Music to heighten your peak experiences
Feel yourself on top of the mountain with these sublime songs
Dear hopeful reader,
In my early twenties, I became obsessed with the term “peak experience” when I first learned of it. The emotions—euphoria, awareness, wonder, unity, and others—I was feeling were well defined, conceptualized, and shared with other humans. One of my favorite psychologists, Dr. Abraham Harold Maslow, explained it better than I would ever be able to.
I often feel a peak experience when I’m listening to music. I’ve never been on top of a mountain, but I imagine this is how it feels. I feel as though I’m out of my body, airborne, ascending to heavens. I imagine myself in a musical, where everyone is dancing and singing together, rejoicing and celebrating life. I feel myself one with my body, my soul, and the universe. Every cell in my body is whole, and I have a knowing of life’s secrets and miracles. I’m floating in the most weightless sea or in space. Time stops or is infinite. In the peak-experience moment, I’m immortal and corporeality doesn’t exist.
After each peak experience, I want to sing all day, I think I could take on the world. There are songs I often come back to that make me feel this way, and that bring me back to pivotal moments of my life.
Also read: Working on a Kate Bush medley
1 + 1 = 2 Enamorados by Luis Miguel takes me back to high school days; we listened to it to learn Spanish in class. Stromae’s Papaoutai was one of the first songs my husband and I listened together when we first started dating. Life Is What You Make It by Elisapie got me through horrible prescription meds withdrawals. I put it on repeat then, and on the other side when I got through this one difficult time in my life. Can’t Take My Eyes Off You by Boys Town Gang reminds me to continue zumba, and to always end the workout with this exquisite track. Music seems to be the key to memories, among all other good it awakens in us.
Today I want to share some songs that mean so much to me. And nothing would delight me more than to know that any of tracks songs made you feel exhilarated and invogorated or reflective and stimulated. You can listen to the playlist “Music to heighten your peak experiences” here.
Individual songs list
I can never get enough of the peak experience, even when I may crash from too much of it. Do you have songs that make you feel euphoric? Share them in the comments below!
Yours hopefully,
Nadia
PS: giveaway contest
Last Tuesday I launched a giveaway contest of a phenomenal poetry book. I’m gifting a copy of BURN THE WITCH by Aïcha Martine to one lucky winner. Please read the post for instructions on how to participate in the giveaway and share it with other interested folks. Thanks so much!
Will check out the whole list this weekend, Nadia. I'm a big Peter Gabriel, Kate Bush, and U2 listener, so I'm sure I'll appreciate some of this new music you're introducing to me. Thank you.
Listening to the playlist now. Interesting vid about "peak" experiences - certainly I've heard of ecstatic/mystic experiences (I recall one very intense and memorable such experience about 3 years ago,) and of "flow" experiences, but never specifically peak. Some songs/voices inspire tears or a wish to dance, but I think even more accessibly, a really good laugh can have that "Yes! This!" effect, especially when shared. Great post, thanks Nadia!