The
AllMusic review by Thom Jurek awarded the album 4½ stars stating "This set may take some getting used to for some, but it's easily one of the strongest records Alice Coltrane ever released, and one of the finest moments in jazz from the early '70s". Chris May of
All About Jazz called the album a "full-on astral experience," and commented: "
World Galaxy is transporting stuff—and the four pieces which precede "A Love Supreme" make that much maligned track sound perfectly logical."
AAJ's Chris M. Slawecki described
World Galaxy as a "meditative sound cloud," and stated that, on the three "Galaxy" pieces, "lush strings" surround "Coltrane's organ, tamboura and harp, which flutters within and around the sound like a winged angel." He referred to "A Love Supreme" as "a genuine musical experience—a religious musical experience centered around the sacredness of the word 'love' and the nature and name of God." Writing for
The Quietus, Stewart Smith stated that, on the "Galaxy" trilogy, "Coltrane elevates her music to the astral plane." He described "Galaxy Around Olodumare" as "free jazz via Stravinsky and Stockhausen, with Frank Lowe's raw saxophone burning a hole through gaseous string abstractions," while "Galaxy In Turiya" features "harp drifting over luscious strings," followed by "Galaxy In Satchidananda," which "sounds like the birth of a new planet." In an article for
The Attic, Dragos Rusu wrote: "The harp is probably one of the very few instruments that you can reach the most divine and spiritual sound with; and there's plenty of harp, in each song... The trilogy of the Galaxies... travels through time and religion, eventually hypnotizing the listener with its ridiculously rough melody, harmony and love. This album is pure love." ==Track listing==