My favourite spiritual music- Sitaar, Santoor and Flute!

Shezadi

Introduction

When I asked about the hidden depression, many people said they are bored during the lockdown and many claimed to have signs of hidden depression. Therefore, I am sharing the solutions. If it makes a difference to one life, it will be a huge victory for me!

The youtube video

I have attached a youtube video called "Hanuman Chalisa instrumental." Whilst, there are many instrumental versions of Hanuman Chalisa but the one I am sharing is made of instruments called Sitaar, flute and Santoor. I used to listen to this every evening to feel energised. It was a routine. It has 9 million views and there is so much diversity in the comments section. In the comments section, you will see people from all cultures and religions including Muslims. You will see people talking about depression, cancer and losing loved ones.

Origin of instruments

Sitaar and Santoor are old classical instruments.

Sitaar is a old classical Indian instrument whilst Santoor comes from Iran.

Sitaar

The word Sitaar means "three stringed" and it's a Persian word.

And it was invented in India in the 16th Century.

Even Lord Shiva is shown playing the Sitaar in the forest whilst girls are dancing including his first wife Goddess Sita. And I have attached a youtube video if you want to see that! It is beautiful. Only 5 minutes long but I used to listen to it in the mornings to start my day on a positive note. It is from a show called Devon ke Dev Mahadev, which translates into God of all God, the Greatest God.

The picture below is from the same show called "Devon Ke Dev Mahadev" which aired on a channel called Life OK.

And in this picture, you can see Lord Shiva playing the Sitaar and his second wife Goddess Parvati is sitting and listening.

So, even in Hinduism, there is music and dance not just in the Indian culture. Lord Shiva is shown playing Sitaar and he is also showing dance in happiness and anger, which is called Tandav in Hindi. So, dance and music are not just a part of the Indian culture but also the religion of Hinduism.

Lord Shiva playing Sitaar
Lord Shiva playing Sitaar

Santoor

The Santoor originated in ancient Mesopotamia around the 4th century CE and, in both pre-Islamic Persia and the modern day Middle East, it is an integral part of classical and folk music. The first written record of the instrument appeared in Persian history texts and poetry around the 10th century.

My favourite spiritual music- Sitaar, Santoor and Flute!

Flute

Flute also has a lot of links with Hinduism because Lord Krishna is shown playing the flute just like Lord Shiva is shown playing the Sitaar or damru. So, Hindu God also play different instruments.

Lord Krishna playing the flute
Lord Krishna playing the flute

It is a beautiful picture isn't it!

The list doesn't end here. There are many other instruments in Hinduism like Tabla is played for Lord Shiva's dance called Tandav, which can be happy dance or dance of destruction.

Below, I have attached my most favourite spiritual music video. It shows Lord Shiva and his wife Goddess Parvati. In this music video, you will hear flute and Sitaar. And it's about the love between Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati. It never fails to bring tears in my eyes. The flute has done a masterpiece in this music video.

Little bit about me

I am British Pakistani Muslim. Even though, I am a Muslim. I feel like I am more fascinated by Hindusim then those who were born in this religion. I have been fascinated by Hinduism since childhood because I grew up watching Indian dramas, where they always showed pooja in every episode. I used to wear sarees in my childhood to copy Indian actresses. I ended up watching Hinduism shows like Devon ke Dev Mahadev initially because of special effects.

And now, I am 21 years old and I suffer from depression from time to time. And I am also a traditional feminist.

As a traditional femininst, I became fascinated by Hindu Goddesses, who are epitome of femininity, feminine strength and woman empowerment.

My personal favourite is Goddess Durga, who sits on the lion and killed a demon that no male god could kill. She is epitome of woman empowerment for me. I wrote a whole article on Goddess Durga and the festival of Navrati, which is a 9 day festival to celebrate 9 forms of Goddess Parvati and one of them is Goddess Durga.

Goddess Durga tells me as a traditional feminist that you can be strong and feminine at the same time.

She displays femininity as a strength, which is also a message for modern feminists, who think they need to shave their heads to prove they are strong.

On the other hand, Goddess Durga is known for having long hair. She is praised for having long hair even in Hindu mantras. So, those feminists who are shaving their heads need to be told that Goddess Durga had the longest and thickest hair and still she was strong. She was still a warrior and killed a demon on the battlefield. The demon all male gods failed to defeat.

And there is also a message for South Asian men, who associate bangles with weakness. In South Asian culture, we still have insults where men are told to wear bangles, henna and a saree even in politics because bangles, henna and saree are associated with weakness even though the Goddess they worship also wears bangles, henna and saree even on the battlefield.

Other than that, the lion represents power and she sits on top of the lion, which represents the ultimate power. And I think I wrote a whole article on the lotus flower symbolism because she is also holding a lotus flower.

My favourite spiritual music- Sitaar, Santoor and Flute!
My favourite spiritual music- Sitaar, Santoor and Flute!
My favourite spiritual music- Sitaar, Santoor and Flute!

Thank you for reading!

I know I got a bit carried away in the second half of my article, which could have been a whole separate article and was also me repeating what I said in my previous article about Goddess Durga but it was important. I feel very strong about the message of viewing femininity as a strength. And I also wanted people to understand why I feel so strong about Hindu Goddesses despite being a Muslim because I like Hindu Goddesses as a traditional feminist.

Share the message and the spiritual music.

Please do watch all those videos from beginning to end with full volume and then give me your feedback. Don't judge without watching or without watching the whole thing. It has to played on full volume in a quiet room to truly feel the beauty.

My favourite spiritual music- Sitaar, Santoor and Flute!
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