The Great Mystery
Native Americans believed that God could not be explained, only experienced, through life and the natural world around them. They called this Being, "The Great Mystery" One who was above all of creation, but at the same time was mirrored within it. Therefore, there existed for them a sense of being related to all beings, with sorrow and joy as sides of the same coin.
Today, many agree with this explanation, for life is often too mysterious to be understood only with logic or reason. We believe that within this "Great Mystery" exist the masculine and feminine principles which have created most of life as we know it on earth. It continues to renew and nurture the natural world around us, even when we neglect our side of this incredible partnership.
This image attempts to show the " cup of life" pouring itself out into a universe that continues to expand outward, to an unknown frontier, but so far, we have discovered no other planets like our own. Does it mean they don't exist? We don't know. What we do know is that humanly impossible things are possible with "The Great Mystery," and that somehow, this Spirit is everywhere, regardless of time or space.
(linocut/ acrylic/ gouache/ ink 12" x 16")
