Music as the Food of Love: Dr. Aryan Tavakkoli (vegan), Part 1 of 2

The song we just heard is 'Finding Paradise,' written and performed by Dr. Aryan Tavakkoli, a vegan singer and songwriter from the United Kingdom. Dr. Tavakkoli is no ordinary musician; her professional area of expertise actually lies in the field of medicine. In addition to holding a medical degree from the Medical College of St Bartholomew’s Hospital in London, UK, she holds qualifications in vegetarian and vegan nutrition, traditional Chinese acupuncture, phytotherapy, and mind-body techniques. In 2017, she opened her own facility known as Quantum Clinic, where she offers an integrative support program for patients diagnosed with cancer, using a holistic approach. Whole foods, plant-based nutrition is a foundation of her medical practice.

Dr. Tavakkoli has been practicing the Quan Yin method of meditation with Supreme Master Ching Hai for approximately 16 years, and believes that her spiritual practice and Master’s teachings have been instrumental in helping her both personally and professionally. "When I listen to a particularly beautiful piece of music, sometimes I can feel it's almost as though my cells are vibrating at the same level of frequency as the music. I find that music's very uplifting for my soul. It makes me feel happy. It seems to reach into my very core and I'm sure that's the same for a lot of people when they listen to beautiful pieces of music." "I think that when we meditate, it kind of opens up a portal to a higher realm, and then through that portal, we can receive information, we can receive ideas and insights, and sometimes that can be very profound. Of course, that's not the reason that we meditate, but it's like a positive side effect of meditation, a kind of bonus. Perhaps we feel so uplifted when listening to beautiful music because on a deep level, music reminds us of where we come from. It reminds us of our Heavenly home."

'Finding Paradise' is all about discovering the inner world within ourselves that is actually the real paradise. Let’s now listen to another song called 'The Way of Compassion' written and performed by Dr. Tavakkoli. And the songs generally, the theme running through them is all really about compassion. It's about living in harmony with others that share this Earth with us, that are our animal friends.