Listening to this * yesterday got me remembering the Irish belief that the Other World can be accessed through ‘thin places’ in our world. Thin places are places of transition, or inbetween times.
On this point, from Fire in the Head**:
“For Irish poets, the edge of water — where bank meets river or shore meets sea — is a place of wisdom, enlightenment, and mystical knowledge. Water, fog, mist, and dew have long fascinated the Irish, possibly because the island nation is surrounded by the sea… But any edge or border between elemental realms, any liminal zone between two complementary terrains, or a place where opposites meet is, in the Celtic imagination, a place filled with magic.”
Here is a sampling of ‘Edge Pictures’, some of place, others of time, and a few of both.
New Hampshire, The Flume
Lake Champlain
Lake Champlain
Shaker Workshop, Arlington, Mass.
New Hampshire
* (Krista Tippett talking about her grandfather and faith on “The Moth”. Her website is onbeing.com).
** Fire in the Head, Shamanism and the Celtic Spirit, by Tom Cowan
the in between where anything can happen…
“In the Universe, there are things that are known, and things that are unknown, and in between, there are doors” – William Blake
http://artpropelled.blogspot.com.au/2012/02/doors-in-between.html
keeping in mind that “Hermes is the god of the hinge … the mottled figure in the half light… who amazes and unmazes…” Lewis Hyde “Trickster makes this World: Mischief, Myth & Art”
Dee, this is such a lovely post! I love it. You really had me until I saw the snow piled up in front of your window, then I decided the only thin place to be is back under a blanket till spring. I so love the idea of thin places. Assisi is definitely one, but so is Crab Meadow and all those lovely spots you have here – the flume and climbing the Arlington stairs. How nice would it be to stay on the border of thin forever instead of sitting here typing away in purgatory? Nothing thin in the canyon of Madison, that’s for sure. Thanks again for such a magical post. It has me daydreaming as I go.
Mo – I ALSO love doorways, and gates, and windows – as always, thanks for the link!
Having come across a reference to the Fool in my reading this morning, I decided, even before reading your comment, to start my Tarot project with The Fool… of course, it is ZERO, and a logical place to start as well.
Found this quote: “In addition to being part animal, the Fool’s costume was often traditional motley or pied pattern: a robe of many colors and patterns, sometimes arranged in a crazy-quilt fashion. Obviously, the Fool has a slippery sense of fashion not squarely rooted in any particular world, time, class, or status; this is precisely what the Fool-as-shaman wants to convey.”
Oh it’s so nice to hear from you Ginny, and to be reminded to go over to one of your blogs and be cheered, entertained or moved by your pictures… Your project “Washed in on the Salt”, now that I think of it (never mind Long Island as a photo-playground) is in its very essence on of those liminal places referred to in the quote. Hope you have a good rest of the day and who knows, maybe coming out into the city canyon tonight will find you in the throes of mystery (weirder things have happened!)
a wonderful roll of images here Dee. Just wonderful. I’m going to the link now.
Thanks, Michelle.
Dee~ A most wonderful post. The quotes set the stage and then each stunning photo pulls you in to the edge, to the inbetween…to mystery and wonder. I love how you’ve strung these images together to take us on a fantastic journey into imagination. Thank you.
thanks, Nancy… it was fun to scroll through about two years of pix and pick out the ones I wanted.
Magic in every single photo!
Thank you Peggy!! Tried to comment about the beautiful lace sleeve on your blog but my phone wouldn’t let me. One of my immediate goals is to become better acquainted with my phone.
Lovely images of the in-between, Dee. And wandering backwards through your blog… I see SoulCollage. I was so entranced by that for a while…
Beautiful post. Loved the photos – made me think about ‘here’ and ‘overthere’. Thank you.
gorgeous photos. I hiked the Flumes years ago, so beautiful. I’m always longing for the sea, this time of year especially…could be the irish or the pisces in me.
thanks readers… there is the magic of transitional places, and then the power of water… Cindy – the Flumes is a really entrancing place… I wonder if it’s in part because of the way rushing water produces negative ions (I think?) that are soothing…