Spark # 1
My friend Chester Travis showed me this animation a long, long time ago and it burst open my brain. It’s still one of the most outrageous, odd, unsettling, strangely satisfying and absurd feats of creativity I’ve seen.
Dimensions of Dialogue by Jan Švankmajer - 1982.
Spark # 2
Flow State, recently featured Terry Riley and it reminded me of one of my favourite records of his, A Rainbow in Curved Air. I first heard this record in a small speakeasy called Bar Nightingale in Tokyo, down an alleyway in Golden Gai. I was hypnotized by it.
Spark # 3
I’ve long loved the mystical, poetic writings of St Teresa of Avila. She speaks here about the divine indwelling and describes a beautiful vision of this refuge within. I think we have all had passing glimpses into this portal at times, in different unique ways — a place of pure love, the seed of enlightenment buried deep down, but paradoxically closer to us than our own breath. This description of the ‘radiant sanctuary’ reignites my attempts to stay present to my silent self — the part of me (or perhaps that part that transcends ‘me’) that can never be lost or taken away. It also brings to mind a song I wrote that speaks to this called Goldmine.
'There is a secret place. A radiant sanctuary. As real as your own kitchen. More real than that. Constructed of the purest elements. Overflowing with the ten thousand beautiful things. Worlds within worlds. Forests, rivers. Velvet coverlets thrown over featherbeds, fountains bubbling beneath a canopy of stars. Bountiful forests, universal libraries. A wine cellar offering an intoxication so sweet you will never be sober again. A clarity so complete you will never again forget.
This magnificent refuge is inside you. Enter. Shatter the darkness that shrouds the doorway… believe the incredible truth that the Beloved has chosen for his dwelling place the core of your own being because that is the single most beautiful place in all of creation.”
― St Teresa of Avila
Till next time
I needed to experience this special, sanctifying refuge today. Thank you!
There's definitely ideas in her writings that are relatable to me.