Many of us approach a new year believing that changing the calendar will bring new promise and a clean slate on which we can write our personal history. After 2008, the planet’s annus horribilis, many are hopeful that somehow after midnight on the last day of the year, a fresh wind will bring renewal to their personal fortunes as well as to those countries reeling from the economic bouleversement that has left the nations in a tailspin.
We can be sure that the challenges will not magically disappear at 12:01 am January 1, 2009. But we can support and strengthen each other with words of encouragement, and continue to sow seeds of hope. Through the miracle of the internet we can continue to reach out to our global community with our exchange of ideas in our quest for solutions. We may have already realized that the answers do not lie with any one individual, nor does the responsibility for change rest on the shoulders of one. Each of us has part of the answer.
Listen to American musician Jai Uttal’s Guru Bramha, a deliciously hypnotic fusion of jazz, reggae and soul elements with the predominant Indian bhajan and light kirtan devotional and chanting influence. The track features the sound of the sarod, a stringed instrument and cousin to the sitar, though with a deeper introspective mood compared to the other’s light sweetness.
Meditative and subtly sensual, the music is a product of the rich mélange of musical traditions in a shrinking world, where one country slides into recession and all the nations tumble. It tells us we should capitalize on the positive aspects our interconnectedness. Could that be the answer to our challenges? May 2009 not only bring you, but find you with Peace, Harmony, deeper Faith, Prosperity in every sense, and the love and support of Family or your Community.
