The Music of Creation by Janet Maika’i Rudolph

I am excited to announce my latest book: The Music of Creation: Exploring Verse and Vibration in the Bible. In this book I present pagan translations of the Bible and then lay out spiritual practices based on those verses. The practices make use of “the triple secret” of manifestation which is Mudra (body or hand position), Mantra (chant) and Mandala (image). Each has power on their own. Together they become even more compelling. Below are two excerpts from the book. The first is a template of chanting and the power it can have in our bodies and in our lives. 

Excerpt 1 – Below, I note four different ways to approach chanting. All have merit. They can be combined. In each, I use Hallelujah (in its meaning of praise) as an example.

First: Song, performance, vibration. Hallelujah has been a particular focus of song-writing with beautiful results. The top results which come to my mind are Leonard Cohen and Handel. Hallelujah is a wonderful example of a performance chant and a choral piece. 

Second: Seed syllables as the basis of chanting. Seed syllables are sounds that hold a vibrational power. In older cultures they tend to make up the names of deities. Some may be familiar to you: HA, AH, LA, AL, HU, EL, YA to name a few. Here again we can look at Hallelujah which means – praise Ya, praise God or praise divinity. The roots of the word are all seed syllables. Broken into component parts, they are –  al-la-hu-yah.

Third: Taking on the elements of what is being chanted. Hallelujah as a form of praising divinity, can be seen as a blessing. When we bless or praise something, we take on those same aspects. When we chant or sing Hallelujah, for example, we are taking on the qualities of both blessing and divinity.

Every single wisdom in the world has a particular chant,
a particular melody.
And when you chant that specific melody
it will draw forth the particular wisdom to which it is attached.
Rabbi Nachman of Breslav (1772-1810)[1]

Fourth: This approach is to feel the sense of oneness. It is using the vibrations to break down the barriers of myself and other, you and me, we and them, yin and yang, male and female.

This is the secret of the rooster’s call:
At the time when God comes to the
Garden of Eden to visit those who have lived in balance,
all the trees in the Garden of Eden bring forth their fragrance
and break into song and praise.
At that very moment, here on Earth, the rooster is awakened
by the heavenly chanting and joins in,
singing its praise in seven calls.
Mirash Perek Shirah, Chapter of Song 4:1 (1500s)[2]

Chanting opens portals to feel/experience divine energies within ourselves. It creates channels between the worlds. This is why this book emphasizes how important it is to make the chanting our own. It is possible to chant using each of the levels, or several at the same time. This is true sacred play. Play away!

Excerpt 2 – It may surprise some readers to learn that there are verses in the Bible where trees are celebrated. The following is from my chapter titled Celebration of Trees. I begin with three Biblical verses with the traditional translation of the King James Version and then my own translation (MPV). Secondly a brief commentary and thirdly an opportunity to explore the vibrations of the teachings in a section called “Experiencing the Vibrational Essences” which uses the concept of the triple secret. Enjoy.

Deut 20:19

…thou shalt not cut them down (for the tree of the field is man’s life) . . .
KJV

 . . .thou shalt cherish them (for the trees of the field are the brother/sister journeyers of our lives) . . .
MPV

Psalm 1:3

And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water,
that bringeth forth his fruit in his season;
his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.
KJV

And we shall be likened to trees, planted by the flowing rivers
Bringing forth fruits in the fullness of time
So that our seeds may flourish.
MPV

Proverbs 3:18

She is a tree of life to them that lay hold upon her: and happy is every one that retaineth her.
KJV

She is a tree of life to those who acclaim Her, and blessed are all who embrace Her.
MPV

COMMENTARY

In the previous section we established our personal connections to trees. This section takes the next step of celebrating and honoring trees as an element of our relationship to them. Trees all over the world are hurting. Between hurricanes, fires, infestations, indiscriminate logging, and climate change our trees need extra amounts of care and love. Celebrating trees helps us to raise our own consciousness, as well as those around us. When we become more aware of the trees and what they need to be healthy, our connection grows ever stronger. And the trees do respond. 

I believe that many of the passages about trees are very old ones that were incorporated into the Biblical library of books. Their original messages were probably too popular for the emerging priesthood to ignore or remove, so they sought to hide them either by verbiage or through translations.

Deut 20:19 is one such passage that was likely inserted into a wartime tale. The discussion surrounding the passage is what to do (or not) in the case of a “siege of war.” The people are admonished not to cut down the trees . . . “for the tree of the field is man’s life.” It’s odd that the Bible should suddenly be so concerned with “man’s life” when two passages before in Deut 20:17 the discussion is about the “complete destruction” of other cultures in the area; the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites.

The passage itself is three words: Ha-adam ets hassadeh. Ets, as we have seen, means tree. Adam is obvious because it’s also a familiar name, and hassadeh is the land or fields. We’ve seen Adam in relation to trees and food before in the Bible and that, of course, didn’t turn out so well. It is ironic that the grand deity, who had once punished Adam for eating the fruit of the tree is now advocating for that very thing. There is some confusion of message which is why I consider this passage to be quite old. It seems to be a blend of older and newer stories.

EXPERIENCING THE VIBRATIONAL ESSENCES

One of my teachers, Serge Kahili King who is Kumu Kupua (founder and leader) of Aloha International, the author of Urban Shaman and many other books, once taught a lesson. He asked who wanted to learn how to speak to trees. We all raised our hands in excitement thinking we would learn a great secret. He waved his hand at the nearest tree and said, “Hi tree.” And so it is. The great secret is no secret at all, but what we are taught over and over and that is how connected we all are. Because we are so connected, simple communication works. Just a simple, “hi tree” creates a recognition which is a bridge of interaction that nourishes us.

Mantra

You can use this mantra: Ha-adam ets hassadeh.
Or you can just repeat ets.
Or speak your own words of love.

Mudra and Mandala

The mudra is to put your hands on the tree. Celebrate each tree.  Hug the trees. Chant to the trees. Send them love. Water the trees with water/wine/juice that you have blessed. 

The mandala is the tree itself, either a real tree or one that you visualize.   

You can purchase The Music of Creation here.

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[1] In Gershon Winkler Kabbalah 365, Andrews McMeel Publishing, 2004, 106.

[2] Ibid, 305.