On The Wings Of Grace
By
Loren Lewisohn
copyright 2005
When
the mind is no longer in turmoil, the true seeker,
the consciousness within us, becomes established in
its pure nature.
-Patanjali Yoga Sutra (1,2,3)-
In
consideration of possibilities for living more
consciously,
how is it that each of us can actualise our highest,
most profound visions of wholeness? The real progress,
as always, is in the quality of authentic awakening.
Through the artful process of enlightening self-
integration,
evolution spawns infinite possibilities for growth
and renewal. Embracing our life journeys as meaningful
quests for inspired well-being, the realisation
is
that the process of creative synergy reveals an ongoing
synthesis of enlightened energetics – mandalic
in scope.
An
essential part of our divine enfoldment is related
to universal archetypes, which flourish as mandalas
present in Nature and human created art. Combining
attractive well-balanced symmetrical design with
harmonious
colors, mandalas are endearing. These beautiful creations
not only demonstrate high degrees of artistic prowess,
but also are sensitive portraits of ageless spiritual
themes. So often, the human tendency is to create
illusions of separation from the divine, via thoughts
and acyivities that are askew from the wholeness
principle. The basic blure print of divine love
is continually revealing in its inherent perfection,
as immortal sustainable wisdom.
In
the words of Slovenian-born, internationally acclaimed,
mandala artist, healer, yoga teacher, Ms.Viviana
Siddhi
Vid: "The word mandala, derived from Sanskrit,
means sacred circle of life and all that it contains.
It is a symbol of healing and wholeness in spiritual
traditions around the world since ancient times.
In
many traditions and cultures, sacred symbols are
used in the mandala art as tools of concentration
and meditation.
These also serve to assist physical, psychological
and spiritual renewal. This tradition is quite ancient
in archaic societies; man viewed himself as part
of
Nature, and Nature as integral to himself. In possession
of this unity, he used sacred symbols which enabled
him to see himself as part of the sacred cosmos,
breathing
and moving with life wherein all elements of existence
were interlinked."
The
universe is a holographic mobius of infinite proportions,
from which this sacred framework, limitless evolution
transpires. According to Viviana, (who has been
painting
mandalas for over 26 years): "Sacred circular
symbols and other universal geometric forms are the
symbolic language of living spirit. If they are made
in a meditative state, they are pure information
from
the universe. We are all light beings with unique
missions. As soon as we open our hearts to this creation,
we gain deep peace. We have nothing to lose. Our
life
is a learning journey of unconditional love. Mandalic
forms and scintillating colors are purveyors of health
and transformation."
Another
creative artist/researcher, Judith Cornell –
a worldwide seminar leader in the field of psychology,
philosophy, science, and spirituality, comments: "The
sacred art of the mandala reflects the soul or luminous
consciousness, the essence of who we really are,
an
empowering path to well being and self-knowledge.
Mandalas reflect the harmony and beauty of non-material
reality, our essential spiritual nature. The sacred
art of the mandala, mirroring the vibration, light
of consciousness, can be viewed, as the creative
link
between science and religion, consciousness and God,
are one and the same. The whole universe creatively
arises out of this one light of consciousness as
ever-changing
electromagnetic patterns of energy. The mandala in
its highest tantric representation is a symbolic
pattern
of light and sound, reflecting the evolution of the
universe and the supreme, blissful realization of
the soul or higher-self within the human body/mind
remembering and experiencing itself as a spark of
the original pure clear light of consciousness."
Reflecting
on mandalic art, Viviana comments: "For the mind,
all paintings are alive – they breathe, glow
and carry in themselves the power of the unconscious.
When one discovers one's unconscious, the long journey
to growth, self-respect, creativity and light begins.
One's view of life suddenly, radically changes. There
is no understanding of time and space for the spirit.
The paintings are in the eternal present… they
are alive. The soul can feel and hear only the present.
It witnesses omnipresence through Nature and reveals
enlightenment through the sensibility of deep feeling
and acceptance of intuition. This seed is enlivened
in the heart.
Along
the spine in the human body are seven major mandala
vortexes of creative energy called chakras. Each
of
these centers contains different vibratory rays of
colored light and sound, which regulate the body
and
mind. When we absorb life with the eyes of the heart,
we intuitively recognize that we are no longer
seekers
of life, but just simply – are… As we
move, the whole universe moves, and this is the space
of unity with life, with Nature, with God."
It
was with thoughts of experiencing sacred space,
and
receiving firsthand glimpses of some mandalic creations
painted by Viviana, I made a pilgrimage to a well-known
place of worship – venerable Grace Cathedral
located in downtown San Francisco. Here is what
transpired:
The
most remarkable aspects of the Cathedral, aside
from
the depth of the cavernous interior and the spaciousness
of a plethora of vaulted Gothic arches, is a circuitous
mandalic labyrinth that draws ones attention. According
to A Pocket Guide to Labyrinths courtesy of Marilyn
Larson and Leslie Schultz: "This pattern, recently
popularized in the USA by the work of the Reverend
Dr.Lauren Artress, is among the most frequently encountered
patterns. The most famous is the pattern inscribed
within France's Chartres Cathedral. Its shape and
complexity was created in 1202 C.E. The eleven-circuit
design, organized into four quadrants, is a variation
of the concentric circle pattern reputedly walked
by pilgrims, as a metaphor for the journey to Jerusalem.
These medieval church labyrinths illustrate the allegory
of Christ's life and destiny. Thousands of people
discovered the modern applications of this powerful
and accessible way to cultivate inner peace. Labyrinth
patterns are tools for centering the mind. These patterns
are examples of a sophisticated technology for asking
a question, considering the question from all angles,
and then listening deeply with the whole self. The
combination of outer movement and inner stillness
allows insights to surface. Labyrinths offer an immediate
way to step into the present moment, the place where
linear time and eternity meet." This is the right
moment that we connect with Viviana's painting entitled
"God's Presence" as a way to deepen the
divine experience.
A
striking example of mandalic art, as a way to deepen
the divine experience, is Viviana's painting entitled "God's Presence" – a large 5'x5' circular
mandala that Grace Cathedral received as a gift from
Reverend Colby A.Cogswell. Viviana states: "If
we meditate on the mandala, which reveals the power
to collapse time and space and bring us into the very
heart of healing, the place where we dissolve into
oneness, we are drawn into the very light of creation
itself, as well as inspired, uplifted and in touch
with the higher- self, with "our own true nature".
There is a feeling of comming home. We enter into
the divine consciousness from which that archetype
emanates."
The
direct experience of unitive Presence is a tangible
blessing inside Grace Cathedral highlighting ever-available
luminous possibilities. Omnipresence is one great
truth!
A Symbol of Light, Harmony and Power
By
Da Vid, Director San Francisco Medical
Research Foundation
God is light and the light the is the Universal Healing
Force, the essence of all that is. Light is the eternal
truth, the living flame residing within the heart
of man.
The light manifests itself as color and sound. Sound
as music express the rhythm, melody and harmony of
the universe.Music has the power to open oneself to
one's deepest feelings. Through music one may transcend
the mundane and experience the essence, purity and
joy of one's self and all of creation. The same is
true with color. The use of color and its occult or
hidden significance has been used throughout the ages
to affect more positive states of beingness.
The rainbow, the objective manifestation of the inner
harmonics and purity of divine intelligence and divine
love, is nature's most dramatic and transcendental
statement as to the nature of reality.
Through science we know that there is a direct relationship
between the seven colors of the spectrum, the seven
notes of the musical scale and the seven glandular
systems of the body. Each color and note has a unique
vibratory rate and pattern which stimulates in a corresponding
manner the energy centers or chakras within the mind
and in a corresponding fashion within the body, for
mind and body are one.
The light as conscious electromagnetic energy from
the sun enters into the body through the optic nerves
of the eyes. The light directly stimulates the pineal
gland. The pineal gland is aphoto-reactive organ and
is responsible for the production of mellantoin, a
powerful neuro-humoral agent. Mellantoin is necessary
for the proper functioning of the brain. The light
upon entering the brain travels down into the hypothalamus.
The hypothalamus is that aspect of the brain which
mediates moment-to-moment subconsciously all the vital
processes of the body via its direct and immediate
connections to the pituitary gland and the autonomic
nervous system. The hypothalamus is filled with chromophilic
cells which convert the electromagnetic signal of
light into a neuro-chemical impulse which is then
carried directly to the pituitary gland. The pituitary
gland in turn elaborates and secretes hormones which
in turn stimulate the secretion of other hormones
within the body, thereby maintaining homeostasis within
the body.
The hypothalamus also contains within itself the autonomic
nervous system. The autonomic nervous system via the
parasympathetic and sympathetic nervous system control
the blood flow and hence the oxygenation of the body.
By exposing the subconscious mind to pure vibration
be it pure color or pure sound, one balances the neuro-endocrine
system of the body. It is within the simple understanding
that one may realize the immense power music and color
have upon integrating and expanding the mind and hence
bringing healing to the body for healing is the realization
that one is always more than one thinks one is, for
in truth we are infinite in potential, divine in nature;
perfection perfecting itself.
The mandala has appeared throughout man's history
as a universal and essential symbol of integration,
harmony and transformation. It gives form to the most
primordial intuition of the nature of reality, an
intuition that is inherent in each of us, giving us
life.
To westerners, the popular reintroduction of the
mandala concept may be specifically traced to the
work of
dr.Carl G.Jung who rediscovered the mandala as
a base structural device in the alchemical tradition
of the
west, and as a therapeutic integrative art form
created by patients in their own search for individuation.
In "The secret of the Godlen Flower," dr.Jung
and the orientalist Richard Wilhelm relate the
idea
of the mandala as a therapeutic device to the mandala
as a ritual, meditative technique conducive to
mystic
exaltation. In either the aim is a higher level
of integration. By attuning one's mind to the mandala
one becomes the mandala, integrating and impressing
upon the psyche patterns of order and harmony which
are translated bioenergetically into feelings of
profound
relaxation and a heightened sense of awareness.
Humankind has now come to a turning point in its evolution.
We are witnessing the disintegration and reintegration
of the social, philosophical,economi and political
matrix of this planet. This synthesis guided by a
new consciousness, a consciousness based on the concept
of the mandala, will lead humanity back to itself
and humanity shall discover its essential nature and
find it rooted in love. From this realization man
will find his freedom. He will know the infinite richness,
love and compassion which governs the universe of
light. Man will look upon creation with new eyes,
with the eyes of love, compassion and understanding,
cleansed forever of lust, hatred, fear and selfishness.
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