| Pottery as Metaphor |
| Written by Ellen Kirschner |
| Friday, 11 February 2011 07:31 |
|
Recently I took up ceramics — the art of throwing pots on a wheel. In the movie “Ghost” Demi Moore made it look easy. It is anything but. There are many steps to making a pot. The first step is wedging the clay — kneading it like dough to remove air bubbles and impurities. Only I can feel when I — and the clay — am ready to proceed. Wedging makes the clay more malleable, easier to shape into a pitcher, plate, vase or bowl. "Spend more time kneading the clay. Do not be impatient. Do not rush ahead," I have to remind myself. The next step is creating a “centerpiece.” To center the clay on the wheel, I need to center myself. As the clay becomes centered, it centers me right back. It is a give and take, a conversation, a meditation of my hands in messy, muddled clay—to me, much like living with purpose in a puzzling, perplexing, bewildering world. If I don’t take the time to center the clay, my pot will be lopsided. If I don’t take time to center myself, my life will be lopsided, too. When we are centered—the clay and I—the act of making the pot truly begins. There are many steps in the process: creating a hole in the centerpiece, opening it out, pulling the clay up to create a shape, letting it dry to “leather hard,” trimming away excess clay, bisque firing in a 2500-degree kiln, letting it cool, then glazing it, adding color and shine, only to be fired again. If I don’t like the way my pot turns out, I can accept it with all its imperfections, or toss it into the silt bucket to be recycled into working clay. Either way, I can always start again. Maharaji inspires me to let go of the past and open myself up to an unpredictable future, knowing that I can always recycle myself into a person who is newly formed and ready to emerge. Practicing the gift of Knowledge shapes me into a unique and striking, if imperfect, pot — truly a vessel that I can use to capture the love and fulfillment that is mine to receive. Illustration by Sara Shaffer. |
14 Comments
Add Comment
Become a sponsor
Enjoy this message? Help make it available to others by supporting WOPG-TV.
Stay in touch
Subscribe to the mailing lists, or get the WOPG iPhone App, and receive updates about live events with Prem Rawat, event videos, news, and more.
We have 1580 guests online
Pottery as Metaphor
Tuesday, 15 March 2011
La cerámica como metáfora
Wednesday, 02 March 2011
La cerámica como metáfora
Saturday, 26 February 2011
La cerámica como metáfora
Friday, 25 February 2011
La cerámica como metáfora
Friday, 25 February 2011
La cerámica como metáfora
Friday, 25 February 2011
La cerámica como metáfora
Friday, 25 February 2011
La cerámica como metáfora
Friday, 25 February 2011
La cerámica como metáfora
Friday, 25 February 2011
Pottery as Metaphor
Saturday, 19 February 2011