Surekha Sadana tells Shana Maria Verghis about using experiences as a longtime meditator to paint spiritual concepts like the rising Kundalini
Pausing before two vertical canvases at the entrance to her show, Spiritual Elevation, Surekha Sadana indicates the images before us. They include vertical and inverted triangles, as well as circles. “These two pieces depict the concept of this entire show,” she explained. “One relates to the kundalini awakening. When the male and female principles, or Shiva-Shakti, represented by the vertical and inverted triangle, unite. The other features the Shiva-Shakti, in relationship to the entire cosmos, or Brahmand.”
Surekha said that she has always been interested in spirituality. And she had beg un to meditate, after her children were old enough to be independent of her.She did several courses including Art of living and Vipassana, where she learnt to focus on her breath.
But then she stopped following these different schools, “because each of them was trying to promote itself. And I felt, surely spirituality is within me. So why shouldn’t I explore myself furtherIJ”She has a separate show at the Taj Palace on Sufis, running parallel to this one. It is another subject of interest to her. Sufis.
The lalit Kala exhibition contains her images of the body, with mystical dynamos that supposedly are energy points, located near various organs. These are the seven chakras, (including two more between the third-eye and the crown.) It also features details of the seven, with features like colours and petals around them (as seen in images above), as seen by holy people across generations.
It is believed at the base of the spine of humans, contains Shakti, the life force, often visualised as the goddess or a coiled serpent called Kundalini. Through deep meditation, this rises up via the chakras, to meet at the top of the head, where the Sahasrara chakra, or “thousand petalled lotus” is, within a few enlightened ones. However this is an extremely rare event. Just as rare as it is to find the real thousand-petalled lotus.
The upper-two chakras, the Sahasrara and the one between the eye-brows (the third-eye) are the superior chakras.While those from the neck region, down to the heart, abdomen, navel and reproductory organs are the lower chakras.
Most human consciousness tends to operate between the lower three chakras, which are controlled by elements of earth, water and fire. The purpose of meditation is to raise the energy, which is seen in the form of a golden thread, through the susushma nadi, (which equates to a nerve). And this happens under certain conditions, when it unites with two adjoining nadis, the ida and pingala, which are supposedly controlled by the sun and moon. They also supposedly connect with the left and right side of the brain hemispheres.
A concept like Shiv-Shakti is often far beyond the understanding of most people. So for millenia, they have been represented by abstract symbols used for meditations like Yantras (see main).
These often contain corrugated exterior areas, within which are usually petals, (of chakras). And further within are triangles of the two primordial energies. They correspond to the exterior and interior world, and are vehicles for meditations. Surekha has used them all, with some artistic licence.