Carlos Santana: Spirit

Carlos Santana has been one of my favorite musicians ever since a music teacher played Samba Pa Ti to us. Many are touched by his music alone, much like Estas Tonne.

Sometimes Santana also conveys spiritual messages through lyrics, for example in his song Spirit (Johnson, Ligertwood, Raul Rekow), released in 1985 on the album Beyond Appearances.

Carlos Santana: Spirit

The World of Opposites

Santana clearly describes the world of opposites, with its ups and downs and a lot of suffering.

One day you’re up, next day you’re down, where does it end?
War in the east, war in the south no one can win
Hunger and strife taking the lives of brothers and friends
Young people grow, way much too fast to realize

Suffering also originates from nationalism and pride:

Nations collide, defending their pride and blood is the price
Price is too high, no need to die let’s turn it around

Where is the Way Out?

According to this song, the path to overcoming suffering does not depend on a great theory yet to be developed, nor on a new way of organizing society or fighting against evil.

Let’s change the face, the human race, progress will come
Just take the time, look deep inside, we’ll understand

That the spirit brightens up the sun
Everything in life must be as one

Can’t you feel the spirit grow into the light
Can’t you see the spirit glowing in the night, hey

I found the answer
I found the stream of light

The Solution is already present …

We do not have to work hard to develop a solution, we do not need to invent one based on our intelligence. A solution is already present, and we need to learn to perceive it, to feel it, and to react in the right way. If that happens, then conditions in the world at large may change accordingly. However, peace in the deepest sense of the word, a lasting and undisturbed peace, may not be possible in our realm. The world of opposites helps everyone, at his specific level of consciousness, to gain valuable experience …

Spiritual Quotes by Carlos Santana

Santana sometimes seems to prefer music over words. However, there are a number of quotes at BrainyQuote that are worthwhile to reflect on:

On possessions and weapons strong enough to change the world:

The most valuable possession you can own is an open heart.
The most powerful weapon you can be is an instrument of peace.

Love is the strongest power on earth:

There is no person that love cannot heal;
there is no soul that love cannot save.

On the magic of the moment (the here-and-now):

Most people are prisoners, thinking only about the future or living in the past.
They are not in the present,
and the present is where everything begins.

This may remind us of many wise teachers, e. g. Krishnamurti or Eckhart Tolle (who greatly influenced, among many others, the actor Jim Carrey).

On gaining self-knowledge, free of emotional distortions:

Everybody sooner or later has to drop the luggage and the baggage of illusions.

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