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We crouch and feel the power surge in our wombs, knowing no one can know what curls like an unborn babe within. Hoding it there until our muscles quiver for release.Opening and closing, alive, circulating even in stillness—Dragon is waiting …
I have also related to art as a magical activity that can reveal the messages and brilliance of lost lineages hidden in ancient myth, magic and wisdom. Most of these pieces begin with a spontaneous painting and when I sense a portal to whom and what arises, I draw what I see or an ancient image that has its own mysterious story to tell.
We have all experienced our evolution from formlessness to
a tiny egg, into a vague shape,
that slowly develops into a fully formed person within our mother’s womb. Many of us mourn the loss of that memory and long for our original source of wholeness.
The practice of calligraphy reenacts this experience.
It gives us an opportunity to participate in the whole cosmic process, from primordial chaos to creation through simply gathering our mind, confronting initial blankness and chaos, daring to make the first dot, and then courageously wielding the brush to complete the process.
I often start with an image, a character. This is my first cry. From here sometimes the art comes out as clear and straightforward, expressing exactly what I intend; and other times it melts into a completely different thing. The imprints surprise and delight me, revealing worlds and feelings I have no words for. Other times, I simply have to experience the mirror of my life force reflecting back every waver and wobble of mind, electric doubt, ecstatic stab, draining sadness, or urgent desire that courses through me.
The Emerald Wood Dragon—known to be the most powerful animal in Chinese astrology—is the “animating spirit of the cosmos.” It is characterized by the immensely creative and uprising energy of the Wood Element. It urges us to contemplate our intentions, longings and visions and release old tired patterns. A fierce protector, Dragon inspires us to fearlessly swim through the depths of darkness and soar to the heights of heaven, joining our temporal and spiritual worlds. One-pointed, confident, and on the spot…
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In her absence, I tried to do what mother taught:
Love with my breasts, soothe with my heart, care for crippled spirits
While She, my true mother, stood behind me whispering,
“No! That’s not it! Listen to me!
I’m right here, not far...
I live with the owls, the moose, the plants and the creek
I’m right here, why don’t you listen to me?”
She is the “yin earth altar” and “gate of change.” Her door is the root of Heaven and Earth. She is the mother of the world, Tianxia Mu; quiet and empty but giving security and refuge to all creatures. The passageway to her is known as the Golden Gate or Mysterious Pass. In the Five Element Tradition, Metal (Autumn) gives birth to Water (Winter) and this transition leads to the Womb/Tomb of this Great Mother. In this movement from Metal to Water, we have the opportunity to travel deep within to return to our original nature. Being able to let go of habitual striving and trust the unknown is frightening and disorienting, but denying this journey can result in deep self-betrayal.
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We crouch and feel the power surge in our wombs, knowing no one can know what curls like an unborn babe within.
Hoding it there until our muscles quiver for release.
Opening and closing, alive, circulating even in stillness
—Dragon is waiting …
Thoughts dissolve into the space between and tumble into Source, who waits for our longing and sits, silent,
at the door of requests.
Once we are able to genuinely manifest our heart’s song from the depths of our being, we can manifest ‘Ling’. Ling can be envisioned as the potency of our personal expression dancing courageously with a multitude of life’s challenges. We can then tap into the possibility of viewing our lives as a ritual dance invoking the rain of heaven. We can enjoy a state open to synchronicities that reveal a path of wisdom & evolution which benefit ourselves, others & the world.
In many creation myths and traditions, the Cosmic Egg—The World Egg— signifies a new beginning where the universe comes into existence by hatching an egg. In the same way, we can shatter our old paradigms and give birth to a new world.
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Marlow Brooks is a calligrapher, painter, professor, Five Element Acupuncturist and healer. Her love for nature inspires her healing style. Her method, Five Element Plant Spirit Healing, couples the diagnostic principles of Classical Five Element Chinese Medicine with the healing powers of plant spirits. She has enjoyed teaching this method for thirty years in workshops worldwide and at Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado.
Early in her artistic life, Marlow earned degrees in Humanities and Studio Arts, establishing herself as a painter. She continued to study Asian calligraphy, collaborating in shows with Kobun Chino Otagawa Roshi, Shibata Sensei, the Imperial Bowmaker of Japan, and others.
Since 2004, her work has appeared in international juried exhibitions in China, Japan, Taiwan, Korea, Thailand, Europe and North America. She received an outstanding award for calligraphy in Shanghai, China and was featured in a documentary on Chinese Calligraphy which aired on CCTV throughout China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore.
Marlow’s art has appeared in numerous books and she has published three of her own works: The Way Through, Words of the Heartand Singing our Heart’s Song.
