Empty: Sharing mantras with Ani Choying
January 18, 2013
Today's pleasure: Spiritual concert at the House of Tibet
We heard it for the first time while contemplating the powerful blue mountains that surround the Kathmandu Valley, his homeland. His voice captivated us and, like Hansel and Gretel, We follow the thread of their song until we reach an isolated hut on the top of a hill.. There we discovered who Ani Choying was., the Buddhist nun who travels the world to transmit messages of peace and freedom through mantras and songs.
When we knew he was coming to Barcelona, We do not hesitate to attend the appointment. Invited by the House of Tibet, Ani offered a charity concert to help the Tibetan refugee camps of Tezu and Miao, in northeast India. But it was not the first time he visited the Tibetan institution nor the city., where he has gone up to other stages, like the one at the Palau de la Música.
As soon as we enter the House of Tibet, the aroma of incense invades us., that takes us to the country of the Himalayas. Barcelona fades behind us as we move towards the concert hall, we take off our shoes, we smile at whoever looks at us or talks to us, and we sat on the floor well accommodated by cushions. Buddhist philosophy spreads well-being to those who let it guide them.
Ani Choying's visit to Barcelona is fleeting, a stopover on his return trip to Kathmandu after starring in a concert in Tenerife. “He hasn't had time to rehearse.”, confesses the monk Thubten Wangchen, director of the House of Tibet, who acts as a fun and improvised master of ceremonies, while Ani tests the sound behind the curtains that hide the stage. “Now there are also nuns teaching and doing concerts, "It's a 21st century thing.", explains smiling.
And Ani is a champion of the rights of nuns. She has been working for a long time so that women have the same opportunities as monks, so that they can access studies and develop their skills. Ani's is, definitely, the voice. “It is number 1 in Kathmandu and also sings in Nepali”, Wangchen points out in amusement before the stage is revealed and Ani greets the audience with a “Good evening.”, good night, good night".
The concert of songs and mantras begins. Ani Choying's voice sounds pure, serena, vibrant and penetrates the bodies of the spectators until reaching their souls. It is an audition in every sense of the word.. Only the song matters and has meaning, which Ani performs with her eyes closed and the audience also receives it with an internal look. There is no applause between songs, only a deep silence that denotes the degree of meditation of many of the attendees.
“A mantra protects the mind from negativity”, comments Ani Choying after a couple of songs. “Chanting mantras melodiously balances emotions and energies”, he states before adding that “the language does not matter, but the sound, the vibrations. And this seems to be confirmed by the dedicated audience of this almost intimate concert..
In about two hours, Ani gives us a spiritual repertoire. “I have sung reflections”, reveals. One of them is Om amari jevan teye soha, a combination of mantras “to encourage our spirit”. Or the song sung in Nepali that concludes the audition, I look at the flower and bloom the world, in which he explains that the world looks like a flower through the eye of a flower, and a thorn through the eye of a thorn. His concert was intended to end this message: It is up to us whether we project negativity or positivity, but the enthusiasm of some voices that were singing her song invites Ani to offer us a very special tip.: sing with her the mantra of all mantras, Om mani padme hung.
With this unexpected culmination, a hundred voices come together to interpret the quintessential mantra of compassion. That is why Ani warns us before starting: “We dedicate it to those we love and those we do not love.”. We transmit positive energy to everyone”. This is what she did throughout the evening., with eyes closed, but with a very open soul, where the gift of your voice comes from.
Simple details, small pleasures
–Listen to Ani Choying at home. The Buddhist nun has recorded several albums of mantras and songs such as Inner Peace. He has also written the book The Song of Freedom, an autobiography in which she tells how she became a nun to escape poverty.
–Discover Buddhist culture. The House of Tibet in Barcelona is a very active foundation that constantly organizes courses, workshops or conferences related to your philosophy, like yoga, meditation or religious studies.
–Try Nepalese and Tibetan cuisine. In Barcelona there are some restaurants that offer typical dishes from these Himalayan countries..
