Through Fecund Darkness Into Great Silence..
“..the dark divinity of our plight…”
(The Contemplative Heart, by James Finley*)
“..a time to be silent..”
(from Ecclesiastes 3:1 – 8)
Picture taken in Chennai
Hat-tip to Beth at louie, louie for the quote*
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Through The Watches Of The Night
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Picture taken after Compline in the Abbey Church of Mount Saint Bernard’s Trappist monastery, Leicestershire, England
Away Days: Apotropaic Prayer
“And the darkness comprehended it not..”
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(This chant sounds musically far more Orthodox than Catholic to me…)
Picture taken in Milan Cathedral
Christmas Eve: From Darkness Into Light
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Anu makes a final inspection of the roof terrace.
Tomorrow the celebrations begin…
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Putting On A Show: Night And Day
Darkness falls.
But shooting is now seriously behind schedule.
The film-set cannot sleep.
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Picture taken in Fort Cochin
Entering Darkness
The passage to Herod’s Gate
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“Come, ye daughters, help me lament,
Behold! Whom? The Bridegroom.
Behold him! How? Like a lamb..”
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Picture taken on the Via Dolorosa, Old Jerusalem
Breaking Out Of Darkness
New life emerges from tightly closed shutters into the light..
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Picture of the shuttered windows of St Anthony’s chapel, Fort Cochin
Awaiting Dawn
“..they that watch for the morning..”
Sunrise at Kopua Monastery.
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Picture taken from the steps of Southern Star Abbey, Hawke’s Bay, New Zealand.
A Festival Of Light
Yesterday was the Indian festival of Diwali,
when Hindus celebrate the eventual triumph of light over forces of darkness.
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Happy Diwali!
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Picture of a young girl lighting Diwali lamps outside the Hindu temple in Fort Cochin.
At The Water’s Edge
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How dark, O Lord, are Thy decrees,
All hid from mortal sight,
All our joys to sorrow turning,
And our triumphs into mourning,
As the night succeeds the day.
No certain bliss,
No solid peace,
We mortals know
On earth below,
Yet on this maxim still obey:
“Whatever is, is right.”
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Libretto and video from Handel’s Jephtha. Picture taken at sunset by the Chinese Fishing Nets, Fort Cochin.
Departures..
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Tonight I will watch the sun set from a different angle.
Dusk should see me flying north.
If all goes to plan, by midnight I’ll be sleeping in Delhi.
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Picture taken in Fort Cochin.
Temple Light
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Shafts of light pierced the massive walls of the two temples
Revealing colours in the stonework not apparent under the tropical sun’s glare.
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Thick temple walls kept the interiors cool and shaded.
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The Journey Is The Destination: Part 6
A temporary descent
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Photographs taken in Hampi, during my travels in Karnataka
Neither Use Nor Ornament 