The Art and Science of Depicting Reality - Pallets, Images, Feelings, Words, Equations, and Spirit

Art and Music: Beyond words.of the universe with the holdings of the numerous
Such passion. I believe that everyone should strive toarms and legs, other spiritual teachings cautioned that
live their passion. Immersed in her work, she chasedman cannot understand the full nature of reality. The
images of reality. Captured by colored mineralsTaoists use opposites of yin and yang to describe
suspended in oil and spread on canvas, she froze oneour world. Buddhists also use metaphors in many
moment in time. The image blasts through whereways, and Zen Buddhists employ paradoxical riddles
words fail and the shrapnel rains memories andor koans that can only be "solved" in non-rational
emotions. But is it a "true" picture of what reallyfashion, by arresting the movement of the discursive
existed? Or is it exaggerated and distorted to trickintellect.
our minds?Spiritual and religious teachings generally agree that
Musicians' subtleties steal our emotions by associatingwe humans cannot comprehend reality, which usually
sounds with images, emotions, events, stories, orincludes God. In general, religions teach that God and
even nationalism. Then there are the sculptress,mystical reality are different from what we
writer, poet, journalist and others who scream as usexperience in ordinary consciousness.
to recognize the true world out there. No amount ofJesus, according to the Gnostic script Gospel of
words can adequately reveal the works of any ofThomas 113, said, "The kingdom of the Father is
these artists.spread out upon the Earth, and men do not see it."
Science: Words, equations, and experiments.Buddhists believe that it is impossible to understand
Artists and scientists are like a horde of diversethe world through our senses, philosophies, or
creatures feeling different small parts of an elephantscience. Judaism agrees that we cannot comprehend
then each heralding their finding with a jumble ofGod. The Sufis of Islam teach that metaphors and
grunts, language, symbol, or code incomprehensible tosymbols cannot reveal the divine. According to
the others. Do scientists have a better grasp ofHinduism, maya is the illusion of reality in which we
reality? Scientists' efforts involve words, equations,live. Taoism and Confucianism, although in many ways
and experiments from the colossal world ofdifferent, both hold that reality is beyond human
cosmology to the abstract world of equationscomprehension.
representing strings of energy of the basic pixels ofHealing the Rift.
the universe.Which brings us back to 21st-century science having
The mathematical equations of such speculativerecently discovered that 96% of the universe is
assertions are so complex that only a small fractionmissing, that there might be an infinity of parallel
of one percent of scientists can fully understand theiruniverses shrouded in at least seven other
meaning and significance. For most scientists suchdimensions, that space and a vacuum is not empty
equations have as much meaning as a Jackson Pollackbut full of a mysterious energy, that the world is only
painting relates to subatomic particles. For many thatmanifested with consciousness, that all which is out
do understand vehemently argue that "string theory"there is but information, energy, and spirit. Incredibly,
is not a theory but rather an abstract concept whichthese findings are consistent with basic holdings of
is not testable.ancient spiritual teachings. Art, words, equations, and
Ancient Spirituality.symbols cannot truly portray the elephant we are all
Just as the Hindu statue of Shiva revealed aspectsfeeling-just as the mystical sages taught.