This blog is for all in Oxford and beyond who enjoy chanting sacred sounds
Regretfully, due to bad weather conditions, we shall have to cancel tomorrow's kirtan. Some of our kirtaniyas are stranded in snow-bound villages, and Chakrini, who was to come from London, would be safer staying there in such treacherous weather.
For our upcoming December kirtan, we're fortunate to be having the young kirtaniya, Chakrini, visit us and lead us in chanting. Chakrini, singer, songwriter and musician, has just released her new kirtan CD, Songs of the Soul. As her website (where you can also hear excerpts from the CD) describes: "A childhood and a lifetime spent immersed in sacred chants and music, has given Chakrini's devotional singing a depth that goes straight to the heart and the soul." We hope you can come and join us for and enchanting Christmas kirtan on 19th December.
November's kirtan, led by Ranchor Prime, was unusual and interesting. Ranchor is an interesting person! As well as his work in the field of conservation, here and in India, Ranchor is an artist, a musician and a writer and publisher: this year he published his book on the ancient text Bhagavad-Gita. So this time, he spoke to us a little on the philosophy of Bhagavad Gita and led us in singing some of the Sanskrit verses from the text, something we've never done before at our kirtans, but which was inexplicably satisfying. Then we chanted some of our regular mantras, enjoying Ranchor's mellow singing and musicality and ended up with mulled apple juice and biscuits to completely satisfy the inner self.
