Things Unknown

"There are things known

and there are things unknown,

and in between are

the doors of perception" 

- Aldous Huxley (1894-1963)

Symbolic Universe

"No longer in a merely physical universe,

man lives in a symbolic universe.

Language, myth, art and religion
are parts of this universe.

They are varied threads which
weave the symbolic net,
the tangled web of human experience.

No longer can man confront reality immediately;
he cannot see it, as it were, face to face.
Physical reality seems to recede in proportion
as man's symbolic activity advances.

Instead of dealing with the things
themselves man is in a sense
constantly conversing with himself.

He has so enveloped himself in
linguistic forms, in artistic images,
in mythical symbols or religious rites that he
cannot see or know anything except by
the interposition of this artificial medium."

- Ernst Cassirer
Philosopher (1874 - 1945)

Inevitability of Art

"Art need not be intended.

It comes inevitably as 

the tree from the root,

the branch from the trunk, 

the blossom from the twig.

None of these forget the present in 

looking backward or forward.

They are occupied fully with the 

fulfillment of their own existence."

- Robert Henri (1865-1929)

Coexistence

Autopoiesis = Self-Creation

(from Greek auto = “self” and poiesis = “creation)

"… a network of mutually interacting processes that

continuously both create, and sustain, components that

regenerate the network of processes that produce them.

There is a constant and intimate contact among the

things that coexist and coevolve in the universe,

a sharing of bonds and messages that

makes reality into a stupendous

network of interaction and communication.”

— Ervin Laszlo

Philosopher / Systems Theorist (1932 - )

Only in the Mind

"To Taoism that which is absolutely still or absolutely perfect is absolutely dead, for without the possibility of growth and change there can be no Tao. In reality there is nothing in the universe which is completely perfect or completely still; it is only in the minds of men that such concepts exist."

- Alan Watts (1915 - 1973)

A Sacred Place

"Sacred space is a space that is transparent to transcendence, 

and everything within such a space furnishes 

a base for meditation, even for the youngest child. 

When you enter through the door, 

everything within such a space is symbolic, 

the whole world is mythologized, 

and spiritual life is possible. 

This is a place where you can go and 

feel safe and bring forth what you are 

and what you might be. 

This is the place of creative incubation. 

At first you might find that nothing happens there. 

But if you have a sacred place and use it,

 you will eventually find yourself again and again."

- Joseph Campbell (1904 - 1987)