To fly toward a secret sky

“This is love: to fly toward a secret sky, to cause a hundred veils to fall each moment. First to let go of life. Finally, to take a step without feet.”  - Rumi

For me the sky, birds and clouds have in later life taken on a religious bent to them. Whether it be their slow sailing passage across a clear sky, or a savage journey across a grey and stormy horizon. The moment of clouds and birds across the dome above us has in time brought out me a deep and religious awe in me.

The sky reminds me of my own smallness in the divine scheme of things, it brings a peace to my mind and allows me to to gaze enraptured at the objects that sail across it. I imagine that we like the birds and clouds that float across it are guided to fly towards God and his or her servants on a sometimes peaceful, sometimes fraught journey. Guided to one day fly towards Love across a divine and secret sky.

A painted veil

The veil is a powerful and recurring theme in mystical symbolism. In Islam God is said to wear a veil of light that will only be removed before his worshipers. In Babylonian myth for her descent into the underworld the goddess Inanna has to remove all her clothing in order to save her dead lover, the last item being her beloved veil. And in qabalah there are said to be three veils that separate existence from the supreme nature of God.

So what is the symbolism behind the veil then? In two of the above examples, the veil is something that obscures the true nature of divinity. In the above example it is said that the veil of light could also be translated as a veil of fire and it is said that if Allah removed this " the splendour of His countenance would consume His creation so far as His sight reaches."

The veil in qabalah present a mystical allegory, for they represent that which the mind cannot comprehend. The true nature of divinity is such that the mind would not be able to truly be able to describe or ascertain its true nature without direct experience of passing beyond these veils.

And the last could be seen as the lesson that only in humility can true spiritual gnosis be reached. For when Inanna first sets out into the underworld it is her rainments of heaven which she has to remove in order to reach her lover and finally have him restored to life.

One perfect moment with God

"When I walk on the path, when I enter the house of Love I see you. You are the King in every town. I see You in the sun, the moon and the stars, I see Your altar in every plant, in every leaf" - Rumi

Now I don't have what you would call a typically view of  God or divinity. I'm not Christain, Buddhist or Jewish, but I do have a strong appreciation for what I see as a divine source that I feel acts upon our world.

And one of the times where I do truly see or feel such a force is when I'm taking photographs, you see for me beauty is God and God is beauty. Now when I say that, I'm not talking about beauty in a shallow way (like say that person is beautiful or those clothes look really good). I'm talking about the types of moments when I see clouds drifting across an endlessly blue sky, or sunlight dapples through leaves or the small moments of human kindness that you might see in everyday life.

And its those moments that I love trying to capture on film, not to try and nail down God into a photo but to try and share those precious moments when one is alone with something truly, truly beautiful.

Spirituality in Art

I was pleased recently to have been invited to take part in a gallery displaying images of spiritual in art. My photography and art has always been heavily inspired by my unorthodox approach to the divine. As such I felt I could take part and (hopefully) add something meaningful to this event.

I have included a quote and one of my pictures that will be used as part of my display which I hope gives a bit more insight into my art and how I see the world.:

"For me one of the main things that is so attractive about photography is just how beautiful the world is. And in seeing that beauty one can't help but to feel a sense of awe, a sensation of touching something greater and more wonderful then can be understood by the rational senses. In other words for me to take a picture of something truly beautiful is in some way for me to reach out to God and find myself immersed in His/Her great beauty. For me all these pictures represent moments when I have somehow touched or found that moment in life when one connects for a moment with the divine."

And here is a link to the actual event itself:

https://www.facebook.com/events/211070629060412/?fref=ts