What is Kirtan?

By Anastacia Mott Austin

Deeply rooted in Vedic traditions and going back more than 500 years, the devotional song/chants called kirtans are still used today as a path to spiritual enlightenment.

Based on the Sikh scriptures, which contain specific numeric compositions of rhythmic beat patterns called ragas and talas, kirtan has traditionally been made up of classical Indian music and chanting which is seen as a "singing to the Divine."

In meditation, kirtan’s call and response chanting style can be used to quiet the mind, using ancient vibrational Sanskrit mantras to empty out unnecessary thoughts and bring in sacred energy.

And while kirtan can be performed alone, most choose instead to participate in group kirtan, which contributes greatly to the divine calm it can bring to the mind and the spirit. The group dynamic and energy, along with the mantras, facilitates a communal spiritual shift.

It is the combination of the ancient mantras, the classical Indian musical instruments playing music from long ago, the length of the chanting (each chant or song can last for about 20 minutes) and the group environment that elevate the individual mind to a place of spiritual enlightenment.

While originally Hindu and Sikh, kirtan has come to be used by many religious and spiritual organizations, including Christian and New Age groups who have seen the benefits of group spiritual experience.

In fact, the kirtan has seen a rise in popular culture, with modern callers or practitioners of kirtan incorporating decidedly Western instruments or musical influence into their kirtan chants and music.

The very popular Krishna Das, or K.D., as he is known, uses modern instruments in his kirtan music, though strict practitioners of Hinduism see this as not true kirtan.

K.D. insists that what he is doing is kirtan, with his own American slant. "I was born in America, I grew up on rock and roll," said K.D. to reporters at Time magazine. "And my natural musical emotions are different from an Indian person’s."

Whatever one’s preference when practicing meditation, if the desire is to experience a collective vibrational shift in consciousness and spiritual enlightenment, kirtan is worth checking out.