Blessing Water – Singing to Heal the Waters of the World
We are approaching World Water Day in the wake of the tsunami and earthquake in Japan. As the world is shaken and stirred to the core by these events, it feels very timely to be reflecting on our relationship to our inner and outer waters.
Nothing is softer or more flexible than water, yet nothing can resist it.- Lao Tzu
Water is an incredibly versatile substance which is inextricably connected with sound. Existence begins in many creation stories with water and sound. Our own life starts in the waters of the womb, in which we develop our first sense, hearing. Hence why the sound of ocean waves and rippling rivers has the power to induce a hypnotic state of calm. The sonic capacity of water ranges from the drip of a tap, to percussive rainfall, to pounding storms, wild waterfalls and the boom of a tsunami.
The flow of our own inner waters is essential for our health and wellbeing. Water makes up 70% of our body, most of which is found inside our cells. The rest forms the fluids that transport vital substances around our body and a tiny amount is held in contained places like our eyes and spine. Water makes up 70% of the world’s surface, most of which is ocean water. Only 2.75% is drinkable freshwater – found in lakes, rivers, ice and groundwater, making it a very precious commodity.
Water has the ability to conduct sound four times faster than air, which enables whales to communicate with each other and navigate long distances. The sounds of the earth moving (infrasound) can be detected by many animals whose ears are highly sensitive to these frequencies and will become unsettled hours before a storm or earthquake. Cosmically, water conducts the songs and sounds of the planets - the cycle of the moon influences the tides within and without.
Water literally and figuratively represents our ability to flow in and out of our life experiences on all levels and in all aspects – mental, emotional, physical and spiritual. We are each as deep as the ocean and as playful as the sparkling waves. Our songs and words are like the foam dancing on the sea of our existence. The more keenly attuned we are to our deeper selves, the more accurately we can express ourselves and be received in the world. We rebirth when we allow our deepest emotions to be heard and expressed safely.
There is currently much discussion of a process of Awakening/Ascension in these times, connected with the end of the Mayan Calender in 2012, and certainly there is a surging wave of interest in spiritual practices. More and more people are seeking out ways to soothe their own troubled waters and to restore the flow of connection in their lives. It occurs to me that there is also an accompanying Descension – coming down to the shaking earth with a big bump for a reality check. The comforts of the Western industrial world are bought at devastating costs to vast numbers of people and wildlife globally. The addiction to an oil-powered, consumerist society is maintained by a dazzling array of multimedia distractions – Facebook, TV, movies, computer games etc – which means we inhabit increasingly disconnected virtual realities. This numbs the mind to the emotional, political, social and ecological impact of daily living, which we are in fact registering all the time subconsciously.
The pollution of water by industrial, nuclear, agricultural and domestic waste now means that 14,000 people die daily from water pollution issues and 500 million people lack access to drinking water. Countless species of aquatic wildlife are now endangered to the point of extinction as a result.
Water is also being polluted sonically. Military sonar uses powerful sound waves in order to determine the location of other vehicles by the frequency of the echoes which are returned. This disrupts the natural communication system of whales, damaging their sensitive ears and causing them to decrease their songs, become disorientated and beach themselves. Explosions from nuclear testing and underwater drilling create shockwaves, damaging the hearing of whales and causing them to surface too quickly. Many species of whales are endangered.
If it follows that the waters of the world can be deeply disrupted by sound, it also follows that sound can influence water positively. Dr Masuro Emoto has illustrated the effects of different types of words and sounds on water crystals, giving scientific legibility to the practice of blessing water. Practitioners of many spiritual traditions have always understood the power of water to carry sacred intent. We can restore this respect for water in our own daily lives in so many ways: being careful about our water consumption, using eco-friendly products, supporting the work of water charities, treading gently when we visit natural water, offering water blessings (singing in the shower!) and by being mindful of the flow of our own energies. With our intent, we can visualise clean, pure water for all and take action to find sustainable solutions for a healthy world.
Personally I was jolted into awareness by the oil spill last year, which inspired one of the songs on my latest release, Shiva’s Rain. I absolutely know that I have been addicted to the mirage of the modern world and I am endeavouring to break free and wake up to our connectedness - to the planet and each other. The tears in Japan are made of the same water which flows from my eyes and like so many of us who are witness to their grief, I offer my thoughts and songs.
I invite you to join with me in singing to the water. Let us send out our own powerful sonars of love and compassion to the seas and to the troubled waters within and without. Let us learn from water to become fluid, receptive and to listen to the sound currents of one another and the planet we inhabit.
There are a number of events happening across the world on March 22nd World Water Day. These can be found at http://www.worldwaterday.org/
Water Aid - Sing for Water - http://www.wateraid.org/
The World Walks for Water - http://www.worldwalksforwater.org/
Greenpeace Oceans Campaign - http://www.greenpeace.org/international/en/campaigns/oceans/
Wishing you the rippling, laughing, bubbling, effervescent flow of your own sparkling waters
♥ Love Katie x ♥ x ♥ x ♥
March 15th - Healing Water - featuring Carina Coen & Katie Rose, 7-10.30pm Inspiral Lounge, 250 Camden High Street, Camden Lock N1 - www.inspiralled.net
March 20th - Spring Equinox Kirtan at The Yogi Tree, 5-7pm, 193 Woolwich Road, Greenwich, London SE10 0RJ - www.theyogitree.co.uk
March 22nd - World Water Day - Singing For Water - 7-9.30pm, Spiritual Connections, The Spectator, 6 Little Britain Street, London, EC1A 7BX - www.spiritual-connections.co.
March 22nd - Miraculous Music on Radio Lightworker - Celebrating the power of music to heal the waters of the world - www.radiolightworker.com
For full details please visit the Events Page on my Website - www.therosewindow.org
