Eastern art values ‘negative space’ for what it is, rather than for what it is not. It values open space in a painting, not for how it sets off what is painted but for its own ‘positive’ role. This space is sometimes referred to as ‘ma’ in Japanese tradition, as Michihiro Matsumoto explains in ‘The Unspoken Way.’ Among its complex meanings, it connotes a potential realizing itself, an eternal moment unfolding, a deep power present in silence. It is an empowering mystery, whose silence, empty time, and space is infused with the eternal present. Ma can be felt in dreams. Notice what is not in your dream- the missing link between two scenes, the ‘illogical’ sequence, the dream with no end, the voice without a body, the room you entered without a door. These apparently ‘negative spaces’- unfilled by sequence, location, or logic- are replete with energy. What we associate to that energy is ours to discover. Exploring ma with loving respect is simply to come away from a dream still feeling the mystery- but feeling it more richly…….Jill Mellick
this clearing of space is like placing stones around us, centering us so that we have room to unfold…….a rite of passage and a reversal of thresholds….this time we go down, initiating into healing, vitality, and a pivotal vigil of sorts…an intuitive ritual carried from dreamland through the underworld, on angels’ wings, diving into shadows, and whispering to the soul-light…..
Story is the fabric of our lives. Every life begins and ends with a story. A myth, in a sense, is the very truest of stories, a story that reveals universal qualities of the human condition, of the world, and the deeper meanings and possibilities of our lives. We become aware of the different layers only as we develop spiritually. There is always more to learn from time-honored myths, and so we listen to them and tell them, and tell them again. Consider crafting your life story as a personal myth, framing the events of your life in a symbolic perspective. A soulcraft approach to your own story asks you to see your life in the light of the universal dynamics and archetypes of humanity. Tell the stories of your griefs, ecstasies, wanderings, and encounters with soul and other remarkable beings. And it’s important that your story embody your deepest truths, irrespective of the facts……Bill Plotkin
dreams in a shape-shifting vastness…..
I am clearing a space-
here, where the trees stand back.
I am making a circle so open
the moon will fall in love
and stroke these grasses with her silver.
I am setting stones in the four directions,
stones that have called my name
from mountaintops and riverbeds,
canyons and mesas.
Here I will stand with my hands empty,
mind gaping under the moon.
I know there is another way to live.
When I find it, the angels
will cry out in rapture,
each cell of my body
will be a rose, a star.
If something seized my life tonight,
if a sudden wind swept through me,
changing everything,
I would not resist.
I am ready for whatever comes.
But I think it will be
something small, an animal
padding out from the shadows,
or a word spoken so softly
I hear it inside.
It is dark out here, and cold.
The moon is stone.
I am alone with my longing.
Nothing is happening
but the next breath, and the next…..
….Morgan Farley
