SAMENESS, DEPTH OF MYSTERY

This image addresses the oneness of being. The young acolyte holding an umbrella for the monk suggests a statement of hierarchy, but the true meaning of the image is the opposite. All forms in the work fade into darkness or light. And they fade into each other though the basic oneness of existence. Hierarchy is an illusion. The work refers to the Heart Sutra, which says, “form is emptiness and emptiness is form.” In Buddhism, the umbrella can symbolize the bodhi tree under which the Buddha became enlightened. Having a little boy hold the umbrella suggests that enlightenment may result from even the smallest stimulus.