The starting point of making something is not with the materials, although I do find that playing with materials and tools generates inspiration. It is the non-material inspiration which empowers the process of making. Contemplation of the immaterial, the idea, the inspiration, is the part to which I recommend giving more attention in the making process. This contemplation, followed by the physical making, followed by contemplating what we have made causes growth in knowing who we are. It is the journey of awakening to our True Self.
To know your True Self you seek on-going personal growth by communion with the Origin of your core being. Yes, you can know your Origin. It is discernable in you right now. This is not your ancestry, DNA, upbringing, culture, or even tracing back to the elements which came from the “Big Bang”, though all those are parts of you. It helps to try to appreciate that you are not a random accident, or something thoughtlessly left to careless chance, but that your presence here and now has meaning and value.
The Exploration Impulse
This idea can be pursued like the curiosity that makes you want to open a door to see what is beyond, as many artists describe working on a new project. It calls upon your courage and hope that you will discover something more about life. As you proceed into the Unknown, you grow in awareness which develops into a personal dialogue you frequently return to with the entity you are becoming aware of. Some call it their Muse; I relate to it as the Divine. Is it separate from us? At this point in my growth, I would say it is more like the Whole to which I am discovering my connection. I am comforted by knowing it is always with me, like an ocean I am living in, loving me and receiving my love.
As you grow in your core being, your openness increases to expand your viewpoint as understanding revises your knowledge. Intuition increases as you have more to draw upon. You act and express from this basis within, rather than on someone else’s or some institution’s viewpoint. The Goodness that you are experiencing within compels you to radiate it to others.
Dancing With The Universe
Relating to others becomes a dance of coordinating your core being with theirs, of contributing your uniqueness and receiving their contribution. At times you move as a close ensemble and other times more loosely. As you realize your harmony with other members of Creation, you experience a drawing toward them of thankfulness and care which is Love; you express compassion as you realize everyone else can also experience this orientation.
This influences your choices to be more giving, to be more trusting that you will receive what you need in due course. Whereas before you felt a scarcity, gradually you grow to realize sufficiency. Joy and peace result from this orientation which increases your freedom to discern truth and the directions you can pursue.
Making From The Heart Outward
How does this relate to making objects of art, choreographing a dance, writing a play, building a business? The more we experience the Love which grows from knowing our True Self, the more we are compelled to express that Love, and this motivates making. We seek ways to make expressions which engage others in the Goodness we are discovering. We push the limits of materials, our bodies, words and commerce to extend our Love to the world. We learn that limits are important to getting something made, but also prove that what we create is not the actual Love we convey.
Though Love is facilitated by our creations, it cannot be contained by them; living and behaving in Love is the ultimate verification of our creations. Further, living and behaving is the demonstration of something more than the limits of our lives and behavior. We are participating in the uncontained Spirit; our lives are evidences of the Greater Reality we are growing to know as we make more evidence of it.
