The Appalachian Dharma and Meditation Center is opening its doors this Saturday for two hours of relaxing Buddhist chants by Ryan Fair and accompanied by musical group NamBhava.
The event is steeped in Buddhist practices and beliefs, with the chants being sung in Sanskrit, an ancient Indian language and ancestor to modern day European languages.
Crystal singing bowls and gongs, alongside traditional instruments such as drums and guitars, will be used to create an experience authentic to the Buddhist tradition.
Ryan Fair has 20 years of experience in this field and spoke highly of the effects of the chants.
“These chants really help to clear away all the muck in the mind that blocks our ability to feel love, joy, peace and enlightenment,” he said. “It cleans the house on one level, but it activates us on another level.”
“It’s very good for people that are experiencing stress,” he said, noting the therapeutic benefit of sound and using one’s voice.
This type of meditative approach is similar to the western concept of hypnosis and hypnotherapy, which seeks to alleviate similar concerns by using the power of suggestion. This is in turn a powerful concept often used by businesses, particularly in advertising.
To Fair, however, chanting is about far more than influencing choices. It’s on a far more cosmic scale. According to him, it is all a matter of the Sanskrit language.
“As you make these suggestions, as you chant to yourself and into the fabric of the universe, the effect is a lot more profound than what you could suggest to yourself in your own language through hypnosis,” he said. “It is a form of programming, but the design is to program you to be back in tune and enlightened with nature. Everyone has this enlightened nature with them. It’s not something you gain or achieve. It’s really when we’re in tune with our essential nature. That’s enlightenment.”
The event is not strictly religious, either. Fair likens it to yoga classes, but for the mind instead of the body. Being as such, believers and non-believers alike are welcome.
“Bliss of Buddhist Chanting” will be held at the Appalachian Dharma and Meditation Center on Feb. 8 from 6:30-8:30 p.m. at 108 W. 10th Avenue. The event is free, but any donations are welcomed.
