I’ve sometimes been puzzled by this idea from art tutors as I practice life drawing to find the ‘pose’s story’. When I look, I don’t see heroes or villains, nor do I see battles, lightsabers, or the kinds of tropes you see in stories. So what’s the story of a pose? What does it mean? […]
Buddhism and the quest for meaning and purpose
In my experience and understanding, such questions as ‘Why are we here?’ ‘What my ultimate purpose in life?” can’t be answered definitively. I don’t need the consoling beliefs offered up by other religions like theism. Such views are always metaphysical (Place your faith in God). I looked into metaphysics and concluded it’s a waste of […]
10 Moments of Awakening you need in your life
‘One doesn’t recognize the really important moments in one’s life until it’s too late’ Agatha Christie In life, certain moments stick out, moments out of the ordinary, Their import more evident as our lives progress., and we look back to notice how much things have changed. Pivotal moments are those special moments where your life […]
How to find your creative voice
In any creative pursuit, it will eventually come up with the idea of an Artistic Voice. The unique expressiveness that makes you’re art yours, your take on the world. It’s a combination of materials and inspiration, methods that make you different from others. Find out what you want to say and how you want to […]
Buddhism: Jiriki-Tariki – Do you find enlightenment or does it find you?
Big questions occupy our religious musings: ‘what extent does hard work help us find salvation or enlightenment? Is that impossible, out of our hands, or do our efforts make a difference?’ In Japanese Zen, this debate is between Jiriki and Tariki, or Self-power and Other-power. Jiriki Vs Tariki Jiriki (自力, one’s own strength) is the […]
Zen Buddhism, going meta and postmodernism
What’s the connection between the Buddha and Deadpool? It might seem an unlikely comparison, a wisecracking anti-hero and a spiritual icon. The answer is linked to the most amusing thing I learned from my battle with anxiety and what I learned from Zen: its responses are seemingly counter-intuitive, even paradoxical. You can’t understand Buddhism by grasping for […]