It was Leonardo da Vinci who said, “Principles for the Development of a Complete Mind: Study the science of art. Study the art of science. Develop your senses--especially, learn how to see. Realize that everything connects to everything else.” Or so we are told, recently. I never heard it directly from the Master’s mouth myself, but it is worthy of him, nonetheless.
There is a science to art, a real and methodical technique
that can be counted on to produce predictable results. Study this science through the mind and watch
it be reflected in the art of the senses.
And there is an art to science as well.
There is a certain flare, a certain intuitive feeling that the scientist
engages in before heading to the lab to produce concrete results. Study this art of feeling and watch it be
transformed into brilliant experiments that appear to be led by a divine hand.
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| Enduring the waves. |
Especially, though, learn how to see. A baby is born seeing, but it is not the eyes
da Vinci was talking about. True vision
involves an unspoken understanding of situations, and the eyes are not
necessary for that. We must realize that
everything connects to everything else. The
web is complete; there is no separation.
A pebble thrown into the water creates waves that do not stop. They eventually become so infinitesimal, that
they no longer matter.
Except maybe they do.
Maybe it’s not the immortal wave that matters but that the pebble was
tossed in the first place. As soon as it
is thrown in, it affects its surroundings and they, in turn, affect other
things. I can’t control the pebbles that
someone throws on the other side of the Earth, but I can decide how I want to
react to those who have reacted to the pebbles, and I can decide whether or not
I want to throw my own pebbles in.
And while all the pebbles are being thrown or not, reacted
to or not, there is the undulating rhythm of the Universe that continues on and
on in an irresistible wave, and each of us is caught up inextricably in the
dance. This part is not a choice. We may choose to not interact with the pebbles of others, but we may not choose to
forgo the dance altogether. The Great
Alchemist does not allow it. Our
marionette strings are pulled this way and that; our permission is never
sought.
But if we learn how to see the marionette strings, we see
that there is a science to them, and in seeing the science, we learn the
art. And in learning the art, we toss
the pebble in.
