In the Beginning was the Word, and the Word was with GOD, and the Word was GOD. (John 1:1)
What is the link between the Absolute Reality and Sound?
If we take literally the words of St. John, then they are synonymous. Even taken metaphorically, the primary link between Sound and Source is evidenced by the central role played by music and other sound forms in the ceremonies and rituals of virtually all the World's Spiritual Traditions. The Delphic Hymn to Apollo from Pagan traditions, Tuvan Throat Singing from Tibetan Buddhism, Japanese Gagaku from the Shinto Faith, Hindustani and Carnatic music from India, Hawaiian Chant and the Requiem Mass of Mozart are but a few examples. This interrelatedness of Sound and the Sacred, then, is Universal.
Why, then is there so little mention of the primacy of sound to the Universal experience of the Highest?
Could it be that in our modern society, the sanctity of sound has been degenerated to the point that even so called "religious" music is now just a poor imitation of popular music styles? Indeed, a visit to many churches will reveal music which though it purports to "praise," is little more than a reiteration of the same stale impressions (in the form of repeating pop melodies and chord progressions) of which the radio already supplies a steady diet. If this is the fate suffered by "religious" music, imagine what has become of "art" music. And how much more devoid of any semblance of higher sounds will have become the popular musics, which display no compunction at serving only commerical aims?
Still, sound forms deeply imbued with the Sacred have not altogether disappeared from modern society. Rather, in an example of the potential for the positive nexus between the modern and the Sacred, one can now discover such music through the use of a "search engine." Any such inquiry is likely to reveal the music compiled over a century ago by a remarkable man whose search was real, not virtual. G.I. Gurdjieff travelled during the late 19th and early 20th centuries throughout Egypt, the Middle East, Central Asia and the Far East. During his Search for Ancient Wisdom concerning the sense and significance of Life on Earth, he collected Sacred Music from a wide variety of Spiritual Traditions: Sufi, Essene, Tibetan, Orthodox, even some with unmistakably "ancient" qualities. Later, in a collaboration with noted composer and conductor Thomas de Hartmann (a pupil of Gurdjieff's) he transcribed these pieces. Eventually, this collection was published by Schott, and many of the works have also been recorded. A recording of de Hartmann playing the works is availble from the Gurdjieff-Legacy website.
That Gurdjieff compiled such a rich and diverse collection of Sacred Music is in itself a Gift. That he integrated these pieces into a system of Self-Transformation which included Sacred Movements, Meditation, and a series of Sacred Literature portraying a Cosmology in which the entire Universe is organzied according to Laws akin to those governing sound is Promethean in its Scale and Vision.
A significant portion of this weblog will therefore examine this body of Sacred Sound by this Unique Individual. Other sections will examine Sacred Sound from a variety of World Traditions, in an effort to better understand the significance of sound and its impact on human consciousness.
