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Wednesday, November 28, 2007 What About Sanskrit? By Shivadam @ 1:11 PM :: 99 Views :: 0 Comments :: Kirtan Lyrics   As a kirtan leader, I continue my study of classical Sanskrit to ensure that my pronunciation is accurate. Sanskrit is not only an ancient and sacred language, it is a system that quite scientifically relates to human physiology, and proper pronunciation affects the human body and spirit in ways that may not happen as effectively without knowledge of the production of the sounds of the entire alphabet, many of which are quite unfamiliar to western languages speakers. Also, as kirtan is an art and practice based in Indian mysticism, endeavoring to honor this tradition from which we gratefully benefit is itself a process that can deepen our attunement to the practice. Additionally, for those who record, it is all the more important not to diffuse the power of the mantric syllables of this ancient tongue with poor pronunciation, because then those who will learn to chant from our recordings will not have the benefit of the full power of Sanskrit. Studying for over 20 years, and presently under direct tutelage with a Swamiji from the Vedanta Society, I read, write, and accurately recite the entire Devanagari alphabet - the alphasyllabary which reflects the sounds that the ancient rishis discovered and brought forth as the Sanskrit language we know today. I am happy to address the topic of Sanskrit use in kirtan chanting.

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