“My Lord! Reveal Yourself to me so I may see You.”
Surah Al-A’raf 7:143
The invocation to begin the process of creation itself is an invocation to return; a return to one self by remembering the very essence of being – to be breathed life within once more.
Like a fever dream, drawing in altered states whilst receiving symbols unbeknownst prior, a breathing, living archive of signifiers began to develop over the course of five years since 2019. Each drawing marked a moment, where moment by moment; from one image to the next, a path continued to unravel, bearing inner secrets. In search of these mysteries and their connections, I began the process of self-discovery where a confrontation with the self was sought at numerous stages.
My practice evolved with the on-going research at Mantiq of the Mantis, a creative research space co-founded with Sabeen Jamil in Lahore, Pakistan since 2016. The research focuses on ‘the revelatory nature of knowledge, and the potential or action of the creative soul to create impressions of images it receives from the archetypal realm.’ Imagination plays a fundamental role in reaching the Truth. The seeker goes through a process of individuation to reach the ultimate level of knowledge through her/his intuitive faculty. This is when and where the individual receives ‘calls’ in the form of creative or divine inspiration (Ilham) or occurrence/visitation (Wārid) from an eternal source, or the collective unconscious and in consequence the imagination is ‘pulled’ upward, beyond forms of material things.’
With the unwavering support of friends and mentors, Sabeen Jamil and Mirela Peerzada who have facilitated this practice through various methodologies, the studio space transmuted into an alchemist’s laboratory where images act as gateways: passages and transitory movements between realms; abstractions acting upon the artist. The drawings are portals in themselves, inviting the viewer to look beyond the veil and into an Imaginal realm [1]
[1] “Ibn al-'Arabi ‘s remarkable discussions and conceptions of the "Imagination" (al-khayâl) are metaphysical ruminations that do not render conceptual and logical and rational forms of understanding the Imagination. James W. Morris explains, “the Arabic expression al-khayâl, refers most often, in ordinary contexts, to what we would ordinarily call an "image" or "object of imagination," and ultimately to the actual underlying reality of all the "imaginal" (not "imaginary") objects of our perception in virtually all forms and domains.
James W. Morris. This is an unrevised, pre-publication version of an article or translation which has subsequently been published, with revisions and corrections, as Spiritual Imagination and the "Liminal" World: Ibn 'Arabi on the Barzakh, in POSTDATA (Madrid), vol.15, no. 2 (1995), pp. 42-49 and 104-109 (Spanish).
Blueprints of the Soul
These blue prints are part of Mantiq of the Mantis’ growing research on revelatory knowledge received from the soul’s faculty of imagination, Mantiq Under The Willow Tree: The Crimson Intellect (2019 and on-going).
“The impulse to draw was irrepressible. As I picked up a pastel and placed my hand on the paper, I felt possessed! It was a moment of true surrender where my rational mind had no control over what was to come and a primordial force had taken over. I was guided to mark the empty sheet with different motions in varying rhythms. I observed as the hand directed what was being drawn and shown to me. Every stroke arrived with certainty. With each passing mark, a new meaning unraveled. And as each mark mapped its terrain across the large expanse, a story upon a story upon a story revealed itself until the image was complete. The profundity of this moment felt like a cornucopia opus had arrived; a tapestry of colors and form transcending space-time, carrying the seed of the Orphic Egg.
And there have been dry periods of intensive reflection and research, interspersed with impatience and anxiety yet most importantly, a diligent and persistent practice to tame this unbridled force. It is a practice to sharpen the mind, strengthen the body and maintain an undulating rhythm so as not to miss the subtle moments of comprehension that dawn after the completion of every cycle of release. As one continues, the mind and body expands its threshold as a container of the knowledge pouring in. Each drawing is a meditation where repetition evolves into an act of remembrance: what is apprehended in a moment can just as easily be swept back into the recesses. It is in search of these moments of intimacy where I the journey begins every night, starting exactly where I first began. The first point is marked as the zero-sum, a forgetting of all that was before. Bismillah Ar-Rahman Ar-Raheem. The first point collapses unto itself. The silent sound of graphite echoes across the paper; an invitation to meet myself mid-point, crossing an imaginary threshold until my synesthetic synapses slip into the center of the universal grid of potentialities. To navigate this space is recognition of myself as the observer and the observed. From there on, every mark made feels like a gradual submerging into depths unknown. An assimilation occurs where every fragment received, laced on top of the other, enmeshed as light lattices - merging and emerging as beacons point to both old and new pathways. An aspect of the grander blueprint receives itself, sometimes re-visiting the same pathways whilst revealing different vantage points. Each mark, a reminder to stay present. Every echo, a sonar search for murmuring secrets. Each time, pockets of experiences ebb and flow, teaching me how to swim with the current, learn to submerge despite the recoil to a fear of the unknown. This back and forth trying to hold myself steady. Until a point of poise emerges, and the felt sensation of a flow-state is guided by the waters, true surrender to the spirit of creation.
By the first ray of every dawn, an opening to the self makes itself known. “
Excerpt edited from ‘The Creative Life Force’ by Mehreen Murtaza 27/11/23
Qalb
unfolding –enfolding-unfolding: activated geometry on loop
2019 and on-going
During the first year of Covid in 2019, a series of archaic geometric symbols were revealed through a series of meditative practices. I then began to observe how each symbol unfolded its meaning. The meaning (and function) is revealed through an inward and outward observation of each movement.
Here, the geometric space is transmuted into an inward journey with conscious engagement - pivoted around how the creative process of engaging with geometry can precipitate personal insight and individual healing.
Qalb, is a journey of the artist embodying knowledge through the inner senses in the quest to liberate the heart. Qalb evolved through a series of transmissions of knowledge and hopes to continue this chain of transmission. It is a reminder of our relationship to the self and therefore to the whole, a blueprint embedded in the sacred foundation of all things created. To experience the video, contact: [email protected] or [email protected]
“Hu”
Audio on loop
This resonating affirmation of the divine unity is a remembrance in the belief of the oneness of God (Tawhid).
Nocturne curated by Uma Ray 9th Jan - 8th Feb 2025 Birla Academy of Art & Culture, Kolkatta
The light of the day overshadows stories that often come alive only in the darkest hours of night. Lives that have thrived in the depths, lurked in the shadows only to come out ushering in a magical confluence of light, sound and happenings.In the chasmic silence of the night a different world emerges from deep slumber, shedding its inhibitions. They may be overlooked, misrepresented or misunderstood as creatures of the underworld, shrouded in mystery that fascinates us, titillates our imagination but no more. These nocturnal creatures unbeknownst to us, will follow their cyclical and habitual movements as altered beings. They will emerge silently to participate in the ongoing process of procreation and regeneration. Nature has its peculiar ways to play out its magic.
Truth can take up many forms - they may be esoteric, obscured from view or existent and palpable. This exhibition aims to bear all lights upon the hidden through the seminal works by artists who explore the world of the unknown.
Uma Ray Curator