Achieving Brilliance through Harmony

“Happiness is not a matter of intensity but of balance, order, rhythm and harmony.” Thomas Merton

The journey to create this painting made me aware of the fundamental need of harmony between all the aspects that make up our life, teaching me the first steps and stepping stones, in order to avoid overwhelm and stress, enjoying each process towards greater brilliance.

I intend brilliance not only as an aspect of mastery. When we introduce more harmony into our lives, our inner light expands around us, making our life experience more peaceful and serene.

harmony/ˈhɑːməni – noun
1. the combination of simultaneously sounded musical notes to produce a pleasing effect.”the piece owes its air of tranquillity largely to the harmony”
2. an arrangement of the four Gospels, or of any parallel narratives, which presents a single continuous narrative text.

brilliance/ˈbrɪlj(ə)ns/ – noun
1.intense brightness of light.”the nights were dark, lit only by the brilliance of Aegean stars”
2.exceptional talent or intelligence.”he’s played the stock market with great brilliance”

When I look at Nature, my eyes seem to rest, giving me a feeling of balance. Whenever I walk around and see all the different types of plants, flowers and trees, there is an inner apparent structure that makes all form co-exists in harmony with one another.

It is a perfect eco-system that balances itself naturally; it has a place and a use for everything, and all gets accomplished in its own time and rhythm.

The brilliance of an Artist wanting to replicate any landscape or any kind of artwork, I believe, is founded on her or his ability to reproduce such a harmony between colors, shades, forms and space.

And so is our lives. How can we do the same?

“He who lives in harmony with himself lives in harmony with the universe.” Marcus Aurelius

My first intention when I created this union of Mandalas was to attempt my first seamless pattern.
It did not work out as intended, so I left it on my desk to apply paint at a later date. It was the first time I was drawing so many mandalas together, and although I deeply liked the concept, it felt confusing which colors to choose.

I printed a copy of it and began coloring, trying to have fun experimenting with the colors I had in mind, but it all felt a mess and was creating even more confusion.

So I left it again, I was not ready for it.

It was still time to rest and allow my consciousness and my spiritual awakening to unfold without too much distraction. Something else needed to come out first.
It felt like procrastination, but in reality is like being in a cocoon, allowing time and the mystery to unfold, preparing the wings of the butterfly so it can fly.

In the meantime I discovered yet another gold paint, and it finally became the ONE I have been looking for, so to restart my creativity practise, calmly painting with just gold over previous works was just what I needed and felt good with.

After finishing them all, I finally looked at this painting and felt it was time to venture in it.

My mind was still stuck in the old vision, but working in silence and just allowing feelings to guide me, it came to be. One color at a time, depending on the feeling, not what the mind suggested.

While I was observing it, it felt like looking at a representation of my life and how I have been trying for years to balance all the different aspects of my work, with my spiritual practise and the responsibilities at home.

I divide my work in many concepts which I call Projects; they are all interconnected with each other, as are the rest of the aspects which form my living experience.

I have been riding waves trying to make everything work and get results in each section, but with a lot of exhaustion, burnout and overwhelm, that has forced me to stop from time to time.

The quest and challenge I have been going through with this painting, to create harmony between all the colors, seemed the same with managing my time, wishing that all elements would work together like a Swiss watch, balancing the spiritual and material aspects of life.

This is how mandalas work. Through observation and silence, they make your mind aware. They represent the map of your inner and outer realities, what is really going on within yourself that the unconscious mind is not aware of. Sometimes resolving the issue or at least laying the first stepping stones for the right path to follow.

So then I realized, that just like the way nature works, a perfect balanced ecosystem that has a rhythm of its own, beyond our own understanding, so I could allow all the different aspects of my life and work, to balance themselves out naturally without intervening with fixed ideas, but respecting the inner flow, which in turn is connected with a wider and higher purpose.

“The purpose of life is to obey the hidden command which ensures harmony among all and creates an ever better world. We are not created only to enjoy the world, we are created in order to evolve the cosmos.” Maria Montessori

So we become observers and develop our awareness of what feels right to do in each moment and when there are unpredictable events, which always occur, we adjust and ponder how to resolve them, trying to keep the drama at bay.

Remembering that the mind tendency is to get fixed on a certain schedule and does not like changes, so the work needs to be done to the mental level.
When there is resistance we consciously have to work on our state of mind, through affirmations, turning negative thoughts into positive, allowing acceptance of our feelings, of the new situation or challenge, and use the tools of detached observation and creativity to see how we can participate, being in line with our goals and soul, without stress. Understanding that there is a higher purpose and we are doing our part in it

The biggest challenge is to maintain Peace and Calm, so we avoid that dreadful Fight or Flight response that activates our amygdala, producing stress hormones and disconnecting us automatically from higher inspirations, which could help us in the situation in the first place.

LESSONS LEARNED

1. Every day take a few moments of silence to enter within yourself and become aware of your feelings
2. Whatever the mind suggests, always check with your feelings first.
3. Divide tasks between what is important for you, for others and those that have a fixed deadline beyond your control.
4. Always do what is important for you first, even if it is just enjoying a cup of tea in silence, or take a walk, it may sound selfish but you cannot give positive vibrations from an empty cup, your soul will love you for it and what you give to others will then be full of positivity.
5. Decide a schedule for the whole week, but if one day you do not feel like doing a certain task (that does not have an important deadline) do not beat yourself up and just skip it for another moment. Trust your gut feelings, the right moment will come.
6. Create a map of all the parts that make up your life, like a circle, and in each you decide how much time you want to dedicate yourself to it, not forever, just at this moment. You should review every month to see if anything has changed within you. It usually does.
7. I call them projects. Break down each project into themes and goals and then in little achievable tasks.
8. Find out how long does it take you to carry out each task and give yourself a reasonable time to rest in between tasks. That includes all that you do, from sleeping, meditating, exercise, leisure, cooking. This will give you a real picture of how much time you really need to achieve each thing and the time available for your creative time. You will be so surprised. Our mind always thinks that anything can be achieved in much lesser time than in reality, with the result that we either stress, because we still have so much else to do, or we feel disappointed with ourselves because we have not achieved all that we wanted to do. Overwhelm.
9. As a result of this exercise you will be able to set a flexible and sustainable schedule that takes into account your physical, emotional, and spiritual state as well as the practicality needed for achievement. One step at a time. I call it the Natural Order that your whole being recognizes and reponds to, tailored to your energy system and your real needs for you to be able to achieve greater results and productivity.
10. Most of all create healthy and reasonable boundaries. Sometimes we are called to detach ourselves from a situation involving others, to understand truly what is a priority and what can be dealt with at a later time. By setting clear boundaries, you make other people understand the value of your work and also help them organize their time in a productive manner. This way you create healthy relationships and avoid unnecessary discussions and tensions that can have repercussions on your creative work.

Now that the painting has finished, the name that comes out is “Brilliance” not as achievement but as the Italian word “Brillare” to shine. The Shining vibration of our spiritual substance. It is our path. The constant release of that which obscures our light to give space to that which has light. Our good thoughts, our kindness, our positivity, our care, our highest aspirations, our goals, genuine friendship. Our peace. The ideal world we are all co creating every day.

Gold is the divine energy and the connection to the spiritual dimension, the pure consciousness shining with golden light. Our guiding light of awakening from the darkness of the unknown, or unconsciousness.

Platinum White represents the Spirit. ” It has been known to help one perfect the balance of polarity in their life. Energetically, Platinum aligns and enhances the entire chakra system, linking one to the etheric chakras. Through this link, one may access cosmic attunement and draw cosmic energy into the physical body, assisting with walking in their highest purpose.” https://thecrystalcouncil.com/crystals/platinum

The blue is the material aspect. The calm force of strategies, order and practice. It evokes security and silence. The color of the sky and together with aquamarine is the ebbing and flowing of the ocean waves, the constant rhythm, the persistence and consistence of the practice. The rhythm of life. The blossoming and the rest. Spring and Autumn.

The masculine

Pink represents Universal Love, tenderness, compassion and understanding. The color of patience and softness.
“The color pink represents compassion, nurturing and love. It relates to unconditional love and understanding, and the giving and receiving of nurturing.A combination of red and white, pink contains the need for action of red, helping it to achieve the potential for success and insight offered by white. It is the passion and power of red softened with the purity, openness and completeness of white. The deeper the pink, the more passion and energy it exhibits.” https://www.empower-yourself-with-color-psychology.com/color-pink.html

Pink is feminine and romantic, affectionate and intimate, thoughtful and caring. It tones down the physical passion of red, replacing it with a gentle, loving energy.

Do you have any tips to add to achieve balance and harmony between all aspects of life? Please share them with all of us in the comments.