When you close your eyes...

What do you see?

I am a dancer - dancing in ancient traditional Indian classical garb, unrecognizable and yet recognizable as my passion, my love manifested.  A haze of cream, red and gold smear before this lense through which I see myself move, telling the story of my self by myself in this solitary place. Swift, sometimes slow; sharp, sometimes smooth in movement and gaze. When I bend deeply into pose the silk in which I am wrapped, spreads like a peacocks’ train, into an embroidered fan. It is through embellished dark eyes, that I speak as there are no words…just music, and the force that moves me with the utmost passion and intention, in a place that is placeless, timeless and spaceless, to be as I am.

I think that each of us sees ourselves as we truly are from within, in these moments of clarity.  Clarity of perception, connection and mind.  While what we see, may remain unexpressed to the outside in literal form, it is very real behind the curtain of the physical eye.

I see myself dancing through this life.  One turn of the body, one bend of the legs, one tap of the feet, one hand gesture after another, a seamless, tireless continuum.  In my minds eye everyone I encounter is a dancer either a partner dancer with whom I perform a beautiful intricate masterpiece, or a chance duet.  Each of us has our own dance form, our own rhythm that allows us to compliment or upset another’s harmony; our own traditional garb handed down to us through history making us inseparable with many pasts and futures to come, connecting us somehow through this ornate singular united melody…

When you close your eyes…what do you see?

I am reminded of a German film I once saw Cherry Blossoms (http://movies.nytimes.com/2009/01/16/movies/16cher.html), courtesy of netflix's strange collection of 'watch instantly' movies.  Now mind you, I do not understand nor have a particular fascination for German culture, but at the time I was obsessed with the beautiful metaphor for buddhist philosophies of detachment, and transcience often associated with cherry blossoms.   In this film which I highly recommend, I was introduced to the japanese dance/art form Butoh (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Butoh), which I find to be similar to bharatanatyam, an Indian dance form.  Both look at the body as a work of art, both try to create ornate shapes with the body, both take you to a place beyond the body...truly beautiful to witness.