Magic....

"Magic" painting by Rob Schouten

 "If you do not believe in magic, your life will not be magical.  Magic like the power of Stonehenge is part of the unknowable - that which you cannot describe, but which exists and makes your life extraordinary.  It is that mysterious and intriguing part of your spiritual life.  Magic is what we are all looking for, but if you try to hold it and name it and describe it, you will lose it.  You must talk around magic, describe what led you there, and give thanks for that part of the universe that is unknowable and full of color and strength and magic.  Out of relationship comes magic.  Out of the friction of forgetting and remembering comes magic.  Out of the mists of dawn and the mysteries of creation comes the magic that we call life.  Out of your passion for existence comes magic."

The Power Deck by Lynn V. Andrews   
with paintings by visionary artist Rob Schouten. 

 
Recently I've had a (bevy? myriad? cluster?) of synchronicities around "magic".  Last night I found myself telling a friend to see a movie called "The Color of Magic".  In my last email with Prema Dasara  she closed by saying "magic sometimes happens".

I have always prayed to  Tara when I'm in trouble.  How I "met" Tara is a magical story.  So, prior to my surgery in early November to remove a tumor, I prayed to Tara.  The day before going to the hospital, I was delighted to receive an email from Prema Dasara.  More than a year and a half ago we had discussed making masks for her Mandala Dance, "The 21 Praises to Tara".  She was inquiring if I still wanted to make them. I took this as great encouragement  before I went "under".  All is well now, and I feel I kind of have a promise to fulfill to Tara, although, unfortunately, Prema  has had to put her project off because of health problems.



Prema Dasara and "The 21 Praises to Tara" Mandala Blessing Dances

But the idea came to me - why not do a second collection of my own  Masks of the Goddess?  Ever since 2008, when  the masks were sold at a Benefit Auction, many people have contacted me wanting to use them for events, rituals, dances.   I have thought about creating another collection,  in new ways and forms, to be held in trust for those wishing to use them "in a sacred manner."I do not believe I have the energy to create community events myself anymore, but there are many who would use them to do so.


As I rolled this around in my mind yesterday, I thought I'd pull a card from one of my decks - and behold, up came "Stonehenge and Magic".   Ancient monuments, the womb of the Great Mother, seem to be what I write a lot about these days..........and what happens in the womb?  Well, things get incubated prior to being born.  Or re-born.

I love what Lynn Andrews wrote about magic above.  Perhaps magic is like the Dark Matter that surrounds and penetrates everything, the infinite backdrop upon which we're all unknowing organizing our lives, filling out our weekly calendars. Synchronicities, like dreams, are sometimes hard to understand. But......I think I'll initiate the birth of a new collection of masks.  It won't be the same as the old project, because I'm not the same.  But I'm going to trust in a bit of Magic.



My project (1998-2008) "The Masks of the Goddess"