Well Tomland, I see your points, but I think I am still in a position to help. In addition to my R3 DVD, I also have the Canadian VHS release. So when I find the time I can at least confirm whether these two versions have different "chanting" during the scene in question.

To the best of my recollection, the chanting is the same, but I can't say for sure.

Unlike the "cloaked figures," I'm not really bothered by this alteration. It seems that Kubrick would definitely have approved of this change (didn't he in fact authorize it? ... I forget). In any case, I'm still curious about resolving this "mystery" about the different video versions.

I'll be a little busy for the rest of this week, but I have this thread bookmarked, and when I get a chance I'll do a little side-by-side comparison and let you know what I have found.