The Franciscan notion of the “univocity of being” gave an early philosophical foundation to what we now call the circle of life or ecosystems, holons and fractals (parts that replicate the whole), unitive or contemplative thinking, and mysticism itself. Duns Scotus believed creation was more than an “analogy of being,” as Thomas Aquinas taught; there was an objective continuity between Creator and Creatures.
(Richard Rhor)
Continuing on the theme of Jungian archetypes, Bear Moon is a piece spanning the gap between dreams and waking life, or psyche and persona.
This work is based on Jungian archetypes (anima/ feminine and the animus /masculine) which addresses the historical drama acted out at the cusp of transition from the Age of Pisces (200 BCE to the beginning of the 21st century) into the Age of Aquarius. The Piscean era has been marked by male dominance, hierarchy and authority. (All the male figures are lowly, seeking or prostrate in the picture). The contrasting Aquarian age is organized in a horizontal network as compared to the Piscean hierarchical order, opening the world to true equality. (Pregnant woman wearing the heads of bears which denote wisdom and pregnancy gestating the seed of future wholeness). This new age will see the full emergence of the feminine, transcending and also including the previous masculine centered age. During this new time focus no longer will be upon on one’s identity and existence ( “to be or not to be”) but accepting yourself as a whole person ( to be to be ). The binary mind will find wholeness through nondual unification of both, it will arise beyond an “either or” and discover the wholeness of being the “yes and” .
Hermes wand which is held by one of the pregnant woman is pictured as two intertwining snakes of the Caduceus symbolizing the lunar Ida and solar Pingala channels of yogic philosophy, which must be cleared and balanced in order for the kundalini energy, or serpent power, to ascend from the base of the spine to the crown, producing enlightenment. In the Western esoteric tradition, this is called the Alchemical Marriage. Marriage of both male and female, Yin and Yang.
Snakes also have a profound symbolic significance in science, medicine and healing. The snake, which periodically molts, or sheds its skin, is a symbol of healing, regeneration and renewal.
That there is a Godhead or Ground, which is the unmanifested principle of all manifestation.
That the Ground is transcendent and immanent.
That it is possible for human beings to love, know and become the Ground.
That to achieve this unitive knowledge, to realize this supreme identity, is the final end and purpose of human existence.
That there is a Law or Dharma, which must be obeyed, a Tao or Way, which must be followed, if humans are to achieve their final end.
Huxley's 1944 essay in Vedanta and the West
I hold the feminine and masculine in my physical, emotional, and spiritual being. Gender roles have been misapplied through power dynamics and means of control in culture and religion for over 6000 years. As we evolve as a species our roles will evolve to make room for the spectrum of sexual expression and move out from the need for domination and control to partnership & cooperation.
Theologian Marcus Borg’s study of Scripture reveals many female metaphors for God. Here he shows how God’s wisdom was invariably presented as a woman:
The most fully developed female biblical image for God is in the wisdom literature of ancient Israel—in Proverbs and in two books of the Apocrypha [books included in the Catholic and Episcopal Bibles, but not in most Protestant versions], namely [The Book of] Sirach (Ecclesiasticus) and the Wisdom of Solomon. In these, “the wisdom of God” is often personified as a woman. Scholars now commonly refer to this personification as “Sophia,” the Greek word for wisdom.
In Proverbs 8, Sophia speaks of herself. She was with God before creation, and she was the master worker through whom God created (see especially 8:22-31). In Sirach 24, she is from eternity and fills all that is.
In the Wisdom of Solomon 7:22-27, she is “the fashioner” and “mother” of all good things and:
. . . a spirit that is intelligent, holy, unique, manifold, subtle, mobile, clear, unpolluted, distinct, invulnerable, loving the good, keen, irresistible, beneficent, humane, steadfast, sure, free from anxiety, all-powerful, overseeing all, and penetrating through all. (Wisdom 7:22-23)
These are, of course, attributes of God. Later, beginning in chapter ten, the author summarizes the history of Israel and uses the word Sophia/Wisdom where we would expect the word “God.”
In the first chapter of John, what the author says about “the Word of God” was said about Sophia in the Jewish tradition. Like the Word, Sophia was present with God before creation. Just as the Word was with God and was God, so Sophia was. And when John writes that the Word became flesh and dwelt among us as Jesus, he could just as well have said that Sophia became flesh and dwelt among us as Jesus. Jesus is the Wisdom/Sophia of God incarnate.
Themes dealing with individuality, community, propaganda, consumerism and spirituality prevail in this body of paintings. Our collective experience collides and melts into a history which is messy and mysterious. This tumbled expression forms these paintings in multiple visual memes connoting nationalism, pride, neurotic fear, consumption and ultimate reimagining of our place in this mystery . This embedded joint imagery presents an overview of time at one glance, while engaging the viewer in his/her own memories of history presented through this mass media. Ultimately my work prods the viewer to form their own set of memes, outside the box of popular mass media and nationalist propaganda, while sharing honestly in our mutually collective experiences.
A common theme of advertising in the past was based on an unquestioned hyper-masculinity. The feminine was treated as a mere sexual picture frame to the so called heroes of brute and brawn traipsing victoriously through the mythological outdoor American landscape.
