This innovative book explores religion through music, the only art
form named after a divinity and one of the most universally recognized
forms of human experience.
Music has been documented from prehistory to the present age in
virtually all known cultures. For many, it is a vehicle for spiritual
growth and community empowerment, whether it's understood as a gift of
the gods or simply a practice for achieving mental states conducive to
enlightenment.
Traditionally, when religious scholars talk about music, it's as a kind
of aesthetic supplement to the important spiritual content of a
religion, analogous to stained-glass windows or temple paintings. In
contrast, Sacred Sound: Experiencing Music in World Religions
acknowledges the critical role of musical activity in religious life.
Music, including chant and vocal utterance, is not incidental in
religious practice but a sacred treasure that is central to the growth
and sustenance of religions throughout the world. Musical sound is
sacred in most religions because it embodies the divine and can be
shared by all participants, enduring among diverse communities of people
despite theological differences.
Covering six of the major world religions--Judaism, Christianity, Islam,
Hinduism, Sikhism, and Buddhism--forty selections of music and chant can
be accessed on the publisher's website. Contributors are respected
scholars in religious studies and musicology and provide insight from
both disciplines. The first book of its kind, Sacred Sound is a
milestone in the growing cross-disciplinary study of religion and music.
Audio files available at https:
//www.wlupress.wlu.ca/Books/S/Sacred-Sound