Combining the image of Buddha and the Virgin of Guadalupe. By Ester Hernandez. This syncretic combo seems to place both images in a decidedly religious context. Or is it a cultural context? Or is it a philosophical context? Or is it a breaking down of gendered/cultural/philosophical/religious borders?

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Guadalupe the sex goddess, by sandra cisneros.

I moved to the Chicago area last August and after working long hours for many months I began to have a longing for a connection to the deep feminine. I bought candles of Our Lady of Guadalupe, began painting roses again and considered joining internet dating. I had conversations with my paintings “Rose Goddess” and “Our Lady of the Golden Flower” and reflected back on the creation of these paintings.  So, through my conversation with my friend he suggested two books; “Untie the Strong Woman” by Clarissa Pinkola-Estes and “The Hummingbird’s Daughter” by Luis Alberto Urrea. This was perfect as I was preparing to go on a spring break vacation with my teenage daughter and her friend.

Destin Beach Evening

While on vacation I spent time in the mornings and evenings walking the beach and during the day I would read and sketch. Through the book “Untie the Strong Woman” I learned of the artist George Yepes and was inspired by his Guadalupe images and his large spiritual work. I made several attempts to sketch a Madonna face and it was like I never had drawn before. After a day of trying to make something work I abandoned the sketch and started to just freeform what wanted to come out. What emerged in my sketch was a stylistic image merging the Our Lady of Guadalupe and my painting Our Lady of the Golden Flower. The release of this image created a softening inside of me that I became aware of during my walks along the beach. Here was the reminder again that I can bring this feeling into more areas of my life. A softened perception of myself, of my corporate life and of the new life I am meant to create in Chicago.

Also through the book “Untie the Strong Woman” I was led to a book on icon art of the Madonna by Father William McNichols titled “Mother of God, Similar to Fire”. I ordered this online while on vacation from the inspiration that maybe these images will help me create a series of paintings of Madonna images. I thought this may help me connect with this longing for the deep feminine to understand what it meant for me.

Once back home I prepared to venture out into the Chicago area to connect with the art community and search for studio space. I prepared in my mediations and asked my spiritual world to assist me and help me become aware of the best path for me. So on a Friday evening I traveled on the train downtown to explore a “Second Friday Artwalk” at the Fine Arts building on Michigan avenue. I went up to the 9th floor and I did not see any art studios opened. I walked down to the 7th floor and went into a studio that was shared by three women. They were very friendly and we talked at length about their art and how they really enjoy life in the Chicago area. They were very generous in offering assistance to me in connecting with the art community and finding studio space. After this fun conversation I continued through the building speaking with artists and hearing their story.

As I was walking through the 5th floor I saw an open office with a print of Alex Grey and immediately walked in. This was an office of acupuncturist Dana and I mentioned the Alex Grey print and how I saw him speak at a Noetic Science conference many years ago. I asked to see her office and I saw another print of Peruvian shaman and asked if she had been to Peru. She said she apprenticed to a shaman for ten years to learn the energies of the light body. This opened the conversation to our similar experiences and exploring energies over a long period of time. It was exciting to meet someone who could go deep into a conversation about my esoteric subjects and having shared experiences.

As we spoke I began to share about an experience in Guatemala I had walking up to an active volcano. This came up as we went from energies of the human body to the earth energies. I was traveling with a group that explored these very topics. We went to Mayan ruins and stopped in several villages to connect with the contemporary Maya, met with Mayan Shaman to do rituals and the last part was to hike up to the volcano. We walked up a path to see the volcano and as the path changed to lava gravel there was a big change from just hiking to feeling like I was walking in waist deep water even though the path was firm. We continued just up a to where we could view the volcano at a safe distance and several of us sat down to meditate. As I went deeper into the mediation I felt like I was flying off the mountain. It was exhilarating and frightening at the same time. This was my first experience to connect with the deep earth energies and it would be many years later that I would begin to grasp the power of the deep feminine.

After I shared this story with Dana she pointed to another picture on her wall of a mountainous European scene and said that she had the same experience in the location of a dormant volcano in Italy. The conversation continued as I described my artwork and how Transformational Art creates a relationship to one’s soul. At that point she offered to show my work in her office which was an unexpected delight and surprise.

As I left the building I was very excited about meeting the artists, learning about the Chicago artist community and meeting someone that could share the depth of experience that I’ve had. I decided to treat myself to dinner instead of heading right to the train station. I entered an Italian restaurant on Jackson, ordered a glass of cabernet and a good meal. When I was most of the way through my meal the fire alarm went off in the restaurant. I continued to finish my meal while looking around to see if any danger existed. I asked for the check and paid just as the fire trucks were approaching and walked out the door as they pulled up to the curb. As I walked back to the train station I wondered what the metaphor was of the fire alarm and fire trucks. On the way back to Naperville I reflected on the experience of the evening and I knew I must seperate my excitement of the evening from the purpose of finding an art studio that could support me in my creative journey. I wanted something deeper in me to lead me to a space that would best support my journey.

The next day I picked up the book I ordered and quickly paged through the book as my mind decided that icon art was not for me. Later in the day I took my time with the book and could see the depth of feeling Fr. McNichols painted into each icon of Mary. At this moment it occurred to me that my story of the volcano, my experience in Santa Fe with Our Lady of the Golden Flower, my fire painting “Heart of Albar” all were created from “Mother of God, Similar to Fire”. The metaphor of the book title began to sink in. It was my communication from the unseen spiritual world that I have laid the foundation to paint and create in partnership with the deep earth energies “Similar to Fire”. And furthermore it started many years ago when I had to paint with the colors of fire for my rose paintings.

Heart of Albar

This reminded me of C.G. Jung on the subject synchroniscities and when I pay attention to the events and signs of the day that it ties into my story of emergence into the purpose of my life. There are no random events, there is an interconnectedness and wholeness tied to our soul and purpose of our story in this life. It also reminded me of the brilliant book by Vine Deloria Jr. “C.G. Jung and the Sioux Traditions” that brought together the indigenous wisdom that preceded Jung. It was again, another reminder, that if  I pay attention to all that is interacting with me and see the relation to depth of my psyche, that I can co-create with this awesome living story to live an empowered life.

"Erotic Fire"

Please excuse the questionable photography – I have yet to figure out my new LumixDMC-FH27 that is entirely touch screen.  It baffles me.  So all these pics are from a borrowed camera that I almost knew how to use.  Emphasis on “almost”.

coconut lamps

isla mujeres, quintana roo

tile stairs

virgin of guadalupe

carved door

sugar skull

virgin of guadalupe on isla mujeres

wooden carvings in playa del carmen

Click on the photo or here to read more!

Here’s an example of the darker tin that’s more common in Guanajuato and Jalisco. And this is a unique shape for a nicho box…they are usually rectangular but this artist used some creative freedom…

One of the most unique folk arts of Mexico is the creative use of tin. Above are two photos of some lovely lumenaria.The lower photo is a wall shrine or nicho box to the Virgin of Guadalupe. The designs are cut and hand tapped or chiseled into the sheet of tin. It takes a long time to learn how to do it well! The shiny tin is known as either, “hojalata” or “lamina” depending on where you are in the country.  I love tin and am always amazed at the amazing designs and ideas that these folk artists create!

One of my favorite things to see along the street or in the markets is a shrine to the Virgin of Guadalupe. These two shots were taken as I was walking along the street in Coyoacan.

Well, if you’re looking for some Mexican folk art for that special Valentine, take a look at these. These bottles are handmade in Oaxaca. The photos only show the Guadalupe bottles but we also have Frida, so don’t despair! Every one is different but every one is filled all the way around the bottle with sparkle, glitter, images of either Frida Kahlo or the Virgin de Guadalupe. They are fun to stare at. I have two on my desk and I love the color and the unique combination of dibs and dabs…

They are available right here.

BELL GARDENS (CBS) — A tree behind a home in Bell Gardens has become a shrine after a branch’s removal revealed what Catholics believe to be the Virgin of Guadalupe.

Devout Catholics are flocking to the home in the 6500 block of Ajax Avenue to view the image and pray. Last Thursday more than 200 residents came to pray at the tree.

The Virgin of Guadalupe is Mexico’s most popular religious and cultural image and the Catholic Church proclaimed her the Patroness of Americas and the Protectress of the Unborn Children, according to Wikipedia.

VIRGEN DE GUADALUPE
Daily Photograph 12-03-11
iPhone 4 / ACDSee / 100 Cameras in One / King Camera

A statue of Kateri Tekakwitha stands at a Quebec church (Wikimedia Photo)

“It only took 400 years,” Samon said. “I was at a religious conference some time ago and somebody said to me, ‘Why do you need a Native American saint? You already have Juan Diego (the Mexican Indian to whom the Virgin of Guadalupe first appeared in 1531).’ I asked him, ‘How many Italian saints are there?’ Isn’t the purpose of a saint to serve as an example to worshipers? So we have one saint for Native Americans and how many for Italians?’”

Pope John Paul II canonized Juan Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin, a sixteenth-century Chichimeca Indian venerated primarily in Mexico, in July 2002. According to Catholic tradition, Juan Diego was walking to Mass near Tepeyac Hill in December 1531 when a radiant lady appeared to him amid music and light, calling to him in his native Nahuatl, announcing herself as a messenger of God, and asking that a shrine be built in her honor on that spot.

The bishop in Mexico City doubted Juan Diego’s account, necessitating more apparitions and an ultimate miracle: the Virgin caused roses to grow in the rocky field and instructed Juan Diego to gather them in his cloak. According to tradition, when he unfurled the cloak to show the flowers to the Bishop, the Virgin of Guadalupe’s image — with dark skin, wearing a starry veil, and coming out of the sun — had become imprinted on it. That image is venerated today at the basilica of the same name.

But Juan Diego was by far not the only indigenous figure to profess great devotion to the Catholic faith. Kateri, born in 1656 near present-day Auriesville, New York, also became a devout Catholic in a life filled with turmoil. The daughter of a Mohawk chief, Kenneronkwa, and a Christianized Algonquian woman, Tagaskouita, Kateri was left an orphan at the age of 4 after a smallpox epidemic struck her village and killed her parents and brother. She also was struck with the disease. Although she survived, she was left with scars on her face and poor eyesight.

Adopted by her uncle, the leader of the Turtle Clan, Kateri became a highly sought-after prospect for marriage, but did not accept any proposals. At about the age of 20, she took an interest in Christianity and was baptized on Easter Sunday in 1676. Members of her clan could not understand her new beliefs and the mortification of the flesh, including drawing blood and walking on hot coals, that she practiced as a sacrifice to her new God. Soon, she fled to Quebec, where there was a community of Native American Christians. There, she dedicated herself to prayer and caring for the sick until her death in April 1680.

A depiction of Kateri Tekakwitha in Santa Fe, N.M. (Wikimedia Photo)

According to some accounts, the scars on Kateri’s face disappeared soon after her death, constituting the first of two miracles required to be attributed to her to satisfy the requirements for sainthood.

The second miracle reportedly occurred in Seattle, Washington, on February 18, 2006, after Jake Finkbonner, 5, was injured while playing a basketball game. Before the next day, what had started as a fat lip had become a raging infection of the flesh-eating bacteria called Strep A, which swelled his entire head and was consuming his face with visible speed. Doctors raced to cut away flesh in an effort to stop the infection, but it continued its advance for nine weeks.

Friends, schoolmates and acquaintances prayed for Jake. Because he is of Lummi Indian descent, they prayed for Kateri’s intercession. Parents Donny and Elsa Finkbonner prepared for the worst, and Jake was administered last rites. But then, a member of a Kateri circle gave the Finkbonners a pendant with Kateri’s face on it. Elsa Finkbonner put it on her son’s pillow, and as of that day, the infection seemed to stop.

Jake, now 11, has undergone several reconstructive surgeries, but the infection did not return. Now, church officials have stated that there can be no other explanation for the recovery but that Kateri intervened on Jake’s behalf and cured him. Kateri is expected to be canonized sometime in 2012.

“For Kateri, who was born 400 years ago, to have her story gave us strength,” Samen said. “Religion has been a big part of keeping the family together.”

For her, as for many Native American Catholics, Kateri has special meaning.

Samen’s family comes from the Southwest, mostly Arizona, where her grandfather grew up at the San Xavier del Bac mission and later was trained along with his wife, as a domestic. They worked in at a resort. Samen’s father served in the military and mustered out in Los Angeles after World War II, where the family settled with the help of a federal program in force at the time that aimed at assimilating Native Americans into big-city populations.

“We wanted the same acceptance, the same ability to go to someplace and be accepted for who we are, as anybody else,” Samen said. “Being that we couldn’t get that other places, we could kind of get that in the Church.”

Samen said that, faced with the loss of many of their Indian customs and cultural traditions, many Native Americans have turned to religion — in this case, the very religion that for centuries aimed to stamp out their Indianness — for strength. And Samen works with the Catholic Church’s City of the Angels Kateri Circle, part of its outreach effort to ethnic communities, to help reconcile Catholicism with Native Americans. How does Samen herself do it?

“We know that God ,the Great Spirit, and Jesus, our Elder Brother, loves all of us,” she said. “The fact that we could be massacred, and taken to reservations, and put in Indian schools and all of that, that does not take away from the fact that we have survived. Other people celebrate Thanksgiving because they came to the New World and made a home. When we celebrate Thanksgiving, we celebrate our survival. We’re still here. People like to think of us as back in history, you know: the stoic television Native American. But we are human beings and it has taken all this time for us to appreciate that we are human beings …. Is it perfect? No. But is the government here perfect? Definitely not. Is the Church perfect? No. But we can celebrate now who we are and the fact that we’ve all survived.”

Once a month, at St. Marcellinus Catholic Church in Commerce, Samen’s group celebrates a Native American Mass, which incorporates a prayer to the four directions, the burning of sage, the beating of a drum and other practices central to Native American culture. And now, with Kateri on the cusp of becoming their patron saint, Samen says she is helping organize a feast day to be held at Our Lady of the Angels Cathedral next year.

“We’re planning to do a celebration for the archdiocese and we want to make it inter-tribal and open to Catholics and non-Catholics,” she said. “We’ve been waiting and doing this for two years. And we are sure going to the canonization.”

I love that quote and I’m sure she wrote it just for me.  I’ve always been awe-struck by natural beauty and color and light, but it’s a relatively new experience to have a camera permanently attached to my hand when traveling.  The ease of digital photography has opened a new reality for me, even when I have to shoot a lot to get a few pics that I like.  A millisecond here or there, a little too much or too little light, and all is lost forever.  But then there is that surprise…

The Virgin of Guadalupe celebrations in Puerto Vallarta offer every element of natural beauty and color and light that I could ever hope to see.  I blogged about the festival in December 2010, and you can find that entry if you’re interested in reading more about it.  This year I traveled for images.

Know and be certain in your heart my most abandoned son, that I am the Ever-Virgin Holy Mary, Mother of the God of Great Truth, Teotl, of the One through Whom We Live, the Creator of Persons, the Owner of What Is Near and Together, the Lord of Heaven and Earth.

Continuing, she describes her ministry as follows:

I will show and give to all people my love, my compassion, my help, and my protection, because I am your merciful mother and the mother of all the nations that live on this earth who would love me, who would speak with me, who would search for me, and who would place their confidence in me. … I will hear their laments and remedy and cure their miseries, misfortunes, and sorrows.

The following video offers an introduction to the appearances and miracles attributed to La Virgincita: