Voice of the sacred: Deva Premal on mantras, music, and healing

Some music is heard with the ears. Deva Premal is felt with the heart.

The first time I experienced her live was in 2011, on the banks of the Ganga in Rishikesh. The river shimmered with the last light of day, and as her voice rose into the twilight—pure, unhurried, deeply sacred—it felt as though time had slowed to make space for something ancient to breathe again. That evening wasn’t just a concert. It was a remembering.

Her music isn’t just melody or mantra—it’s medicine. A vibration that settles the breath, opens the heart, and invites you inward. Her voice carries the resonance of stillness. Her chants, rooted in timeless Sanskrit mantras, awaken something primal and peaceful. She doesn’t sing to dazzle. She offers something far rarer—a place to rest, to return.

Deva was introduced to mantra early—her father even chanted the Gayatri Mantra to her while she was still in the womb. This early immersion laid a quiet foundation that would shape the arc of her life.

Though classically trained in music, it was during her time with her guru that everything truly aligned. There, the mantra became more than sound—it became embodied vibration. 

Spiritual, but deeply grounded. Her album Deva (2018) was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best New Age Album.

Based in Costa Rica, Deva Premal is embarking on a US concert tour this month. In this piece, I try to trace the journey behind the voice. What makes her music so uniquely healing? And what is it about mantras that feels so deeply personal, even to those who don’t understand the words?

If you’ve ever exhaled more deeply with a chant on loop, or shed a quiet tear during the Gayatri Mantra…this one’s for you. 

Excerpts from the exclusive interview Deva Premal gave to ALotusInTheMud.com over email:

Raji Menon Prakash: Why do you think ancient Sanskrit chants continue to hold such power and relevance in today’s world?

Deva Premal: These mantras have been chanted for thousands of years. They carry the essence of devotion and healing beyond any one culture or religion. Sanskrit is a vibrational language—each syllable has an energetic impact. In a time where people are seeking connection and peace more than ever, these ancient chants offer a direct experience of both. In my upcoming album, The Inevitable Blossoming of the Heart, I felt this deeply. Every mantra revealed a new dimension of stillness and unity. These sounds are timeless—they resonate because they speak directly to the soul.

• How do sound vibrations in mantra chanting impact the mind and body? Have you witnessed tangible shifts in people who practice chanting?

Deva Premal: Absolutely. Chanting affects our breathing, our nervous system, and even our emotional landscape. The repetition of sacred, energetic sound creates a space inside us. It softens the edges. I’ve seen people move from anxiety to peace in the space of a chant, or their lives transform through a regular mantra meditation practice. On my new album, we recorded mantras like The Four Immeasurables and Om Ah Nu Ta Ra – a mantra for Dream Yoga, which is pure vibrational medicine. While recording, I feel the shift—they brought a quality of presence that lingered in the studio long after the recording stopped.

Chanting affects our breathing, our nervous system, and even our emotional landscape. The repetition of sacred, energetic sound creates a space inside us. It softens the edges. I’ve seen people move from anxiety to peace in the space of a chant, or their lives transform through a regular mantra meditation practice.

–Deva Premal 

• Your rendition of the Gayatri Mantra is widely loved. What makes this chant so special and powerful?

Deva Premal: The Gayatri Mantra is the spiritual thread that runs through my life—it is my home. It was the first mantra I ever heard, sung to me by my father when I was a child. It is a prayer for illumination and clarity, for light within and around us. Its power is both personal and universal. Even after decades of singing it, I continue to experience new layers in its vibration. It’s the mantra I return to again and again, and it remains central to our live gatherings.

• Your music resonates across cultures and traditions. What is it about mantra chanting that transcends language and belief systems?

Deva Premal: Mantras invite us into the heart space—they don’t require belief, just openness. Whether it’s Buddham Sharanam…, Om Mani Padme Hum, or even Afepakian, which we recorded in the Maleku language of Costa Rica for the new album, each chant holds a universal invitation: to remember who we are beyond name and form. This is why people from every corner of the world chant with us—it’s not about religion, it’s about resonance, it’s about unity.

• How has your partnership with Miten influenced your music, both creatively and spiritually?

Deva Premal: Miten is my life partner, my musical soulmate, and my teacher. From the very beginning, music has been the language of our love and our path. His voice on Om Namah Shivaya Gurave—a track we recorded together for the new album—embodies the balance between the sacred masculine and the divine feminine. His presence holds the music in a grounded, soulful way. Together, we create not to perform, but to sing our prayers.

• How has your music evolved over the years, and what can audiences expect from your recent work?

Deva Premal: The focus of our music has always been on meditation, and of course, the musical expression always evolves as we grow musically and in age, and as we work together with other musicians who bring their creativity and their wisdom. The Inevitable Blossoming of the Heart was recorded in Costa Rica, and you can hear the jungle in it—the cicadas, the ocean, even a howler monkey! The album is less a collection of songs and more a journey inward. It’s a meditation in motion. For those who’ve traveled with us before, this album is like stepping deeper into the same sacred river.

• For someone new to mantra chanting, where do you recommend they begin? Are there specific mantras for different life situations?

Deva Premal: Start with what touches you. I would always suggest beginning with either simply ‘OM’ or ‘OM Shanti’—the mantra for Universal Peace. The Gayatri Mantra is the most powerful of all, and if that is your only mantra, really, you are in the best company.

Every mantra is a key, a password into the inner space, the inner center, which is eternal, which doesn’t move, which is silent. Experiment with which mantra gives you the most joy to sing and chant, and then take the time to stay with the silence after the chanting. That’s the harvest of the benefits of the practice.

Every mantra is a key, a password into the inner space, the inner center, which is eternal, which doesn’t move, which is silent. Experiment with which mantra gives you the most joy to sing and chant, and then take the time to stay with the silence after the chanting. That’s the harvest of the benefits of the practice.

–Deva Premal

Pictured at a concert with Miten, her partner in music and life 

• Can non-musicians benefit from chanting, even if they don’t feel confident in their singing voice?

Deva Premal: Yes—this is such an important question. Chanting is not about performance. It’s about presence. You don’t need a “good” voice. The mantras welcome you as you are. Whisper them, hum them, or sing them loud—it’s all relevant. Every voice is part of the healing. I feel like the chant sings me, not the other way around. We just show up.

• Has your understanding of spirituality evolved over the years? Do you follow a particular path, or is music itself your practice?

Deva Premal: My path is Love with a capital L. Every moment contains the chance to choose love, to be kind, and to practice compassion. Chanting mantra is my meditation, my devotion, and my teacher. Through chanting and singing, I can access NOW in the easiest and most enjoyable way — and the fastest!

For me, spirituality has become less about achieving enlightenment and all about presence—about being in the NOW with an open heart. 

• Could you please tell us about the significance of the Gayatri mantra in your life and how it has influenced your music? Would this be the one mantra you would leave for the world?

Deva Premal: I feel deeply honored and humbled that I have been allowed, existentially, to share a mantra as powerful as the Gayatri Mantra with so many people. It has been my companion since childhood. It is a prayer for light and awakening that transcends everything. I don’t feel that I have the right or the power to “leave a mantra for the world”. But if what Miten and I have created continues to inspire and uplift people even when we are gone, that would be the most beautiful thought.

For more about Deva Premal and her music and to book tickets to her upcoming concerts: https://devapremalmiten.com/