A YOGA BLOG
The Journey of Sunday Yoga Soul
by Jamila K. Wilson
There is little separation between soul music (rhythm and blues) and spirituals; it is literally one in the same. It is derived from the same origin within the core of Africans transported to the Americas.
This music is the memory of that passage; of that struggle through the terrain, to the dungeons, on to the sandy beaches, into the bowels, across the raging waters, amongst the stench of death, hearing the wailing cries, blindly walking upon the shores of this once sacred land now desecrated by greed. And in that music lives the faith of knowing peace and justice can, and will, prevail.
The sorrow song, soul song, spiritual song of the African transported to America is where we reside. It is the safe haven of our ancestors' collective spirits. It is a song that cannot be replicated by anyone else. You can hear the very distinct difference of voice, tone, reverence, and emotion when sung by someone other than the ones who spirits crossed those seas just a few short years ago. Their renditions of these soulful songs are just standard and customary. For them it is a process by which to praise or acknowledge a lover.
But to the African in the Americas the soul/spiritual song represents our existence. It is more than a show or performance; it is the remembrance and storehouse of our humanity. These songs represent the promise of return; a return to a time and place where we were defined by world humanity, not as chattel, but as human beings. When the voices sung "swing low sweet chariot, coming forth to carry me home" you can feel the tremors of the soul seeking refuge in a promised land. You experience the depth of their need to grasp a reality that they can only envision in their nightly dreams. You can know through that song that hope is more than an abstract perception, but a “faith in the ultimate justice of things... (where) men will judge men by their souls and not by their skins…”
Dr. W.E.B. DuBois writes eloquently in The Souls of Black Folks that the sorrow (spiritual) song “…stands today not simply as the sole American music, but as the most beautiful expression of the human experience born this side of the seas. It has been neglected, it has been, and is, half despised, and above all it has been persistently mistaken and misunderstood; but notwithstanding, it still remains as the singular spiritual heritage of the nation and the greatest gift of the Negro people.”
It is through this gift that I share the offering of yoga, Sunday Yoga Soul. During this practice, the sound of soul music will serve as the vehicle to liberation and truth, using the power of the breath to open you up to the unlimited possibilities of your ordained purpose. I invite you to join me in celebrating not just this music, but celebrating you, a recipient and benefactor of this legacy, unlocking the wisdom of yoga for your liberation.
Sunday Yoga Soul welcomes all people and is every 4th Sunday of the month at The Well Loft located at 6143 Germantown Ave, loft #101 (enter off Pastorius St.); for more information and to RSVP go to www.thewellloft.com.
I look forward to seeing you there,
Ase. Namaste.
The Journey of Sunday Yoga Soul
by Jamila K. Wilson
There is little separation between soul music (rhythm and blues) and spirituals; it is literally one in the same. It is derived from the same origin within the core of Africans transported to the Americas.
This music is the memory of that passage; of that struggle through the terrain, to the dungeons, on to the sandy beaches, into the bowels, across the raging waters, amongst the stench of death, hearing the wailing cries, blindly walking upon the shores of this once sacred land now desecrated by greed. And in that music lives the faith of knowing peace and justice can, and will, prevail.
The sorrow song, soul song, spiritual song of the African transported to America is where we reside. It is the safe haven of our ancestors' collective spirits. It is a song that cannot be replicated by anyone else. You can hear the very distinct difference of voice, tone, reverence, and emotion when sung by someone other than the ones who spirits crossed those seas just a few short years ago. Their renditions of these soulful songs are just standard and customary. For them it is a process by which to praise or acknowledge a lover.
But to the African in the Americas the soul/spiritual song represents our existence. It is more than a show or performance; it is the remembrance and storehouse of our humanity. These songs represent the promise of return; a return to a time and place where we were defined by world humanity, not as chattel, but as human beings. When the voices sung "swing low sweet chariot, coming forth to carry me home" you can feel the tremors of the soul seeking refuge in a promised land. You experience the depth of their need to grasp a reality that they can only envision in their nightly dreams. You can know through that song that hope is more than an abstract perception, but a “faith in the ultimate justice of things... (where) men will judge men by their souls and not by their skins…”
Dr. W.E.B. DuBois writes eloquently in The Souls of Black Folks that the sorrow (spiritual) song “…stands today not simply as the sole American music, but as the most beautiful expression of the human experience born this side of the seas. It has been neglected, it has been, and is, half despised, and above all it has been persistently mistaken and misunderstood; but notwithstanding, it still remains as the singular spiritual heritage of the nation and the greatest gift of the Negro people.”
It is through this gift that I share the offering of yoga, Sunday Yoga Soul. During this practice, the sound of soul music will serve as the vehicle to liberation and truth, using the power of the breath to open you up to the unlimited possibilities of your ordained purpose. I invite you to join me in celebrating not just this music, but celebrating you, a recipient and benefactor of this legacy, unlocking the wisdom of yoga for your liberation.
Sunday Yoga Soul welcomes all people and is every 4th Sunday of the month at The Well Loft located at 6143 Germantown Ave, loft #101 (enter off Pastorius St.); for more information and to RSVP go to www.thewellloft.com.
I look forward to seeing you there,
Ase. Namaste.
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