Whether you are religious or spiritual, I assume that we all want one thing which is help from the Divine to have a happy & prosperous life on Earth! Which begs the question, if none of us has neither seen or touched the Divine, is there a place where we have to go to find the Divine? Is there a place in which we could see, feel, hear & touch the Divine?
The word Kailas, derived from the Sanskrit word Kailash refers to the ability of the yogi to develop an understanding of their own "true nature" with a crystalline clarity. The word is also the name of a Himalayan mountain, visited by thousands of pilgrims world over, thought of as one of the homes of Lord Shiva, found in Tibet Autonomous Region of China. In this artwork seen above, you will see that the crystalline structure forms the shape of a man's face with only a single eye to be seen. Above the eye, you will see three crystal pyramids. The symbology within the painting begs the question, where do we go to find the Divine?
Mount Kailash, as I said, is said to be an abode of Lord Shiva and Parvati with their children according to Hindu culture. As the first yogi to ever exist on Earth, Lord Shiva is considered the father of Yoga. Parvati is his female counterpart. As she was his wife, Lord Shiva made Parvati part of himself to help her attain enlightenment. Parvati, therefore, is part of Lord Shiva; she is his perfect equal and very rarely does she leave his side. Lord Shiva's physical form is an ideal balance between Divine Masculine and Divine Feminine. Kailas, the painting, depicts the face of Lord Shiva as a crystalline form; it represents a perfect human who has found an inner geometry of perfect balance between the feminine and masculine aspects within himself.
In most religious cultures, we go to a sacred space such as Mount Kailash, to a church every Sunday, a temple on a full moon day, a mosque several times a day, or we may create a consecrated space within our homes seeking to be in the presence of Divine countenance. Many of us, who are "seekers" or "religious" want to connect to the Divine in our attempt to enhance our lives, to improve our condition, to overcome our suffering or to seek forgiveness for our sins. Rather than seeking out an external space, this artwork invites you to remind yourself to seek the sacred space within your being and make your own body your temple.
Recently, I was fortunate to hear the words of the poet In-Q; his spoken word poem went as follows:
"Everywhere is a temple, everywhere is a church, everywhere is a mosque, just show me where it hurts, everywhere is sacred, so anywhere will work...finding peace is not an external search...
We are chasing after God, just be still and you'll discover he's in your heart, every person you encounter is a work of art, if you want to change the world, change yourself, and it will start"
To me, these words sum up the deeper meaning of this artwork!
The single eye in the artwork refers to the importance of meditation to open the all-seeing eye or the eye of intuition. The all seeing eye is also known as the eye of Horus in Ancient Egypt. The regular practice of meditation or stillness even momentarily can help with gaining a clear answer to life's riddles. Yogis say that with the proper practice of Yoga, you are better able to remove the veil of ignorance. Meditation removes the wrong perception that we are separate beings from one another. Thich Nhat Hahn, author and Buddhist monk, reminds us that the water puddle on the ground is the same as the invisible water vapour in the air that we breath; as is the ice cube in your fridge is the same as the cloud in the sky. Do you see that it is our wrong perception that separates them apart? We all now know, with the help of science, that it is all the same water molecule that has taken different forms.
With the practice of meditation, your intuition is strengthened. Meditation switches on the inner eye, which senses the inter-connectedness of all living things on the planet, even without the help of science. It is beautiful to know that science, especially quantum physics, is now proving what the spiritual community had known for thousands of years.
Finally, I want to bring your attention to the three pyramids that are above the eye and explain the symbolism. The three structures represent the three dimension that we create in our mind to experience our world. Those three dimensions are our past, present and future. The past is a dimension which we experience as memories; the future is a dimension which we only experience in our imagination. Today is, of course, a dimension we experience based on our inner dialogue or perception of reality.
Vivid memories of our past, past traumas or wrongdoings made against us or done by us against others keep us trapped in suffering. The vivid imaginations we create with our hopes, dreams & fears for our future keeps us in anxiety. Our desires keep us stuck in our minds by our dissatisfaction of the present moment because it is yet unfulfilled. The mystic Sadhguru says "memories and imagination have become compulsive and they are creating a world of misery... therefore, we must decide: do you want these three dimensions to control or liberate our mind?" (paraphrased) He suggests that like Lord Shiva, the first yogi, we learn to bring balance by practising stillness while remaining intoxicated by life and living with an exuberant personality that thrives on peace as well as chaos.
I hope that that you enjoyed reading about the meaning of this artwork. I hope that it brings you a sense of relief and release, knowing that all is well. Life of happiness is always at your fingertips; all you need to do is hold the inner space of balance and allow your mind to choose it!
I wish you all peace, joy and love!
