The Switch
It took nearly 6 years of preparation and behind the scenes negotiation for the orchestra I played with to land a concert with Luciano Pavarotti. It was a small market, and he was still in great demand as a soloist.
I had been practicing Tai Chi Gung for about 5 years by that time. I was spending quite a bit of time trying to figure out how the soul chill listening to music worked, what brought it in, why it happened sometimes, and not other times.
On the evening of the dress rehearsal, Pavarotti was running through several arias singing quietly in half voice, just marking the rubato he wanted in different places. I happen to be sitting about 10 feet from him, directly between the conductor’s podium and the side door to the hall.
Facing the front, I couldn’t see, but a news crew from the local T.V. station came in and turned on the cameras to catch a feature spot for the evening news. Pavarotti saw them, turned directly toward the camera and opened up into full concert voice, with full artistic expression.
A wave of soul energy washed through me at that moment, and he was looking and singing directly at me from 10 feet away. It was overwhelming, so moving. At that moment, I realized that there was a switch, that inside every human being there is a decision to turn on this soul vibration or shut it off. It was not a random accident one hoped for, but a choice.
From that day forward, things changed dramatically. Once I knew that I could turn it on, I started to look for the switch consciously. It took time to hone that skill. It’s remarkable how many clues are in the scriptures of the world and the ancient yoga texts that explain it. A humble, open heart is a requirement. The ability to sustain childlike wonder helps tremendously. A higher purpose, music in service to the greater good helps a lot. Music that syncs with the angelic kingdom makes it a lot easier. Stepping into improvisation turned out to be a critical step. Ones willingness to be in the present has a lot to say about whether the soul energy comes or goes.
The most critical and influential part, however, is the practice of Tai Chi Gung. The entire system is based on principles of regeneration taught by the Siddha Yoga masters for 50,000 years. Boganathar/Lao Tzu designed simple standing exercises that brought one into harmony with the life force of Nature and then drew the soul energy down from the 5th dimension into the 3rd.
Success with this regeneration depends on one’s spiritual transformation as well. All the things that increase the soul chill in music, also increase the regeneration of the physical body as a student of Tai Chi Gung. The more spiritually aligned one is with the Divine; however one chooses to describe it, or believes it to be so, amplifies the soul energy in the body and accelerates healing.
It is one of the simplest, most profound ways to live a holistic life ever explored on the planet. What I find remarkable is that the discipline has been passed down for more than 3000 years in an unbroken lineage. So few people are aware of it, yet it is the single most powerful holistic health system ever conceived. I’ve been truly fortunate to find Master Lama Rasaji and Tai Chi Gung. It has manifested a wonderful musical life. I look forward to many more decades exploring its wonder and inspiration.
Visit www.MusicInspiredByNature.com to hear improvisations with soul energy as the singular focus and intent. Instrumental prayer comes close to describing it.
