Question: What Can We Do To Sing...

Question: What can we do to sing most soulfully?

Sri Chinmoy: You have to think of both the body of the song and the soul of the song. The body of the song is each word. You have to know the meaning of the song well. You may not know the meaning in the same way that I know it, but the actual meaning, the literal meaning, you know well. Suppose you are singing Ore Mor Kheya . You come to know the meaning: Ore is O; Mor is my; Kheya is boat. So when you sing, immediately you come to think of a boat in front of you, a tiny boat. Then the next word is neye; it means boatman. A boat has to have a boatman. So first you envision the boat and then the boatman; you bring the image right in front of your mind. This is the body aspect of the song.

But if you can meditate for five minutes or ten minutes before you sing, then you will get the soul aspect of the song from your meditation. Even if you have not meditated, sometimes it is possible, while bringing the image of each word to your mind, to also get the soul aspect. But you have to be a great seeker.

If you bring the soul aspect forward and also symbolically bring the body aspect forward, the song becomes really soulful. At that time, those who are listening are bound to feel the soul inside the music. They may not even hear your words, your language; they will only see the soul inside. They will see in your face the divine reality. Sometimes your soul has permeated your outer face, and your face is shining. At that time, they don't see anything but the soul.