Many of the playlists I bring into the classroom come from sitting around, chatting with my husband, and listening to albums. I enjoy music tremendously, and sometimes the music will just hit me and bring me into a state of wanting to move… not quite shake my groove thang, but just move, flow, slowly, to the sounds that pulse through me. Shine On You Crazy Diamond was one of those songs that spoke to me in that way. The slow build, the spaces of quiet, and the first strums of the guitar that very much resonate with my movement from cow to cat to down dog to uttanasana, and as the drums come in, the first big stretch of a standing backbend, urdhva hastasana, and the swan dive forward into the song and into surya namaskar. The slow pace of the song suits the way I practice in the beginning, matching the slow, deep breath cultivated in savasana before I begin. Then there’s the quiet – nothing but instrumentals to move to for nearly the first 9 minutes of the song before finally, the first words come, as if moving out of space, “Remember when you were young, you shone like the sun. Shine on you crazy diamond.” Finally, the pace builds, again, matching my practice, where I begin to break free of the sun salutation and move through more standing postures – warriors and standing balances – floating from position to position until I once more find pause.
How does this song resonate with you? Are the lyrics too dark, the pace too slow? Or does the music move you through a slow, meditative flow as it does me?
Listen to the songs and mantras featured in this series on Spotify or Google Play.
