(For the recent "God! God God" album click HERE.)
Album info:
• All music and lyrics by Swami Kriyananda unless otherwise noted
• More about the author, more music: www.swamikriyananda.org
• Voice and guitar by Dambara Begley unless otherwise noted
• To contact me, please click HERE.
Special Thanks to:
• Chaitanya Mahoney -- recording & engineering tracks 1-25, & 28; overall CD production
• David Eby and Dave Bingham -- recording & engineering tracks 26, & 29-32
• James Morris -- recording & engineering track 27
• Singers and Instrumentalists -- see songs 25-32 and
• Swami Kriyananda -- example, friendship & inspiration beyond words to express
How the CD came about: Late in 2005, an Ananda friend who was living and working far away, & feeling very isolated, emailed me: "Here's what I'd like--would you go into a recording studio and record some Ananda music and send it to me, so I can stay in the vibe here?" Well, that was a hard offer to refuse! I made up a list of my favorite songs by Swami's that I could accompany myself on, including several that we don't often hear. Chaitanya recorded 'em all on 12/31/05. (He engineered them later). Later, I added a few other tracks from concerts and other CD's.
To Print Lyrics: Cut & paste them into your word processor. Otherwise, you'll only be able to print the first song.
1. Be Free Inside
I'll tell the world (4 claps)
I don't have money. (3)
But life is wonderful, (2)
And every day is sunny. (1)
The trick is this: (4)
Don't beg from anyone,
Just live in joy, (2)
Be free (2)
inside. (2)
2. The Secret of Laughter
The secret of laughter lies in the laughing,
Not in the search for joy:
It’s a swallow winging on the wind;
It’s innocence in a boy.
Chorus:
Luru luru lero,
Luru luru lye,
Joy will come to anyone
Whose soul has learned to fly!
Joy in the singing, not in the song sung,
Welcome, but never crave:
If you think that laughter lies in things,
To things you’ll be but a slave!
Joy in the giving, not in the gaining,
Grasp, and you’ll never sing:
You could win the world and still be poor;
Win peace, and live like a king!
Sing when the sun shines, sing when the rain falls,
Sing when your road seems strange.
In a tempest seize the lightning flash
And ride the winds of change!
3. Boxes
(A sailor from England remarked to a foe,
“The reason we win is: We pray as we go.”
“But we pray as well, and just look at our dead!”
“Ah, but we pray in English,” the Englishman said.)
I had a little box when my Lord made me,
And in that little box I did put a tree,
A pony, a teddy bear, a bright green sled:
Everything around me that my eyes did see.
How can a little box ever hold a sled,
A pony, and a tree?—puzzles your poor head.
It can’t, my friend, but in a tiny baby’s mind
This mighty world becomes a little box instead.
Well, as I grew older my box grew too,
Held airplanes, and ships, and a birch canoe,
And school books, a foreign trip, and college proms,
Good times, and friends aplenty—yes, and also, you!
But somehow in this box would only fit one school,
One family, one country, and one social rule,
And certainly one church, for only my way’s right,
And anyone with other ways is just a fool.
Well, so I used to think, but now I must confess
At judging fools I wasn’t any great success.
Truth somehow lived without me, though I called it mine.
What box could hold the world?—It’s just preposterous!
4. Hawaiiana
Haliki pa weha
Hanalei peha
Hakane likea na kalea kapu.
Hali ki pa weha
Hanalei pe Ha
ma ka ne li me a ka namea kapu.
Ne mi kauai ki wahini lei ki
pakale Ha lia napali ma
me lu ka le hi ka
Na pali kane la
wahini me Hawaii le kauai mu.
Note: The lyrics are pure whimsy…as is this subsequent English "translation":
The young man sailed in a little boat
from Hali, a distant island in the southern seas.
He sailed in safety far, far --
to Hanalei, the peaceful, the beautiful.
The dark stranger, alas, was kapu (taboo).
But on this isle of Kauai he met a beautiful maiden,
who, seeing him, fell in love,
wreathing him in a lei of fairest flowers.
And so it was that this Hali man,
wreathed in sacred flowers from the Napali coast,
became purified of all sin,
and united in holy love to this Napali maid.
She took him home with her and wedded him,
in the land of Hawaii, on the fair island of Kauai,
according to the rites of the ancient land of Mu.
5. The Fairies’ Song
Lyrics by William Shakespeare, from
“The Merry Wives of Windsor”
Fie on sinful fantasy!
Fie on lust and luxury!
Lust is but a bloody fire,
Kindled with unchaste desire,
Fed in heart, whose flames aspire
As thoughts do blow them higher and higher.
Pinch him, fairies, mutually;
Pinch him for his villainy;
Pinch him and burn him and turn him about,
Till candles and starlight and moonshine be out.
6. All the World Is My Friend
All the world is my friend
When I learn how to share my love;
When I stretch out my hand and smile,
When I live from above.
7. Lightly I Fly
Lightly I fly when I live in laughter,
Lightly I fly when my heart sings.
Lightly I fly when I live in laughter,
Lightly I fly when my heart sings.
Fling to the ground every heavy burden.
Now I can soar up above the clouds!
Fling to the ground every heavy burden.
Now I can soar up above the clouds!
Lightly I fly when I live in laughter,
Lightly I fly when my heart sings.
8. Melody’s Everywhere
Daddy’s in the garden talking to his roses.
Sally’s in her bedroom combing her hair.
Mommy’s in the kitchen laughing with the neighbor,
Oh, melody sings to us everywhere!
Say, listen to the robin singing from the housetop!
Hear my little kitty romping on the stair!
Listen to our dog, Jim, barking up a pear tree!
Yes, melody sings to us everywhere!
Oho! The wind is calling: hear it in the meadow,
Telling everybody: “Toss away care!”
Hear it: My, it’s happy! Swirling leaves have joined it:
And melody sings to us everywhere!
9. Of His Dreams Our Love Was Made
God is our father, our mother, too;
God is our dearest treasure.
God's ever near, the one friend who
Loves us without any measure.
Of his dreams our love was made.
Only from Him is love repaid.
Let us in gladness all live for Him;
Serve Him in every season.
Serve Him with thought, with hand and limb;
Love Him without any reason.
God befriends us as we are:
Fools we, that hold his love afar!
10. Life Is Beautiful
Life is beautiful, life is gay,
When I give myself away;
When I live to please Thee, Lord,
Dancing in Thy ray.
Let me see Thee everywhere
Hear Thy melodies in the air.
Let me feel Thy strength in me.
Give me joy to share.
11. I’m Determined No More to Play
I'm determined no more to want to play!
I'm determined no more to play.
I'm determined no more, I'm determined no more,
I'm determined no more to play!
12. I Wonder
Baby Tim’s in the nurs’ry, asleep in his playpen,
His calico pony close by.
It’s all set, if a dream calls to carry its master
Away to a calico sky.
And I sit by my window and wonder
Why it’s only in dreams we can fly;
Why a pony can’t hurdle the sunset,
Maybe that’s what makes small babies cry!
Daddy sits in his study, and hums with his reading
The tune of his favorite song.
He tells me his “homework” seems nicer and lighter
With music to lift it along.
And I sit by my window and wonder
Why a book has no song of its own;
Why the world doesn’t flood us with music—
And why people must sing all alone.
Mommy’s out in the kitchen, she’s making our dinner,
I hear, by the clink of the pans,
That she’s happy, just cooking and knowing we’re near her:
Her happiness flows from her hands.
And I sit by my window and wonder
How the world without mothers would be,
And if people could live without loving:
Such a world I hope never to see.
(I only recorded verse 1 because at the time I didn’t know that verses 2 and 3 existed! – Dambara)
13. Who Is Sylvia?
Lyrics by William Shakespeare, from “The Two Gentlemen of Verona”
Who is Silvia, what is she?
That all our swains commend her?
Holy, fair, and wise is she:
The heav’n such grace did lend her,
That she might admired be,
That she might admired be.
Is she kind as she is fair?
For beauty lives with kindness.
To her eyes love doth repair,
To help him of his blindness,
And, being helped in habits there,
And, being helped, in habits there.
Then to Silvia let us sing,
That Silvia is excelling;
She excels each mortal thing
Upon the dull earth dwelling.
To her let us garlands bring,
To her let us garlands bring.
14. Someday
Someday, friend, we'll all be free:
Loose these chains, someday!
When the hidden light we see,
Veiled within earth's clay.
He alone is a prisoner whose thoughts have been bound.
He alone can escape this cage,
Who wisdom has found.
Someday, friend, the darkness will flee:
God will be ours someday!
15. Cherish These
Is there anywhere on earth,
Perfect freedom, sorrow’s dearth,
Selfless friendship, blameless birth?
Cherish these, naught else has worth.
16. Sleep Is Calling
Sleep is calling, fly up high,
Be a cloud moving in the sky!
Sail above the winding rivers.
Ask the stars, “What am I?”
Lullaby, Lullaby, Lullaby.
Sleep is calling, soar in light.
Be a star shining through the night.
Tell all creatures that you love them.
Tell the shadows: “Be bright!”
Lullaby, Lullaby, Lullaby.
17. Goodnight, Sweetheart
What do you feel
The night may reveal?
Darkness can’t harm you,
Its fears are unreal.
Light will enfold you;
Just open your heart:
Let peace through your dreams gently steal.
Good Night, Sweetheart,
I’ll see you in the morning.
Till then, sleep tight; Sweet dreams!
Starlight, Sweetheart,
Your silken hair adorning,
bring peace on silv’ry beams.
Though sep’rate for awhile,
The mem’ry of your smile
Will linger in my heart,
And bless me.
Now flow, Sweetheart,
All cares and troubles scorning,
Adrift on astral streams.
18. Daughter of Aran
When she smiles, the sun rays play in her eyes.
From the sky, her laughter draws song
As, her hair to befriend,
Cheerful breezes descend:
It’s to Nature her spirits belong.
Oh, her spirit was made
From the sun on a glade—
Far, far from the madding throng.
There on Aran, loud waves lashing the rocks,
Screaming gulls that rise, surfing the air;
There, where clouds meet the hills
To beget dancing rills:
Oh, it’s freedom her wild spirits share!
It’s release that she brings:
When she smiles, my heart flings
Far, far ev’ry worldly care!
The desolate Aran Islands are the scene of John Millington Synge's great play “Riders to the Sea.”
19. Two Souls
Two souls were conceived,
At night,
Ere stars in the sky
Gave light.
Ere planets were born,
Ere hearts could know scorn.
Together they danced in God’s sight.
Up pathways radiance
They flew,
Before them, bright starsv
They strew.
Deep seas and vast plains,
Men’s joys, and men’s pains--
All these, in perfection They knew.
Their love called them down from
The skies.
To live here on earth in
Disguise:
They seemed mortal, now,
Yet rememb’ring their vow,
They ever maintained their Soul ties.
20. Make Us Channels of Thy Peace
Lord most high our heav’nly father,
All our lives we dedicate to Thee:
All our labors, all our joys and woes,
All our pleasure, all our melody.
Make us each a channel of Thy peace:
When in darkness, guide us from above;
Where there’s sorrow may we sow Thy joy;
Where there’s hatred may we share Thy love.
21. Cloisters
Long I’ve called You, my Lord,
Long I’ve called You.
Many years I have longed for Your sight;
Bathed the darkness with tears of devotion,
Offered candles in prayer to Your light.
How much longer, Friend,
Must I cry Your name?
I am Yours, ever Yours.
Will You come?
22. Keep Calling Him
By Maitri Jones, based on 2 poems by Paramhansa Yogananda
Keep calling Him, keep calling Him, keep calling Him.
Whether He replies or not, keep calling Him.
In the temple of unceasing prayer
Believe that He's approaching there
And call to Him, Keep calling Him.
Thou dost know I'm praying, Lord,
You know I love no other.
I'll speak not nor ask when
To expect from you an answer.
You know my heart.
I'll call to Thee again.
Keep calling Him, keep calling Him,
Whether He replies or not, keep calling Him.
I'll wash Thy feet of silence
With the waters of my tears.
The altar of my soul
Will be empty till Thou comest.
I'll wait for Thee,
No matter days or years.
Keep calling Him, keep calling Him,
Whether He replies or not, keep calling Him.
In the center of my heart I have
A mystic throne for Thee.
The candles of my joy are dimly burning now in hope,
Awaiting Thy coming,
Though it be eternity.
Keep calling Him, keep calling Him,
Whether He replies or not, keep calling Him.
Even when there's no reply,
never let your longing die.
And call to Him. Keep calling Him.
Remain persistent, undepressed
Through dark and seeming silence.
If in the midst of life, disease, and death you play the dancer,
Yet keep calling Him,
You will receive His answer!
Keep calling Him.
Keep calling Him.
Keep calling Him.
23. Song of the Nightingale
Nightingale! Nightingale!
Sing of joy through the night.
Teach my heart
To impart
Everywhere your delight.
Sing of moonrays on the rain,
Sing that love’s not in vain:
Every grief, every wrong
Has its ending in song.
Nightingale! Nightingale!
Sing of joy through the night.
Teach all men
How to spin
Clouds of gloom into light.
Without silence, what is song?
Without night, where is dawn?
Were it not for men’s woes,
Who would smile at a rose?
Nightingale! Nightingale!
Sing of joy through the night.
Let each tone,
Silence-grown,
Earth and heaven unite.
Morning laughter, evening tears,
Snow and blossoms—all fade!
Joy must sing in the night
To face change unafraid.
24. The Christmas Mystery
Long ago there was a little shed.
There three mighty kings did bow their heads
To a gentle babe of low degree,
Whom men called the son of Mary.
Chorus:
Who'll tell to me this mystery:
How a tiny babe in a manger laid
Could so many hearts to love persuade?
This holy son of Mary.
Shepherds came and knelt in wonder there,
Seeing Him in light beyond compare,
And His eyes that told them all love was he
Whom men called the son of Mary.
Wonderful it was, that Christmas Day,
How from far and near they came to pray,
How from far they glimpsed his majesty
Whom men called the son of Mary.
Could it be that in that little one
Spirit's universal love did shine?
If it's true, he lives in you and me
Whom men call the son of Mary.
25. Looking for a Friend
With the Ananda Singers
Where are you going my little one?
"In hope these empty streets I wend;
I've seen a star rise in the east,
And I'm looking for a friend."
Turu, luru lurulay.
Turu, luru lurulay.
Where are you going, good shepherd folk?
"From a lowly valley we ascend.
A wondrous vision sent us here:
We're looking for a friend."
Turu, luru lurulay.
Turu, luru lurulay.
You learned men, where are you going?
"Our souls' long journey we would end,
Therefore we've come to Bethlehem:
We're looking for a friend."
Turu, lulu lurulay.
Turu, luru lurulay.
Good people, let me come with you.
Perhaps he's just around this bend,
But whether near or far, I, too,
Have been looking for a friend.
Turu luru lurulay.
Turu luru lurulay.
26. Where Has My Love Gone?
With The Ananda Singers
Todd Billingsley, guitar
Where has my love gone?
Long are the nights,
Now that she's left me,
Dimmed my delights.
Where is my love, friend?
Passed she this way?
Saw you her smile?
Ah! What did she say?
Ah! Passed she here?
My sweetheart, passed she here?
Sweet was her promise
When first we met;
Whispers of heaven
Made me forget
Heartaches and labors,
Earth-searing pain.
"Rest now," she said,
"You've found love again."
Ah! Passed she here?
My sweetheart, passed she here?
Surely she lied not.
Heaven did shine,
Piercing the darkness:
Love then was mine!
Could she not linger?
Must even she
Rise and depart
Like mist on the sea?
Ah! Passed she here?
My sweetheart, passed she here?
Life's made of dreams, friend:
Dreams that must break,
Quickly dispersing
When we awake;
Strange, that when love calls
Memory stays,
Crying across
The tides of our days!
Ah! Passed she here?
My sweetheart, passed she here?
There by my bed
She left me a note.
Can you explain
These words that she wrote?
"Seek me," she said, "love,
Out on the sea:
Boundless the reaches
Of true love must be."
Ah! Passed she here?
My sweetheart, passed she here?
"This is a mystical love song. The idea of it is that what we lose is only intended to help us to grow. The pains of change, the pains of material loss, pains of material growth, even, are all intended for positive ends. The growth that we experience in understanding with every pain makes the lesson of bereavement, of loss, of tragedy the most important and valuable lessons in human life. And that's the meaning of this song: to expand our consciousness outward until it embraces the whole sea, and not to cling to one little island of affection, of infatuation, of attachment." – Swami Kriyananda
27. To Death I’m a Stranger
With The Ananda Singers
Arrangement by David Miller
To death I’m a stranger,
Poor youth that I am.
What destiny bears me
Hence to that shore?
The chalice of life,
Scarce sipped at the brim,
Has slipped from my grasp
And stains the dark floor.
Has life any meaning?
The grail that men sought
Has never been found
On earth.
The fountain of youth—
Ah, merely a myth!
Everyone who roamed
Far in search of it
Died an untimely death.
Yet see how the night sky,
Which banishes the sun,
Is banished in turn by dawn!
Death comes like a gypsy
Who camps on the way;
At dawn, his dark caravan’s gone.
To death I’m a stranger,
Yet, strangest of all,
The stranger I feared
Is a stranger to me!
Can shadows strike fear
That hide from the sun?
What horror brings death?
In light I am free!
28. Dark Eyes
Todd Billingsley, keyboard
I’ve known them forever:
They’ve haunted my slumber,
And called to me out of the deeps of space.
The love that they promise
Has helped me remember
Another time, a caring embrace.
Dark eyes in the morning,
Dark eyes in the evening,
Dark eyes in the starlight at end of day:
Dark eyes that speak silence,
They whisper, “Come find me:
You’ll never know true love, if you stay.”
Now I seek them in the wintertime,
Oh, I seek them in the spring:
Those two dark eyes draw my heart away
To where sun and moon sing!
I laugh now in the summertime,
When ripples on the river play.
I laugh, soaring with the meadowlarks.
Love has made my heart gay.
I’ve known them forever:
They’ve haunted my slumber,
And called to me out of the deeps of space.
The love that they promise
Has helped me remember
Another time, a caring embrace.
29. In the Spirit
From “Christ Lives: An Oratorio” by Swami Kriyananda
Todd Billingsley, keyboard
I was caught up in ecstasy:
’Twas a day sanctified by God.
There He showed me the truths of heaven,
Truths which all, seeking Him, should know:
How the soul, made to live in freedom,
Can reclaim its eternal right;
How the night, born of our delusions,
Can be fired, blazing with His light.
“I wrote this song after a visit to the Greek island of Patmos, where Saint John wrote his ‘Revelation,’ also known as ‘The Apocalypse,’ which is the last book of the Holy Bible. His account states in the tenth verse (following a long preamble), ‘I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day.’ “ – Swami Kriyananda
30. Thy Will Be Done
From “Christ Lives: An Oratorio” by Swami Kriyananda
David Eby, cello
Thy will, Thy will, Thy will be done!
All that I am is Thine, all that I am.
Nothing of man endures, wonder or scorn.
Birth, life and death are one: veils of Thy love.
Thy will, Thy will, Thy will alone!
All that I've done is Thine, all that I've done!
31. O Master
Lyrics by Mukti Girard and Swami Kriyananda; music by Mukti Girard
With the World Brotherhood Choir and Spirit of Joy Orchestra, both directed by David Eby; Panduranga Heater, guitar
O Master, may Thy joy fill our days.
O Master, may Thy wisdom guide our ways.
The time has come for us to see
That there’s but one reality
Upon the earth and high above:
The truth that all was made from love.
A love that calls to us to fly
Above the hills, above the sky,
Above the storms, above the pain:
A land where peace and laughter reign.
O Master, may Thy joy fill our days.
O Master, may thy wisdom guide our ways.
Guide all our hopes and all our dreams
Past every glow that only seems,
Into the light, the inner sun,
Into the truth that we’re all one.
Help us to find in every hour,
In every thought in every flower,
A joy that spans eternity,
The truth that makes us ever free.
O Master, may Thy joy fill our days.
O Master, may Thy wisdom guide our ways.
32. Love Is a Magician
Mukti Deranja, keyboard; David Eby, cello; Donelle Page, harp
Love is all I know:
Sunrays on the snow
Of a winter long
In darkness, without song.
Oh, my heart’s afire,
Burning all desire.
Only You remain,
And life again.
Too long I did stray,
Flung lifetimes away,
Imagined You did not care.
I know now Your smile
Was mine all the while;
I listened, and love was there.
I can’t breathe for love!
All the stars above
Call to me, “Come home!
Life’s waves all end in foam.”
Only love can heal
All the pain I feel.
What a fool was I
To turn away!