A Walk in
Twilight Garden
on a September's Eve
Click on the image
Introduction
On my 75th birthday, September 10, 2020, Gloria and I were invited by our son Shaun, his wife Hao and our grand daughter Claire (5 1/2 years old) to a birthday celebration dinner at their house. There was lots of wonderful food shared, including Gloria's vegan chocolate cake and some of the best strawberries ever; and Shaun gave me a (small) Wegman's Carrot Cake. Claire ate practically all the strawberries! and I ate practically all the carrot cake! (I now am mostly vegan, so the carrot cake was a rare but delicious treat from Shaun.)
We ate outside on their back deck which overlooks an impressive view of a hill covered with tall trees, a beautiful bubbling stream, and Hao's garden. Further to the right of the garden there is a small chicken house and a large fenced area in which the chickens can freely roam. The garden extends all the way up hill to the back deck; the hill is covered with all kinds beautiful flowering trees and bushes and smaller flowering plants.
It was a cool, cloudy September evening, and it was practically dark when we sat down to eat, but we could hear the stream softly murmuring, a few birds were singing their evening songs, and later when it was completely dark we heard--off in the distance--some animals making very strange, mysterious sounds. After dessert, in the golden glow of a garage light that helped keep the bugs away, Claire danced and sang and turned many cartwheels for us.
The Phone Call
Just before Gloria and I were about to leave our house for the birthday party, we received a call from Shaun; Claire wanted to speak with me. She said: "Grandpa, do you want your presents hidden or the regular way?" I thought a moment, then said (with a smile): "Hidden!" After a pause, Shaun got back on the phone and told me I had made the right decision; when Claire heard me say "Hidden!" she started jumping up and down with excitement and joy.
When Gloria and I arrived at their front door, Claire immediately wanted me to start looking for her hidden Birthday presents. Even before I could start looking she turned me around and pointed to a strange pile by the front door. There were pine cones laying on top of a dark cloth which was covering a small child's table. Claire then proceeded to remove the pine cones and the cloth so I could see her presents hidden (on the floor) under the table.
There were five or six presents charmingly wrapped in red polka dotted paper. Claire was anxious for me to open them, so we sat down on the floor and as I opened each package she explained to me what each thing was and why she liked it. ~ It was a very special, sweet time we shared together. I was deeply touched by her loving generosity. (There is, however more to tell about the gifts, and I will finish this story near the end of the project.)
The Descent Into Paradise
After I opened all the presents, Claire asked me to take a walk with her down by the garden. She wanted to show me some of the things her mom had recently added. ~ Our journey began at the sliding door in the kitchen that goes out to the back deck. Everyone was busy getting things ready for dinner, so there was time for a quick walk in the garden, though it was getting late and the light was rapidly fading.
Once out on the back deck we turned left and walked along the deck's railings past the garage until we reached the stairs that lead down, several short flights, in a zig-zagging fashion, to the ground level of the valley between the two hills.
I took several pictures as we worked our way down the carefully painted, brown wooden stairways covered with plant debris and mud. Claire practically flew down the stairs ahead of me, so I tried to rush too, though I made several brief stops to make some photographs.
I was especially fascinated by the way light seemed to be glowing inside of things: I photographed a plant that was poking its shinning head of leaves through the stair railings; some large heart-shaped leaves laying on a step; and at the very bottom of the stairs I photographed a large stone that was sitting on the ground, leaning against the last wood step of the stairway.
The Twilight Walk in the Garden
The journey downward into the garden seemed like entrance into a magical Imaginal world which existed between the two hills on either side of the murmuring stream. As we began our walk in the garden we had also entered that magical realm of Twilight which exists between the light of day and the darkness of night.
From the stairway we walked along the main garden path toward the three stone steps that take you down into the garden area proper. I became fascinated by all the tools and other garden things I saw laying on or near the path, as if abandoned, or forgotten. I stopped briefly to take photographs of a hedge trimmer, an old beat up wire cage (that looked as if it were trying to merge into the ground cover); some small packages of garden fencing which were still wrapped in plastic and covered with loose foliage; and (among other things) I photographed a red extension cord that had turned a dirty yellow-orange color from use, age and weathering.
Once we stepped down into the garden I got my first view of some new arching wire trellises that Hao had placed over the raised beds (which the previous owners of the property had constructed using concrete and stones). Though there were very tall, beautiful trees on the hill beyond the stream and to the left and right sides of the garden, the space over the garden was open, allowing some light and rain to make its way down to the plants. The trees surrounding the garden stood like silent, wise giants. Indeed, their silence seemed to pervade everything below them. The soft light from the overcast sky seemed to transform the arching metal trellises into silvery luminescent rainbows.
Further down stream, Claire's mom had also added a new fence around the chicken house to protect the chickens from the raccoons. Claire was excited about the new chickens they had recently purchased. They had already begun to lay eggs! which Claire loved to eat for breakfast. She also enjoys her chore of chasing the chickens back into their little house at night where they will be safe and secured until morning.
Walking in the garden with Claire in the Twilight of my 75th birthday was like a dream. Everything seemed suffused with the light of silence, a peaceful stillness.
The Psychic Tone of Nature
The day before (September 9, 2020) I had published the third of my Pandemic inspired blog projects entitled The Bird, the Angel of Tears . . . the Rain of Grace . . . In the introduction and in my commentary on selected images I had written about the darkness of the photographs, and the sadness that I felt pervading many of the Thing Photographs I had included in the project (click here to learn about my Thing Photographs). I also mentioned an essay by the American poet Robert Bly in which he discussed what he termed "the psychic tone in nature" and "the tears in things."
I am bringing this up again, here, because I have been feeling sadness--and a mix of other emotions--regarding the many crises that are currently pervading this world and the United States. The feelings seem to be intensifying as we near the November elections, and democracy seems more fragile and at stake then ever before. Despite the magic and the beauty I experienced during my Twilight walk with Claire, some of the dark images I made on the evening of my birthday, I suspect, contain some of the sadness and fear I have been struggling with lately. On the other hand, I know that several of the images in this project are quite beautiful and radiant with the transcendent power of grace.
My yoga meditation teacher, Gurumayi, says: Whatever you think you become. I think about God a lot; I feel the divine presence in many things, and I am concerned about the well being of our Planet, our Country; everyone who is experiencing difficulty in this challenging time . . . and most especially my children and grandchildren. What will their future lives might be like if some major changes are not made soon?
Nocturnal Nature Music
On the morning of my birthday Gloria asked me to go to the grocery store to get some things she needed for the dishes she wanted to prepare for the evening's celebration party. On the way to the store I turned on the radio and happened to hear the last few minutes of some hauntingly beautiful music. I knew it was the nature music of Fredrick Delius, however I wasn't able to hear enough of the piece before it ended to know for certain which of his compositions had been broadcast. Just as the announcer was about to give the title of the piece I was distracted by a car in front of me, so I missed hearing the name of the composition.
The music of Delius had been an important influence on an earlier project I completed in 1988-89 entitled River Songs which consists of photographs made along the Milwaukee River. I dedicated the project to Delius and other composers of the English Pastoral Tradition. The title of the project--River Songs--was inspired by compositions Delius had written, such as: Summer Night on the River (1911-12), A Song Before Sunrise (1918), Songs of Sunset (1906-7), Songs of Farewell (1930) and In a Summer Garden (1908).
After I took the garden photographs later that evening I felt compelled to do a search on the internet to learn more about the titles of Delius' nature music. I became especially interested in the piece entitled In a Summer Garden, for it seemed most like the music fragment I had heard on the radio and the photographs I had taken in the garden. When I searched the title In a Summer Garden I came across a blog article by John France* in which he wrote specifically about that composition. The author tells us the piece was inspired by Delius' own summer garden in Grez-sur-Loing, France; and interestingly, he mentioned that as Delius was composing the piece he had been considering several other nocturnal titles for the work, including: On A Summer's Eve, and Summer Night. After reading about the piece I felt inspired to listen (several times) to In a Summer Garden.
(*Note: click here see John France's blog article, dated June 22, 2016: "In A summer Garden, Fredrick Delius," Classical Music, the Land of Lost Content)
Hearing the nature music of Delius on the morning of my birthday, and then photographing in a garden that same evening during my walk with Claire (who is herself a force of nature!) is an excellent example of Synchronicity,
a psychic phenomena which has been a constant companion to my Creative Process of photographic picture making. (Click here to learn more) My title for this project, A Walk In Twilight Garden On A September's Eve is of course yet another bow to Delius and his wonderful music.
Please "Click on" the photographs
Because the garden pictures were made in the fading light of evening, the images are generally dark, and the colors are muted. The tonal and color subtleties of the images are difficult to perceive and fully appreciate when viewed on this white ground of the blog page. Thus I encourage you to see each image in a darkened viewing space. This is possible simply by clicking once on each image as you scroll down through the sequence of photographs. One Click on an image will place the photograph in a darkened viewing environment; a second click will enlarge the image, making it possible to view selected details more closely.
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After the presentation of photographs, I have offered some written commentary on selected images, and I have included an illustrated story about the birthday gifts Claire gave me. I conclude the project with an Epilogue which contains two additional photographs made in late September and some other writings. ~ Welcome to Twilight Garden.
The
Photographs
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#1 The Deck Walkway that leads to the stairways down into the garden
#2 Portrait of a plant (that had stuck its head through the railings
#3 Some plant leaves on the steps leading down to the Garden
#4 A Stone at the bottom of the wooden stairway
#5 A Plant Cage laying in the Garden's ground cover
#6 Two small packages of garden fence
#7 Hedge Trimmer & a Golf Ball on the Garden Path
#8 Red Extension Cord in the Garden
#9 A unknown, un-named object in the Garden
#10 Claire, about to step out of Paradise Garden
#11 A Beautiful Garden Composition
#12 A Purple Flower in the Garden
#13 "The Bird of Paradise Rising" (Symmetrical Photograph)
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Commentary
on
Selected Photographs
#10 Claire, about to step out of Paradise
Paradise
This picture belongs to a great archetypal narrative. Claire appears to be stepping off the main garden path, probably to pluck a flower from the nearby bush--a flower similar in color to the dress and tights she is wearing. The flowering bush lies in a space that exists beyond the boundaries of the "Garden space proper," a space defined by its abrupt darkness at the far end point where the rainbow-like arching trellis touches down and enters into the earth.
Claire is in the center of a "round" space defined by the visible wire trellis (and the invisible, Imaginal trellis that continues "under-ground").
The arching trellis is also like a "bridge" which conjoins two opposing Realities: the Timeless, Sacred Reality of a Heavenly Paradisal Garden, and the darker, earthy profane Reality which exists beyond the Paradisal boundaries, where illusions of time and space, day and night, Physis and Psyche--indeed, the play of all dualities--dominate our ordinary perceptions of the world.
Interestingly, Claire's body language signals some ambivalence: though she appears to be stepping forward, out of the circular space of the rainbow/bridge (symbolizing the Sacred space of Paradise),* she also appears to be apprehensive in the way that she is pulling her body backward. Perhaps she has sensed within herself some fear or other doubting feelings or thoughts which have given her reason to pause and consider more carefully before taking her next step toward the flower which is attracting her into the darkness of the profane world.
*(The roundness of the Imaginal space represents the Oneness of Being, the transcendent nature of Reality which exists beyond the perceptual and conceptual limitations of the fragmented/divided mind. In the yogic tradition I am familiar with, this duality-based reality is referred to as Maya.)
The photograph, Claire, about to step out of Paradise, was made in that magical light that exists somewhere between day and night, a light and time known as Twilight. Twilight is but one of many intermediary modes of Being; others include: between waking and sleeping, between conscious and unconscious; between above and below, between inside and outside. These intermediary modes of Being are realities that transcend the limitations of dualism, the realm of the ego and rational thought.
#9 An unknown, un-named object in the Garden
A Unknown, un-named object in the garden
I made several "thing photographs" during the 20 minute walk Claire and I took together in the quickly fading light of a September's evening. The overcast sky and the tall leafy shade trees surrounding the garden contributed to the apparent internal radiance that seemed to be emitted by this strange object which was situated in a very dark tonal field of ground cover just off the main garden path (visible near the the top edge of the photograph) and just beyond the far end of an arching wire trellis (visible in the lower right corner of the image). I was fascinated by the dark cage-like bars surrounding the object's glowing interior--a white plastic container. The object appeared to be half of a larger object that had been cut in two.
The object's ambiguous scale--both within the photograph and the spatial context in which I had unexpectedly discovered the object in the garden--contributes to the object's mysterious presence, a presence which is alive with its own unique character, or consciousness. I also attribute its mystery to its unknown aspect--that is to say, my inability to recognize the object, give it a name. ~ I enjoy finding myself in a photographic relationship with the unknown. Seeing and photographing what I don't know is often based in my attraction to an object's visual-living presence. That presence, that attraction, however, is probably a reflection of some unknown aspects hidden within myself which have been patiently awaiting for this moment of recognition in which I at last begin to become conscious of them, and begin to integrate that awareness into the wholeness of my Being.
#7 Hedge Trimmer & the golf ball on the Garden Path
The Hedge Trimmer & the Golf Ball
The metal blades of the hedge trimer, which was laying on the main garden path, are catching (reflecting) the light from the overcast sky above. The color, red, of the handles helps define the object's presence amidst the darker tonalities of the stones and foliage. ~ I doubt I would have made this photograph if the golf ball had not been laying there with the trimmer, between the two red handles. The unexpected juxtaposition of the two things complicates the meaning of the image; that is to say, the picture is not about the hedge trimmer or the golf ball, but rather their unknowable relationship to each other and the context in which I found them together.
"Why is the golf ball there, between the two handles of the trimmer?" ~ "How did the golf ball get there?" ~ "Why was the hedge trimmer left on the ground?"
OK. I can at least venture a guess: It's possible Claire put the golf ball there, though I have no idea why. I remember seeing a golf ball in Shaun and Hao's kitchen at one time, and perhaps in Clair's downstairs play room--though, truth be told, every square inch of the house is Clair's "playroom." And, I have said it before and I will say it again: Claire is the very embodiment of the enigmatic forces of nature. Each of her spontaneous actions, performed usually with great energy and enthusiasm, most probably could not be explained.
However . . . I would also venture further to guess that Claire is why the hedge trimmer was left on the garden path. Perhaps Hao, or Shaun had been using the trimmer when Claire unexpectedly interrupted their work . . . because she needed some kind of help, perhaps a band-aid, or maybe she just needed some loving attention. The hedge trimmer was dropped onto the ground . . . and then forgotten. It's possible that whoever was using the tool simply did not have another chance to get back to the job and finish it. Perhaps the red-handled trimmer is still laying on the path awaiting the return of some human contact. Until then, hopefully, the golf ball will stay where it was when I made the photograph.
#11 A Beautiful Garden Composition
A Beautiful Composition
I love the graceful flowing together of the various parts of the garden in this photograph. It is a beautiful composition of shapes, colors, textures and tones that essentially formed itself. That is to say, I am not aware of having composed this picture; indeed, as so often happens when I see something I want to photograph, I probably just lifted the camera to my eye and spontaneously (intuitively) "took" the picture without much conscious thought of "arranging" things in the frame. Indeed I often make a conscious effort to honor the impulse to make a photograph by "recording" as directly as possible something I have seen and felt. Also, because I was trying my best to keep up with Claire as she moved quickly through the garden from one thing to the next, It's unlikely that I would take the time to think about what or how I was photographing this scene.
This intuitive aspect of my Creative Process is essentially a willingness on my part to allow, to trust Something Else to create the photograph, Something which is beyond my control, beyond the conscious "me"--my thinking mind. ~ I prefer to characterize this Something Else as the grace of my Creative Process, the same divine Creative Energy that manifested the entire Universe. ~ I enjoy surrendering to my Creative Process, allowing It to take care of the making for the images that emerge are usually the most refreshing, surprising visual revelations--images I can learn and grow from, images which are the most meaningful for me. In other words, these kinds of photographs often function for me as True, living symbols. And I receive them as divine gifts, with great gratitude, for they provide me with News of the Universe, revelations of the Universal Soul, the transcendent Self.
Regarding the "symmetrical" photograph
The most powerful image in the project, the symmetrical photograph, below, image #13, entitled The Bird of Paradise Rising, came as an unexpected gift from my Creative Process.
I began making four-fold symmetrical photographs in 2011, after coming home from a two week tour of Turkey (click here) and initiating the first project in what was to become a continuing series of Sacred Art Photography Projects. Since then I have made it a usual practice to subject many of my newly made "straight" photographs to a series of four-fold transformative tests to see if the image might yield a symmetrical image that is visually striking and meaningful.
The Bird of Paradise Rising, was constructed with image #11 (above) A Beautiful Garden Composition. I did not anticipate the degree, the power of transformation that occurred with the four-fold process. The symmetrical image that emerged from the process struck me with a startling sense of revelation.
The image, which functions for me as a True living symbol, is vibrant with luminous grace, and it is particularly meaningful for me because of the "Bird" motif that has emerged from the "source" photograph (image #11) and the four-fold transformative process. The symmetrical image extends--in a very powerful way--a series of bird images that began unfolding in my creative process in March, 2020, when I published the project Seeing the Blackbird. Since then Bird imagery has continued to be an important recurring symbol--for freedom and renewed life--in my series of related projects inspired by the Coronavirus Pandemic.
(Click here to learn more about "straight photographs," "source images," and the "four-fold symmetrical construction process." And please be sure to click on the image below so you can view it in a darker viewing space.)
#13 "The Bird of Paradise Rising" (Symmetrical Photograph)
The Bird of Paradise
The title of this four-fold symmetrical photograph The Bird of Paradise Rising reveals how I see the image: as a phoenix-like bird emerging from within the Twilight Paradisal Garden and rising up, with opened wings, into a new, transformed, elevated level of Being. It's an image alive with the Light of Supreme Consciousness, the creative power of the Universe. It's an image of resurrection; an image which symbolizes the beginning of a new, transcendent life of freedom; an image worthy of celebration and contemplation.
The Bird of Paradise Rising is an uplifting image of hope and grace, one of those very special images which manifests within me the experience of Unitary Reality. It is an image of Eden before the Fall, before the birth of the ego and the psyche's separation from the divine Self. It is an image of Spirit, God's presence in the form of a "bird" larger than life itself, symbolizing the freedom of flight and the freedom of the ever unfolding creative energy of the Universal Soul.
The great yogic sages tell us that everything in this Universe is a form of God; that everything is pervaded by divine Presence, the Sacred Light of Consciousness. However, the power of Maya, which is also a form of God's grace, manifests the play of the dual mind with all of its the divisions (the sacred Self and the profane ego; the ego's perception of the physical world as mere matter. It is the power of Maya which has hidden the divine Presence (the grace which pervades all the things of this world) "underground," into the darkness which lies just beneath the surface of every thing, every appearances of the outer, physical world.
And, it is grace which makes it possible to see and experience the Oneness of Being that belies all of the outer world appearances. The experience of Unitary Reality is possible when the seeing occurs through the extrasensory vision of the inner eye, the One "Eye of the Heart" rather than the two eyes of ordinary, dualistic sense perception. It is the symbolic photograph which gives that extraordinary kind of perception a palpable visible form.
#2 Portrait of a Plant (that had stuck its head through the railings)
Portrait of a Plant (that had stuck its head through the railings)
This photograph of a five-leafed plant is (for me) like a "portrait" of a human being--a head, a face--in which more than just a physical likeness is offered. The image unveils some essential character or interior conscious life of the thing photographed.
I made this picture during my journey with Claire down the zig-zagging wooden stairs that takes you down to the ground floor of the valley. I saw the plant, catching and reflecting the light from sky above, as if it were a head that had stuck itself through the space between two wooden railings and calling out to me: "Here, I am! Here! Take my picture!"
A Childhood Remembrance
The photograph has reminded me of an experience I had as a child, perhaps when I was about Claire's age, maybe a little younger (age 3-5 years). It was an experience that has remained alive in my memory to this day for it involved my dad, who died when I was almost ten years old. ~ I must tell you the story.
My dad played Clarinet and Saxophone in a dance band, and one night my mom took me to some special place where he was performing. I don't know what the occasion was, or where the event took place, but I remember we were inside what seemed like a large auditorium with lots of people, and my dad was on a stage with many other musicians. (This was definitely not the usual dance band scenario I had experienced a few times before, at places like the Elks or the Moose Club where you could get candy bars and peanuts and popcorn and sodas.)
My mom and I were sitting on nice cushioned chairs on a raised platform about a foot or so above the floor; and there was a decorative iron railing in front of us. Beyond the railing there was another row of people sitting in similar seats on the ground level. ~ I remember looking down at the floor, below the row of seats in front of me: I thought I saw something move (perhaps a little animal). It seemed to move swiftly around the feet of the people sitting in front of me. And though I felt frightened by what I thought I saw, I wasn't sure if I had really seen anything. So I stuck my head through the iron railings to get a better, closer look.
I saw nothing put legs and shoes, some chewing gum on the floor, and black space. When I tried to get my head out of the railings . . . well, I couldn't get my head out of that space. Either my head had gotten too big or the space had shrunk. I got scared and started crying. My mom was clearly terrified and began trying to help me. But the more she tried, the louder I cried. When she panicked, I started screaming very very loudly.
I made such a commotion that the band stopped performing and everyone near me started gathering around to see what was going on. ~ My mom asked someone to get my dad to come help us out. ~ Eventually he was able to make his way through the crowed to where I was screaming with my head stuck between the railings. My dad finally succeeded in getting my head unstuck and the performance on stage continued. (I don't remember anything more, but I never have and never will stick my head between railings again.)
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Regarding the Birthday Gifts
Claire Gave Me
Click on the image to enlarge
As I explained at the beginning of this project, Claire had spent quite a bit of time deciding on what gifts to give me for my birthday, and then she wrapped them all herself with red polka dotted paper (and lots of cellophane tape), then she hid them very carefully, by the front door, under her little table upon which she had placed a dark cloth and a pile of many, many pine cones!
After Claire showed me where she had hidden the gifts, we sat down together on the floor and I proceeded to open each package very carefully. As I unwrapped each gift she told me, in an excited but very serious tone, something about the gift and why she valued it so much. It was a very sweet, sincere, loving time we spent together before we took our walk together in the garden.
Here is a list of the things she had given me, some of which are pictured above:
--An old aluminum measuring cup (all bent up from use/play)
--Two sheets of kid's stickers, with images of faces, animals, toys, etc. on them.
--A necklace made of toy plastic pieces which Claire had made herself.
--A stuffed animal Tiger, with her dad's necktie tied around its neck
--Three of her dad's old science fiction novels, from the 1970's
--A blue bottle of bubble blowing solution, with a bubble blower inside. (see image above)
--A piece of paper with Chinese writing on it that she had made herself (see image above)
--A barrette (hair piece) with a cat-lion face with bow & fringe, and stands of stars (see image)
--An old pink glove with the fingers cut off and a hole for the thumb (see image)
After our walk--during which I made many photographs--we had a birthday meal together with my wife Gloria, or son Shaun and his wife Hao. After desert, Claire danced for us, sang for us, and did many, many cartwheels. Before Gloria and I left for home, we watched Claire chase--with outstretched arms--the chickens out in the pen until all were back inside their little secured house for the night.
As we were about to open the front door to leave, I saw the gifts on the floor that Claire had given me. I asked Claire if it was OK for me to take home all the gifts she had given me? And, I asked: "Could I keep them forever?" She said: "You can take the paper with the Chinese writing on it, Grandpa."
"But" . . . "I really liked the necklace you had made for me, and the Tiger with the necktie. Could I please take them home for a little while?" And she said (not very enthusiastically) "OK, go ahead, you can take them home."
(Before we left, while Gloria was saying good-bye to Claire, I discretely hid the measuring cup, the three science fiction books and the two sheets of stickers in the next room where I guessed Claire would eventually find them, later. I didn't want to hurt her feelings by leaving them behind in a conspicuous way.)
The next day, Friday, was our day to babysit Claire and her good friend, Leah at our house. When Claire walked through the front door of our house she immediately found the birthday gifts she had given me. I had placed them on the table behind our living room couch. (The necklace was in my bedroom, on my chest of drawers; I had intended to be wearing the necklace when Claire arrived, but I had forgotten to put it on.)
At the end of the day, when it was time for me and Gloria to take Claire and Leah home, Claire came up to me holding the necklace in her hand, and in her arms she was holding the Tiger with the necktie around its neck (she had also placed one of our face masks around the Tiger's neck).
She tried to explain as best she could that she really wanted these gifts back, but that the paper with the Chinese writing on it, the glove, the barrette, the bottle of bubbles--which remained on the table behind our couch--could stay with me. Then she quickly handed me an acorn which she brought with her from home. She said I could also keep the acorn. (I am guessing that the acorn was to compensate me for the tiger and the necklace she was taking back home with her.)
Epilogue
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Figure A Medieval Etching
#10 Claire, about to step out of Paradise Garden
#2 Portrait of a Plant (that had stuck its head through the railings)
As I was nearing the completion of this project I remembered an image I had discovered back in the early 1970's when I was researching Medieval Alchemical Theory and Practice for my MFA Written Thesis (click here). When I placed that image (Figure A, above) in the context of
Claire, about to step out of Paradise Garden and the
Portrait of a Plant (that had stuck its head through the railings) I was surprised to see how the images related to each other visually in some very obvious ways.
All three images are about the "crossing over" of human (or plant) consciousness from one space--one kind of reality or consciousness--into another. We humans are the inhabitants of a dualistic mind which sees things divided, separated into opposites--male and female, heart and intellect, ego and Self, sacred and profane, the individual soul and the Supreme Soul.
However, with the support of grace we--from time to time--are blessed with brief glimpses, spontaneous "crossings over" into the Oneness of Being, Unitary Reality, that sacred Truth which belies the surface illusions of ordinary "dualistic" perceptions.
As I have said so often,
grace is the source of my most meaningful photographs, images which function for me as
symbols, images which affirm, celebrate and radiate the light of the One, undivided
Supreme Consciousness, the divine
Self. In the thirty-three years I have been practicing Siddha Yoga Meditation with
Gurumayi Chidvilasananda I have been blessed with many experiences of her
grace, the
grace of the Siddha Lineage, and the
grace of my Creative Process. Just as this divine creative power
has become an integral part of my Creative Process in photography, so photography has become an integral part of my yogic meditation practice.
In Gurumayi's book Courage and Contentment she quotes the poet-saint Tikada who wrote: "The Lord permeates every cell of my body . . . Being in the shelter of my Guru's grace, I feel sanctified and I experience the divinity of my own being." Gurumayi then comments:
In Siddha Yoga, meditation happens spontaneously through grace. In the shelter of the Guru's grace, you are able to experience the light of your heart, the sanctity of your own being. As the breath moves in and out, you become aware of the divine light within and without. Beneath the fluctuations of everything in your life, there is something very stable, concrete, and ever present. It is the divine light, which is unceasingly alive in every particle of Consciousness . . .
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The September News Report
Gurumayi's words have a way of silencing my mind and opening my heart. I take refuge in her teachings, her
grace all the more so in this time of the
Coronavirus Pandemic, a time of constant crises and uncertainty. In this project,
A Walk In Twilight Garden, the forth in an series of projects made in the midst of the
Coronavirus Pandemic,
I have avoided (up to now) distracting from the sweetness and magic of this project by calling attention to the many difficult, challenging things that have been happening in the past month, since I completed my last project,
The Bird, The Angel of Tears . . . the Rain of Grace. There are, however, things that should not go unsaid in this extraordinarily difficult time. Thus I will present here some of the major issues that have unfolded this month that I am especially concerned about. And I have included here, below, two very recently made photographs that relate to the wildfires on the West Coast and the
Climate Crisis.
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In September the United States reached the tragic number of 200,000 reported deaths from the Coronavirus Pandemic; the total number of deaths reported throughout the world has reached over one million. (And these reported numbers are considered low compared to the actual totals.)
Schools and businesses that have tried to open this fall have had to close again. Parents are at home with their children trying to give them online educational experiences while at the same time trying to find ways of keeping their jobs and caring for their children--in many cases by working at home, online. Our son Shaun and our daughter Jessica are both teachers, teaching at home, online, while caring for our two grandchildren, Claire and River, who are taking some classes online at home. It is a very difficult, stressful situation for both the children and their parents. Learning online is particularly stressful for young children.
Wildfires are continuing to rage on the West Coast of the United States. The fires are reportedly hotter and more widespread and destructive then ever before, and yet Trump continues to deny the real science of Climate Change. Most recently he has been blaming the wildfires on "Forest Management" while at the same time he has continued to support the Gas and Oil Industry with money that should be going to families who are trying to survive both the Pandemic and the Wildfires Crises. The truth is that the mining, processing and use of fossil fuels is the major cause of the Climate Crisis. More sustainable sources of electricity must be placed at the top of every list of priorities and acted upon immediately if we are to sustain life on this beautiful, ailing planet.
(The Governors of California and Washington State are proclaiming: "These are not just wildfires . . . this is not an act of God . . . this is a Climate damn emergency." [click here to see an EcoWatch article]. In a related article (click here) new findings have found that the carbon footprint of the world's wealthiest 1% is "more than double that of the bottom 50% of the world.")
The two photographs that follow were made in the third week of September as I watched the sun setting over the
meadow behind our house in Canandaigua, NY --
through a veil of smoke created by the horrific wildfires raging on the West Coast! The images are at once hauntingly, strangely beautiful, and of a terrifying nature. If I can bring myself to see them from an uplifting perspective, with the
Eye of the Heart, the images function for me as affirmations of the unchanging divine
presence within all things ephemeral in our suffering dualistic world. In this regard, the sunset images share a relationship with my symmetrical photograph
The Bird of Paradise Rising.
#14 The Sun setting over our Meadow in Western New York through a veil of smoke from West Coast Wildfires
#15 The Phoenix Rising
#13 "The Bird of Paradise Rising" (Symmetrical Photograph)
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Continuing with the September News Report: yet another crises has developed as we near the November elections. On September 18, Ruth Bader Ginsberg died, at the age of 87. She was truly a great and heroic member of the US Supreme Court. Her entire life was lived with the highest integrity and her courageous actions changed many important things in this country, and in the lives of many people, for the better. She quietly suffered for the last four years while holding on to her position on the Supreme Court in order to protect this country from the Republicans' highly politicized process of trying to ram extremely conservative Judges, nominated by Trump, though a Republican Majority Senate. ~ Ruth Bader Ginsberg had made a dying request: that NO appointment to replace her be made until after the November Elections had been officially decided. Nonetheless, this past week (on September 26) Trump nominated an extremely conservative 48 year old judge Coney Barrett to replace Ruth Bader Ginsberg's position on the Supreme Court with the intention of filling the replacement before the Elections. (Barrett and her husband are reportedly members of a small obscure Christian group called the People of Praise.)
Also related to the November Elections, Trump has continued his threats of not leaving the White House if he looses the election because--as he has been asserting over and over again-- the voting process will have been rigged by the far left Democrats. Trump's campaign website "Army For Support" (according to a report recently by Forbes) uses alarming, highly militarized imagery and language. And in the middle of Trump's first public televised debate with Joe Biden this month, Trump urged a violent far-right group, the Proud Boys that they should "Stand back and stand by." (click here)
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When I get bombarded each day with this kind of intimidating news--news of the horrors of the Climate Crisis, news of political corruption, deliberate lying and manipulation of information by the President of the United States and corporate powers* I cannot help but worry about what the future holds for my grandchildren, my children . . . and everyone alive and struggling on this planet who want to make the world a better place--a world less divided racially, economically, politically; people who want help the planet regain its balance, its health through safe and caring human interventions.**
(*Note: I have just recently watched a documentary film on Netflix Streaming: The Social Dilemma which presents a strong argument that the extreme divisiveness we are experiencing in this country has been by design(!), by powerful, wealthy corporations who, through very sophisticated and effective technological and psychological manipulations of data and varying forms of information on the internet and social media, have been able to reap huge financial gains even as their divisive tactics are contributing to the growing negative impacts of the Pandemic and Climate Change. ~ I think it would be wise for everyone to at least be aware of the material presented in this film for statistics are clearly showing that the health and well being especially of young people in this country and around the world are being seriously compromised by corporate manipulations of information occurring within social media. ~ **And, regarding the health of the planet, I encourage you to see the important new film on Netflix Streaming: Kiss the Ground).
"The Bird of Paradise Rising"
The Uplifting Force of Grace
It takes great inner courage to face the challenges before us. And so I will conclude this project with Gurumayi's words, which are filled with grace, from her book
Courage and Contentment. In the chapter entitled "Be Steadfast" Gurumayi tells the story in which someone asked her teacher,
Swami Muktananda: "Is it all right to pray to the Guru for help in difficulties?"
Baba Muktananda replied:
"It is all right to pray to the Guru for help in difficulties, but it is better to turn your difficulties into nectar, and then try to digest that nectar with great joy. It is very valuable, very important to digest your own difficulties."
Gurumayi comments:
"The answer is worth your whole life, and it gives a key to what steadfastness in yoga really is. ~ Steadfastness means you hold onto God's love no matter what is happening in your life. You fasten your mind to God's love, to the Truth. You fasten your mind to the divine energy, to kundalini shakti, [grace] the great force. This inner force is unassailable. . . . It is holding on to the life-giving energy as situations arise and dissolve, arise and subside, come and go. Steadfastness is the inner pillar that turns difficulties into nectar."
In another chapter, entitled "The Steadiness of God's Presence," Gurumayi quotes the words of a 19th century poet-saint named Padmakar. After the poem, I have included her commentary which will conclude the project:
Oh my courageous heart, have patience.
If you can hold on bravely for some time,
you will see that the bad times
will take a turn for the better.
Just as sorrow came after happiness,
in the same way, after some time
happiness too will follow sorrow.
O my courageous heart, have patience.
Just as we constantly listen
to the sweet music of Krishna's flute,
so will Krishna hear us calling out His name
and come be with us.
Some day, sooner or later, the good days do return.
Gurumayi comments:
How do you cultivate this patience? Focus on the steadiness of God's presence in your heart, in your life. Whatever you think you become.
When you focus on the steadiness of God's presence within, the steadiness of divine grace . . . whatever you do, you will do with graceful movement. You won't be in a hurry. And even if you are in a hurry, you will take the time to wonder at God's beauty.
Although such times may seem difficult and barren, if you are watchful, you are able to unearth miraculous gems, priceless jewels.
When you feel bad . . . when you are down in the dumps, when you think you cannot take another step, focus your attention on the steadiness of God's presence.
When you focus on the steadiness of God's presence within, your heart is filled with courage. This courage of the heart allows you to get through [times of difficulties,] times of sorrow with great patience . . .
Do not flee from such moments, no matter how uncomfortable you may feel. It is during your most difficult moments that you have the greatest experience of God.
Whatever the discomfort, learn to go through it. If you make a mistake, don't try to ignore it and run away. Stay with it; rise above it. When you try to avoid the times of sorrow, your time is spent in anger and frustration. . . You keep bringing your miseries to the forefront of your mind . . . you thoroughly dampen your spirits . . . and then your suffering weighs so much that your heart refuses to rise to the occasion.
You have a choice: you can go through life whining and complaining, or you can live your life with dignity and sublime poise.
When you hold the steadiness of God's presence in your heart, the steadiness of divine grace, you feel secure; you feel very much loved. Grace is the uplifting force in your life. Gurumayi Chidvilasananda, from her book Courage and Contentment, a publication of the SYDA Foundation.
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This project was announced on my blog's
Welcome Page on October 7, 2020.
Related Project Links:
Welcome Page to The Departing Landscape website-blog which includes the complete hyperlinked listing of my online photography projects from most recent to those dating back to the 1960's. Here you will also find my resume, contact information . . . and much more.
