you simply sit there
There is one cave in Ajanta which has been made of special stones which are musical. You can just hit them with your hand, with your finger, and you will be surprised that they resound just like a guitar. If you are really a good musician, you can create any music on those pillars in the cave, on the walls of the cave. But if you are not a musician, no problem: you simply sit there. Once in a while a breeze comes in, and with the breeze there is a murmuring music in the cave. And it is so soothing. There is not anything that can be so soothing to your mind, to your heart, to your body -- so relaxing. This is objective art. The question is, "Can art help somehow in being more healthy spiritually? Can it become a therapy?" Yes, it can; vomiting is a therapy. And when you are feeling nauseous, it is good to vomit, have a good vomit, and you will feel clean. The nausea is gone. But this is not something of great help. Please go vice versa: first meditation, then out of meditation there is a spontaneity of creativity. Right now you don't know even what areas of creativity can bring out your potential for spiritual growth. To paint? -- everybody is not a painter. To write poetry? -- everybody is not a poet. To play music? -- everybody is not a musician. How are you going to choose in your confusion? But if you are silent through meditation, utterly silent, suddenly you feel a tremendous urge to create something, to become a musician.... It comes spontaneously! One of the great musicians in India -- it is inconceivable, the way he created music. You know the name of Ravi Shankar -- Ravi Shankar married that great musician's daughter; Ravi Shankar is his disciple. He was capable of creating music with anything. He would start hitting just two pieces of steel, and you will be surprised how many and how beautiful were the sounds he could create out of it. He was a born musician. A meditator finds his potential and starts moving towards it. Then poetry or dance or sculpture -- whatever happens spontaneously -- is objective art. It is your contribution. It will help you to grow spiritually. It will be your real therapy, because growth is therapy. It will give you authentic spiritual health. And, by the way, it will help many other people who can for a few moments sit silently, listen to your music, or watch your dance, or see your painting. They will be immensely benefited because your art will give them a certain direction towards meditation. So everything starts with meditation. And if you try other things, you will be going on a sorry-go-round for many lives, round and round -- one cannot call it a merry-go-round -- but you will never reach to your center. The first and the foremost act of a taoist is to reach to his center, and then leave everything to that experience to explode in its own way. Then you are natural. Then whatever you do is helpful to you and helpful to others. This is the only love, compassion that you can share with humanity.