From the Archive - Bodhisattva and Lotus (with Skull)

 This is a large oil painting (122 x 122cm) painted in 1999. In its presence I start to drown in the rich warm colour field and the sensuous quality of the paint. I enjoy the subtleties of the colour shifts some of which is lost in the photographed image.The image combines elements from different Buddhist icons.  The hand holding up the lotus comes from an Amitabha sadhana. The peacock feathers are a reference to Amitabha's peacocks which support his throne. The skull references the skull cup filled with the red nectar of great bliss which is held by Padmasambhava and by wisdom dakinis in their dance.

Amitabha Variation

A variation on one of my most popular Buddha images 

Coracle, Window, Tree from a set of Bardo images

 

Contemplating the bardo as a liminal space which we enter in the moments after death. There is a coracle waiting to take us onwards to places as yet unknown. And glimpses of a mysterious tree and a warm soft sky which may be the sky at sunrise or sunset. I invite you to find your own narrative prompted by this set of forms and colours. Feel free to post a comment giving your perception and interpretation of my picture.

Amitabha's Land of Infinite Light

 

Amitabha, the Buddha of Infinite Light and Eternal LIfe is associated with the setting sun. He presides over Sukhavati, the archetypal pure land of bliss.