The flute is an important sacred symbol in mystical poetry, particularly in the Sufi and Hindu traditions.
On a simple level, the flute is like a plaintive, purified human voice, calling out -- an expression of longing. The flute is also hollow, empty, and it is precisely because of this emptiness that its sound is so pure.
On a more esoteric level, each human being is a living flute. The hollow reed is the sushumna, the central spiritual channel that parallels the spine. The holes of the flute are the chakras that open out from the sushumna. Living music is produced when the breath of God flows through this hollow reed, producing bliss, producing the sound of God. The sound heard is a soft hum or quiet ringing which gently draws us into the divine embrace.
|