Hello there good people I wanted to let you know that Sacred Root Kava Lounge and tea Bar are hosting a holiday sale of my works. From the 2nd December until the 31st December their will be 10% of my Sacred Elements series and a very generous 20% of my Circles of my mind series and Devotional art. Don't forget to stop by for art , cheer and Bula! And just in case you have not already discovered Sacred Root just follow the map below!
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On Samhain eve we journeyed to meet with the mighty dead at the veil between the worlds:
Find yourself a comfortable position, you may wish to sit or lie down. For a few moments we are going to sit and notice our breath. That life giving action that we barely pay mind to as we go about our daily lives. Bring your attention to the very tip of your nose, breath by breath notice the vital air around you, cooling the tip of your nose as it travels in through your nostrils, feel the moisture settle here, as the cool air floats up through your nasal passages and down your throat, feel too how your chest expands as life sustaining oxygen fills every tiny alveoli. Simply and quietly notice, breath by breath the air moving in to your nostrils past the tip of your nose. You may find moments when your focus, your attention drifts away from your breath, if this happens simply acknowledge the thoughts or distractions that appear and let you focus gently return to your breath. Breath in gently one more time and let you attention move freely away from your breath. Imagine now if you will a ripened field of wheat, golden and replete in the glow of the morning sun. Picture yourself seated in the centre of field, comfortably positioned in a small circle of wheat that has been rolled flat, the stalks of the wheat feel crisp beneath your body and the rising sun brings warmth to your face, feel how the cool breeze rushes through your hair and see how the wheat stalks dances to its playful music. This circle of wheat is a warm place of sanctuary a place of repose. Let the warm morning sun refresh you, energize you, as you sit here ,basking in the glow of gentle warmth. After a few moments you feel the desire to look more closely at your surroundings , as you do so, you notice a slight change in the pattern of the wheat field. Your eyes are drawn to a pathway cutting through the field of golden grain , a wide winding trail leading off into the West. Curious you move onto your feet and begin to walk towards the path. Down the pathway you travel, the wheat stalks crunch beneath your feet and you cannot resist the urge to run your hands over the ripened seed heads of the wheat as you walk with buoyant airy steps. You hear the faint yapping of a dog in the distance, you continue to walk further and further down the pathway, and you begin to realize that the skies illumination is becoming more and more muted the further you travel, and you see that the sun ahead of you is transforming into the vibrant colours of sunset. Suddenly a hare darts in front of your feet and stops you in your tracks, you smile as it stares wide eyed at you for the briefest of moments before bolting back into the cloaking stalks of the grain field around you. You begin to hear the bubbling of water emanating from in the distance ahead of you, and though the darkening cloak of dusk has carpeted the horizon , a generous moon lifts its radiant gaze up into the twilight sky to guide your way. You meander further down the pathway and quickly you find yourself approaching the banks of an ancient water course, nonchalantly it travels slowly in front of you, on it’s way in search of the ocean. Hung on its banks between two imposing and ancient yew trees is a large opaque gossamer curtain, These two cathedral trees, appear to grip the curtain so securely that it hangs completely still and unwavering, paying no mind to the breeze rising from the surface of the water, that swirls and teases at its edges. Across the surface of water to the left of the curtain, ripples circle out from where a salmon plunged back into the water after a daring leap, and an otter makes haste in pursuit. In the stillness of the night air you detect the faint whisper of voices, many voices echoing as if they are rising up from a mountain canyon many miles into the far distance. You focus your attention directly upon the voices and you slowly begin to realise that they originate from behind the the gossamer veil. You look intently at the opaque curtain before you, and as you do, the curtain, the veil begins to thin, slowly becoming translucent and responsive to the rushing eddies of air surrounding it. For now you realize begins the Holy day of Samhain, a day out of time when the worlds of the living and mighty dead find no separation. Through the translucent veil you see the joyful faces of the beloved dead, throngs of loved ones, ancestors, gathered together for they too are aware that the veil between the worlds has thinned , become permeable. You raise your voice and joyfully call to the loved one that you wish to commune with, you wish to see, and they step forward, full of happiness and joy to see you. This is your time, take this time to listen, feel, sense and learn. Share your stories, for it is from the wisdom and understanding of those who have walked this sacred realm before us that we can come to understand more of how to live authentic, compassionate fulfilling lives. You sense that this precious time with your beloved ancestors is growing to a close, the wheel of time turns once more, you offer your loved ones a fond farewell, and you remind them that they are forever alive in your heart, for what is remembered lives. The beloved dead step back through the veil between the worlds and as they do so, the curtain begins to shimmer and as the moments pass the transparent veil becomes once more a rich opaque black curtain. The moon is high in the sky now, and it casts long shadows over the still waters of the river. You turn to face the East and walk back down the pathway amongst the stalks of wheat, illuminated by the moon in full splendor. Further and further you travel into the East and as you do so a bright iridescent sky unfolds before you, the morning sun is rising once again, a faint sound catches your attention and you hear the call of a hawk above you, you look up and notice the elegant bird swooping towards a fleeing crow. With an invigorated spring in your step you walk towards the circle of flattened wheat just as the sun is ascending high into the morning sky the air smells of the warm dew, that rises ,like misty vapour's from the ears of the ripened wheat. You position yourself back down in the centre of the flattened wheat circle, just as a little black hen sounds her approach. She steps into the circle of flattened wheat and full of purpose pecks hungrily at the ground. You close your eyes, and let go of the image of the wheat field, you let it floats away like the cooling embers of a fire. In it’s place, you see in your mind’s eye, the central room in Sacred root, with its clean red brick floors and dark paneled walls. You smell the cool air in this underground quarter.Now once once more bring your attention at the tip of your nose, where the cool moist air flows into your nasal passages. Breath gently with your awareness focused here for a few moment more, And now open your eyes. I am pleased to announce my new show Sacred Elements of life opening at Sacred Root Kava Bar and Tea lounge in ITHACA NY, Friday the 4th of November. The sacred Elements of life The sacred elements of Air, Fire,Water, Earth and Spirit are all creative manifestations of the Divine. All play a vital role in the existence of life on Earth, human and non-human, we as conscious beings can perceive the physical manifestations of these sacred elements. The touch of the breeze as we breath in the life giving air and receive the gift of oxygen, which is carried in the branching red rivers that flow throughout our bodies to feed every cell , in this can we feel the divine. When we place our hands in the living soil, we touch the earth, and in this we feel the divine. When we raise our hands skyward to feel the kiss of the vibrant star we call the sun, we touch fire and in this we feel the divine. When we dance in the afternoon rain, letting the waters of a thousand clouds touch our skin, in this we feel the divine. And at last we see how each sacred element touches the essence within, the centre which is god herself. Inspiriting the creative mind, nourishing the hearth cauldron, igniting the fires of inspiration, stirring the ebbing tides of love and feeling. A web of connection where the sacred elements exist as the energetic threads of stardust which give the conscious spirit a vessel in which to experience itself. Each sacred element takes form within symbiotic relationship to each other. For what is a river without an earthen vessel to contain its flow? Would it not be aimless, diffuse and volatile. And if the rains did not fall onto the sweet earth would it not be lifeless, dry and unable to resist the scattering effects of the winds? Which in itself would lack the power to flow, raise the clouds and rush into action without the heat of a radiant star. What then would be the sun without sky to heat and water to cool? A vast lonely vault of energy, scorching an earth bereft of life. Each sacred element seeks to exist in balance within itself and with the other elements of life that are the weave upon the web. And for balance all vital parts must exist. There is in the darkness always light, in the light there is always shadow. The interplay of positive and negative attributes creates a constantly changing and transforming dynamic. This is the inspiration for life. Through the understanding and integration of these opposing attributes can we universal spirit made manifest come to know ourselves in all of our parts. For we are the manifestation of these sacred elements, we seek balance, we seek change and transformation. We seek to know the divine, and in seeking the divine we discover the essence at the centre of the web of all, ourselves. |
Gaia Woolf-Nightingall
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