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The following oil paintings and poems are part of what I call my “Shringara
Rasa” series. Shringara is a Sanskrit word that means “erotic”, and rasa
refers to the “flavor” or “mood” of an art form. Shringara Rasa refers to the
way in which we reach love or ecstasy that is both human and divine. I am
trying to blend this eastern concept into a western format. This art tradition of Hindu miniature painting came out of the 14th century renaissance in Central India and continued to thrive into the early 19th century. Medieval Hindu kingdoms had been destroyed by the Mughal empire, and the emergence of indigenous literature began entering the mainstream of society. Prior to this renaissance, exposure to these great spiritual epics were controlled by the priests and nobles. (They were the only ones who understood Sanskrit). These stories captured the minds and hearts of the people, especially the love between the celestial lovers, Krishna and Radha. Radha was Krishna’s favorite consort and she became transfixed by a passionate obsession for him. To me, the allegory is clear: Radha and Krishna represent the Shiva and the Shakti; the male and female aspects of ourselves, longing to reunite with one another. Krishna and Radha’s love inspired great art, poems, and music and marked the beginning of devotional (Bhakti) cults of people attaching themselves to a personal deity. Many of these stories inspired their followers to live out their lives in imitation of these Gods. The painters of the time found their subjects from these great poems. One of their favorite inspirations came from the work of the twelfth-century Bengali court poet, Jayadeva. I am most inspired by the people who embodied the divine grace and ecstatic love of these Bhakti cults. One of my favorite stories was of a young prince, Raja Savant Singh of Kishangarh (1699-1764), who abdicated his throne and became a poet and painter. He ran off with the courtesan-poetess Bani Thani, and they lived out their lives re-enacting the lives of Krishna and Radha at Brindaban, the holy city associated with Krishna. His brother may have taken the throne, but this young prince became quite well known under his nom de plume as a poet, Nagari Das, and the beautiful Bani Thani still lives in his paintings that survive. When I finished the first painting of this series, “Together Again”, I suddenly knew it was supposed to have a poem with it, so I wrote one. With each additional painting, I also wrote a poem. I later discovered that the form of poems I was writing was classic 16th century Bengali love poetry in the tantrik tradition. My research led me to a 16th century princess that had been born in Rajasthan and was to be the first Hindu queen of medieval North India. She was widowed before her husband, the heir apparent, took the throne. Her name was Mirabai, and she was the embodiment of Bhakti. At a young age, she had experienced a spiritual transmission, or murti, from a statue of Krishna presented to her by a wandering and low-caste ascetic. She became so connected to her God that he was with her always. She wrote over 400 poems and created a kind of devotional song now known as bhajans. Although her in-laws persecuted her for her spiritual beliefs, and she was highly controversial, she was revered by her peers and honored by kings in her lifetime. Mirabai had everything, but chose to live the life of a yogini. To me, Mirabai’s poems speak of someone who understood the inter-dimensional quality of dreams, and she often wrote of her lover Krishna visiting her in these worlds. There is a line from one of her poems that still wrenches my heart when I hear it; “I slept for a moment, the Beloved appeared, when I rose to greet him, he was gone. Some lose him sleeping, I lost him awake....” My poems are for you, Mirabai. |
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oil on canvas 18"x24" |
by Uriel Dana ©1998 | |
by Uriel Dana ©1998 | |
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To thou who has become music for my eyes, I offer the rhythm of my breath for your words sublime. To thou who has given color to my thoughts, I offer their illuminate spectrum upon the jewels of your mind. To thou who has wandered where light -bodies echo, I offer passage on solar winds to a place where all may shine. To thou who has colored my world with the sounds of the Gods I offer wisdom to your heart a higher octave than mine. |
| NOTES ON "SARASVATI" Sarasvati is the Hindu Goddess of poetry, music, and knowledge. She is also the consort of Brahma, the personified creator of the universe. She is always depicted with light skin, and some of her attributes are the swan, a book of vedas or scripture, a vina (though I chose to paint another stringed instrument instead), and prayer beads. In sculptures, she is often depicted with the matted hair of a holy woman. In 1996 I had a dream about Sarasvati. I was driving in downtown San Francisco, going faster and faster like a jet picking up speed for takeoff. I was going so fast I was afraid I’d crash when the car turned into a 747 version of a swan . On the back of the swan was someone I recognized as a male aspect of myself. It was a powerful vision for how high I would fly when the male and female aspects of myself were integrated. |
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oil on board 12"x8" |
by Uriel Dana ©1998 | |
 "Language of the Eyes" by Uriel Dana ©1998 |
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| NOTES ON “LANGUAGE OF THE EYES” Language of the eyes will be published in December 1998 in Outstanding Poets of 1998, by The National Library Of Poetry. This poem was inspired by the love between Krishna and Radha. The Hindu story tells of a November evening when Krishna goes to his favorite spot in a forest and begins to play his flute under the full moon. His music is so hypnotic, 900,000 gopis (milkmaidens) come to him. In the midst of these women, Krishna looks up and spots Radha. Well, talk about a one-in-a-million kind of woman, one look at her and his clothes fall off, and he drops his flute! In fact, he is so taken with Radha, he refused to let go of her while he made love to the other 900,000. To me, this is classic ET- lore. Krishna was a Sirian shape-shifter who helped seed the human race by making love to, and impregnating, nearly a million milkmaidens (white-skinned Earth girls). The stories of him tell us of how he was able to morph himself into the perfect man and lover for each woman he made love to. They also tell us how he did it... through the use of sound (his flute). All of my imagery is inspired by the dream / inner worlds. To reflect this, I always paint the eyes of the figures in my Shringaras closed or averted. Only Radha’s eyes dare to meet the viewer, making it a very unusual Uriel Dana painting. |
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oil on board 8"x12" |
by Uriel Dana ©1998 | |
by Uriel Dana ©1998 | |
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I have a kingdom deep within Where the veils of illusion are pale and thin. Light and dark merge into grey, And love and ecstasy begin their stay. The King and his Queen are equal here. We know only love, no pain or fear. Our dream is a magic carpet ride Where all worlds are one, and souls confide. And when the dream is a waking one, Will you know by my eyes that I have come? |
| NOTES ON "TOGETHER AGAIN" This poem is currently a semifinalist in the National Library of Poetry’s North American Open Poetry Contest. It will be published in a poetry anthology, A Sea of Tranquillity in December 1998. The Ancients believed the Lion slept with his eyes open, which in my book makes him one of the first inter-dimensional animals... or at least a lucid dreamer. This is why the lion represents multidimensional creativity and why sculptures of this king were often found guarding entrances to buildings. Here he also represents the king, the anima or male energy, the Shiva embracing the Shakti. In modern alien lore, the lion is believed to have originally come from the Sirius Star System. |
 The In-Between" by Uriel Dana ©1998 oil canvas 30"x24"  detail from "The In-Between" by Uriel Dana ©1998 |
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| NOTES ON "THE IN-BETWEEN” This poem has music somewhere that goes with it. When I was writing another poem, words and lines that had a different cadence kept coming through. At the same time, it was getting quite annoying for me to have any music playing in the background while writing. Once it was quiet, I realized I was hearing music “cellularly” and was subconsciously putting words to it. Because of this musical connection, this painting would be more of a western version of a ragamala, rather than a shringara. Ragamalas were a type of painting that represented poems with a musical sentiment. They are paintings of verbal and musical imagery made manifest in art. As I do not sing or play a musical instrument, this Cinderella song will have to wait for the cosmic “slipper” to find her. |
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oil on board 9"x12" |
by Uriel Dana ©1998 | |
by Uriel Dana ©1998 | |
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When the sun is swallowed by the sea, I feel your soul move into me. Under my skin, your warm waters pulse creating steam from my fires, our love erupts. Synchronized heartbeats ebb and flow, Egos abandoned in the undertow. I feel your light beating bright against mine, The journey of twins moving through time. O, sweet beloved, satisfy my sacred thirst- I’ll taste your pure waters, our worlds we’ll immerse. And though you must leave me when the day is new, To live life in the body that now is you, I will Follow the clues from a far away past, and finding you again will become my task. I have no remorse connected to my plight Because my heart knows there’s always the night When the sun is swallowed by the sea, And I feel your soul move into me. |
| "NOTES ON NIGHT LOVER" This poem received an Editor’s Choice Award for Outstanding Achievement in Poetry from the National Library of Poetry. It was published in the 1998 poetry anthology, Embrace the Morning, and is one of only 11 poems read aloud on the recording, “The Sound of Poetry” - a collection of favorite poems chosen by the National Library of Poetry. Night Lover was inspired by the love between the Hindu God and Goddess, Shiva and Parvati. They loved each other so much they would often make love ten thousand years at a time. Here, the Goddess Parvati is visited by her perfect male counterpart in the dream worlds in which Shiva communicates. To read why Shiva is portrayed as an alien, please read the interview on this website. |
 "Thousand Petal Lotus" by Uriel Dana ©1998 oil on board 12"x9" |
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| NOTES ON "THOUSAND PETALS LOTUS" In Tantra, the thousand petal lotus refers to a type of orgasm so powerful that a spiritual oneness with one’s lover, as well as all creation, is experienced. For more information, please read “Melckizedeks, Monks, Merkabas, and a Little Tantra” in my Living on The Edge column under the “Columns” heading. |
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oil on board 8"x12" |
by Uriel Dana ©1998 | |
by Uriel Dana ©1998 | |
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Through a maze I found a room full of mirrors. The light that joins us led the way. So many realities, so much illusion. Are you really here, or my mind’s delusion? Where do I look; are you man or beast? Will I know you as warrior or know you as priest? We came here knowing we’d have to go to sleep, Making it more difficult for our destinies to meet. I’ve surrendered my fear, filled my heart with grace And asked the universe to guide us to a place Where if we open our eyes and take a chance We will find it’s the future, and not the past, That illuminates the pebbles on our path. |
| NOTES ON "THE KINDRED" In Persian mythology, the winged man-lion Mithras is the God of Light and Truth. He stepped out of the sea to fearlessly bring divine truths to the world, and his master initiates from then on were called “Lions”. In fact, in ancient times when the summer solstice took place in the sign of Leo, the Sun’s corona was always portrayed with the celestial lion's mane. Because the lion is also a symbol of mastering secret wisdom, it was chosen to represent King Solomon. The Persian carpet symbolizes the ancient doctrines, inspired by the flying carpet legends. These carpets, on close inspection, were “prayer rugs”, so through communion with spirit all divine truths are available. For more information on lions and a reference to these carpets, please go back to the poem, “Together Again”. |
 "Wet Dream" by Uriel Dana ©1998 oil on board 14"x 8" |
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| NOTES ON “WET DREAM” About six planets out from Sirius B, there’s a planet that is over 90% water. In alien lore, there is a belief that this is where the whales and dolphins originally came from, and that they still travel through inter-dimensional vortices to and from this planet. Cetaceans are considered one of the firstguardian species of Earth, and the harmonics of dolphins actually aid in maintaining the Earth’s biosphere. Dolphins will often aid dreamworkers that get lost or require protection, just as they do in the oceans. They also like to have sex about 36 times a day! |
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| NOTES ON “PEACE” This poem is part of a poem I channeled in 1984 after finishing the pencil drawing, “Peace”. I did not write another piece of poetry for twelve years. |
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PRINTS All Uriel Dana images, with the exception of the pencil drawing, Peace, are available as signed and numbered Gicleé prints. Gicleé prints are digitally scanned images printed on museum quality paper with a protective UV coating. Please allow three weeks for delivery as each print is done to order. | |||
| Title Sarasvati Language of the Eyes Together Again The In-Between Night Lover Thousand Petal Lotus The Kindred Wet Dream |
Print Size 18”x24” 12"x8" 8"x12" 30"x24" 9"x12" 12"x9" 8"x12" 14"x8" |
Edition Size 250 250 250 250 250 250 250 250 |
Print Price $1,000 $750 $300 $1,200 $300 $300 $300 $300 |
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ORIGINAL OILS Uriel's original oils can be seen at her studio in Sausalito California, with prior arrangement. To inquire about availability or to be placed on her mailing list. UrielDana@earthlink.net | |||
... for allowing me to share this work with you. I also wish to express my heart- felt gratitude to all those who have shown support through their patronage over the years. This includes not just collectors, but everyone who has bought one of my cards, written a kind note, or joined the fan club, “Patrons of Sirius Art”. A special thank you goes to the great Webmaster himself, Ron Gross, for creating such beautiful websites. |
 
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