Not sure if this actually belongs here, but I'll try anyway.

Having recently discovered the genre (thank you, George Harrison), it's occured to me that, at least in my case, it has a rather odd effect on me. When listening, I find myself able to fully clear my mind (I've never been able to accomplish this before). Simply the tambura alone seems to have an instant soothing effect. I just seem happier in general.

So now I'm curious as to what ties it has to the Hindu religon itself (uses in rituals, etc). I'm also curious as to any studies and such related to its psychological effects, if they have indeed been done.


If you have no idea what I'm talking about, go out and buy/order a Ravi Shankar album. They can be found pretty cheap, and I very much doubt you'll regret it.

If by ties to spirituality you mean theres something supernatural about it, no.

But songs like Within You Without You give me a deeply spiritual feeling in the same way some Bob Marley songs do. I definitely think it'd be worth studying the effects of certain instruments and styles of music on certain regions of the brain.

I'm sure Indian classical music would have a much bigger effect that christina aguiliera.

Agreed there is nothing supernatural about spirituality, we are all spriritual beings. If you find a certain music that lets you experience that spritual side of yourself that is awesome. Personally I find a lot of Hindu music very calming and so I play it. Anything that brings you closer to your sprititual nature can't be a bad thing in my opinion.

I purchased a few CDs in Sri Lanka that are just great for relaxation and seem to just make everything more calm and peaceful. They are not Hindu but none the less they are very relaxing.