I've been thinking about our interior lives. (I don't mean this in the sense of literal architectural spaces that enclose us.) Lately the roil of the political landscape and the mendacity of the social media presence interrupts all of our inner lives. Music can be a wonderful way to restore the connectivity to our interior conversations. I've recently discovered the music of Sami Yusuf, a musician from the UK. His work blends different musical styles and genres, including elements from Sufi, folk, and rock music. He uses a variety of instruments in his compositions: Western orchestral instrumentation, the oud, setar and tonbak, the human voice. His multilingual and multi-instrumentalist style explores social, spiritual, and humanitarian conditions.
This excerpt is from a recent album, When Paths Meet.
The inner journey is above the sky.
The journey of the body falls on dry land.
But the journey of the spirit sets foot in the heart of the sea.
Even stones take my hand.
-Sami Yusuf
In our interior lives, stones not only take our hands, they speak to us. The world speaks to us in a way different from our verbal orientation. This alive, breathing world is always speaking, and when we enter our interior life, our eyes, ears and hearts open to it.
