One Note Pitch Piper Man? Well that’s my live experience beyond imagination. However I would like to share it with all readers interested in knowing more about it. I was traveling to Yamuna Nagar in Haryana with some of the SPIC MACAY (Society for the Promotion of Indian Classical Music and Culture to Youth) team in a car. Dr. Kiran Seth was seated in the front left side next to the driver’s seat. He was sitting with Mrs. Suman Doonga. Abhishek and Divya were happy to be sitting in the back of the car (it was INNOVA). I was able to see Dr. Seth through the rear view mirror of the car. It was wonderful to watch Dr. Kiran Seth completely absorbed in yoga and meditation. He was a man of action and did everything he taught others. He was spreading the message to young people all over the world to promote SPIRITUAL TRADITIONS, CULTURE, MUSIC, ARTS AND DANCE. According to him, this is the movement of young people studying in various schools and colleges. Young students go through the Orientation program and understand the simple message of SPIC MACAY.

Various artists, musicians, dancers, film directors and anyone involved in culture and tradition are invited and show their talents to the students. These events are organized in the form of VIRSATS-annual circuits of programs throughout the country. There are workshop demonstrations in which performing artists visit schools and colleges. With the help of their performances, they introduce the importance of music and dance. There are GURUKUL SCHOLARSHIPS provided to the students where they can pass and stay with the great spiritual leaders and artists for one month. This allows them to interact directly with the great teachers and observe their lifestyles. Students get incredible exposure to the inner journey and the progress received in the outer world. There are Calligraphy and Crafts workshops and these are just fantastic for the students and they learn directly from the different artisans. There is a special screening of classic movies and movies directed by great personalities like Akira Kurosawa, Satyajit Ray, Adoor Gopoal Krishnan, Ritwik Ghatak, Shyam Benegal, etc. for the students.

I was lost in my own thoughts. Ms. Suman Doonga pointed something out and this was my intermission for the next part of my experience for the rest of the day. Dr. Seth placed a spherical thing between his lips and pulled it out after a few seconds. I thought it was his breathing machine (used by asthma patients). However, I noticed that he was behaving the same way and it was an oscillating action: place the spherical thing between the lips and pull it out after a fraction of a second. I was hungry? Was it part of the yogic exercises?

Meanwhile Mrs. Suman Doonga recounted her experience at the Pre-Play School started by Dr. Seth. She was called ARAMBHA GAMES SCHOOL. Nothing could be better than teaching young children and being in their company constantly, learning and teaching take place simultaneously. She told me that she takes classes twice a week and spends her time with these kids. She also added with amusement that he teaches them only ONE NOTE OF THE CLASSICAL MUSIC OF INDIA. This is “SA” (it’s the same as the note “DO” in western music). wow! I thought. I remembered my own lesson from PLATO’S REPUBLIC. This is a true vision of the great philosopher PLATON.

What is this-Dr. Seth busied himself with the ritual and didn’t stop him. I checked my cell phone to keep track of the exact time and discovered that two hours are spent in the car. He still didn’t get upset and took a short nap. Ms. Suman Doonga observed the same thing and started to smile at me. I was very curious as to why Dr. Seth was continually doing this after a gap of a few minutes. Is he suffering from some kind of illness? Was he addicted to something? He was hungry and he was eating the cookies? Why was he behaving in a peculiar way? Is it him because of his age? I kept questioning myself. I really wanted to know more about this behavior from Dr. Seth. I was taking my time questioning him. Thus, I created my own set of conjectures and questions, a typical characteristic of a student of philosophy.

I finally plucked up the courage and asked him a few questions. I leaned into the front seat and saw that it wasn’t a spherical COOKIE. It was black and circular in shape. There were certain designs present on both sides of the spherical disk and it was placed firmly between Dr. Seth’s fingers. I asked him, “What is this, sir? Is it something useful for yogic exercises?” He took a deep breath and was silent for a few seconds. He uttered, “It’s a PITCH PIPE.” Later she added placing it between his lips and I could hear a sound through it. He said, “This is SA Note. I’m trying to focus on it.” They just electrocuted me and I just stared at him in awe. I didn’t know what to ask him and kept thinking about it. He was thinking- “YOUR NOTE”. He very humbly said, “I’m trying to FOCUS ON this JUST ONE NOTE called SA.”

He continued with his version of the story. He is a disciple of Wasifuddin Dagar, the famous master of Indian classical music. It was Dr. Seth who concentrated on exactly this ONE NOTE by practicing it for at least eight hours a day. This practice would allow you to experience the “SA” NOTE and perceive it directly. Dr. Seth has been practicing it for the last 12 years and hoping to gain direct insight into it. This was really mystical for me. This refreshed my own memories of the METAPHYSICAL REALM of ONE HAND CLAP in Zen Buddhism, insight into ULTIMATE CONSCIOUSNESS, the power behind the physical world, etc.

I was trying to figure out the hidden meaning behind those sentences narrated by Dr. Kiran Seth. The summary is as follows:

  1. Try to focus on only one thing at a time.
  2. Regular practice would make the individual perfect in his daily life endeavors.
  3. Abhishek added: “It is better to focus on the bird present in our hands instead of two in the bush.” To my astonishment, I replied, “The bird in the hand could be killed or given the freedom to fly. The birds in the bush could fly due to the disturbance created by our ending. However, the true and regular practice would be be our own inner journey that cannot be stolen or given away to someone else. This is the true metaphorical bird for us. There is no need to fear that someone can steal from us. It is our own consciousness and experience. No one can interfere in Stay with us until the moment of death… We are able to share our experience with others”. Bingo: We were already experiencing the journey in our discussions as well.
  4. Too many things in our hands would get us nowhere in our lives.
  5. There are 7 notes in our musical system. It is the regular practice of exactly one note that one could win something instead of becoming a JACK OF ALL TRADES.

This is the important spiritual lesson I learned from my mentor, Dr. Kiran Seth. This is the true understanding that I learned from him in the car without any classroom, book, boards, etc. I didn’t pay him any fee too. That’s the real lesson I learned from THE ONE NOTE PITCH PIPER MAN.