David Lynch once described the experience of consciousness through transcendental meditation most brilliantly by not trying to describe it at all. “Transcendental Meditation is a simple, easy, effortless technique that allows any human being to dive within, to experience subtler levels of mind and intellect, and to enter this ocean of pure consciousness, the Unified Field — the Self. Understanding this idea of the Unified Field seems like too much intellectual work to me. It’s not the intellectual understanding of the field but the experiencing of it that does everything. You dive within, and by experiencing this field of pure consciousness, you enliven it; you unfold it; it grows. And the final outcome of this growth of consciousness is called enlightenment, which is the full potential for us all.”
This idea was one of the first things that came to mind when I recently stumbled upon this terrific video of Ella Fitzgerald (1917-1996) and Mel Tormé appearing together at the 1976 Grammys where they gave a joint answer to the question, “What is jazz?” You can watch their remarkable answer above.
I’ve also attached video of Sister Rosetta Tharpe (1915-1973), the Godmother of Rock & Roll. The clip below was taken from the documentary The American Folk Blues Festival: The British Tours. To learn more about Sister Rosetta Tharpe you can read the fascinating 2007 biography Shout, Sister, Shout!: The Untold Story of Rock-and-Roll Trailblazer Sister Rosetta Tharpe. (Source: The Kid Should See This, Photo via AllAboutJazz.com)
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