Gyuto Monks - Pure Sounds

A Buddhist chanting album by a group of Gyuto Monks from Tibet has garnered a suprise nomination for the upcoming Grammy Award, in the "Best Traditional World Music Album".

The album is produced by Kamal Engels of New Age Records, an independent label who is a long time producer of meditation and relaxation music.

The German-born musician approached the Gyuto Monks after learning they had set up a small monastery in Rosebank near his home town of Byron Bay. The 4 monks were sent from a monastery in India on rotation basis to attend various functions and events and have since returned to India.

Pure Sounds was an accident, as Engels explains: "I was working on a production for my American label, New Earth Records, called Zen Mama. I wanted some traditional Tibetan chanting on it.

"After the recording … I wanted to offer them the chance to record chants of their choice and put an album together so they could print maybe 500 copies and sell them when they were travelling. We recorded the album and it turned out so well that I suggested they try to get it released by my American record company."


The nomination of this album suprised Engel as he had expected another album produced by him, Beyond: Buddhist And Christian Prayers by Tina Turner to stand a chance of a nomination.

With the monks having returned to India and a table on the Grammy night costing a few thousand dollars, no one associated with Pure Sounds is likely to attend the award presentation. The Grammy will be given out this Sunday ( February 13, 2011 )

Pure Sounds


Beyond : Buddhist And Christian Prayers

Read More

Buddhist Personality : Meng Ting Wei

Name : Meng Ting Wei
Nationality : Taiwan
Date Of Birth : December 22, 1969
Profession : Singer

She is a devout Buddhist who has been a vegetarian for 8 years and in 2001 released a Buddhist theme album. In January last year, she delivered her son on the lunar new year whom was supposed to be born on the 8th day of the lunar new year. Meng told her husband who was an atheist that she hoped their child would be born on the 1st day of the lunar new year. He husband "challenged" that if her wish came through he would also become a buddhist but on the eve of the new year, she felt that she was going to give birth and was rushed to the hospital and on the new year, true to her wish, her son was born. She believes her son has Buddha's light because he was born on the 1st day of lunar new year , the birthday of Maitreya, one of Buddhist boddhisatvas.

Read More