Chant to Oshun – Traditional Yoruba chant
Taught to me by Alba Lirio
Recorded with permission
In devotion to the Yoruba Goddess of the fresh waters, an expression of sweetness, sensuality, femininity, beauty, love, and overflowing joy. A favorite in our Sisters in Harmony circles.
Lyrics:
Ay ye ye, ay ye ye Ma Mai Oshun x2
Ay ye ye Ma Mai Oshun, Ay ye ye Oshun mare x2
This song is in the public domain
As we continue to navigate our way in these confounding times, I find it helpful to make requests like: “Show me what is mine to do. Truly mine, not anyone else’s. Please continue revealing to me my own unique path. How can I share my gifts? How can I best be of service to my community?”
Lyrics:
Show me what is mine to do
© Heather Houston
July 2020
Shiva is a Hindu God, a destroyer who ends the cycle of time which, in turn, begins a new Creation. At the highest level, Lord Shiva is regarded as limitless, formless, transcendent, and unchanging. This chant reminds us that Shiva (the energy of destruction and regeneration) is always accompanied by the eternal Mother of the Universe.
Lyrics:
Sa Amba Sada Shiva
Sa Amba Shiva Om
Sa Amba Sada Shiva
Sa Amba Shiva Om
Om Mata, Om Mata
Om shri Mata Jagadumba
Om Mata, Om Mata
Om shri Mata Jagadumba
Translation:
The ever auspicious Lord Shiva is one with the Divine Mother
Oh Mother, Oh Mother
Radiant Mother, Mother of the Universe
Music composer unknown
Arranged by Heather Houston
A traditional Yoruba chant to the Goddess of the sea, the Mother of all, often portrayed as a mermaid. I like to invite my singers to call out the qualities of the ocean before we sing it, then invite them feel the flow of the water in their bodies as they move and sing. It is also meant to observe the qualities of female and male that merge and melt within us.
This chant can be sung in a round.
Possible Translation:
Goddess of the sea
Female and male merge or melt. (They are one.)
A traditional chant in the public domain.
Lyrics:
Yemaya oh, ako, ako yo yemaya
Yemaya oh, ako, ako yo yemaya
This song called me into a deeply meditative and prayerful space for hours on the Saturday morning of October 27th, 2018. Little did I know that as the song was pouring through me, the mass shooting at the synagogue in Pittsburgh was taking place. I can only hope that my space of deep love and prayer touched a broken heart or two. May this song invite us all to be a conduit for Love in every circumstance.
Lyrics:
Love moves in me
Through me, as me
Love moves in me,
Through me, as me
And I’m receiving each breath with love
And I am walking each step with love
© Heather Houston 2018
All rights reserved
One of my favorite morning chants from the Vedic tradition
Lyrics:
Om Bhur Bhuvah Swaha,
Tat Savitur Varenyam
Bhargo Devasya Dhimahi,
Dhiyo Yo Nah Pracho Dayat
Meaning and History:
A prayer to the Divine Light Traditionally chanted in the morning as the sun is rising
The Gayatri mantra first appeared in the Rig Veda, an early Vedic text written between 1800 and 1500 BCE
Translation:
The eternal, earth, air, heaven
That glory, that resplendence of the sun
May we contemplate on the brilliance of that light
May the sun inspire our minds
A great rhythmic entrainment song. I love to get my singers moving their feet together on this one, and then eventually invite them to play the heart beat on their chest. This one flowed through one morning in thinking about recording my “Sisters of the Moon” album. It didn’t make it on the album, but it sure is fun to sing in circle. Enjoy!
© Heather Houston 2019
All rights reserved
Lyrics:
I’m going back
to the earth
I’m going back
to be re-birthed
into the cycles of the moon
where I feel the rhythm of our unified
heart, beat
I’m going back
Lokah Samastah Sukhino Bhavantu is a Sanskrit mantra which means:
“May all beings everywhere be happy and free, and may the thoughts, words, and actions of my own life contribute to that happiness and to that freedom for all.”
A mantra from the Vedic tradition, where mantras are chanted on only three notes. SA, RE, and NI. Over time, mantras such as this one have been turned into countless melodies and rhythms. I learned this particular one from Slivia Nakkach. She learned it on her travels in India.
I’ve known and sung this beautiful chant in women’s circles for many years. It’s an invitation to feel one with the Earth, a reminder of our sacred connection to, and responsibility for, the more than human world. The composer is unknown, and the song is in the public domain.
Arrangement by Heather Houston
Lyrics:
Earth my body,
Water my blood,
Air my breath
and fire my spirit
This chant flowed through me one magical full moon night while having a soak in my outdoor bathtub. Luxurious!
Lyrics:
In the light of the full moon I am love
Offering my prayers to rise above
The thoughts and the fears that hold me down
From thriving on this earth
As she spins around
In the light of the full moon I am peace
Offering my heart to be released
From the things that no longer serve my soul
Knowing now that I am whole
© Heather Houston
All rights reserved
Professional recording from Heather’s Sisters of the Moon album, featuring her women’s choir, Yala Lati:
Rough recording from Heather’s GarageBand app:
