Shunyamurti has always given great importance to art in all of its forms both as an instrument of expression and healing and for inspiration and learning. He is constantly encouraging our community to appreciate the best of human culture. From poetry and play readings to our music choir, from creative writing classes to Omprov (improvisational theater), from meditative painting to film discussions, we have learned to experience art as a means to heal, as a direct portal to experiencing our souls, as a way to understand our place in this moment of human history. Whether we are creating art, or whether we are appreciating the works of great artists, we are learning to enter art as a meditation, as a surrender to Presence. We are learning to become a witness to the process of creation, letting go of our focus on the final product and allowing the heart to open, to speak, and to be heard. And what needs to be expressed by the heart – whether feelings of pain and anguish, feelings of love and gratitude, feelings of deep connection to the Self – is shared and received in Love. In our gatherings we offer each other our vulnerability, our insights and our struggles expressed through brushstrokes on a canvas, notes in a sublime melody, delicate movements through the medium of dance, the eloquent words of poetic verse. This shared space of expression and revelation nourishes our communal bonds. As we share our transformation with the community and discuss our artwork we communicate to one another a depth of meaning that could not have been conveyed in any other way. Even the art that to the conventional mind may appear simplistic – the most humble drawing or a fledgling poem – reveals the unique beauty of one’s sacred journey to truth. And through this cathartic process we grow in love, and refine our sensitivity to the sublime Spirit that is manifested through each of us.
It is our sincere wish that you too will experience the power of art in the service of spiritual transformation; that you may find opportunities for creative expression and sacred spaces for sharing. Know that the sacred space of Arunachala is always open to you.
We are delighted to share with you a most inspiring video teaching by Shunyamurti filmed during one of our recent retreats. We know that you will find it uplifting and nourishing for your own inner artist.
Also, enjoy some Shakespearean sonnets written by our community. These are the fruits of our recently inaugurated “Poetry Nights” and we hope they give you a glimpse into the soul of a paradoxshram. Click here to read these poems on our blog page.
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“Poetry is that borderland between that which is articulable and that which cannot be articulated in any form. It expresses the essence of what we are. That power, that beauty, that spontaneous intelligence that is the manifestation of divinity, that becomes the expression of our existence. Let us converse, and through the discourse of Love bring a new world into being” ~ Shunyamurti
