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With blessings from my family and teachers, I bring you this workshop on the principles of Vedic Chanting for beginners (or for those who wish to learn the theoretical background to this practice).

The Vedas are an extremely vast collection of hymns or mantras, with just one section (the Saṃhita) of the 4 books containing 26,226 mantras in it. This is not including the Upaniṣads and other sections of the Vedas. So, you can only imagine the daunting task of starting the study of Vedas. How does one begin?  What are some important things to know in order to comprehend the basics? Do we have to study all the Vedas? What is the method of study? This workshop will help you answer some of these questions and more.

By the end of this session you will:

• Have a brief overview of the landscape of the Vedic literature. You will see where the texts of Veda, Yoga, Bhagavad gita, Upaniṣads and some of the popular epics fit in the nomenclature of Indian spiritual texts.
• Understand how the Vedas are divided into 4 books and how they are different from each other.
• Learn to read transliterated & notated mantra texts.
• Have a brief introduction to the Sanskrit alphabet and sounds.
• Learn and practice Mahāprāṇa sounds (aspirated Sanskrit sounds)- mastering this is the key to practicing the recitation of Vedas. Lean to identify these sounds from the mantra texts.
• Learn to recognize conjunct consonants, also essential for a serious practice of Veda recitation.
• Practice excerpts of mantras suitable for beginners.
• Understand the sacred approach to the practice of recitation of Vedas – lifestyle, honoring the Rishis, honoring the rules of recitation and creating a daily practice for yourself.
• List some benefits of studying Vedas through the practice of recitation.
• Understand the difference between chanting mantras from the Vedas and chanting other texts and hymns.

Workshop price: 60EUR (including lifetime access to an online course with recordings and additional material that will allow you to continue practice of the mantras learnt during the workshop)

What to bring:

• Something to write with and something to write on! A book and pen/pencil
• Energy for attention & concentration. If you are a complete beginner, there will be a lot of new information, so you will need to focus.
• There will be tea & fruit available during the workshop.
• The venue is a yoga studio equipped with mats/bolsters. We sit on the floor on a mat. If you need a chair, let me know, it is not a problem!
• We will take 2 short breaks.