The Eye - The Seer and the Seen by Francis Huxley Thames and Hudson 978-80500-810347 Recommended Read this week is 'The Eye - The Seer and the Seen' by Francis Huxley, Thames and Hudson. Not a huge book but a good general overview of the importance of the Eye as a symbol in different cultures. Also because Huxley was an effective advocate and activist for indigenous peoples and the Eye is my favourite symbol. Francs Huxley (1923 - 2016) was an anthropologist and botanist with diverse interests and a lifelong interest in shamanism and the altered states of consciousness often experienced by sacred 'healers'. In the 1950's his pioneering fieldwork among the Urubu people of the Amazon basin and his book 'Affable Savages' (1956) resulted in new personal reflective approach to the study of culture, rather than objective. He was also an activist for indigenous peoples, founding Survival International with fellow anthropologists. Survival International provides a platform for exposing genocide, violence, slavery and exploitation. Francis was the son of Julian Huxley, biologist and first director general of Unesco. He was part of a dynasty that included Julian’s brother, the author Aldous Huxley, and half-brother, the physiologist and Nobel laureate Andrew Huxley. Francis was also the great-grandson of Charles Darwin’s friend Thomas Henry Huxley.
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A Beginner's Guide to Constructing the Universe by Michael S Schneider Harper Perennial 978-0-06092-671-7 Recommended Read this week is 'A Beginner's Guide to Constructing the Universe' by Michael S Schnieder published by Harper Perennial. Another book that is a readable and informative introduction to sacred geometry. Schnieder focuses on the drawing/construction of the geometric principles created by 0, 1 to 10, sequentially. He includes relevant quotes, examples in nature, the human body, myths, art and architecture. Plenty of interesting material about each of the numbers but he does not draw any conclusions. Calling himself 'an educator and writer who encourages a love of learning' on his website Schnieder provides numerous workbooks and CDs about 'the intersections of mathematics, nature, art, science and culture'.
Recommended Read this week is Malcolm Stewart's (1939-) 'Patterns of Eternity - Sacred Geometry and the Starcut Diagram', published by Floris Books. This is a classic sacred geometry text, well researched, insightful, covers a lot of ground, includes plenty of examples from many cultures. If you are serious about understanding the mathematics of sacred geometry then this needs to be in your library. Stewart proposes that the Starcut Diagram has very interesting mathematical properties and that it could possibly be the source of the ancient number system used to build ancient sites. Malcolm Stewart's varied career includes - priest, singer-songwriter, editor and book jacket designer, UN project co-ordinator, NGO relief-aid and refugee organiser, freelance artist and stained glass designer, lecturer and author.
Cymatics by Hans Jenny MACROmedia Press 978-1-88813-807-8 Recommended Read this week is 'Cymatics' by Hans Jenny (1904 - 1972). It is a primer for understanding the history of the field of cymatics (physics of sound), the geometry within sound waves and their creative influence. Probably best to read this first before last week's Recommended Read 'Interference Theory'. Even our early ancestors knew that sound and its impact on us at a cellular level were highly important. Our depth of our understanding of the science of cymatics grows every day. The significance of sound in the creative process and its influence on us is becoming more mainstream since Jenny's early work. John Stuart Reid's cymascope has contributed significantly to this field. I have included a couple of YouTube videos at the end of this blog for those of you who are new to the subject. These stunning geometric patterns are like animated mandalas. This original hardcover edition now seems to be a collectible item and secondhand copies are quite expensive. It is currently reprinting and is due out March 2022 - Floris Books.
Interference: A Grand Scientific Musical Theory by Richard Merrick published by Richard Merrick 978-0-615-20599-1
Man and His Symbols by Carl G Yung Publisher keeps changing 0-613-92267-0
The great psychologist dreamed that his work was understood by a wide public, rather than just by psychiatrists, and therefore he agreed to write and edit this fascinating book. Here, Jung examines the full world of the unconscious, whose language he believed to be the symbols constantly revealed in dreams. Convinced that dreams offer practical advice, sent from the unconscious to the conscious self, Jung felt that self-understanding would lead to a full and productive life. The Power of Limits: Proportional Harmonies in Nature, Art and Architecture by Gyorgi Doczi Shambhala Publications Ltd 978-1-59030-259-0
György Doczi (1905 - 1995) practiced architecture in Hungary, Sweden, Iran, and the United States. He initiated a permanent exhibit on form in nature and art at the Pacific Science Center in Seattle, and was a founder of the Friends of Jungian Psychology Northwest. Yantra - A Tantric Symbol of Cosmic Unity by Madhu Khanna Thames and Hudson 978-0-50027-234-3
Madhu Khanna is a noted Indian people historian of religion and noted and tantra science based in Delhi, India. Her first degree was from Oxford and she has several other academic accolades and awards. She has written several books, 'Yantra' being the most popular, and has contributed to three national projects, as well as several research projects for the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts Mahu Khanna - Google Scholar Square, Circle, Triangle by Bruno Munari Princeton Architectural Press 978-1-61689-412-2 This week's Recommended Read is an excellent book called Square, Circle, Triangle by the acclaimed giant in 20th Century design, Bruno Munari (1907 - 1998). He was an artist, designer and inventor in several fields of the visual arts - painting, sculptor, graphic design, industrial design and film. He produced many children's books and toys. Also non-visual arts, with his fascinating research on games, didactic method, tactile learning, kinaesthetic learning and creativity. A hugely prolific talent. Another fantastic supplement to my books as he provides plenty of extra examples of these three simple, fundamental shapes in different cultures and applications (games, design, architecture, sculpting...). The simple book cover says it all! At the bottom of this post are YouTube links to interviews with B Munari and other interesting material.
Crystal & Dragon: A Cosmic Two Step by David Wade Destiny Books, US 978-0-89281-404-6 This week's Recommended Read goes into pattern sharing in depth! "Crystal and Dragon" by David Wade is fascinating. A great supplement to my The Hidden geometry of Life since I summarise pattern sharing in two chapters. Similarly he is an artist and sculptor living in the UK. On my list of kindred souls I would like to meet. David has also written about patterns for Wooden Books. Exploring the interplay of form and energy, David Wade takes the reader on a journey through the world of successive ages from Plato's conception of the ideal form and the ancient Chinese philosophy of change to the modern scientific view of structure and indeterminacy as embodied in the laws of physics. |
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