Mandala Mondays: Sacred Petal Circles
Quote de jour
"The whole universe is based on rhythm. Everything happens in circles or spirals."
~John Hartford
In celebration of EARTH WEEK, I'm posting a mandala I made in honor of the cherry blossoms I've photographed for the past week.
Every petal is a miracle. The weeping cherry branches dance and sway in the breeze. They know their time is brief and make the most of their beauty.
With a view like this...
it's enough to stop traffic...
At first, I was annoyed that this red car spoiled my shot but then again, maybe not.
It's hard to stay annoyed long in this Zen palace.
It's no wonder the Japanese go crazy for cherry blossom season with festivals. They call it hanami, which literally means “flower viewing,” at the Sakura Festival, the traditional Japanese festival celebrating the cherry blossoms.Sakura or cherry blossom, is the national flower of Japan and cherry trees have been planted and cultivated for their beauty as early as 794. There are now over 400 hundred varieties of sakura. Cherry blossoms are thought to symbolize clouds due to their nature of blooming en masse, and are also a metaphor for the ephemeral nature of life. The festival season is already over in Japan but to their are interesting tips and photos at http://www.japan-guide.com
I thought deeply about why I love these blooming trees so much.
Their fleeting beauty can't be captured, not on film or video. Their magic is their ability to coax one into the here and now. What's more Zen than that?
The most recent blossom photos will be posted later tonight as a 'faux' Tuesday blog entry. I know, I know, I'm still doing a tech-free Tuesday. No blogging, e-mail, cell phone, TV etc. but I can't wait.
"The whole universe is based on rhythm. Everything happens in circles or spirals."
~John Hartford
In celebration of EARTH WEEK, I'm posting a mandala I made in honor of the cherry blossoms I've photographed for the past week.
Every petal is a miracle. The weeping cherry branches dance and sway in the breeze. They know their time is brief and make the most of their beauty.
With a view like this...
it's enough to stop traffic...
At first, I was annoyed that this red car spoiled my shot but then again, maybe not.
It's hard to stay annoyed long in this Zen palace.
It's no wonder the Japanese go crazy for cherry blossom season with festivals. They call it hanami, which literally means “flower viewing,” at the Sakura Festival, the traditional Japanese festival celebrating the cherry blossoms.Sakura or cherry blossom, is the national flower of Japan and cherry trees have been planted and cultivated for their beauty as early as 794. There are now over 400 hundred varieties of sakura. Cherry blossoms are thought to symbolize clouds due to their nature of blooming en masse, and are also a metaphor for the ephemeral nature of life. The festival season is already over in Japan but to their are interesting tips and photos at http://www.japan-guide.com
I thought deeply about why I love these blooming trees so much.
Their fleeting beauty can't be captured, not on film or video. Their magic is their ability to coax one into the here and now. What's more Zen than that?
The most recent blossom photos will be posted later tonight as a 'faux' Tuesday blog entry. I know, I know, I'm still doing a tech-free Tuesday. No blogging, e-mail, cell phone, TV etc. but I can't wait.
Posted by Layla Morgan Wilde at 4/20/2009 11:12 AM 
Categories: Nature, Westchester County, Photography, Art, Spirituality
Tags: Cherry Blossoms as Mandalas in Motion
Categories: Nature, Westchester County, Photography, Art, Spirituality
Tags: Cherry Blossoms as Mandalas in Motion
Such beautiful budding blossoms. We have a very windy day here, so your peaceful mandalas are especially welcome today.
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Your images of cherry blossoms transport the senses! Reminds me so much of our trips to Japan. Delicate. Uplifting. Transcendent.
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Yes, they transport the senses right out of this world. I'd love to see them in Japan but no complaints, these sakura are heavenly.
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Gorgeous photos.
I was fortunate enough to meet John Hartford not long before he died. I got to tell him my favorite "zen" joke, which is as follows:
A salesman was driving through the rural South one day and was totally shocked to see at the side of the road, a farmer picking up a very large pig and hoisting it up above his head so the pig could eat apples from a tree.
He stopped and approached the man saying,"Excuse me, sir, but don't you think that you could save some time by just knocking some apples to the ground with a stick.
The farmer looked at him and replied,
"What's time to a pig?"
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Thanks for the story. It made my day.
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