'The New Physics and Cosmology Dialogues with the Dalai Lama' edited
by Arthur Zajonc.
"TU WEIMING: ...
What is experiential understanding? The Chinese have developed
epistemological concepts about this, but the most fruitful area is in
art. A very simple example from painting is the argument against the
idea that a painter simply tries to depict what is out there. The
most a painter is able to do by depicting what is out there is what
the Chinese call form-likeness. Form-likeness describes not just the
veracity but the childishness of the painter. A mature painter would
be able to do something more than simply describe what is out
there. His vision has to be more than simply photographic. The
painter is enjoined, not simply to depict what is out there, but to
be involved in a spiritual communion with the object of study, of
understanding. It's not just a mystic notion. The familiarity with
the object of study becomes so integrated into your own experience
that it becomes an extension of your body. A master was asked by a
student how to paint a mountain. The student said he had already
refined all the techniques and knew how to do it very, very
well. But the master was not happy with the product because it was
just the form-likeness of the mountain. So the master said, "Forget
about painting. Go to the mountains and live there for a
while. Enjoy walking there to familiarize yourself with the
mountain, to involve yourself in a spiritual communion with the
mountain." The poets describe the mountain, and it's very much like
the mountain here in Dharamsala. You never see the mountain, but you
sense that you are in the midst of it. You do not see it because you
are an inside participant. So, the idea is to ask the artist to
cultivate a sense of taste, a feeling about the mountain. Then, when
the artist is ready, he will be able to express himself in a kind of
creative joint enterprise between what the mountain evokes in him and
how he is able to respond."
(P.218)
Such a wonderful invitation...
.
.
Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you'll land among the stars.........
.
.
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