Mandala Phenomena / Wilfred Sarr
One sunny afternoon in late spring,1968,………..standing in my studio in Hermosa Beach, California…..with no purpose in mind…..I closed my eyes and relaxed in the sunlight. Somewhere within some other somewhere, there arose a gorgeous wheel of light. It was like looking straight up some Lazar-beam of pure light. Dancing points of light, in intricate geometrical patterns not unlike snowflakes, but in full-color and then some was what I saw. Much amused I vowed never to forget this most most beautiful experience. Somehow, I realized this ‘epiphany’, this great wheel of light was from the same source as the swirl-patterns in our fingerprints…..both absolutely common as well as unique. That to me was profound and puzzling. About two years later,information coming at me from all directions, I came to know a little ab out the ‘mandala’ phenomena. These interior lights, or visions had a name, and there has developed some very sophisticated science devoted to these ‘mandalas’ over thousands of years in some cases. ………now, I began to wonder about this great blessing…….many ideas,…..many questions volunteered themselves……Here is only one……….What if the eye decided to ’see’ itself, to look IN- ward, rather than out? What experiments might it conjure up?…..Just how does one see behind, beyond, or through all conventional visual phenomena, and by extension, all imaginings, as well? A ‘real’ mandala comes from an illumined mind. That’s not me! I can only hope to one day cough-up a real, holy image.Ancient civilizations, and religions, and other systems for seeking out and refining truths have employed the mandala for focus and stabilizing of their seekers. To me this is ample testament to their validity as a worthy subject for the artist of today. Having painted some one hundred of these diagrams, since 1972, my zeal has not diminished. I’m still looking toward my own ‘real’ mandala.
