Happiness cannot be found
through great effort and willpower,
but is already present, in open relaxation and letting go.

Don’t strain yourself,
there is nothing to do or undo.
Whatever momentarily arises in the body-mind
has no real importance at all,
has little reality whatsoever.
Why identify with, and become attached to it,
passing judgment upon it and ourselves?

Far better to simply
let the entire game happen on its own,
springing up and falling back like waves -
without changing or manipulating anything -
and notice how every thing vanishes and
reappears, magically, again and again,
time without end.

Only our searching for happiness
prevents us from seeing it.
It’s like a vivid rainbow which you pursue without ever catching,
or a dog chasing its own tail.

Although peace and happiness do not exist
as an actual thing or place,
it is always available
and accompanies you every instant.

Don’t believe in the reality
of good and bad experiences;
they are like today’s ephemeral weather,
like rainbows in the sky.

Wanting to grasp the ungraspable,
you exhaust yourself in vain.
As soon as you open and relax this tight fist of grasping,
infinite space is there – open, inviting and comfortable.

Make use of this spaciousness, this freedom and natural ease.
Don’t search any further.
Don’t go into the tangled jungle
looking for the great awakened elephant,
who is already resting quietly at home
in front of your own hearth.

Nothing to do or undo,
nothing to force,
nothing to want,
and nothing missing.

- Venerable Lama Gendun Rinpoche

The Venerable Lama’s poem, plus the beauty of the season, inspired me to create this image to accompany it:

Information about the Venerable Lama Gendun Rinpoche can be found here.

I earnestly encourage everyone to watch this documentary and to form their own opinions about the crucial issues it raises. Below is the two minute trailer for the film, which speaks for itself:

Here’s a link to Manufactured Landscapes on Netflix.

Hats off to Jennifer Baichwal for creating what I feel is one of the most important documentaries of this decade.

This footage and the shallow set bring to mind Picasso’s quip that “Art is a lie that reveals the truth.”

Here’s the final image from the shoot (click on the photo to visit Profoto’s website):

© Annie Liebovitz

The first, “The Dragon’s Gift, The Sacred Arts of Bhutan,” currently showing at the Asian Art Museum, features the Buddhist art and sacred objects of Bhutan, the “Land of the Thunder Dragon.” The Asian Art Museum writes:

East of Mount Everest and bordered by India and Tibet, Bhutan is a remote and mystical kingdom, considered by many as “The Last Shangri-La.” A sovereign nation that has maintained its cultural, artistic, and religious traditions intact, it is one of the few countries in Asia never colonized by its neighbors or Western powers.

Many of the 150 objects – intricate paintings, sculptures, textiles, and more – are still used in temple and monastery rituals and never have been accessible to a Western audience. All are on public view for the first time.

This show ends on May 10th.

Coming to the Asian Art Museum on June 12th will be the “Lords of the Samurai” exhibit. The Asian Art Museum describes the exhibit as follows:

The samurai culture and code of conduct, bushido, have long captivated the imaginations and aspirations of young and old in the Western world. More than just fierce warriors, Japanese samurai of the highest rank were also visionaries who strove to master artistic, cultural, and spiritual pursuits.

And then, on June 27th, King Tutankhamun returns to the de Young Museum. The de Young writes about this exhibit:

More than 3,000 years after his reign, and 30 years after the original exhibition opened in San Francisco, Tutankhamun, ancient Egypt’s celebrated “boy king,” returns to the de Young Museum. In the summer of 2009 the de Young presents Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs, a glorious exhibition of over 130 outstanding works from the tomb of Tutankhamun, as well as those of his royal predecessors, his family, and court officials.

I’m very eager to visit all of these amazing exhibitions and to soak in inspiration from across the world and throughout the millennia.

If you want to stay current with the exhibits at the Asian Art Museum and at the de Young, I suggest following them on Twitter. Here’s a link to the Asian Art Museum’s feed, and here’s the de Young’s.

Jordan’s work presents us with a vast, clear mirror and asks us to stop and look at our lives, at the collective consequences of our decisions, in radically expanded context. I consider this to be one of the most important art projects of our time, and if you haven’t heard of him yet, then I am honored to introduce you to his work.

Here are two of his pieces, each shown at three different zoom levels. The first photo in the series reveals the full image, the second, a detail, and the third shows a section of the image at 100% magnification.

This image depicts one million plastic cups, the number used on airline flights in the US every six hours.

This image depicts 28,000 42-gallon barrels, the amount of of oil consumed in the United States every two minutes (equal to the flow of a medium-sized river).

If we look closely enough, I believe that we can all see ourselves in this “American Self-Portrait.”

How we respond is up to each of us. We now have the opportunity to act with expanded awareness, thanks to Jordan’s profound artwork.

Visit Chris Jordan’s website for many more examples of his awe-inspiring work.

Not only is there no line on the horizon, there’s no text on this cover; you’re looking at the actual CD cover. This is a powerful tribute to the minimalist power of Sugimoto’s work.

I find little correspondence between Sugimoto’s art and the music on this release, however. Don’t look for any spacious ballads or introspective serenades on this release. This is Bono crooning and The Edge strumming with all their might from start to finish.

To see more of Hiroshi Sugimoto’s beautiful work, click on the image below: