“Closed in a room, my imagination becomes the universe, and the rest of the world is missing out.”
― Criss Jami, Diotima, Battery, Electric Personality.”
Remember when we spoke of bird’s eye ?
universe within.
Tag: Photography
lanterns
Beautiful decor inside a prayer hall in Sharjah. Besides the beautiful lantern style lamps, there’s natural light diffusing out of the colored window panes at the top.
Remember mosaic lamp eloquence ?
alchemy of yearning
Sunrise, beach, clear skies. They’re a perfect alchemy of yearning.
“With a bound, the sun of a molten fiery red cam above the horizon, and immediately thousands of little birds sang out for joy, and a soft chorus of mysterious, glad murmurs came forth from the earth; the low whispering wind left its hiding-place among the clefts and hollows of the hills, and wandered among the rustling herbs and trees, waking the flower-buds to the life of another day.”
― Elizabeth Gaskell,Ruth
slicing moments
An old photograph of AR.
“All photographs are memento mori. To take a photograph is to participate in another person’s (or thing’s) mortality, vulnerability, mutability. Precisely by slicing out this moment and freezing it, all photographs testify to time’s relentless melt.”
― Susan Sontag
slipping to the dusk
It’s one of my favorite divertissements to scroll through old Google Photos archives, spice up old photos and just wonder about the times back in those days. When I first started working in the Middle East nearly 10 years back from today, during some of my initial years, my work extensively involved being associated with designing and developing new engineering products in a factory (For example, Bridge Bearings, products used in offshore structures, etc ) and I used to spend a lot of time in a factory environment with some colleagues at that time for some prototyping and other work. I have vivid memories of returning back from work in the afternoon at that time gazing at the sun playing its magic of colors at the factory horizon. These are some of those photographs from circa 2010-2011. Believe me, old photographs are time machines for me. I can spend an entire day reminiscing in these old memories. Do you have such photographic memories from the past decade that you recollect? Share your thoughts. I would love to read them.
“There is a certain quality of light to be found only in midsummer in the South, as day, slipping into dusk, acquiesces to the filament, the bulb, the porch light; this seductive light is beautiful when it washes across dry cement, the sidewalk and stoop. The light spilling from the phone booth softens and cleanses all that it touches. It’s a forgiving and almost protective light. The Minotaur is drawn to it from across the parking lot.”
― The Minotaur Takes a Cigarette Break
Would you love to read more memories?
metaphor of sun
I photographed this with Netta from the Andaman Islands. What I like the most about this photograph is how the sun rising is spreading its light across everything. From the soothings waves to the rocks to the pebbles, we see its light on everything. This resonates with a theme that I read recently. On a particular note, the example of sun is provided where the sun encompasses numberless things with its light. It says that a comprehensive outlook is required to behold the sun itself in the totality of its light. For the sun not to be forgotten, its manifestation is displayed on every shining object by its reflection. Further I read that all lustrous objects have a refleciton of sun’s attributes such as its light, heat and the seven colors in its light (From the Words). The sun’s attributes is encompassing all things facing it. The same allegory is extended to divine mercy we find around us in several manifestations and specifically in man’s mirror like essence. From the food on our table, to the clothes we wear to our comforts, there’re manifestations of divine mercy everywhere.
reliant traveler of the desert
A slice of photographic memory from a desert goes well with a story that I read recently.
“Someone who makes a journey through the deserts of Arabia has to travel in the name of a tribal chief and enter under his protection, for in this way he may be saved from the assaults of bandits and secure his needs. On his own, he will perish in the face of innumerable enemies and needs. And so, two men went on such a journey and entered the desert. One of them was modest and humble, the other proud and conceited. The humble man assumed the name of a tribal chief, while the proud man did not. The first traveled safely wherever he went. If he encountered bandits, he said: “I am traveling in the name of such-and-such tribal leader,” and they did not molest him. If he came to some tents, he was treated respectfully due to the name. But the proud man suffered indescribable calamities throughout his journey. He both trembled before everything and begged from everything. He was abased and became an object of scorn.
My proud soul! You are the traveler, and this world is a desert. Your impotence and poverty have no limit, and your enemies and needs are endless. Since it is thus, takes the name of the Pre-Eternal Ruler and Post-Eternal Lord of the desert and be saved from begging before the whole universe and trembling before every event.”
– Excerpt From The First Word, “The Words, The Treatise of Light,” Bediuzzaman.
Amble out.
“Arise from sleep, old cat,
And with great yawns and stretchings…
Amble out for love”
― Issa, Japanese Haiku
photographed from Istanbul, 2014.
Vicky.
While looking at some old notes from 2016 that I wrote when I watched this short video in 2016, I can see that I had left a note in a book to write about it sometime in the future. This is done very brilliantly. The theme, visuals, and the overall message is ferried well to the listener and what’s wonderful is that it’s beyond any language or geographical barrier.
For some reason, I remembered the cat that we had around at our home when I was in Kerala. It used to be around all the time. When I used to walk to college, this would come long for a little long. This cat is no more. It passed away in 2010. Life is fragile.
clouds of fire.
“The blue of daylight
fades and chills as the sun sinks
beneath clouds of fire.”
― Richelle E. Goodrich, Making Wishes
Captured by Netta. Retouched by yours truly.