THE HEARTBEAT OF AFRICA IS CREATED BY RHYTHMIC DRAWINGS OF ANCIENT CULTURE,
in which the material world is continuously interacting with other world. Art, music, dance, and all life is penetrated by constant interaction with the world of spirits and gods. The African myths about creation of the world often bring up the ideas that we are all children of one god and have grown from the same roots.
Ezeulu’s dance
This is a dance of Ezeulu, the shaman of Ulu — the supreme deity of one of the Igbo villages. During the celebration of fresh pumpkin leaves the shaman serves as a mediator between spiritual and material world; he dances on the village square the dance – pledge for the indulgence of sins for all village. The half of his body painted with chalk is of spirit; the dark one – of earth. He holds in hands sticks of wood and of iron, which repel evil forces. At certain moment of the dance all women of the village throw down under his feet fresh pumpkin leaves symbolizing sins. The drawing created based on the book “Arrow of the God by nigerian writer Chinua Achebe.
Ugoye and Akueke are going to a holiday of fresh pumpkin leaves
In Africa, at nigerian Igbo tribe, the holiday of fresh pumpkin leaves is celebrated. It represents a ceremony of clarification from sins. Each woman specially grows up a pumpkin to collect leaves for the holiday. The women dressed and brushed for celebration, beautifully paint the bodies with ritual drawings and gather on the village square, everyone with bouquette of pumpkin leaves. During magic dance of shaman they throw leaves under his feet, preliminary having murmured apologies for sins, her own and also of husband and children. After the dance of the shaman, the women of the village run around the square until all leaves will be transformed into a dust. The description of this holiday is taken from the book of nigerian writer Chinua Achebe “Arrow of God”
Harmony of a living fire of the earth
The particles of a living fire – divine spirit are contained everywhere: in girl, in trees, in mountains. When Harmony of a living Fire is not disturbed by some outside influence, the Nature itself creates Beauty. A bowl in hands of girl symbolize the heart filled with energy of love.
All colors in this graphics symbolize the supreme spiritual qualities or ways of development of human spirit..
I painted my kalabash myself, but who painted this fruit?
In Africa women paint calabashes and embroider clothes, they are very beautiful, and their things not only possess high art value, but also have coded in colors and geometrical figures sense. For example, looking at the embroidered skirt or painted calabash much is possible to tell about the woman who has created it. Who is she, where lives, whether is married and how many children has. So the woman on the graphics looking at the fruit painted by the Nature, is going to find out secrets of the mysterious Craftwoman.
Temptation with fruit
Adam and Eve, the tree of knowledge of good and evil, in the African interpretation. Various allegories always connected the snake with a tree of a life and the first person. These themes could be encountered in legends of all world, but interestingly that snake is always wise and deeply esteemed in them. Ophytes considered, that it is necessary to thank constantly the snake for the invaluable contribution to development of human knowledge and wisdom. For this reason names Snake or Dragon were given to the Wise men, the devoted Adherents. Vessels hanging above the ground, mean the beginning of involution of spirit in a matter, they are opened, and the supreme energy sleeping in them till a time, will begin the distribution as soon as the woman will tear off a fruit. Here the last second of silence, fragile balance of a dream which happens right before the awakening is embodied.
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