Practicing as Spirituality
By W. E. Smith

I had a deep thought while practicing today (February 2nd 2003). The many scales and patterns that us jazz musicians practice get you to a point where you can facilitate your thoughts musically. It doesn't matter what you practice just as long as you practice. That's what gets you there. The act of running passages over the instrument puts you in touch with the horn and gets you to a level of connectedness mentally, physically and spiritually where the horn is an appendage and you can express your thoughts clearly as if you were speaking them (taking for granted you can speak clearly as well).

The beauty of this discovery however is deeper than this. It is also the metaphor for religion. By having a spiritual practice one is able to get connected to a ritual to the point where the ritual connects them mentally, physically and spiritually and they are in tune with themselves and the universe. This is the point of religion. Therefore do not disturb anyone from their personally chosen path because it is like taking someone's instrument away and rendering them unable to practice.

Now what I found was that I like many instruments and many paths so I played them all. I play saxophone, piano, flute, clarinet, oboe, and a little guitar. I've also included my ancestral faiths (and some others) in my ritual practice (Ifa, Kemetic, Hinduism, Cherokee, Christianity). This is a way for me to feel complete and give homage to all my ancestors. But more than that, being able to see the common thread and even the same meanings behind the different expressions of faith is so fulfilling and wondrous it is like being at the beginning of creation and watching the whole glorious dance unfold.

An example of this was when I was in a Baptist church service and people were "shouting" and crying and heard someone who was "speaking in tongues" say "Yemonja." This reference took me by surprise. I thought for a minute and then realized what had just happened from a spiritual perspective. The idea of speaking in tongues comes from the belief that when people "catch the spirit" that they talk in ancient languages that "we" do not remember or that are not spoken today. But that they are religious in nature and they are regarded as holy. Well the reference that the person made by saying Yemonja refers to the West African deity in the If a religion of Nigeria. This deity is the goddess of water (the ocean to be specific) and to make reference to her while everyone was crying made complete sense to me.

Everything is related and connected in this wonderful web of life and true spirituality recognizes this interrelatedness and gives reverence to it each and every moment.

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