White Sun's Grammy win puts glow on Sikh faith

JALANDHAR: A day after they won a Grammy for its latest eponymous album, music group

White Sun

found a fresh fanbase in Punjab as listeners tuned into their website to find words they had counted on their entire lives.

As many as 10 compositions in the album, 'White Sun II', are either from the Guru Granth Sahib or have been penned by the 10th Sikh master, Guru Gobind Singh, and a part of daily prayers. The 11th composition is an instrumental based on the Sikh expression for God - Akaal.

The award was received by lead singer Gurujas Khalsa, a turbaned Sikh of American origin, alongside band co-founder and two-time Emmy-winning music composer Adam Berry and instrumentalist Harjiwan, a turbaned disciple of the late Harbhajan Singh Yogi aka Yogi Bhajan, who started propagating Sikhism among Americans half a century ago.

The first three compositions in the album are from 'Jaap Sahib', a long composition in praise of God penned by Guru Gobind Singh with words from different languages, including Persian and Sanskrit.

"We just want our music to make something better for somebody somewhere. And it's our dream to see this world become a more beautiful place," said Gurujas in her brief acceptance speech.

Apart from the Grammy-winning kora player Mamadou Diabate and the Punch Brothers' violinist Gabe Witcher, White Sun II also features Indian-origin tabla player Abhiman Kaushal. The album was a breakout New Age hit in 2016 and a chart-topper on iTunes. White Sun announced touching one million streams on its Facebook page with a chant of "Waheguru".

Gurujas teaches Kundalini yoga at RA MA Institute for Applied Yogic Science and Technology in California. White Sun describes its music as interpretations of yogic mantras: "These are the songs of yogis sung with a penetrating vibratory musicality that enhance consciousness and awareness while delighting the senses. White Sun's music emphasizes (sic) the healing vibrations of mantra through the clear, profound lead vocals of Gurujas..."


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