While making this image i had to think of the work of Cybele – The Runes of the Gatekeeper’s Daughter, who makes beautiful images full of fantasy and lore.
So let’s make this into a small tribute 🙂 This one is for you Cybele!
Seeing you feels enchanting
You swirl your way to the top
With leaves so soft and smooth
Colored in the most subtle colors
This little paradise is your domain
Although small others are dwarfed
By your enormous presence
In the silence which surrounds you
I cannot help but wonder..
Can this be the tree of life?
Did a re-edit of this image, since i found the original one i posted a few years ago a little bit too saturated. This was taken 3 years ago.. i really should go and visit this specific spot tomorrow as it is always so beautiful with autumn colors.
Leaves on the ground  hardly any sound
The wind is soft and sway
What is still here will soon fade away
The mystical atmosphere of the forest
Trigger dreamlike images   fantasy of the mind
The magic lake mirror merges the sky and earth
As i drift away swimming in a sea of thoughts
The depth of being   unfathomable
Traveling between waking and sleeping
Life unfolds itself like an infinite dream
Where beings of the old play ancient games
Their dance of illusion distorts reality
Slowly awakening from the catnap
I realize i dozed away again
I can’t help but wonder how i didn’t see
That the whole time sleeping
The world was upside down
As a tree admires her beauty by looking into her own reflection Water flows gently beneath and carries along her mirror image Birds singing from the canopy come down to see the spectacle A moment in time connects the tree to her own past lifetime Once she stood firmly and proud on the banks of the forest creek She was a home and shelter to many animals who befriended her Her roots went all the way down deep below the water level The crown on her head was majestic full of the greenest leaves Years went by as she grew and grew with many seasons passing She saw humans dramatically change the landscape around her But the forest was left untouched and remained a peaceful sanctuary With her birth ground safe she started giving in to gravity Letting go of her connection to both the air and the ground below Her the faithful task was to become a bridge between life and death
Today i’ve wandered through the forest, seen and heard many birds.. came back home full of experiences and photographs
The interesting thing about all these experiences was that earlier today i was reading a book by Lama Tsongkhapa in which he describes how much we’re attached to our senses.. and indeed, in the forest i was constantly on the watch for sights and sounds. Perhaps that’s the downside for me of taking the camera with me. Or better said, it’s a lesson for me. First relax the mind, eyes and ears and then engage with the forest, connect with it without wanting to grasp at certain experiences (like seeing a kingfisher or a squirrel)
So today ended up being both rewarding in terms of photographs and in applying wisdom..
