Despite the world-wide association of music and dance with religion, this is the first full-length study of the subject from a global perspective. The work consists of 3,816 references divided among 37 chapters. It covers tribal, regional, and global religions and such subjects as shamanism, liturgical dance, healing, and the relationship of music, mathematics, and mysticism. The referenced materials display such diverse approaches as analysis of music and dance, description of context, direct experience, observation, and speculation. The references address topics from such disciplines as sociology, anthropology, history, linguistics, musicology, ethnomusicology, theology, medicine, semiotics, and computer technology. Chapter 1 consists of general references to religious music and dance. The remaining 36 chapters are organized according to major geographical areas. Most chapters begin with general reference works and bibliographies, then continue with topics specific to the region or religion. This book will be of use to anyone with an interest in music, dance, religion, or culture.

[Headline, in boldface and/or small caps; do in 2 lines maximum] The healthier we are in body, mind, and culture, the more we can happily interact with the Spirit of Earth or Gaia, who needs our attention now. [Main text] Health, how to keep it, regain it, or even optimize it, concerns many today. But we usually think of health in personal terms, human terms. What about the health of the Earth? To be healthy rather than sick has planetary implications, and Healthy Gaians shows you ways of improving your health to help improve the planet's. Welcome to a diverse anthology of 70 articles on human health drawn from a journalistic career spanning 25 years. Here are bodywork, cancer, the immune system, vaccinations, eurythmy, chakras, Jungian psychology, intuition, conflict resolution, healing with art, music, sound, and color, singing to the dying, dreams, water rejuvenation, the poetics of the elements, near-death experiences, the purpose of evil, myth-living, and quantum-shamanic adventures. You'll get familiar with lots of natural health modalities such as herbalism, acupuncture, flower essences, and bionutrient fortification. And meet a stimulating group of health pioneers, such as R.D. Laing, William Irwin Thompson, Barbara Walker, Fred Alan Wolf, Robert Sardello, Caroline Myss, M.F.K. Fisher, Kyriacos Markides, and Rowena Kryder, among others. Each gives innovative ways to free ourselves from the ill-health constraints of body, mind, and culture as part of the larger process of becoming healthy Gaians-exactly what the planet needs from us. There are many ways to better health. The important thing is to start getting healthy so you can help the planet in its time of need. Then the Earth can start sending back the good health vibrations to you now you're back in the health loop. [Note: Be sure to note boldface two-line headline at top; this is 250 words but the book's format will be large and it will fit easily without crowding.

For thousands of years Hindu spirituality has understood the profound effect that sound has on our well-being. From this tradition comes The Yoga of Sound, which draws on yoga's long history of applying sound to reduce stress, maintain health, and invoke spiritual awakenings. In lucid exercises presented both in the book and on accompanying downloadable audio tracks, Russill Paul shows how everyone can learn the art of mantra and how these practices can help to optimize the flow of energy within the body and enhance emotional well-being.

Customize your sound environment for a better quality of life • Shows how to use music and sound to reduce stress, enhance learning, and improve performance • Provides detailed guidelines for musicians and health care professionals • Includes a new 75-minute CD of psychoacoustically designed classical music What we hear, and how we process it, has a far greater impact on our daily living than we realize. From the womb to the moment we die we are surrounded by sound, and what we hear can either energize or deplete our nervous systems. It is no exaggeration to say that what goes into our ears can harm us or heal us. Joshua Leeds--a pioneer in the application of music for health, learning, and productivity--explains how sound can be a powerful ally. He explores chronic sensory overload and how auditory dysfunction often results in difficulties with learning and social interactions. He offers innovative techniques designed to invigorate auditory skills and provide balanced sonic environments. In this revised and updated edition of The Power of Sound, Leeds includes current research, extensive resources, analysis of the maturing field of soundwork and a look at the effect of sound on animals. He also provides a new 75-minute CD of psycho­acoustically designed classical music for a direct experience of the effect of simplified sound on the nervous system. With new information on how to use music and sound for enhanced health and productivity, The Power of Sound provides readers with practical solutions for vital and sustained well-being.

In Hindu India both orality and sonality have enjoyed great cultural significance since earliest times. They have a distinct influence on how people approach texts. The importance of sound and its perception has led to rites, models of cosmic order, and abstract formulas. Sound serves both to stimulate religious feelings and to give them a sensory form. Starting from the perception and interpretation of sound, the authors chart an unorthodox cultural history of India, turning their attention to an important, but often neglected aspect of daily religious life. They provide a stimulating contribution to the study of cultural systems of perception that also adds new aspects to the debate on orality and literality.