explore the divine nature of music through the sufi tradition
About the Presentation
My talk will be on the Mysticism of Music in the light of the teachings of Hazrat Inayat Khan and inspired by his seminal work The Mysticism of Sound and Music that has influenced many contemporary musicians as well as being a rich source of Sufi teachings. I’ll be showing some photos and short videos of the 2018 URS celebration in India, which I attended. The URS of a Sufi Master is a celebration of the marriage with the Beloved, that is said to occur after the master passes from the Earth plane.
Here’s a quote from some promotion material for his book:
Music, according to Sufi teaching, is really a small expression of the overwhelming and perfect harmony of the whole universe—and that is the secret of its amazing power to move us. The Indian Sufi master Hazrat Inayat Khan (1882–1927), the first teacher to bring this Sufi mystical tradition to the West, was an accomplished musician himself. His lucid exposition of music’s divine nature has become a modern classic, beloved not only by those interested in Sufism but by musicians of all kinds.
About the Presenter
Dr Ben-Zion Weiss, a leader and mentor of Dances of Universal Peace, is a Sufi guide, a community educator in social ecology, meditation, yoga, drama, ESOL, cross-cultural conflict and non-violence training as well as being an energy healer. He has lectured and tutored at University of Western Sydney, consulted for Multicultural Programs in Cooling Conflicts and inter-cultural programs. His PhD research is on anti-racism drama education for youth/youth workers. It develops a theory of an ecology of culture. He presents at conferences, facilitates workshops for youth workers, teachers and community workers, and facilitates dialogues in spiritual ecology. He is a student of creative mysticism, especially Zen, Kabbalah, Sufism and Shamanism. His book on creativity is based on his thesis, and he has written chapters, poems and papers for other publications. He is a TS member.
