Waking up for early morning sadhana is not always easy. If you aren't in the habit, or are just starting out, hitting the snooze button and rolling over for a little more sleep is very tempting. That's why sadhana music needs to be beautiful, singable, and needs to inspire devotion. Beautiful music is a joy to listen to, and encourages you in your practice. Singable music makes the time go by much quicker, and is rewarding to chant along with. And if each track inspires devotion, you'll find yourself looking forward to spending those early morning hours doing sadhana instead of sleeping. Dharm Khalsa's new release Angels of Awakening is a sweet album of sadhana music that meets all of the requirements above.
Dharm Khalsa was born in Denmark and raised in the United States. At the young age of 8 years old, his mother introduced him to yoga. As a young man the early 80s, Dharm met Yogi Bhajan and began his journey into the world of the sacred sound current. An accomplished piano player, Dharm played for Yogi Bhajan and his guests at various functions. He regularly plays during morning sadhana, and has recorded several albums besides Angels of Awakening.
Angels of Awakening is great for those days you need to ease into consciousness. The acoustic sound of each track is gentle and soothing, allowing you to really sink into each mantra. “Rakhe Rakhan Har” stands out as a nice example, with the instruments seeming to cradle the vocals and creating a relaxing space for meditation on the mantra itself. The final two tracks,“Wahe Guru Wahe Jio” and “Guru Ram Das Guru,” pick up the pace and energy slightly, becoming more alert while still maintaining the meditative mood of the album as a whole.
One lovely aspect of Angels of Awakening is the pairing of Dharm Khalsa and Sat Purkh Kaur on vocals. Sometimes it can be difficult as a female to find the proper range when following a male singer, and vice versa. Here, the masculine and feminine voices come together beautifully, and make it easy for anyone to chant along.
Instrumentally, Angels of Awakening is gorgeous. Viola, flute, and guitar are just a few of the instruments that create the peaceful, meditative mood of the album. While each track is beautiful, I found myself especially moved by “Mul Mantra (Ek Ong Kar),” where the layers of instruments create a rich musical accompaniment to the mantra. Each time you listen, a new instrument may jump out at you until you believe Dharm was working with an entire orchestra in the recording studio!
There are a lot of sadhana albums out there to choose from, and maybe you have a favorite and don't want to stray. But changing things up with something different is a great way to bring new energy to your sadhana practice, and new energy is always a good thing early in the morning! Dharm Khalsa's Angels of Awakening is a great album with a lot of depth, and may be just what you're looking for in the Amrit Vela! To find out more about Dharm Khalsa, and to buy Angels of Awakening, visit www.spiritvoyage.com.
If you want to hear more from Sat Purkh Kaur, check out her newest release, "Queen Be"
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