Straddling two worlds no more.

Today, I would like to share with you my thoughts on the merging of the East and the West. It's a topic that has been on my mind for a long time and taken a while to find what is at the core of it for me and why it has stifled me and many others in some way until now. It has come to me recently through creating my art that the real issue has been the idea of straddling two worlds. How it can be challenging, but it is not impossible to be the merging point. I firmly believe that the merging of the East and West is at play here and is a remarkable time in the evolution of the world.

As someone who has devoted their life to the teachings of Kashmir Shaivism, I have seen firsthand the beauty and brilliance of Eastern philosophy. Non-dual philosophy, in particular, has a universal message that can be applied to any religion, including the Abrahamic faiths. When the two spiritual hemispheres come together, the same core remains. However, as humans, we often get in the way and fail to see the bigger picture.

Awareness revealed itself to me as a kid.

Yoga found me, I never had to leave my shores to find it.

The great ones from India left their homeland to spread their teachings across the globe. Their light has been embraced by many in the West, including myself. I remember my own spiritual awakening as a child, which led me on a path of self-discovery and understanding. It wasn't an easy journey, and I faced a lot of judgement from those who didn't understand my new faith. But I never let it deter me from my quest.

Unfortunately, there is still a lot of resentment and judgement and I’m coming across a lot from some in the spiritual Mother land towards those of us in the West who practice yoga and other Eastern philosophies. They take issue with yoga in the West and feel that we have lost sight of the true essence of the practice. While I can understand their concerns and used to be almost apologetic about it, I believe that yoga and other Eastern practices have evolved in the West to meet the needs of a different culture.

Of course, things will adapt and change.  Yoga isn’t a religion.  It prides itself on being universal.  Some things will change in translation and adaptation like me eating chilli sweetcorn and panir pizza in India (not good) and no one there batting an eyelid but I’m sure the Italians would be utterly aghast.  It doesn’t matter.  The merging is cosmic and unstoppable and it’s benefitting everyone if they can get off their fears and soap boxes long enough to see it.

I’m using the word yoga here instead of tantra to keep things easy.  As someone who identifies as a tantrika, I often find myself having to explain the true meaning and teachings of tantra. The misrepresentation of tantra in the West has led to a lot of misunderstanding and confusion. But I believe that with education and understanding, we can bridge the gap between Eastern and Western philosophies.

A couple of years ago being accused of cultural appropriation because I was playing a harmonium or wearing a red dot on my forehead for some social media videos was a surprise and I took it seriously and have pondered since then, for the past couple of years, what is important here?

With great reverence to the origins of the spectacular philosophy that came to me, I pay attention to things like the importance of pronunciation of the words, basic core knowledge of philosophy and solid daily practice.  I’m a natural Indophile so it is easy for me.  The rest however is about it being part of my world, this world here in my home and town. It also fits in with me and I have managed to do that.

I’m grateful for the comments and judgement from all around, mind you it is not common. To be straight here I have mainly encountered kindness or been oblivious to what’s going on.

But being on the end of rudeness regarding being a spiritual unicorn fruit loop who worships idols and wears clothes and plays music from a different land from the public does gets old. Or that white people can never understand or practice the practices has caused me to sit with this topic for some time and I go through all angles for myself where it all settles for me.  I’ve even had spiritual teachers in India say, that white people have no ability to even understand Sanskrit, yet so many of the leading scholars in Sanskrit today that have done so much for the preservation of the language, are Western scholars.

I never thought I’d move in the direction I have.  I’m happier to sit and BE and pour it out through my art.  This straddling of cultures and worlds, it’s done.  I’m happier to let it speak the art way. Art makes it easier.

People are meant to discuss it, are meant to react good or bad - it doesn’t matter.  Art does challenge the audience and society and my art not only is a representation of how the ‘yoga’ has embodied itself in me, it is also how I hold myself in this divisive world of judgement on all sides.  The art will do what it wants.  Awareness is doing it.  Not me. I’m the instrument that’s all. 

As I allow this stream of consciousness to move as it wants then it for me is more important to stand out of its way and let it do what is destined to be done.  My job is to keep allowing and that is a task of great challenge all on its own as anyone who does any kind of internal spiritual transformation will understand.  I will be prioritising the story, my story and the design over any correct philosophical context of design just to make a select few happy.  Heads up people.

Joy through design, colour, symbols and what the audience makes of it gets me into the studio with an attitude of delight.

Let people bicker.  Know what is true for you.

Tiptoeing around, dancing on eggshells, feeling what my predecessors went through.  Enough.  The trendy yoga thing I get.  The word chakra is mispronounced endlessly as shakra and the teachings were pulled out and altered in ways through the New Age I get it.  No argument there.  But seriously, big deal! There are far worse crimes in the world and in time, as chakra becomes eventually part of the vernacular like karma has, the correct pronunciation will follow.

Leave the pure seekers alone who are sincere and respectful and living life from the Self and recognising the Self in them through their daily lives.  That in a nutshell makes them exact disciples of the philosophy at its core for that is all it is about.

My art is not straddling. This topic I realised with insight and relief recently is about straddling – one foot in each camp.  There has been the issue.  It has all come together through art. It is the design of a yogini, a western white chick who’s dedicated her life to the natural unfolding of her awareness that came as non-dual Eastern philosophy and who lives in the western suburbs of Melbourne with a family and regular life.  A life of successful merging, no longer straddling.

My art comes from a deep understanding, love and experience of both cultures and I’m willing to push the art to help break through cultural boundaries on all sides and connect on a greater level to everyone willing to engage and start a new conversation through love of traditional, bringing in the new and having fun with popular culture. I love and am excited by the style that is coming through and which is allowing things I wanted to do even as a kid to finally be expressed. Everything is coming together and making sense.

I am the art and the Self and this is the visual language that has resulted.

The world is merging.  Breathe and meditate folks and do the practices that give you peace of mind and love in your hearts and all the bickering will drop away.  I wish...

I believe that the merging of the East and the West is a beautiful thing. It's an opportunity for us to learn from one another and grow as individuals and as a collective. It's not about losing our identity but rather expanding it to include new perspectives and ways of thinking. As we continue to evolve, I look forward to seeing what the future holds for the merging of these two worlds and the development of my art.

©MataKamaleshwari