Mystic life continues to unfold as this story is told. An amazing representation of attaining purpose in my life.  A time came when I felt completely unsatisfied with existing. I was finding competition, over riding the fundamental moral values of humanity, my heart became still and unimportant. A dark cloud had descended upon my being and I threw myself into the hands of humanity, staying alive only through peoples kindness and generosity, even though I had nothing to offer in return. This began to restore my faith in humanity and began to bloom the desire inside to give back.  My interest grew in devotional music.  A beautiful way to bring people together and illuminate something bigger than the self. I decided to learn the mother of all percussive instruments of the Eastern classical music "tabla". My studies took me to places I never could imagine the pulsing driving rhythms of this traditional sound and the amount of devotion it in itself takes just to utter a sound out of the "tabla". I quickly learned that this path required serious technical training. I started to practice 10 hours a day, living in India simplifying my life only to grasp this depth of sophisticated percussive philosophy. I felt if I could play percussion, then there would always be someone to sing or create with. This is my gift to give back. 

Aminah Chishti began studying the art of Sufism under the lineage of Hazrat Inayat Khan in 1997. A western minded adopted philosophy of mysticism. HIK was responsible for bringing the Sufi message to the west in the early 1900’s, which led her to devote to the foundational aspect of the Indian classical genre, tabla. A vast ocean of ancient knowledge, a devotional expression of worship through sound. Touched and healed herself able to experience a deeper meaning in life, she then confirmed her focus to a one pointed view. Healing through traditional music.

Aminah has become a leading force in the art of the traditional Qawwali genre of tabla. Where her studies took her under the wing of the lineage holder Ustad Dildar Hussain, 28 years playing for the legend of Pakistan, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. As the first western and first woman disciple of this genre, Aminah has become a revolutionist by changing the boundaries of women, by being accepted by the community of a 1000 year old lineage. She has sat where no woman has ever sat or maybe will ever sit. As a Qawwal, Aminah has offered music in various shrines around the world. “I must have permission first, they still sometimes say no, but when I do get to play, that no, gives more meaning to a yes.”