Darshan of Gurumayi’s Message Artwork for 2017

March 1, 2017

Dear seekers,

As many of you know, we have been fortunate over the years to receive a visual representation of Gurumayi’s Message. I’m thrilled to inform you that beginning today, you have the opportunity to receive darshan of Gurumayi’s Message Artwork for 2017.

With Gurumayi’s Message for 2017, we have been doing a concentrated study of the breath. What is the color of the breath? How do you measure the width and depth of the breath? Where is the beginning and the end of the breath? Prana-shakti is nada-bindu-kalatitam; it is beyond nada (the unstruck sound), bindu (the point containing the universe), and kala (the manifestation of the world). This description, nada-bindu-kalatitam, is used in Shri Guru Gita to describe the Self—and prana-shakti is the essence of the Self.

I’ve always loved to see how an artist perceives that which is transcendent. Such work inspires in me a feeling I can’t always name—but it’s a feeling that is profound, and powerful, and true. My mind might initially focus on a particular stroke of the painter’s brush, or on the technique used to create a play between light and shadow, or on the subtlest echo of a symbol or figure in the background. Yet there comes a point, as I’m gazing at the canvas, when I notice my breath has taken on a different quality. I am no longer seeing with merely the optical instrument of my eyes. I recognize that there is a witness seeing through me.

This experience, in all its exquisiteness, is fleeting—though there are times when it lingers. When it does, I want to hold on to the experience with all my might, but it can be like trying to grasp at a wisp of smoke with my bare hands. What’s so great about Gurumayi’s Message Artwork is that once I assimilate it into my consciousness, I can call forth this image again, and again, and again. I can return to it in my mind and be gifted with new surprises. This Artwork is, to me, the sakara rupa of Gurumayi’s Message. It gives form to that which is nirakara, or formless.

I encourage you to take note of what you observe each time you reflect on this Artwork—whether that observation is made through your analytical mind or the unconditioned intelligence of your heart. Record any and all insights you come to. Ask yourself: what do the different elements of the Artwork—its shapes, colors, and textures—mean to me, in my practice of Gurumayi’s Message for 2017? How does my study of this Artwork strengthen my understanding of Gurumayi’s Message? How does Gurumayi’s Message Artwork propel me from sakara rupa to nirakara rupa? Ask yourself, with eagerness and inquisitiveness: what’s in store for me?

When you prepare to first receive Gurumayi’s Message Artwork, I recommend you set aside a minimum of fifteen minutes to do the following:

• First, be with Gurumayi’s Message Artwork.
• Next, meditate.
• Then, if you have a few additional minutes, you can write in your journal.

Sincerely,

Eesha Sardesai
Siddha Yoga Student