Maintaining the well, or: when water levels are low

Some years ago I thoroughly engaged with Julia Cameron’s The Artist’s Way (Pan Books: 1993), a stimulating work book for introspective creatives. One of the main concepts I internalized whilst working through the material is the notion of scooping from a pond or well when it comes to being creative. How well the pond it stocked and taken care of directly relates to the amount and quality of one’s creative output – an idea that I increasingly believe in. With my growing awareness of the relation between input and output, however, also comes an ever increasing cognizance of the resulting responsibility towards myself: If I am to respect my creativity, I better look after myself (and my pond) appropriately.

Despite the above realization I often catch myself doing anything but attending to the well I rely on. Getting bogged down by multiple (often self-induced) demands on my time and energy periodically results firstly in a state of “low water levels” - an analogy introduced to me by a once-close friend, and secondly a depleted pond. With lower water levels in a stream, even the smallest rocks become visible, if not stick out. Consequently, it becomes easy to focus on them, rather than on the surrounding water. Similarly, when “water levels are low” in terms of a personal state, one tends to focus on those (more or less ever-present) niggles which inevitably form part of one’s personality, habits and reality, often resulting in a negative feedback loop: already limited energy is spent to focus on something negative, which depletes energy levels even further.

Since the pond or well is fed by a “water stream” (i.e. the well represents an accumulation and synergy of all its influx), it does not take long for the pond to become stale and depleted when “water levels are low”, thereby jeopardizing the last and most important resort from which I as a creative person draw. To prevent (or more realistically: counter-act) the eventual depletion of the well I try to remind myself of what it takes to “raise my water levels” as soon as I notice the “stones appearing”, thus becoming aware again of what I owe myself:

Moments of happiness, inspiration, balance and freedom

… Going for a 05:30am run with the moon still up, amongst porcupines, buck and owls, revelling in the fresh morning air. Enjoying the silence, settling into a perfect rhythm, working in harmony with the body until there is complete, wholesome tiredness. …

… Connecting with people through meaningful interactions, sharing insights, engaging in philosophical discussions, exploring deeper levels of being and stimulating intellectual agility. …

… Enjoying culinary creations and experiences in good company, relaxing after achieving whatever has been aimed for, laughing, sharing, being (care)free. …

… Engaging all my senses to observe nature in all its forms – admiring colour, beauty, symmetry, precision and order; caressing textures and patterns. …

… Enjoying the simplicity of living outdoors when camping, hiking and touring. No rush, no clock to watch, no people. Life is simple, elemental and non-contradictory as one becomes part of a bigger whole. …

… Feeling complete in wide, empty spaces. Silence. Peace. A multitude of textures, patterns, colours and moods, nothing is out of place. Here my spirit can truly soar. …

Whilst it is not usually possible to create these moments of happiness, inspiration and balance in abundance, I remind myself that there are numerous tiny instances of them in any day – especially when one succeeds to live in the moment completely, thereby eliminating the constantly nagging thoughts about the next items on the to-do list, or the next appointment, or the next task ahead. Being without these deliberations even for a short while is truly liberating.

 

Moments of carefree happiness. Photos: (c) Angela & Mathias Tölken

 

Outdoor moments. Photos: (c) Angela & Mathias Tölken

The fascination of nature. Photos: (c) Angela & Mathias Tölken

 

by AnGela

SACRED GEOMETRY by Giselle Petty

The word ‘Geo-Metry’ literally means the measurement of the world. Geometry is thought of as sacred when it is used as a metaphorical bridge in understanding, exploring or representing the nature of consciousness and existence. As a result the application of Sacred Geometry in association with spiritual idea and the worship of deity can be found in abundance in both our ancient and most recent culture.

Sacred Geometry is the science and awareness of the structure of form understood as the vessel for the consciousness and intelligence of the Universal Mind. Its forms encapsulate self-existing knowledge of universal laws. That which exists does so through a geometric template that is primarily formed by the meditation of the Universal Mind and secondarily by the myriad pools of collective mind that comprise galaxies, stars, worlds and species. In this way the universe we know exists in ratios of geometry on an infinite scale “As Above, So Below”, and as such all things can be understood through number. “All is Number” Pythagoras

Sacred Geometry charts the unfolding of number in space. The basic journey is from the single point, into line, out the plane, through to the third dimension and beyond, eventually returning to the point again, all the time watching waht happens along the way.
Number, Music, Geometry and Cosmology are the four great Liberal Arts of the ancient world. These are simple universla languages, as relevant today as they have always beeen, and still found in all sciences and cultures without disagreement.

Circles produce perfect triangles and hexagons. The circle also spins to become a sphere. Something circular remains essentially circular. The circle is the shape traditionally assigned to the Heavens, and the square to the Earth. When these two shapes are unified by being made equal in area or perimeter it is referred to as 'squaring the circle', meaning that Heaven and Earth, or Spirit and Matter, are symbolically combined, or married.

 The triangle produces a fourth point at an equal distance from the other three to produce a tetrahedron. One equilateral triangle has made three more. The square lifts a second square away from itself until another four squares are formed and a cube is created..
The triangle may be said to represent Man, when pointing up , and Woman, when pointing down.

The six points of the hexagon give rise to a pattern forming six circles a round one. This is a theme which the Old Testament of the Bible opens on, witht he six days of work and the seventh day of rest.
As one produces six, so six produces twelve. The arms of the six-pointed star extend to intersect the outer rims of the six circles to form a perfect overall division of space into twelve parts. The perfect twelve-sided polygon is called a dodecagon, which means 'twelve-sided'.

 

 

A dodecogan is made from six sqaures and six equilateral triangles fitted around a hexagon, in addition the twelve divides into three, four, and six as four triangles, three squares or two hexagons.Twelve is the number which fits around one in three dimensions in the same way that six fits around one in two dimensions. The New Testament is a story of a teacher with twelve disciples.

Certain numbers like each other. If the Moon's radius is three then the Earht's is eleven. The portal door of Gerum Church in Gothland, Sweden (below) clearly shows a deliberate three by eleven. Three elevens are thirty three and Irish and Norse myths are filled with tales of 33 warriors. Jesus is reborn at 33, and from any given place on Earth, the Sun takes 33 years before it rises exactly over the same point ona distant horizon.

THE CANON the numbers of the heavens and earth

 

 

There is perhaps no more famous a geometric object on Earth than the Great Pyramid at Giza, Egypt with it's strange passages and enigmatic chambers. 'Geometry' means 'Earth Measure' and the Pyramid functons as a ridiculously accurate sundial, observatory, surveyor's tool and repository for standard weights and measures. It's perimeter is exactly half a degree of equatorial latitude.

PYRAMID PIE the marriage of everything

Geometry is 'number inspace', music is 'number in time'. Musical intervals , like geometrical proportions, always involve two elements in a certain ratio: two string-lengths, two periods (lengths of time) or two frequencies (beats per length of time).Harmonic musical intervals can be seen as geometrical shapes.

The Flower of Life

The Flower of Life is a pattern of exquisite balance and symmetry. It is the mother pattern from which all other forms of nature’s geometry emerge. It is this fact that gives it its name. Within it can be found such forms as Metatron’s Cube, the Perfect Solids and the Runes. It has been known and studied for thousands of years by our most advanced cultures. The oldest known example of the Flower of Life is found in the Temple of Osiris in Abydos, Egypt. It has also been found in China, in spherical form (3D), under the feet of dragon statues in the Forbidden City of Beijing.

The Flower of Life is central to the study of Sacred Geometry. Within it are found volumes of universal knowledge pertaining to the vehicle of life and the Universal Mind. It is because of this access to such knowledge that the Flower of Life was kept secret and given only to advanced initiates of Mystery Schools such as that of the Ancient Egyptian pyramid builders. Today it’s trove of secrets is laid open for all to contemplate.

The Flower of Life is a geometrical pattern composed of many circles. All the circles are evenly spaced and of the same size. They overlap in a manner which forms a hexagonal lattice. It is usually represented by one central circle with six surrounding it, followed by a further twelve circles. Nineteen circles in all, although it can be considered to have infinite layers. In the terms of sacred geometry circles are considered feminine. It is worth considering that the above image is two dimensional, that a better understanding of its complexity can be gained through seeing all the circles as interlocking spheres. Meditating on this can be highly fruitful.

 

The above has been quoted from Sacred Geometry written and illustrated by Miranda Lundy

 

Here are some images of jewellery inspired by Sacred Geometry:

 

A range of handsawn Sterling Silver and Copper pendants by Giselle Petty

Jewellery By Firepetals