ORANGE FANDANGO MANDALA - AEDM 9

ORANGE FANDANGO MANDALA - © Sue O'Kieffe 2009
source image: chicken feather

We skipped the light fandango, turned cartwheels 'cross the floor...(from A Whiter Shade of Pale)

It started with a chicken feather and my Wacom tablet. A little doodling, playing with orange, rust and gold with a splash of lavendar for an electric effect. I just wanted to have fun playing with color color color.

A fandango is lively Spanish dance. It can also mean a big fuss or brilliant exploit. I hear castanets and see swirly skirts. Ole!











Day 9 fun for Art Every Day Month.

ZEN DREAM MANDALA - AEDM 6

Zen Dream Mandala (Exploring the Mystery) © Sue O'Kieffe 2009
source image: fall grass

All that we see or seem is but a dream within a dream ~ Edgar Allan Poe

I love the dream world and associate it with November, when the nights get colder and the veil between ordinary and non-ordinary reality is thin.
This is Samhain, el Dia de los Muertos, Halloween, Celtic New Year time. Spirits, our ancestors and loved ones come and visit. It's a moving powerful time of year.

I love these simple field grasses that show up in autumn; I wish I knew their names. Spirit directed me to use the 3 configuration, which is probably my least favorite , but I love the resulting simple yet powerful painterly quality.

As I was finishing this mandala, I felt my mother's presence behind me, telling me how much she liked it. Red, black and white was her favorite color combination. She left this world ten years ago, and it's been a while since I have noticed her energy around me. It felt good.


I quietly slipped into the Art Every Day Month challenge this year and missed the first few days.
This year I am focusing on things I want to play with and to practice being easy on myself. Sometimes that is the biggest challenge of all!

~Sue O'Kieffe
Sacred Circle Mandalas
(Mandala prices include shipping and handling)

Zen Dream Mandala

8.5"x11" $35.00 13"x19" $55.00

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INFINITE LIFE MANDALA - AEDM 5

Infinite Life Mandala (Circles of Awareness series) © Sue O'Kieffe 2009
source image: Himalaya berries

And the seasons, they go round and round ~ Joni Mitchell

Himalaya berries grow in disarray along the North Coast of California, and their branches make a better barrier than barbed wire. I love sampling these plump, juicy, seedy gifts from heaven throughout the summer, testing them for ripeness, marveling at their succulence when they are just right and warm from the sun at high noon. It's not hard to imagine our ancestors conceiving of pie during those moments.

I took the photograph in early autumn, before the rains washed away berry sweetness. I love the beauty of the different stages of their ripeness against the backdrop of lush green leaves.

This mandala has eight rays, a number that symbolizes harmony, balance, and infinity. This configuration is also known as The Great Wheel, and it speaks of life's transitions.

The center of a mandala represents the self, and the center here is juicy ripe, dark and inviting. Be that center.

Thank you, Himalaya berries, for showing us your gift.


Sue O'Kieffe
Sacred Circle Mandalas


(Mandala prices include shipping and handling)

Infinite Life Mandala

8.5"x11" $35.00 13"x19" $55.00

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Circled in Warmth Mandala

Circled in Warmth Mandala (Power Shield Series) © Sue O'Kieffe 2009
source image: pheasant feather

Let us learn the secret language of light again. Also the letters of the dark. Learn the flight patterns of birds, the syllables of wolf howl and bird song, the moving pantomime of branch and leaf, valleys and peaks of whale calls, the long sentences of ants moving in unison, the combinations and recombinations of clouds, the codices of stars. Let us, thus, reconstitute the world, sign by sign and melody by melody ~Deena Metzger

I love living on the North Coast of California, but there are a few things I miss seeing that were part of my childhood growing up in Minnesota. Pheasants are one of them. I was blessed to grow up in a somewhat undeveloped area of Minneapolis with plenty of wildlife, and so my love of nature developed early in life. With their beautiful iridescent rust and teal green colors, I associate pheasants with the earthy autumn palette. Did you know that pheasants and peacocks are related? (pheasant image courtesy of Google).

Creating mandalas from feathers is always a learning experience for me, not only in the creation but also in the learning about different spiritual qualities and lessons that birds are here to offer us. Pheasants are associated with family matters and sexuality, and they show how to set a romantic mood through the warmth of their colors (Ted Andrews Animal Speak).

Pheasant aids in bringing healing to family matters with a renewed sense of closeness. Perceptions of old wounds have a chance to be reconciled as pheasant will show the way to verbalize forgiveness and compassion. Pheasant also teaches the art of concealment and the power of perseverance and confidence. (from Star Stuffs)

The seven pointed star configuration of this power shield mandala speaks of the mystical and introspective qualities of the Self. Seven is also associated with the seven directions (N,S,E,W, Above, Below and Center) called out in the creation of sacred space in Native American tradition.

Thank you, Pheasant, for all you have to teach us and for showing us how much there is to learn.

Bright blessings on your path!

Sue O'Kieffe
Sacred Circle Mandalas

(Mandala prices include shipping and handling)

Circled in Warmth Mandala

8.5"x11" $35.00 13"x19" $55.00

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SACRED CIRCLE MANDALAS 2010 CALENDAR

"A human being is essentially a spirit-eye. Whatever you really see, you are that." ~Rumi

The 2010 Sacred Circle Mandala Calendar is now available for purchase. This year I chose quotes from Rumi to accompany each mandala image. Choosing just the right quote to go with each mandala was a true act of love, and I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.
I have been a Rumi fan for about 10 years. It is fascinating that a 13th century Persian mystic poet is finding such popularity in the 21st century. I like what Shamran Shiva, one of Rumi's translators, has to say about this phenomenon:
Rumi is able to verbalize the highly personal and often confusing world of personal/spiritual growth and mysticism in a very forward and direct fashion. He does not offend anyone, and he includes everyone. The world of Rumi is neither exclusively the world of a Sufi, nor the world of a Hindu, nor a Jew, nor a Christian; it is the highest state of a human being--a fully evolved human. A complete human is not bound by cultural limitations; he touches every one of us. Today Rumi's poems can be heard in churches, synagogues, Zen monasteries, as well as in the downtown New York art/performance/music scene.
Rumi's quotes perfectly enhance these sacred circles, which are themselves a symbol of completion. This calendar would make a thoughtful and loving gift for anyone on your holiday list.

This year you have two ways to order your calendar:

ORDER DIRECTLY FROM ME:

I am offering you this option because I can save you a little bit in shipping costs, and these days, every little bit sure helps! In order to make sure your calendars are delivered in time for the holidays, I will need to have payment via PayPal, check or money order by November 30th. Email me and I will send you an invoice for your order.

Here's the details:

U.S. Customers

Each calendar is $24.95 plus $4.95 shipping Priority Mail.

More than 3 calendars ship $10.35 Priority Mail.

5 calendars or more are eligible for a quantity discount. Email me for details.

California residents will be charged 8.25% sales tax.

(I like to use Flat Rate Priority Mail, especially during the Holidays, because delivery is guaranteed within 2-3 days.)

Canadian/Mexican Customers

Each calendar is $24.95 USD plus $10.95 shipping Priority Mail.

More than 3 calendars ship $25.95 Priority Mail. All other details listed above apply to you as well.

Email me with the number of calendars you wish to purchase, payment method (Paypal, check or money order) and your shipping address, and I will send you an invoice.

Gifting someone? Want me to mail directly to your giftee? Not a problem. Just send that information in your email.

ORDER FROM THE PUBLISHER

I would recommend those of you who live outside of North America to order directly from the publisher, Lulu.com, a print on demand company. I want you to receive your calendar on time, and I cannot guarantee that if you order from me. Those of you who would rather receive your calendar before mid-December might want to order directly from Lulu. com as well.

Here is the link for ordering your calendar directly from Lulu.com.

Their ordering procedure is pretty self explanatory, and I'm sure you won't have any trouble ordering from the site.

Brightest blessings to you always on your path!

Sue O'Kieffe
Sacred Circle Mandalas

BRIGHT SPIRIT MANDALA

Bright Spirit Mandala (Circle of Awareness series) © Sue O'Kieffe 2009
source image: thistle gone to seed

To the illumined mind, the whole world burns and sparkles with light ~ Emerson

I love creating mandalas from photographs of things that have gone to seed. More than any other subject that I capture, plants at the seeming end of their growth cycle seem to show off the light within them. Of course, that growth cycle never really ends, as their seeds are scattered for the coming year. There is always that growth potential.

Bright Spirit Mandala shows that sizzling brilliance that is always inside of us and inside of our worlds, because really there is no separation. Thank you, thistle, for helping us see.

Brightest blessings to you on your path!

Sue O'Kieffe

Sacred Circle Mandalas

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AMANDLA! SHIELD MANDALA

Amandla! Shield (Circle of Awareness Series) © Sue O'Kieffe 2009
source image - unidentified autumn leaf

My computer had an attack of old age this past week that resulted in replacing her motherboard. By all accounts, this should keep her in good stead for a couple of years while I manifest the funds for a brighter lighter zippier system. My tech guys say Windows 7 looks pretty good. I thought it ironic the new O/S came out the same day I got the news about the needed repairs on my baby.

The first thing I had to do once plugged in was to create a new mandala.

A friend of mine told me that the word amandla was the Zulu word for power. Amandla! Awethu! means power to the people, and the phrase was the inspirational call to arms against apartheid in South Africa.

The vision suggested in this version is we are all powerfully connected to each other as elements of Hindu and Muslim cultures are blurred in with the central mandalic statement. I included Mehndi (henna tattoo) patterns and Arabic calligraphy in the field surrounding the mandala and blended them as a statement of oneness: Our cultural influences support the greater good. We Are All Powerful. The 13 rays suggest our own individual uniqueness within the great circle of life, as 13 is a number unique unto itself.

Finding our power and not giving it away to anyone or anything, I believe, is the ongoing quest of a lifetime.

Sue O'Kieffe
Sacred Circle Mandalas

(Mandala prices include shipping and handling)

Amandla!Shield

8.5"x11" $35.00 13"x19" $55.00

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