Every Sunday morning, the faint strains of the harmonium wafts through as one enters the first floor of the Ramkrishna Math and Mission at Khar.
A closer inspection reveals a group of adults with their eyes closed, chanting shlokas from the Bhagwad Gita. Once they are done, all that remains are the faint resonations of the chants and a sense of being re-energised.
Chanting, a form of meditation, has healing powers. Consider this: A combination of yoga and Buddhist chanting put a 26/11 survivor on the road to recovery a year after she lost her husband in the shootout at Leopold Cafe. The practice of chanting occupies an important place in religion. Gregorian chants or Vedic shlokas or Buddhist chants or Catholic psalms, rhythmic singing is common to all religions.
Vedic chanting sessions are held at the Ramkrishna Math and Mission every Sunday morning and evening (for kids). The weekly sessions, conducted by Swami Devarupananda, involve chanting of the major Upanishads and Vedic suktas (hymns) in Sanskrit.
“It was a big rage when it started and many of the youth who joined have become monks,” says Devendra Sagar, 45, the first student of the class. Over the years, Sagar, who also chants at home, found himself leading a spiritual life. Sagar actively participates in festivities of other religions as, “each of them have the common goal of spiritual orientation”.
Menaka Joshi, 40, a fashion designer, admits that the chanting sessions she has been attending for four years have kept her perfectly grounded. “You feel these powerful divine vibrations enveloping you, leaving you in a state of complete bliss,” says Joshi. A student of Sanskrit, she has had incidents where on waking up in the middle of the night, she heard the chants reverberate around her.
Chanting can be practiced anywhere, but requires focus. Most religions believe that chanting the lord’s name is a way of liberation from sin.
A practice once associated with the elderly, chanting is slowly taking over the minds of the youth. It provides them with a means to escape and find solutions to their problems. Karan Shalma, 20, had a grudge in his mind against a friend who had hurt him. In accordance with his family’s wishes, he went for a satsang where he was given the message to let go. He decided to try it out, and found he could do it.
Since May this year, Shalma has been reciting ‘Jai Shree Ram’ five times a day. “I’ve had friends come up to me and say ‘dude, you have changed’. I personally feel that I have become more positive,” says Shalma, whose chanting routine takes about 25 minutes.
Charles Gounod’s version of the popular Latin hymn Ave Maria is what classically trained singer and PR professional Leon D’Souza, 24, sings at home (loudly) and at work (softly). “I do it subconsciously whenever I feel like. The hymn has a beautiful melody that is peaceful and calms you down,” says D’Souza, who sings all versions of his favourite hymn. He is part of a band called G-Sus that performs contemporary gospel music. He also likes singing the hymn Panis Angelicus (bread of angels).
Chanting in Buddhism is the traditional way of preparing the mind for meditation. Pooja Bakshi, 24, a fashion stylist, got introduced to Buddhism a year ago through a friend. She chants the Nam Myoho Renge Kyo (the Lotus Sutra) for an hour in the morning and whenever she gets time and space.
The results of her daily ritual have left her with a balanced life. “It disciplines you, making you aware of what you are doing and saying,” she says, adding that faith plays an important role in chanting. Positive thinking is the biggest change in Bakshi’s life. Sometimes she joins others for group chanting. “There is so much force when people chant together that change really does happen,” she says.
It is said that music is a powerful way to connect with god. CDs of spiritual music and chants are very popular, particularly among the NRI crowd. Pandit Jasraj, Jagjit Singh, Lata Mangeshkar, Anuradha Paudwal and Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, with their lilting and soothing voices, are the favourites when it comes to devotional music.
Religion aside, chanting is more about spirituality — “the need to connect with the maker, the most powerful one”. It’s like a prayer that connects believers with “the power of the divine”.
(Names have been changed on request)
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