Meditation on Stones, a Body of Rivers.
The rivers only attain their targets because they learned how to overcome the obstacles. So they flow, shaping them around. Embracing them.
When you have a bit of clay to mould, you should close your eyes, visualise it and allow it to shift into its natural soul. The bit of clay that is in front of you was part of the earth, belonging to a wider spirit. And now it’s just a part that was given to you, to feel. Allow it then to come with its own shape and spirit. At the end, it will be grateful to you because by moulding it, — allowing it to recreate and rebirth -, the shape will become natural the way it should be. Don’t force it by shaping something that doesn’t fit with its own spirit.
Listen to it, and allow it to be what it is by its own nature.
Water never lost its own personality and main characteristics no matter where. It can be put in a glass and it takes the shape of it, or it can flow as a river and shape and carve it’s own way. But the water remains water. With its own memory as body of energy. You can be water, shaping and being shaped, adapting yourself to the new environment without changing yourself.
However we should pay attention to the water as rivers. Rivers flow. They come from the earth, they carve their way or they just flow with the aim of reaching the biggest sea and be one with it. When it attains the oceans, or the seas, the water of the river is richer and wiser, carrying the memories of the places that it passed through, and specially the wisdom of how to embrace the obstacles that it found on its own path. Embracing the obstacles is the wisest way to face them. Embracing, shaping them and let them go. Flowing, naturally.
When in need of silence, pay attention to nature and learn with it, on how it behaves. Look at the rivers, as they will teach you how to flow, how to embrace the obstacles on its way. Look at the trees and see how they bend and let themselves be shaped by the winds. They bend to let the winds pass by, getting rid of their dead leaves. They just let them go. Obstacles: something that we all should be grateful for. So we can mature and learn with them, as life without obstacles would be dull like a static swamp with its waters getting rotten and smelly.
Today, try to be a river, embrace the obstacles and allow yourself to flow, to let them go. Be grateful to each and every obstacle you might have to face. Be grateful, let yourself flow, let it go, because only then you can keep going forward to your destiny, to attain your main target of life. Be grateful. Be a river. Today. And every other day.
The rivers only attain their targets because they learned how to overcome the obstacles. So they flow, shaping them around. Embracing them.
I once tried to force a Japanese brush to paint the way I wanted: in perfect controlled lines. And the brush told me: “Allow me to flow and I’ll reward you. Do not try to control my own spirit, my own nature, my own purpose. Rather, take me, and free me, by freeing yourself, because there’s no space I can not go and there’s no time I can not control”.
Following a moment of deeper meditation, without concept of time or space, I visualized a stone. I listened to it and felt the stone and its shape and how the wind and the sea shaped it to its actual form. A pebble, it’s called. A pebble I borrowed from the ocean. I visualised this stone while in meditation. I saw it getting its shape. I felt the ocean and the sand and the wind and the sun and how the moons lighted it over and over. How that pebble conquered its own spirit. I emptied myself to feel it. I became the wind, the sea, the sun, the sand and the moon. And the moment I turned into a Japanese brush, I stood up.
I took the stones and placed them where they wanted to be allowing my hands to be guided by them. The human body lies down between them: sand amongst the stones. Lighted by the sun as it sets, — I, as brush, wet myself then with Indian ink. And in meditation state I allowed myself to connect the elements:
Earth, Fire, Air and Water.
From this meditation’s performance came a series of paintings and photographs: The Meditating Stones, a Body of Rivers.
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if you read “I, Energy”, you might prefer the book “MPower the Shaman”, since “On Consciousness” includes both books in their revised version.
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Follow @GBenard on twitter, and @GWBenard on IG
Gonzalo Bénard is also a lecturer, a tutor of autistic teenagers, a visual artist and a lecturer. His photography has been part of the annual programs of several universities around the world, and are in several private and public art collections such as Museum of Serralves or Sir Elton John’s. His works are in Hollywood productions and TV series.
You can see his work of photography and painting at his webpage.
