A Journey Through Aesthetic Realms: A Benefit Concert of Celestial Reminiscence, Part 14 of 18

The poem “The Rainbow and the Waterfall” speaks to man’s desire to reach a higher realization of Truth. The waterfall is a symbol of the flow of life, of man’s life, and the rainbow is a symbol of the blossoming of life. Success and failure, like fame and wealth, are but a fleeting dream in this earthly life. Man’s desire to attain immortality through prayerful meditation and enriched understanding is not unlike the river seeking to immerse itself into the sea.

The Enlightened Master, [Supreme Master] Ching Hai, has offered guidance beyond immediate enlightenment of the soul, through the contemplation of vibration to show man’s mind the path to follow to attain complete enlightenment. Nguyễn Đình Nghĩa has set Her principles to meditative music with his understanding of corresponding tonalities to reflect musical vibrations which will lead to complete enlightenment. Symbolically, using five physical forces of nature: “water, fire, wood, metal, and earth,” Nghĩa’s composition portrays the connection between the physical and the spiritual. Musical tonalities and harmonic texture complement or contrast giving meaning to life. Nghĩa’s composition that we’re about to hear is dedicated, along with his presentation of his newly enhanced method, to amplify sound vibrations into a core of bamboo to [Supreme Master] Ching Hai. The disciples of [Supreme Master] Ching Hai are asked to join in chanting the Amitābha at the end of the fourth section. We now begin with “The Rainbow and the Waterfall.”