Silence

"Would you teach me silence?" I asked.
"Ah!"
He seemed to be pleased. "Is it the Great Silence that you want?"
"Yes. The Great Silence."
"Well, where do you think it is to be found?" he asked.
"Deep within me, I suppose. If only I could go deep within, I'm sure I would escape the noise at last. But its hard. Will you help me?" I knew he would. I could feel his concern, and his spirit was so silent.
"Well, I've been there," he answered. "I spent years going in. I did taste the silence there. But one day, Jesus came--maybe it was my imagination--and said to me simply, 'Come, follow me.' I went out, and I've never gone back.
I was stunned. "But the silence…"
"I've found the Great Silence. And I've come to see that the noise was inside."

Father Theophane

Joy and Sorrow

When he was asked which was the right way, the path of sorrow or the path of joy, the rabbi of Berdichev said:

There are two kinds of sorrow and two kinds of joy. When a person broods over the misfortunes that have come upon him, when he cowers in a corner and despairs of help—that is a bad kind of sorrow, concerning which it is said, “The Divine Presence does not dwell in a place of dejection.” The other kind is the honest grief of a person who knows what he lacks.

The same is true of joy. He who is devoid of inner substance and, in the midst of empty pleasures, does not feel it, nor tries to fill his lack, is a fool. But he who is truly joyful is like a person whose house has burned down, who feels his need deep in his soul and begins to build anew. Over every stone that is laid, his heart rejoices.

Chasid Story in Progress via Instagram

Chassid (Jewish) story ready for the text to be added. 

Chassid Story

Detail

Detail from a Chassid story I'm working on, Sort of Pollock-esque.

Ramana Maharshi

The best way to meditate is through meditation itself. 
- Ramana Maharshi

Chassid Story in Progress

Working on the layout of a Chassid Story.

Duryodana

This is a detail from a story about Krishna.

A Buddhist Story

Here is the final story and illustration. The story comes from Stories of the Spirit, Stories of the Heart by Christina Feldman and Jack Kornfield.

A Buddhist Story in Progress

This is the sketch I did in April at the monastery in Upper Pisang while trekking the Annapurna Circuit in Nepal. It was an amazing afternoon after a long hike from Chame to Pisang. We arrived in Lower Pisang around 3, got settled in our rooms, then hiked to Upper Pisang where many of the men in the village were engaged in an archery competition, then hiked further to the monastery at the top. There was one monk chanting and beating a prayer drum and I had an opportunity to meditate there for about 10 minutes. The group I was with was ready to head back down but I asked Madhu, our guide, if I could hang back and sketch for a while. He was concerned that I wouldn't make it back before dark but I assured him I would make it back. So, I found a spot to sketch out of the wind and enjoyed the time alone to draw and paint in the middle of the Himalayas a beautiful monastery and listen to the chanting and drums coming from within the temple I was sketching. 

This morning I continued working on the sketch I started back in April and plan to use it in my book project along with a Buddhist story. I posted this photo to Instagram as I was working on it.

Bruno

This is Bruno. I met him in Buenos Aires, Argentina a couple of years ago when I was visiting a mutual urban sketching friend. My wife and I ended up sharing a taxi with him to the airport the day we left. I remember looking through his sketchbook and being blown away by the depth of observation in his sketches. I love his sketching style. He is a keen observer of this world.

8x10 pencil and watercolor.

A Sufi Tale

A Sufi tale and an experiment with inks - Lamy 2.0 with Alt Goldgrun and dipped into Noodlers Marine Green and Apache Sunset.

Tao 41

The wise student hears of the Tao and practices it diligently.

The average student hears of the Tao and gives it thought now and again.

The foolish student hears of the Tao and laughs aloud.

If there were no laughter, the Tao would not be what it is.

Hence it is said:

The bright path seems dim;

Going forward seems like retreat;

The easy way seems hard;

The highest Virtue seems empty;

Great purity seems sullied;

A wealth of Virtue seems inadequate;

The strength of Virtue seems frail;

Real Virtue seems unreal;

The perfect square has no corners;

Great talents ripen late;

The highest notes are hard to hear;

The greatest form has no shape;

The Tao is hidden and without name.

The Tao alone nourishes and brings everything to fulfillment.

Matcha Latte Anyone?

Ben Okri

"Beware of the stories you read or tell. Subtly, at night, beneath the waters of consciousness, they are altering your world." - Ben Okri

Ryōkan

Chess detail

A painting in progress...

"The water met its Master, and blushed"

Sketched from a portion of a mural on the ceiling of the Ayasofya Church in Turkey. 

Tea

Portrait of Maimonides

This is a reworking of a drawing I found by Ben Shahn in an old book I found on figure drawing. His original drawing was done around 1954 and the book was published in 1960. After I completed my drawing I did a little research on Ben Shahn and learned that 5 years later, in 1965, he reworked the drawings again. Here are his versions: