My visits to London inevitably lead to an exploration and an appreciation of the sculpture pieces scattered throughout the city, whether these be on monuments or simply put there for aesthetic value.The other day I was deeply moved by Nic Fiddian-Green's sculpture, "The Horse at Water." As I stood and looked at this marvelous work, the thought came to me that living well is not so much about right and wrong, but of balance and proportion. Both these aspects just radiate from this sculpture. Life needs to express balance and proportion. In doing so it takes on a beauty and uniqueness of its own, which it in turn, pours out in to the great pool of life.
It was strange how that evening I watched the movie, "The Black Swan" which portrays a life that is out of balance and proportion. The main protagonist, a ballerina, is able to dance the part of the white swan, but not that of the black swan, the reason being an ongoing denial and suppression of an essential part of herself. Ultimately, this leads to a freeing, but tragic consequence. Just a beautiful and profound movie.
Too much spirituality in the past has encouraged, even brow-beaten us to deny essential parts of ourselves, and instead of bringing balance and proportion to life, it has brought the very opposite.
...Thank you for this Great meditation Don..im glad you mentioned the movie "The Black Swan"..i want to see it again now..we saw it when it first came out but i cant remember the details now other than it delt i think with obsessive/compulsiveness and the driving need to achieve allusive perfection...Christianity and religion can and often does lapse into religious ritualism and lends itself rather easily to the obsessive/compulsive disposition in many of us..the art of Balancing and Proportion has always been difficult for me personally so i appreciate it when the subject is occasionally raised for contemplation such as in this Post..the old Zen saying of "Chop Wood Carry Water" comes to mind and may be applicable here...Meditation has been an invaluable tool in aiding me to attain a significantly good measure of stability and steadiness in my mind and therefor my life...Keeping ALL aspects of ones life in proper perspective/Balance and proportion requires for me a sustained level of self-awareness and reflective intropection that i intentionally try to practice periodically throughout each day..and even this in moderation.."Life needs to express balance and proportion. In doing so it takes on a beauty and uniqueness of its own, which it in turn, pours out in to the great pool of life."....
ReplyDeleteI too have found strength and meaning in meditation. The little balance and proportion I have has certainly come from this practice. I must agree with you, there are certain forms of spirituality which lend themselves to compulsiveness. Enjoyed your comment. Let me know how you feel about the movie. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
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