Here is a my list of powerful repetitive chants in English that I use in my class and in the lessons of Science of Mind Child. Chants are amazing in their capacity to align, harmonize and calm, not just the outer body but also the inner spirit body and chakras. Chants are both calming and energizing. They can be used to call a group together and refocus energy or to channel energy. They also make a great prelude to meditation. The rhythmic body dominates for children in their middle years so they are naturally drawn to strong and deep percussive beat that they can feel. This process is important in the development of the natural rhythms in the circulatory, respiratory, and reproductive systems. So as adults we can help support and guide this process by offering and allowing loud music and introducing sacred and stimulating beats, chants and drumming.
Here I include links for listening from artists on YouTube and Soundcloud. It’s true, some of the chants below only have lyrics. I could not find versions that I liked for all of them. I look forward to recording these chants with the children’s voices in my class, once we can meet again, at Center for Spiritual Awakening. Check back again because I’m am working on creating and gathering recordings for those I don’t yet have.
1. Earth is My Mother
I start each class with Earth is My Mother. In my version I changed the lyrics from the traditional one to non-objectifying language (Activity 6: Personify Nature from Oneness) and to replacing the responsibility into a mutually reciprocating one. We all need to hear and believe that we are taken care of and safe and who does this better than Earth, Sky, Water, Sun and all the elements. What does it feel like to hear the truth that Earth takes care of us? I find the other version too heavy for kids (and myself). For more discussion on how to talk about Mother Earth to children, see Activity 2: Empower Mother Earth from Well-being.
I will choose just one pair of lyrics to sing for each class depending on the focus of my lesson for that day and which element it aligns with best. I am also always willing to change the lyrics to meet the learning.
Sing along with the music provided by Howard Vance Guitar Academy and the Native American Flute Choir.
Earth is our mother, she will take care of us
Earth is our mother, she will take care of us
Heya yana ho-a yana heya yana ha!
Heya yana ho-a yana heya yana ha!
Her sacred ground we walk upon with every step we take
Her sacred ground we walk upon with every step we take
Heya yana ho-a yana heya yana ha!
Heya yana ho-a yana heya yana ha!
Sky is our father, he will take care of us
Sky is our father, he will take care of us
Heya yana ho-a yana heya yana ha!
Heya yana ho-a yana heya yana ha!
His sacred air we breathe it in, with every breath we
take
His sacred air we breathe it in, with every breath we
take
Heya yana ho-a yana heya yana ha!
Heya yana ho-a yana heya yana ha!
Water is our sister, she will take care of us
Water is our sister, she will take care of us
Heya yana ho-a yana heya yana ha!
Heya yana ho-a yana heya yana ha!
Her sacred pool we drink it in, every heartbeat we take
Her sacred pool we drink it in, every heartbeat we take
Heya yana ho-a yana heya yana ha!
Heya yana ho-a yana heya yana ha!
Sun is our brother, he will take care of us
Sun is our brother, he will take care of us
Heya yana ho-a yana heya yana ha!
Heya yana ho-a yana heya yana ha!
His loving face shines on us each and every day
His loving face shines on us each and every day
Heya yana ho-a yana heya yana ha!
Heya yana ho-a yana heya yana ha!
2. Now I walk in beauty
I sing this chant, Now I Walk in Beauty, from the Navajo Blessing Way, often in closing my classroom. The version below is from Betsey Beckham. Find it in the lesson on Self-confidence.
Now I walk in beauty
Beauty is behind me
Above and below me
3. I am part of my community
I love this song for the home or classroom and use it frequently for welcoming and acknowledging everyone present, an essential part of any class. Mary Lee also is a beloved performer and my kids grew up listening to her.
I am part of my community
I have a place in the circle
I am part of my community
I have a place in the circle
What is your name?
My name is _________
Hey hey ___________
Hey hey ___________
REPEAT FOR EACH PERSON
4. We gather together
My co-teacher taught me this one. We begin each class with this gather in a circle.
We gather together in a circle we will sing
We gather together to make a golden ring
Like a tree growing taller and wiser
taller and wiser
year by year
Like a tree growing taller and wiser
taller and wiser
year by year
REPEAT
5. We are a circle within a circle
This is a wonderful transition chant to reclaim the energy of the group after an activity. This chant can also be paired with a circle dance. Find the tutorial for that dance here.
We are a circle
within a circle
With no beginning
And never ending
6. Mother I feel you
A nice pounding beat, great for stomping and guttural breathing and it really wakes up the class. It is also fun to incorporate drumming and rhythm sticks.
Mother, I feel you under my feet
Mother, I hear your heartbeat
Mother, I feel you under my feet
Mother, I hear your heartbeat
Heya heya heya
Ya heya heya ho
Heya heya heya heya heya ho [REPEAT]
Mother, I hear you in the river’s song
Eternal water’s flowing on and on
Mother, I hear you in the river’s song
Eternal water’s flowing on and on
Heya heya heya
Ya heya heya ho
Heya heya heya heya heya ho [REPEAT]
Father, I see you when the eagle flies
Flight of the spirit is gonna take us higher
Father, I see you when the eagle flies
Flight of the spirit is gonna take us higher
Heya heya heya
Ya heya heya ho
Heya heya heya heya heya ho [REPEAT]
7. Earth my body
We sing this in a round with movements, or with each of the elements singing their part and standing in the four corners. Our version is light and livelier than this recording.
Earth my body
Water my blood
Air my breath
And fire my spirit
8. The leaves on the trees reach up to the sky
This chant is a good gathering and centering song after an active outdoor activity or game. I always use movements with it stretching to the sky and spreading the arms then crossing the arms in front of my body and hands stretching out and down to Earth. We also do this in a round.
The leaves on the tree reach up to the sky
As the roots reach down through the deep, dark Earth
9. Kind hearts they are the gardens
This is a wonderful gathering song and is challenging for older children (and adults) too. A gathering song brings focus and harmony back into the group after active play.
Kind hearts they are the gardens
Kind thoughts they are the roots
Kind words they are the blossoms
Kind deeds they are the fruits
10. We are the flow
This one is is a fun chant with percussion instruments. I like to use it to complement stories of interconnectedness, like the story of Spider Woman in Oneness: 10 ways to really feel that we are all connected.
We are the flow
And we are the ebb
We are the weavers
And we are the web
11. Forget your perfect offering
These are such powerful words in this call and repeat chant, for all ages. I use this song in camp, and the kids especially love the challenge of the tempo and change at the end. to the This can be sung in a variety of ways as is done in this recording below from the amazing, incomparable song leader Lisa Littlebird of The Bird Sings. This song is a wonderful accompaniment to lessons on perfection, like Perfection is a Cracked Pot.
Forget your perfect offering
Ring the bell that you can ring
There is a crack in everything
That’s how
The light
Gets in
12. Dwelling in the present moment
Another song from Lisa Littlebird’s community choir, created by Laurence Cole from the words of Thich Nhat Hanh. I use just the original chant from Cole and not the variations later in the recording from Zen Moore, Glen Philliips and Sly and the family Stone. This come be sung as a round or in separate sections. The challenges of round songs, or in singing different parts require great concentration and focus, a great practice for the mind and is settling and calming. This song is wonderful with the lesson on Ordinary Sacred.
Dwelling in the present moment
I know this is the only moment
Breathing in, I calm body and mind
Breathing out, I smile I smile
13. I’m not a lone wolf
Another great from Lisa Littlebird that I use in camp. There are so many fantastic elements in this song that appeal to kids, the wolf that speaks to the lonliness of the 9-year-change and to the teen experience, and most importantly, the power alive within each one of us, being each of us, our life force. This is song, not really a chant, but I include it nonetheless because it does have some repetitive elements, and mostly because I just love it. It can also be sung as a round.
I’m not a lone wolf
And I never was
Everything I achieved
I achieved it because
I am standing on the shoulders
On an infinite many seen and unseen
I’m not a lone wolf
And I never was
Everything I achieved
I achieved it because
I am riding on a tidal wave
Of universal longing
I’m dropping the “I”
I’m claiming the “we”
I’m feeling the everyone inside of me
I’m dropping the mine
I’m claiming the ours
Because the whole is greater than the sum of the parts
I’m not a lone wolf
And I never was
Everything I achieved
I achieved it because
I am standing on the shoulders
On an infinite many seen and unseen
14. Let the sun shine down
This song (yes, again, not really a chant) was created by a child at camp and taught to me by my kids. Unfortunately, I don’t know the name of the creator (please reach out to me for your deserved credit!) Because this song is so good and really appeals to our inner wildness, has been kept in our classroom repertoire ever since. The lyrics lend themselves to endless creativity and kids love coming up with new lines to add to it. You may also just repeat the first stanza as a round.
Let the sun shine down
And warm my bones
Let the birds and the bees come and take my clothes
Cuz I’m a wild one now full of birds and bees
I’m wild and I ain’t going back again
Let the moon shine down
And cleanse my soul
Let the owl and the wolf come and tend my coals
Cuz I’m a wild one now made of moon and sun
I’m wild and I ain’t going back again
15. I am the light of my soul
A slow, melodic song to end a meditation or to accompany a quiet contemplative art activity like painting or drawing. I have also used it in spinning meditation with the children (see Integration with spinning from my post on Perfection).
I am the light of my soul
I am beautiful,
I am bountiful,
I am bliss
I am, I am
16. Deep and wide
This song is fun in the group because you chant much of it without words and also after singing it without words, sing loudly. There are also hand movements to accompany each word, so that when we stop using our voices to sing, we use our hands. For the word “deep,” one hand goes above the head, the other below the heart. For “wide”, arms are outstretched to the sides. For “river,” hands are side-by-side, palms flat and parallel to the ground, then gently move up and down in front of the body like water. For “fountain,” the fingers fall down from above the head to below like a waterfall in front of the face.
The first time through sing all the words, then with each repetition remove one word until you are only doing hand movements. In the last repetition, bring back all the words nice and strong. Unlike the version below, I use the word river instead of fountain and our movements are much bigger. I also always do this song seated in a circle making sure before we begin that everyone makes plenty of space for each other.
Deep a wide, deep and wide
There’s a fountain (river) flowing deep and wide
Wide and deep, wide and deep
There’s a fountain (river) flowing wide and deep
17. The Lovingkindness Song
This song and movements was created by Charity Kahn for the Plum Village kids. The lyrics are based on the Buddhist lovingkindness prayer. I use this song in my lesson on Warmth but also incorporate it in our usual class. While it has a lot of lyrics and looks more like a song, the lyrics change only slightly from I, to you, to we. When I sing it with students, we sometimes leave out the extra lyrics (not bolded) to make it more like a chant.
May I be Happy
May I be Well
May I be Safe and Sound
May I be Peaceful
May I be at Ease
With love in my heart and all around
May You be Happy
May You be Well
May You be Safe and Sound
May You be Peaceful
May You be at Ease
With love in your heart and all around
Well you can sing your love
And you can dance your love
And you can play your love
Today, my love
And you can laugh your love
And you can cry your love
And you can walk your love
And you can fly your love
All around
May I be Happy
May I be Well
May I be Safe and Sound
May I be Peaceful
May I be at Ease
With love in my heart and all around
May You be Happy
May You be Well
May You be Safe and Sound
May You be Peaceful
May You be at Ease
With love in your heart and all around
Well you can sit with your love
You can breathe with your love
And you can listen to your love
It’s in your heart, my love
And you can share your love
And you can shine your love
And you be your love
And you can spread your love all around
May We be Happy
May We be Well
May We be Safe and Sound
May We be Peaceful
May We be at Ease
With love in our hearts and all around
18. The Freedom Song
This is a call-and-response chant that incorporates challenging hand movements making it fun and rhythmic. We use our bodies as instruments. This one the kids have even performed in front of the congregation at Center for Spiritual Awakening. We always start this song with our body percussion. For the younger kids (under 9), I have them just slap their chest to the beat (as in the video). Then older kids come in with this rhythm: right hand to chest, left hand to chest, right hand to right thigh, left hand to left thigh, right foot stomp, left foot stomp, hands clap together, rest one beat and start over. Each line of the lyric is one repetition of the body percussion.
I can feel my heart beat
Beat to the rhythm of the freedom song
When I say yes to the beat in me
I can set my spirit free
I can feel my heartbeat
Beat to the rhythm of the freedom song
When I say yes to the beat in you
I can let my love shine through
I can feel my heart beat
Beat to the rhythm of the freedom song
When I say yes to you in me
I can feel our unity
I can feel my heart beat
I can feel my heart beat
I can feel my heart beat
19. The Sun shines on everyone
This is a beautiful opener from Snatam Kaur. We sing this almost every day in my home and the ending repeat of Ram Ram Hare Ram is a great prelude to meditation. Hare Rama is a Sanskrit mantra. Ram is one of the names of God and the earthly incarnation of Vishnu, the remover of illusion, as told in the Ramayana. Hare means energy or shakti. This chant because it is both English and Sanskrit is also included in My favorite Sanskrit Mantras for kids.
The sun shines on everyone (X3)
It doesn’t make choices (X2)
When it rains, it rains on everyone (X3)
It doesn’t make choices (X2)
The One Spirit lives in everyone (X3)
It doesn’t make choices (X2)
And we pray, we pray for everyone (X3)
We don’t make choices (X2)
Peace to All
Life to All
Love to All
Ram Ram Hare Ram
Peace to All
Life to All
Love to All
Ram Ram Hare Ram
Ram Ram Hare Ram (4 sets X 5 or more repeats)
20. Breathing In Breathing Out
Another chant for kids for Thich Nhat Hanh’s Plum Village UK with lyrics based on Hanh’s writings. Incorporate this song in a lesson using one of Thich Nhat Hanh’s meditations for children, like Activity 3 in my post Self -confidence: 7 ways to instill great confidence in children.
Breathing in
Breathing out
I am blooming like a flower
I am fresh as the dew
I am solid as a mountain
I am calm as the Earth
I am free
I am free
I am free
21. I’ve got peace like a river
This is a classic Sunday school song for kids, an oldie but goodie. I sang it as a child and now also teach it. The kids love the challenge of putting all the parts together in the last stanza.
I’ve got peace like a river,
I’ve got peace like a river,
I’ve got peace like a river in my soul.
REPEAT
I’ve got love like an ocean,
I’ve got love like an ocean,
I’ve got love like an ocean in my soul,
REPEAT
I’ve got joy like a fountain,
I’ve got joy like a fountain,
I’ve got joy like a fountain in my soul,
REPEAT
I’ve got peace, love and joy like a river,
I’ve got peace, love and joy like a river,
I’ve got peace, love and joy like a river, in my soul,
REPEAT
22. Give me oil in my lamp
Another classic Sunday school song with a great, rollicking melody. This one is great for an energetic group. It can be sung in rounds for a challenge. When I use this song, it often follows lessons on our inner light and inner presence. I also use it a lot around Hanukkah time when I tell the story of the oil that lasted for 7 days and after the Autumn equinox when I focus on the theme of our inner light in the darkness.
Give me oil in my lamp
keep me burning
Give me oil in my lamp
I pray
Give me oil in my lamp
keep me burning burning burning
Keep me burning til the break of day
Sing hosanna
Sing hosanna
Sing hosanna to the king of kings
Sing hosanna
Sing hosanna
Sing hosanna to the king
23. Be still and know that I am God
This is a traditional chant for a Taize service. Taize is a non-denominational, contemplative worship service of chanting, meditation, readings and silence from the Christian tradition. The service originated in the small village of Taize France, by a Swiss monk named Roger Louis Schutz-Marsauche (1915-2005). There are many more wonderful chants from this tradition and by typing Taize in your browser, you will find many more. Find this song also in the lesson Ordinary Sacred.
Be still and know that I am God
Be still and know that I am with you
Through darkest skies
A flame survives
Be still
Be still
REPEAT
24. Circle of the Sun
This song chant changes with each verse and when allowed, children can be very creative in what we humans do in the circle of the sun. When we sing this song, we go around the circle with each child offering a new verse to begin circle of the sun. I learned this song from Mary Lee who is also featured in the recording.
Babies are born in the circle of the sun
Circle of the sun on a birthing day
Babies are born in the circle of the sun
Circle of the sun on a birthing day
Clouds to the east
Clouds to the west
Wind and rain to the north and the south
Babies are born in the circle of the sun
Circle of the sun on a birthing day
Children take their first steps in the circle of the sun
Circle of the sun on a walking day
Children take their first steps
Circle of the sun on a walking day
Clouds to the east
Clouds to the west
Wind and rain to the north and the south
Children take their first steps
Circle of the sun on a walking day
Children speak their first word in the circle of the sun
Circle of the sun on a talking day
Children speak their first word in the circle of the sun
Circle of the sun on a talking day
Clouds to the east
Clouds to the west
Wind and rain to the north and the south
Children speak their first word in the circle of the sun
Circle of the sun on a talking day
I hope to be married in the circle of the sun
Circle of the sun on a wedding day
I hope to be married in the circle of the sun
Circle of the sun on a wedding day
Clouds to the east
Clouds to the west
Wind and rain to the north and the south
I hope to be married in the circle of the sun
Circle of the sun on a wedding day
I hope to die in the circle of the sun
Circle of the sun on dying day
Spread my ashes in the circle of the sun
Circle of the sun on dying day
Clouds to the east
Clouds to the west
Wind and rain to the north and the south
I hope to die in the circle of the sun
Circle of the sun on dying day
Babies are born in the circle of the sun
Circle of the sun on a birthing day
Babies are born in the circle of the sun
Circle of the sun on a birthing day
Clouds to the east
Clouds to the west
Wind and rain to the north and the south
Babies are born in the circle of the sun
Circle of the sun on a birthing day
25. Where I stand is holy
Like the previous chant, kids take turns to add what they are doing (stand, sit, dance, eat, sleep, etc.) adding fun and individuality to each line. We do this song standing and at the last line we circle around and around. I do this at a pretty fast tempo, as an active chant dance. The recording below has the right melody but is a slower tempo with many more variations than I use.
Where I stand is holy
holy is the ground
Forest, mountain, river
listen to the sound
Great Spirit circling around me.
26. Wah!
Wah! has an CD and book set of chants with movements for kids that I use often in the classroom. I highly recommend it.
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