Rhythmotion

Asatoma Sadgamaya

1

A high energy invocatory Indian contemporary dance piece expressing the following verse:

Asato ma sadgamaya
Tamaso ma jyotirgamaya
Mrtyorma amrtam gamaya

Lead me from untruth to Truth.
Lead me from darkness to Light.
Lead me from death to Immortality.

This is a prayer—the seeker’s admission of his sense of limitedness and his heartfelt cry for assistance in transcendence. It is not a prayer for the things of the world. It is not a prayer for food, shelter, health, partnership, riches, success, fame, glory or even for heaven. One who recites these three mantras has realized that such things are full of holes, soaked in pain and, even in abundance, will forever leave him wanting. It is in this full understanding that one turns to this prayer. The essence of each of these three mantras is the same: “O, Guru, help me free myself from my sundry misunderstandings regarding myself, the universe and God and bless me with true knowledge.”