Invocation: by Inayat Khan

[Guest guest]

The Magic of the Accidental Nigun

 

or

 

The Mysterious Case of the Open Heart

 

 

 

In the Dances of Universal Peace, many of the songs are based on

languages that are completely foreign to the dancers. Nonetheless,

under the guidance of the Dance leader, the group learns how to say

the words and we go on merrily chanting whatever we have been told.

 

What if our pronunciation is so terrible that a native speaker would

not even recognize the words?

 

What if the words are nonsense?

 

Or worse yet, what if we are actually using words by mistake, words

that mean something far removed from our intention?

 

Despite our good intentions, it's common for our pronunciation of

foreign words or our intonation of sacred sounds to be far from

perfect.

 

There are dances in which the words that we chant simply make no

sense, some in which the sacred syllables are mispronounced, and

others where the words that we are taught are not actually the

intended words.

 

So, knowing that our lyrics might not be enjoyed by a native speaker

of that language, yet also knowing that we are having a fine time

singing the song anyhow, it's necessary to get back to that original

question:

 

What if the words are nonsense?

 

What if we are not intoning the sacred syllables properly?

 

Does it really matter?

 

We're often told that certain sounds that we are using in the Dance

have ancient spiritual powers as they resonate with the millions of

voices who have chanted those same words through the millennia, only

to find out later that we have totally mispronounced the words... yet

they still had magical powers.

 

After watching the magic that happens in a typical Dance circle,

regardless of how the words and sacred sounds are pronounced or

mispronounced, it's easy to see that the pronunciation is not very

important (except perhaps to an appalled native speaker of that

language).

 

So, if the pronunciation of the words and intonation of the sacred

sounds really doesn't matter, what makes the Dance work so magically?

Where does the magic of the Dance come from?

 

Intention is the key. We intend to sing a sacred song, our hearts are

proclaiming a sacred song, and thus it is sacred.

 

Yet there is more. Our sacred intention and the sacred atmosphere

that has been created are the perfect opportunity for a shift in

consciousness into a new realm of experience. Our sacred intention,

coupled with a beautiful melody and a repetitive drum beat are a

perfect atmosphere for a profound shift of consciousness.

 

The sacred intent of the gathering, the sacred words, the music, the

group movements and the drum beat all work together to establish a

harmonious relationship among the dancers. This state of harmony is a

blissful state where the Divine outpouring of Love and Beauty is

directly experienced.

 

When we are in harmony with our surroundings, we are in harmony with

Creation, and we directly experience Love and Beauty all around us.

 

Toward the One

the perfection of Love, Harmony and Beauty....

 

~ Sufi

Invocation, by Inayat Khan