Session 3
Chanted Prayer

Chanted Prayer
 

Reflection

As a form of invocation, contemplative chant has been a significant aspect of spiritual practice found in all sacred traditions. It is a deep form of prayer descending into one’s own depths away from the surface noise of the mind and the outer world. Chanting invites us in and downward into the interior silence of the heart.

Not only is chant an invitation to experience invocatory prayer (calling out the divine Name), it is also a practice that involves breathing which engages us physically through breathe, voice, and song. Mentally it invites our understanding, and spiritually it takes us into a melodic movement moving us deeper through a simple practice.

We ask you to listen to this chant drawn from the Hebrew tradition of the Psalms (Psalm 46:10). Notice its beauty, simplicity, but also its complexity.

This simple chant allows you to consider many possibilities as it takes you down, line by line, into the center of your soul. It is there you experience not only the divine Reality, but also your own essential being.

Chanting in this way give you an opportunity to move to a center-point inside yourself. It is in that silence and deep quiet space where you can most profoundly experience the reality of the divine Presence and its consciousness within your be-ing.

Practice

  1. Find a quiet and comfortable spot where you can be alone and listen to the chant more than once, perhaps several times.

  2. When you are comfortable, add your own voice, breathing into its rhythm.

  3. After listening and chanting for awhile, stop and sit quietly in the silence that it has created inside and around you. Do this for a certain amount of time (perhaps 10-20 minutes).

  4. When you feel it is time to emerge from the silence, journal your experience. What happened to you as you went through this practice? What did you experience and what was created inside you? How do you feel now?

  5. Has this contemplative practice raised any questions for you that you would like to consider further or discuss with others? What are your questions? Add these to your journal.