The human voice, a truly unique instrument, has always fascinated me. Its preciousness, however, became even more apparent in the face of the widespread violence and bloodshed that plague our world today.

Did you know hearing is among the first human faculties to develop in the womb? And hearing is postulated to be among the last of our senses to leave us as we die? Hearing leads to the development of our voices. If our eyes are the gateways to our souls, could our voices be their bodies? In all their diversity, our voices are the universal embodiment of our souls.

The human voice, a unique blessing of life, characterizes our aliveness. The voice can express itself through the body and be heard through the ears, a manifestation of sound moving in the air medium. This aliveness of sound sets the human voice apart from all other sounds, making it a truly extraordinary instrument.

Unlike the mechanical sounds emitted from electronic music synthesizers or everyday equipment, the human...

What if someone told you that your voice is the barometer of your Soul? Would you agree that every condition and quality present in your Soul is reflected in the sound of your voice?

The difference in life experience in an elderly person's voice and a teenager's voice immediately registers upon us, no matter what they say. An elderly person may say something frivolous, yet, we sense maturity in that voice. A teenage, on the other hand, may say something profound. However, we still hear the immaturity of life experience in that voice. Of course, there are always exceptions, moments when something profound comes through a person's voice, no matter what age.

When we examine these moments of profundity closely, we notice a quality of presence that accompanies the voice in these instances. We want to work towards such a quality of presence in ourselves that is a refinement of self. And we discover this more significant presence, this sense of Soul, through the expression of a voice that...