Hallucinating In The Sacred Garden
--
The rat wheel, sourced by being told we were born bad, judged before we walked, particularly female children….our spirit was broken, our wholeness taken, then taking the land, our time and bodies is easy. So taking back our soul, our spirit and seeing ourselves as whole and worthy is essential. Realizing we need each other, are collective animals in a sacred garden opens us to all the magic of the world…
— Donna Morton
*
The most difficult thing in the world is to reveal yourself, to express what you have to…As an artist, I feel that we must try many things but above all, we must dare to fail.
— John Cassavetes
*
There are things that are not sayable. That’s why we have art.
— Leonora Carrington
*
A person is strong only when he stands upon his own truth, when he speaks and acts from his deepest convictions.
- Mikhail Bakunin
*
You don’t need drugs, dear. You are already hallucinating.
~Lama Surya Das
*
Reality is probably more bizarre than any hallucination we might produce, but we still prefer conjuring stories and images to entertain and comfort ourselves. And I’m not against the work of imagination, far from it. As an artist, I never get tired of what is wrought by human invention, but entertainment can only go so far.
Beauty is essential to the arts, and those who can surprise us with an aesthetic shock to the senses gives us a valuable gift. But art must go further and probe reality with insights and questions that give us a glimpse into what kind of being we are. Reflecting Reality, even if it’s only a hint, a glimpse, is service to a part of us that is covered over by the quotidian. In fact, life as it is usually lived could be called a hallucination while the world reflected in art is actually more true and real.
The artist’s job is to be sensitive to undercurrents and what is unspoken and hidden. We need reports from a deeper reality than is common and art is one of the portals to that level of perception.
