Religious Chants Research Articles

The role of N. Ilminsky and S. Rachinsky in the formation of the personality of S. Smolensky

The role of N. Ilminsky and S. Rachinsky in the formation of the personality of S. Smolensky

The neurophysiological correlates of religious chanting

Despite extensive research on various types of meditation, research on the neural correlates of religious chanting is in a nascent stage. Using multi-modal electrophysiological and neuroimaging methods, we illustrate that during religious chanting, the posterior cingulate cortex shows the largest decrease in eigenvector centrality, potentially due to regional endogenous generation of delta oscillations. Our data show that these functional effects are not due to peripheral cardiac or respiratory activity, nor due to implicit language processing. Finally, we suggest that the neurophysiological correlates of religious chanting are likely different from those of meditation and prayer, and would possibly induce distinctive psychotherapeutic effects.

Repetitive Religious Chanting Modulates the Late-Stage Brain Response to Fear- and Stress-Provoking Pictures.

Chanting and praying are among the most popular religious activities, which are said to be able to alleviate people’s negative emotions. However, the neural mechanisms underlying this mental exercise and its temporal course have hardly been investigated. Here, we used event-related potentials (ERPs) to explore the effects of chanting the name of a Buddha (Amitābha) on the brain’s response to viewing negative pictures that were fear- and stress-provoking. We recorded and analyzed electroencephalography (EEG) data from 21 Buddhists with chanting experience as they viewed negative and neutral pictures. Participants were instructed to chant the names of Amitābha or Santa Claus silently to themselves or simply remain silent (no-chanting condition) during picture viewing. To measure the physiological changes corresponding to negative emotions, electrocardiogram and galvanic skin response data were also collected. Results showed that viewing negative pictures (vs. neutral pictures) increased the amplitude of the N1 component in all the chanting conditions. The amplitude of late positive potential (LPP) also increased when the negative pictures were viewed under the no-chanting and the Santa Claus condition. However, increased LPP was not observed when chanting Amitābha. The ERP source analysis confirmed this finding and showed that increased LPP mainly originated from the central-parietal regions of the brain. In addition, the participants’ heart rates decreased significantly when viewing negative pictures in the Santa Claus condition. The no-chanting condition had a similar decreasing trend although not significant. However, while chanting Amitābha and viewing negative pictures participants’ heart rate did not differ significantly from that observed during neutral picture viewing. It is possible that the chanting of Amitābha might have helped the participants to develop a religious schema and neutralized the effect of the negative stimuli. These findings echo similar research findings on Christian religious practices and brain responses to negative stimuli. Hence, prayer/religious practices may have cross-cultural universality in emotion regulation. This study shows for the first time that Buddhist chanting, or in a broader sense, repetition of religious prayers will not modulate brain responses to negative stimuli during the early perceptual stage, but only during the late-stage emotional/cognitive processing.

Cultural Juxtaposition in R.K Naryan’s novel The Guide

R K Narayan is one of the celebrated novelists of that era. His novel The Guide won the Sahitya Academy Award. The main objective of the paper is to discuss about the mixing of Indian and western culture. Indian is a country where logic and belief sit side by side. The novel maybe inspired by an incident in Mysore. Here acute drought completely dried up Krishna Raja Sagar. Some religious chanting took place for rain. The novelist combined the enforced sainthood with that incident. The novel has two layer of narrative. The third person narrative starts with Raju when he came out of jail. The first person narrative is Raju's recollection of past life to Velan. The novel The Guide has myth and reality blended in the plot. The life of Raju closely follows the concept of Chaturasham. Rosie who is an educated woman still carries some Indian values and Raju's mother carries traditional Indian rules. The two place village Mongal And town Malgudi shows two India in a single globe. While Malgudi is a commercial town with money sharks, Mongal is a place where ever a poor pays homage to a spiritual man with blind faith. The novelist juxtaposes both the sides into one pattern to portray real India in his novel.

The Coexistence of Violence and Nonviolence in Hinduism

The Coexistence of Violence and Nonviolence in Hinduism Anantanand Rambachan (bio) violence and nonviolence in Hinduism, Gandhi, V. D. Sarvarkar, Hindutva and Hinduism, Maha Sabha, RSS, BJP, VHP, Jana Sangh, dharma yuddha The most famous Hindu of all times, Mahatma Gandhi (1869–1948) is widely perceived, especially in the West, as embodying the Hindu worldview and ethos. Gandhi made ahimsa (nonviolence) the cornerstone of his philosophy and practice and spoke of it as constituting the essence of Hinduism. In light of Gandhi’s significance, many were surprised and bewildered when, on December 6, 1992, thousands of Hindu volunteers broke through police cordons and demolished the Babri mosque in the holy city of Ayodhya in North India. Many were armed with tridents, the traditional iconographic weapon of Shiva and were led by Hindu holy men chanting “Jai Shri Ram” (Victory to Ram). The mosque, it is argued, was constructed on the spot where Rama, one of the Hindu incarnations of God, was born. According to these militant Hindus, the Moghul Emperor, Babar, destroyed a Hindu temple and built the mosque on its ruins. Thousands lost their lives in the struggle over this site, and there is clamoring for the reclamation of other sacred sites, including one in the city of Mathura. Ten years later in 2002, we saw the outbreak of violence between Hindus and Muslims in the state of Gujarat, precipitated by the tragedy at the Godhra railway station when train carriages were set ablaze. Hindus reacted violently. Religious chanting and the invocation of the name of God accompanied many of the acts of violence perpetrated by Hindus upon their Muslim neighbors. In recent years, several Hindu organizations have become aggressive and militant in rhetoric and method, reminding us that, while Gandhi championed the ethic of ahimsa, there are ancient traditions within Hinduism [End Page 96] that sanction violence under certain circumstances and that ahimsa and himsa (violence) have coexisted uneasily in Hinduism for centuries. The relationship between violence and nonviolence is a complex one, and Gandhi’s representation of Hinduism must be properly contextualized. The Purusa Sukta hymn in the Rgveda, Hinduism’s most ancient scripture, describes metaphorically the origin of humankind from the primordial sacrifice of the cosmic Person (purusa). From his mouth came the brahmins (priest-teachers); from his arms, the ksatriyas (warrior-kings); from his thighs, the vaisyas (trader-craftspersons); and from his feet, the sudras (manual laborers). The respective duties of each group are defined and are presented later on in the Bhagavadgita (18:45–47) as conducive to the attainment of liberation. The ksatriyas, the group from which the kings and rulers are supposedly drawn, are the physical protectors of the community. They are the custodians of justice and the defenders of social and ritual order (dharma), by the force of arms, if necessary. Society could not survive without the might of the ksatriyas and the Hindu tradition commends the ideal of the warrior who is prepared to fight in the defense of dharma. The ancient ideal of the ksatriya is one that is being invoked and reinterpreted by militant Hindus today. Vedic society in ancient India did not scrupulously adhere to ahimsa as its highest value. Sacrificial rites involved the slaying of animals, and Indra, one of the most popular deities of the Vedic period, has many warrior-like attributes. While Manu (ca. 200 b.c.e.–100 c.e.), ancient India’s influential lawgiver, lists ahimsa among the general human virtues, the ksatriyas are exempt. He permits killing in self-defense and for implementing the injunctions of the Vedas. Two of the most popular epics in the Hindu tradition, the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, culminate in lengthy and violent battles. The Bhagavadgita, modern Hinduism’s most popular scripture, is revealed on a battlefield and advocates the position that participating in war may be viewed, for a ksatriya, as personal duty. We see quite clearly from the Bhagavadgita that while the tradition upholds the ultimacy of nonviolence, exceptions are made for the use of violence. The Mahabharata war is referred to, in the Bhagavadgita, as a “dharma yuddha,” a war fought in defense of justice and righteousness and for the security and well...

NILAI-NILAI PENDIDIKAN ANAK USIA DINI BERPRESFEKTIF GENDER MELALUI TRADISI LISAN MASYARAKAT MELAYU SIAK

Education should be done since early childhood for the senses as the main medium to absorb the information on humans develop gradually and methods used in presenting the information was different. For infants and children, for example, methods with emphasis on hearing and vision will be more suitable than the sensory forward. Early childhood education receive directly from their parents because the parents are the first to be beside him since birth until the age increases. Education from parents, especially the mother will be absorbed by infants directly by using the tool senses gradually. One of the traditions of the Malay community is putting the child by the mother with a song that has a rhythm and a string of words that contain the word of Allah, moral teachings and contains the message and mandate. The singing is spoken by the mother when changing consciousness of children that are useful for the formation of character to face adult life. The tradition is positive for putting the child with a religious chant is a form of teaching that is done informally by parents. That means putting the child to be part of the duties of a mother for Siak Malay society. In connection with this, this paper tries to do the content analisys against the oral tradition so that the role played by the Malay women Siak accordance with the concept of gender.

Początki polskiej pieśni kościelnej i jej tematyka

Polska pieśń kościelna, jednogłosowa i przeznczona dla ludu, stanowi ważny element wielkiego dziedzictwa kultury religijnej Kościoła w Polsce. Jej pojawienie się było w badaniach naukowców wyjaśniane przez wiele teorii. Powszechnie przyjmuje się, że powstała najprawdopodobniej w XIII wieku. Pierwsza badana teoria wywodzi ją z tzw. kierleszu, fonetycznie przekształconej krótkiej formuły Kyrie eleison, śpiewanej przy różnych okazjach. Jednakże, poza kilkoma przypadkami, nie słyszy się w Polsce nic o „kierleszu”. Preferowanym przez Feichta, przeciwnika teorii kierleszowej, źródłem polskiej pieśni jest wprowadzenie odmawiania w języku polskim pacierza w każdą niedzielę i święto, zaraz po odczytaniu Ewangelii. Jednakże można uznać te praktyki jako wstępny etap torujący drogę dla polskiej pieśni. Dominującą teorią jest ta, mówiąca, że źródłem pieśni w Polsce jest łacińska hymnodia, tłumaczona mniej lub bardziej wiernie na język polski. Powstanie polskiej pieśni religijnej wynikało przede wszystkim z zapotrzebowania wiernych na nie w obrzędach religijnych, zarówno pozaliturgicznych, jak i w samej liturgii. Pierwsze pieśni w języku polskim reprezentowały pieśni wielkanocne, pasyjne oraz maryjne.

Adaptation of CBT for Traumatized Egyptians: Examples from Culturally Adapted CBT (CA-CBT)

In this article we illustrate how CBT can be adapted to a traumatized Egyptian population with Islamic beliefs, giving examples from our adaptation of Culturally Adapted–CBT (CA-CBT) for this cultural group. We discuss a culturally sensitive assessment measure of local somatic complaints and cultural syndromes that was devised based on clinical experience with traumatized Egyptians. We also demonstrate how to normalize symptoms, create positive expectancy about the treatment, and educate about trauma. We give examples of how mindfulness can be adapted for an Egyptian Islamic population, and we describe local religious strategies, such as dhikr (religious chanting), salah (ritualistic prayer), and dua (supplication), that may be used to promote attentional shift from rumination topics and to teach attentional control. We describe how “loving kindness” can be adapted for this group. We outline how to modify culturally generated catastrophic cognitions and how to conduct interoceptive exposure and to create positive re-associations in a culturally sensitive manner. We describe how worry themes are explored and addressed based on a heuristic panic attack–PTSD model; how to teach anger management in a culturally sensitive way; and how to address sleep-related problems in this population. We suggest using cultural transitional “rituals” at the end of the treatment to give patients a sense of closure and a positive feeling of transformation. A case example is presented to illustrate cultural challenges associated with delivering CA-CBT to an Egyptian population. We introduce certain concepts such as cultural grounding and explanatory model bridging, both therapeutic techniques that increase adherence, positive expectancy, and cultural consonance.

Anti-ISIS Humor: Cultural Resistance of Radical Ideology

ABSTRACTAfter the release of ISIS's ‘Salil Al-Sawarem' promotional and motivational video with its famous religious chant, hundreds of Arab YouTubers started mocking it by editing its chant and including it in funny dancing clips which they called ‘the popular edition'. Also, some Arabic and Kurdish TV channels produced shows that aimed at mocking the radical group. Since ISIS regards dancing as a religious taboo, these popular and official media productions represent a cultural resistance force and a rejection of ISIS and its extremist ideology. I argue in this article that these active involvements in ridiculing, countering, and discrediting the terrorists’ ideology are cultural resistance efforts that aim at countering terrorism and raising awareness about its dangers in the Middle East region.

The Distinctive Features of Menzuma as a Genre of its Own and the Functions it Serve for the Muslim Community of Wollo: An Ethnographic Approach

This is a study on manzuma; its attributes and roles for Wollo Muslim Community. The data collected was part of the six month participant observation for my PhD work entitled ‘Ethnography of Communication of the Amharic Speaking Muslim Community of Wollo’. The first section illustrates the features of manzuma which mark it as a distinctive genre of its own kind. The basic features of lexical set, script, content, accompanying instruments, rhyme and rhythm. The second section states about the different functions of manzuma. It explores the roles of manzuma in the speech community with reference to the situation, setting/scene and the participants. Menzuma is used for different purposes in Wollo. It is part of cultural, religious and artistic rituals and performances. It is a tool for prayer, religious chant, cultural music, historic narrative, medication and so on. The people of Wollo are accustomed to expressing their culture, history, love, and overall lives through poetry and music. Songs and Menzuma are typical lifestyles of the Wollo society.

Sound and Architecture – Mutual Influence

Sound exists in architecture and architecture exists in sound. The process of how the two have influenced each other can be observed throughout history and has brought us the most surprising outcomes. The article presents research results on the interconnection of sound and space, in the aspect of their intertwining influence in introducing physical changes in interiors and transformations in music. The objective was to present and scientifically describe a process in which both buildings and sound effect each other, inspiring new solutions, forming innovative structures and becoming both factors and subjects of their constant interaction. This correlation was investigated within a broad timeframe of European history, from the distant past – ancient Greece and Rome – to the recent future – a “vineyard” configuration of Berlin Philharmonic Hall. Several research methods were used, ranging from case and literature studies aimed at data gathering, to comparative and graphical analysis, discussion, and finally, the synthesis and critical analysis in the concluding part.A great example of the discussed phenomenon is the development of religious chant resulting from a long reverberation time in sacral buildings, creation of the polychoral technique connected to the architectural arraignment of St Mark's Church in Venice or the popularization of the “shoebox” configuration for music halls, as a consequence of wooden structural system's limitations. Let us have a closer look at the process of mutual influences between architectural space and inner sound.

Utrwalone dziedzictwo – pieśni religijne w twórczości Władysława z Gielniowa, Franciszka Karpińskiego i Kazimierza Brodzińskiego

Badania nad polską pieśnią religijną wskazują na walory literacko-muzyczne wybranych utworów, jak również przybliżają sylwetki samych twórców. Niniejszy artykuł przedstawia najważniejsze osiągnięcia trzech wybitnych poetów: Władysława z Gielniowa (ok. 1440–1505), Franciszka Karpińskiego (1741–1825) i Kazimierza Brodzińskiego (1791–1835), których działalność na polu upowszechnienia pieśni kościelnej zasługuje na szczególne uznanie. Interesujące są również same motywy fascynacji poezją pieśniową o tematyce religijnej, czasem taka forma twórczości wynikała z osobistej wiary, niekiedy też z dodatkowych pobudek czy uwarunkowań. Duże znaczenie w upowszechnieniu danego utworu poetyckiego odgrywa forma muzyczna. Pieśni religijne wspomnianych poetów z różnego czasu i miejsca powstania odznaczają się cennymi walorami i popularnością, co sprawia, że są one stale obecne w repertuarze śpiewów kościelnych. Umieszczenie ich w najnowszym wydaniu Śpiewnika kościelnego ks. Jana Siedleckiego może stanowić potwierdzenie żywej recepcji i znak trwałego dziedzictwa.

Omaggio all’Alceo cristiano. L’ode di Diogo Pires in morte di Marcantonio Flaminio

The article presents a hitherto unknown poem of Diogo Pires (1517- 1599), a Neo-Latin poet who was forced by the Inquisition to leave Portugal in 1535 and spent a part of his long exile in Italy. The composition, an Alcaic ode, celebrates the poet Marcantonio Flaminio (1498-1550). It was written shortly after Flaminio’s death and received the praise of Paolo Manuzio, one of the most important arbitri elegantiarum of his time. In his poem, Pires shows Flaminio as an inhabitant of Heaven, who is fascinating the blessed with his religious chants. In doing so, he makes him appear a Christian counterpart to Alcaeus, the Greek poet whose charismatic “concerts” in the underworld are the subject of one of Horace’s odes.

Rumination of Music on Buddhism and Hinduism

Universe is Naad i.e. The sound and the vibration. Universe has originated from the pattern of frequency and therefore the matters that seem firm including the emotional, physical and mental and even the spiritual realms are all through the Naad: the sound and the vibratory basis. Einstein even formulated and accepted this fact of origin of universe. According to Einstein:'Every atom and molecule is formed out of energy vibrations'. Everything around us is musical. Music gives us the capability to express the deepest intuitive feeling of human soul. Every individual has unlike ways of evincing the inner self through different forms of habituating music. Some prefer just listening to different genres of music, other might just like to play an instrument and some prefer to meditate or chant holy hymns or sincere chants of praise, which helps in lifting up the mind to a sublime state. Music has played crucial role in spreading religious chants to a great extent especially in Hinduism and Buddhism. In Hinduism 'Om' and in Buddhism 'Om Mani Padme Hum' and 'Nam Myoh Renge Kyo' has played an awe-inspiring role in human beings life, through the mystical vibrations that generates while chanting these hymns. Further in my paper I'll be elaborating more on the reflection of music on Buddhism including the chants: Om, 'Om Mani Padme Hum' and 'Nam Myoh Renge Kyo' with brief historical background, it's effect on body and personality when chanted melodiously. There is also a strong relationship between music and health in Buddhism.

Ksiądz Symforian Tomicki - pisarz, redaktor „Szkółki Niedzielnej" i „Oświaty" (1817-1877)

Fr. Symforian Tomicki was born in 1817 in Golaszyn. After graduating from St. Mary Magdalene Gymnasium in Poznan he studied theology at the Wroclaw University in the years 1841- -1845. Having obtained his degree he spent a year at the seminary in Gniezno and in 1846 was ordained as a priest. He served as a parochial vicar in Trzemeszno, Pobiedziska, Pepowo and Kościan, and then as a pastor in Mikstat (1853-1858) and Konojad (1858-1877). In 1860 he reactivated Szkolka Niedzielna (The Sunday School), a journal for the rural readership, which appeared in the years 1837-1853. As its editor (a function he performed until 1863) he was sentenced to two years in a tower for breaking the Prussian press law, and served the sentence in Wisloujście. When L. Rzepecki founded the weekly Oświata (Education) in 1876, Fr. Tomicki was its editor for the first six months. He published his numerous writings on religious themes and poems in a variety of journals. He was the author of several books, including a handbook for peasants titled Mądry Wach ( Wise Wach ), two volumes of poems Kwiaty wiezienia ( The Flowers of the Prison ) and Śpiewy religijne ( Religious Chants ), historical works Ustawa Rządowa z dnia Trzeciego Maja 1791 ( The Government Bill of the Third of May 1791 ) and Pierwsi papieze ( The First Popes ). Fr. Tomicki died in 1877 in Konojad and was buried there.

Music and the Gendering of Colonial Space in Karin Albou's Le chant des mariées

This article examines the multifaceted role of music in Franco-Algerian director Karin Albou's Le chant des mariées [The Wedding Song] (2008). The film soundtrack juxtaposes ‘traditional’ Tunisian folksong, German punk rock, and religious chants in order to convey the solidarity between Jewish and Muslim women in colonial Tunisia. The film reflects a current tendency in Franco-North African cinema to regard the colonial past as a time of interfaith harmony in contrast to the rising sectarian tensions and communitarianism in contemporary France. Extending the work of Will Higbee, Phil Powrie, Anahid Kassabian, and others, I show how Albou's use of both incongruous and supposedly authentic music contributes to the depiction of colonial Tunis as a vibrant, multicultural and feminine space, while simultaneously calling attention to the difficulties of reconstructing the past and the complex (Western) agendas that inevitably accompany such projects. Albou's film challenges canonical narratives of colonial North Africa and works against the visual objectification of women, but its strategy of representing women through music ultimately compromises their political agency and voice.

Women as Vocalists in Sango Cult of Yoruba Indiginous Religion : An Analogy for the Roles of Modern Women in Nigerian Politics and National Development

In every aspect of our national development, the roles of women cannot be over emphasized. This fact is also applicable in the religious life of our country. Generally speaking, religious music is an important aspect of worship and it differs from one religious tradition to another. Although some cults in traditional religion are gender biased and exclude women from playing prominent roles yet, in others, they are indispensable. In this paper, an attempt is made to showcase the relevance of women in Yoruba Indigenous Religion especially, in the cult of Sango (the god of thunder). Although there are offices that women cannot occupy in this cult, their role as vocalists who champion the chanting of the concerned divinity is emphasized. An analogy is drawn for the unique roles of women in national development inspite of the notion that they are not allowed to play leading roles in Politics. The author employed historical-analytical method, personal observation, personal oral interview with the vocalists, and consulted relevant works of other scholars. The work discovers that a lot is revealed in the religious chanting about the attributes as well as the beliefs of the devotees in relation to the divinity. These can be likened to the significant roles of women in our society. The paper concludes that as the role of these women cannot be over emphasized in a nonscriptural religion where they preserve traditions, so are the unique roles of women in our society. Although the modern women may not be occupying certain political offices, they can still experience fulfilment by serving in several other areas of both domestic and national development. INTRODUCTION The role of women in any society cannot be over emphasised. This importance cuts across every sphere of life. For instance, in the religious life of the African, women are represented as the origin of human life through God in many tribal myths. Drawing an inference through such myths John Mbiti says, “The main idea here is to link human life directly with God through the woman. She is created by God, and in turn becomes the instrument of human life. She rightly becomes the one who passes on life.”1 Speaking further on the significance of their role in religion, the author also pointed out their engagement in prayers, not only for themselves and their family members, but also for the society in general.2 In this paper however, their role in African Traditional Religion, especially, as vocalists in Sango cult of the Yoruba pantheon is considered. It is considered in light of the fact that the traditions of 1Mbiti, John, “The Role of Women in African Traditional Religion.” Available at www.afrikaworld.net .

Ks. prof. dr hab. Karol Mrowiec CM (1919–2011) – sylwetka kapłana, muzykologa, kompozytora

Living in 1919–2011 Rev. Professor Karol Mrowiec C.M. was one of the most distinguished Polish musicologists. Throughout most of his life he worked for the Institute of the Church Musicology at KUL [Catholic University of Lublin] which he organised and managed. Supervised 70 master and 10 doctor degree students, reviewed 24 doctoral and 10 habilitation dissertations, as well as assessed 7 professorial treatises. He also greatly contributed to the music formation of the Polish clergy, devoting several years of his life to this cause. The professor conducted research on the Polish sacred music, particularly of the Baroque and of the 19th c. He made a lot of scientific discoveries in this field, publishing many sourcebooks, by which means increasing the public ad academic knowledge of the Polish church music. A vital part of his life was devoted to Polish religious chants. As the chief editor of songbooks, supervised the research on the Polish religious singing in all regions of Poland. He was a member of many Polish and international musicologist organisations. Actively participated in worldwide conferences, delivering speeches on the Polish sacred music, especially the religious chants. Rev. Professor K. Mrowiec was granted numerous medals and honoured with prestigious awards and titles, including the Honoris Causa doctor’s degree of the Pontifical Institute of Sacred Music.

Thoughts about the Acoustic Properties of a Closed Space: An Application to Middle Age Churches in Western Europe

The two reasons for this theoretical analysis of the acoustics of medieval churches are: first, to explain how the pointed arch vaulting in the nave is directed to improve acoustic efficiency; and secondly, to show how the architecture of the churches is uniquely configured to produce an extraordinary resonance for the plain-chant. In an enclosed space, the emission of any sound inevitably produces reverberations; but if we construct a vault of appropriate dimensions, then most of this reverberation can be directed in a coherent way without untoward resonance, whatever the timbre of the original sound. The reverberant sound increases loudness and gives the sound a sonority which is particularly advantageous for religious chants. In this study, we shall explain the methodology used and the theory behind the structural characteristics of the pointed arch vaulting [1]. After reviewing the acoustic characteristics of a closed space, we will examine the structures of these churches in relation to specifying the sound bandwidth and reflection quality needed to produce such sonority supported by measurement is of reverberation times. These measurements were made by the University of Genoa in several abbatial churches in Provence.

Iraqi resistance has its song

Songs have played an important role in cultural resistance and in national liberation movements. Iraq also developed its resistance songs. Combining poetry with music, lyrics protested sanctions and occupation, violence and disintegration. Being an accessible mode to the masses through CDs and DVDs, songs were disseminated making use of indigenous traditions to express radical positions and mobilize the audience. Folk music and classical maqam as well as religious chanting were infused with concerns of the present moment. The article explains different types of Iraqi musical compositions and the way innovations were introduced to oppose the occupiers. Contemporary singers and composers are cited and their work is contextualized within the drama of occupation and in relation to such battles as that of Falluja.