A few years ago I was part of a group discussion on how to get inspired when you are feeling spiritually dry. We were each able to remember some high experiences—and most of them were associated with particular pieces of music. Our working hypothesis was that music is a good way to reconnect with the spiritual.
This isn’t a new concept. Most religious traditions have long-standing musical traditions. There are Christian favorites, some by classical composers like Bach, Handel, or Wagner, others by simpler folk who wrote out of pure devotion. Once in a while, a CD of Gregorian chants goes mainstream. In the Hindu tradition, there are bhajans to Shiva and to other deities like Ganesha, the elephant-headed god, and Lakshmi, Durga, and Kali. There are Buddhist mantras to Kuan Yin, the mother of mercy, and to other buddhas and bodhisattvas.
Sometimes certain pieces appeal to us partly because we became familiar with them in childhood. My father’s all-time favorite piece of music was “The Lost Chord,” which was a smash hit in the 1870s and 1880s. No, my father was not alive then, but he knew that piece and he sang or whistled it often, even playing it on the piano (with one finger, literally). Fortunately, I also heard excellent recorded versions of “The Lost Chord.” Whenever I hear it now, I am transported, interestingly, not to my childhood but to other realms. I’m sure my father was too. Music may have been the way he experienced a deep connection to God.
One of my friends has a Sunday morning tradition of listening to his favorite recording of Handel’s Messiah from beginning to end. I have no particular traditions, but when I am too distracted to concentrate on my usual spiritual work, fifteen minutes to half an hour of listening to my favorite spiritual music will generally get me back on track and remind me of who I am and what I’m about. Sibelius’s Finlandia is a special favorite, as well as Shiva bhajans and some magnificent tone poems that for me capture the essence of the divine.
Maybe the way it works is that the music connects me to my heart, and my heart connects me to God. Anyway, music definitely does help me!