiliations are: Blue Spirit Wheel & ChantLanta Sacred Music Festival
 
These are my first video edits ever, so they’ll get better from here. Yes, that is me singing in one of the videos, but remember, “judgement free zone,” and feel free to pin any of these pics!
love-monica.jpg
 

Filed Under: Daily Life, Instruction Tagged With: Chanting, kirtan, Mantra, yoga

Monica Stone

About Monica Stone

Monica is a lover of all things yoga, a vegetarian, an avid tea drinker, and never gets sick of soup and noodle dishes. She teaches yoga, practices daily, and runs a Spiritual Book Club in Orlando, FL. She likes to challenge the strict rules of yoga, and makes it accessible for everyone - especially people who suffer from daily life and work stress.

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Hi! I’m Monica

Monica StoneWell hello there! I'm Monica. I'm a yoga & meditation teacher (and junkie). I teach yoga practices that are quick and effective for the busy person who just needs a few minutes of quiet time in their day. Click around and you'll find quick meditation tips for calming the mind to simple stretches to relieve stress and tension. If you are sick of being intimidated by yoga or just confused by all of the different styles out there - then this page is for you. Yoga helps me daily & I know it will help you too! I'll show you how! Welcome to The Yogi Movement :)

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  • Jaime ShearerJaime ShearerYoga Student Since 2012

    Monica is dedicated to her own practice and the true path of yoga - the one of personal experience - which makes her an outstanding teacher. She is warm and easy to talk with, and she allows the student to have their own experience on the mat. She explains postures and breath in ways that are understandable so that the student "gets it." She makes yoga real and tangible in ways that truly serve the student. Work with Monica. You'll be glad you did.

  • Jacob AbercrombieJacob AbercrombieYoga Student Since 2011

    have always wanted to try yoga, but was always nervous. Monica took that fear away and made me feel like i was the only one in class with a room full of strangers. She is able to work with multiple students during the same move and still make it a personalized class for one.

  • Serena JonesSerena JonesYoga Student Since 2010

    Monica has been a highly influential teacher to me. She creates a safe environment for learning and practice. I have always felt grounded in her classes, and she pushes me beyond my own expectations. She inspires and motivates! I can't imagine my life without sharing a path with her!

  • Angela OrofinoAngela OrofinoYoga Student Since 2011

    Monica is a caring, wise, thoughtful, and talented yoga instructor. She has an in-depth knowledge of the philosophy and spirituality of Ashtanga yoga. My previous yoga experience had mostly just been at my local gym. Luckily, last year I found Monica. She has been guiding my practice at least once a week since then. As a newcomer to Ashtanga yoga, Monica made me feel comfortable and had the patience to teach me the basics. She also encouraged me to start an at home practice so that I was able to obtain a deeper understanding of Ashtanga. Monica is always encouraging and lets me know in subtle ways when she feels that I am ready to move deeper into my practice. I feel that the growth in my practice over the last year has been tremendous. Not only do I notice the change in me but others around me do as well. I am so grateful to have found Monica!

  • Sasha TamarSasha TamarYoga Student Since 2012

    I’ve come across many a yoga instructor over the years, but Monica stands out as genuinely amiable, as she glows with an infectious inner light, and highly devoted to and passionate about her practice. Her dedication to Ashtanga as a lifestyle is very clear, and creates for a contagious motivating force. Every time I’ve practiced with her, she eagerly transmits her devotion and passion of Ashtanga and meditation to everyone in class; she makes the most fledgling beginner feel at home, and simultaneously challenges the more advanced students. While I only practice Ashtanga with her, I know she provides therapeutic yoga sessions as well as meditation. And, if her methods of guiding students out of the Ashtanga vigor into the more meditative savasana are indicative of her meditational techniques, I’d recommend her to anyone

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