Cobalt Violet: Easter

Showing posts with label Easter. Show all posts

Sunday, April 8, 2012

The Light of the World ... and Chocolate Bunnies

“Behold thine immortal Self resurrected with Christ
in the illuminating Light of Christ Consciousness,
present in every soul, every flower, every atom.”

— Paramahansa Yogananda

Excerpt from a beautiful Easter 2010 message

that I found on the Self Realization Fellowship website.

How deeply our hearts respond to Christ’s tender compassion,

for our own true nature is love.

We rejoice at his victory over human limitations

because within every one of us is the urge to express our boundless soul.

While the world prompts us to live on the surface of life,

reacting to people and experiences according to the ego’s likes and dislikes,

Christ and all God-united souls blaze before us

the trail to freedom and divine expansion.

Gurudeva Paramahansa Yogananda said,

“The love that most persons feel for dearest family and friends,

Jesus felt for the whole world and every living being.”

...To follow in his footsteps, we too must go within.

This Easter, renew your resolve to nourish by meditation

your relationship with the Divine,

and to practice Christ’s way of kindness,

forgiveness and loving service to all.

Sri Daya Mata

I love this Pre-Raphaelite painting. I picked up a postcard of it, many years ago, somewhere on my travels. It's been in a small gold frame in my place, almost ever since. Easter seemed an appropriate time to share it.

Holman Hunt Light of the World

1851-53

Keble Chapel, Oxford

A Blessed Easter and Passover, my friends!

Blessings and light!

Friday, April 6, 2012

Primavera!!! ... and Eggs!

Every spring is the only spring-

A perpetual astonishment.

~ Ellis Peters

I have been crazy busy, running up and down Southern California for various workshops (pastel and spiritual) which have been wonderful but I will have to get into all that later! Time to call yellow cab and pick up my little Honda, who has been in recovery after all the running around!

It feels like spring today so ... I thought I'd share a little springtime. :)

An excerpt from the post "La Primavera di Vivaldi" on the wonderful italian language blog, Italian Blog

(Check it out, especially if you are learning Italian!)

"Vivaldi composed Le Quattro Stagioni as ‘musica a programma’ (music that evokes a particular theme), and each one of the four seasons were originally accompanied by a sonnet. It is not known if the poems were written by Vivaldi himself, or whether he commissioned them from a poet. However, the words, which are written in a the flowery Italian of the 1700′s, are lovely, and describe the music very well. Here is the sonnet for La Primavera with an anonymous translation into English:"

Springtime is upon us.
The birds celebrate her return with festive song,
and murmuring streams are softly caressed by the breezes.
Thunderstorms, those heralds of Spring, roar, casting their dark mantle over heaven,
Then they die away to silence, and the birds take up their charming songs once more.
On the flower-strewn meadow, with leafy branches rustling overhead, the goat-herd sleeps, his faithful dog beside him.
Led by the festive sound of rustic bagpipes, nymphs and shepherds lightly dance beneath the brilliant canopy of spring.

Giunt’è la Primavera e festosetti
La salutan gl’augei con lieto canto,
E i fonti allo spirar de’ zeffiretti
Con dolce mormorìo scorrono intanto;
Vengon coprendo l’aer di nero manto
E lampi, e tuoni ad annuntiarla eletti
Indi tacendo questi, gl’augelletti
Tornan di nuovo al lor canoro incanto:
E quindi sul fiorito ameno prato
Al caro mormorìo di fronde e piante
Dorme ‘l caprar col fido can’ a lato.
Di pastoral zampogna al suon festante
Danzan ninfe e pastor nel tetto amato
Di Primavera all’apparir brillante.

Unfortunately, I couldn't imbed the Itzhak Perlman version but this (below) is beautiful too. Last year I saw part of The Four Seasons done at the Hollywood Bowl and they showed the poetry on screens, as the symphony played. As it's one of my absolute favorites, I was in heaven!

Enjoy!!!