Buddhist Melody

Music of the Buddhist world, especially Japan and also Native American music, often has a descending melodic line (not an ascending one that ends higher than it began with a climax 3/4 of the way through like western music does). In the Buddhist world, many times, scales are practiced in the descending direction unlike in the west where we practice everything ascending first. In the west, which was highly influenced by Christianity, we place hell in the center of the earth and heaven in the sky. Consequently we denegrate the earth and our bodies with its attendant sexuality and are trying to escape toward the intellectual spheres of heaven. This also relates to dance. Native American dance often have dancers crouched lower to the ground but in a comfortable way that will allow everyone to participate at a public pow wow. However, in Ballet people contort their bodies in a way that can damage it permanently such as walking around on their toes and they jump into the air in ways that only virtuosos can perfect in an attempt to escape the bonds of earth where only the wealthiest can attend. This perpetuates the idea that heaven is a very exclusive country club. Much of this has resulted from the fact Greek translators of the early biblical texts didn't know what they were doing. They projected their philosophical idea that spirit is separate from matter onto their translations. This was not an idea which the early jews ever had. In fact quite the opposite.