The Practice Of Sang (Ecstatic Remembrance)

Mirabai's sang was not melancholic—it was ecstatic, celebratory, urgent, alive. She sang not to recover a lost love but to make love present through the singing itself. In identity grief, we often express only sorrow, regret, and loss. But what if you could remember your former self with ecstasy? Not as a return but as a recognition: yes, that person existed, and there was aliveness there. Sang in this context means allowing yourself moments of genuine joy about who you were. The confidence you once had, the relationships that sustained you, the work that gave you purpose—these can be remembered not only with grief but with delight. This does not negate the loss. Rather, ecstatic remembrance honors both the reality of who you were and the aliveness you felt then. By moving beyond grief-only into ecstasy-and-grief, you complete the emotional processing. You allow the former self to finally rest, not in the grave of mourning, but in the alive heart of gratitude.