Praying with Music

Listening to Music

An easy way to help students relax, still and silence the soul and therefore meditate, is to listen to music. Music that is calming and reflective can help us escape form the busyness and noise of life. You could use “relaxation music” as well as classical music or music which is reflective of the sounds of nature e.g. birdsong, rainforest, water. Listening to music with closed eyes, helps both the skill in keeping eyes closed and focusing hearing.

Music that excites, stirs or over stimulates is not the best for this purpose. Familiar pop culture music is not suitable either, even if it is only the music without words.

Some students will be able to let their minds follow the rise and fall of the cadences of the music .

As well as listening in stillness, students could be given the opportunity to sketch, write words, feelings , emotions and response during or after listening to the music. They can colour mandalas or even labyrinths. They can colour words such as “Peace” or Jesus” or even “Maranatha”!

Meditating with Music

Note: For meditation, students should NOT lie down. They should remain seated, with straight backs. If children go to sleep, they are not meditating, they are relaxing.

Say:

We are now going to listen to some music to help us to be still and to journey inside ourselves. We begin by closing our eyes, sitting as still as we can and by beginning our breathing for meditation. Let’s do those things. Breathing in and holding it and then breathing out. In, two, three, four. Out- two- three- four.

I will now start the music. Continue your breathing. Keep your eyes closed. The music goes for ………….seconds/minutes. You might be able to use your breathing and imagination to float or soar with the music.

Or

While you listen to the music, you may colour in the word/diagram/labyrinth in front of you. You do not speak to anyone else, but think about what you are doing- the colours, the people, the images the music creates in your mind.

When music stops.

It’s now time to come back quietly to the present. Finish what you are doing and then sit quietly until everyone is ready. Now take one big cleansing breath and stretch your arms and body.