Joel Martin: When we think about music, of course, we think about sound. And when we think about meditation, we think about that inner world of peace, of silence. Is there any conflict between music and silence?

Sri Chinmoy: There is no conflict at all, for our Creator Himself is at one with silence and sound. He is the Possessor of cosmic Silence and cosmic Sound. Within is His Silence; without is His Sound. In the beginning, He was all Silence. He was His own transcendental Silence. At that time He was one. Then, He wanted to become many, so He transformed Himself into the universal sound. Previously, before the creation, He was the transcendental Silence. Once He created the universe, He became the universal sound. There can be no conflict between the Creator and the creation. The creation is the sound and the Creator within us is the Silence.