My camera has always been with me. On a cool evening in 1977 I walked into a nearby field to capture yet another sunset. The beauty was so unbearable my old enemy Melancholy appeared. I changed into my skin & sought God's relief. When it arrived, I wondered, "How do you photograph self comfort?" & made this picture. Forty-five years later I offer it to you with these verses (#26) from the The Radiance Sutras. (italics added.)
The One Who Is at Play Everywhere says,
There is a space in the heart where everything meets.
Come here if you want to find me.
Mind, senses, soul, eternity--all are here.
Are you here?
Enter the bowl of vastness that is the heart.
Listen to the song that is always resonating.
Give yourself to it with total abandon.
Quiet ecstasy is here,
And a steady, regal sense
Of resting in a perfect spot.
You who are the embodiment of blessing,
Once you know the way,
The nature of attention will call you to return.
Again and again, answer that call,
And be saturated with knowing,
"I belong here, I am at home."
Are we alone? Listen as "quiet ecstasy" whispers, "Come here if you want to find me."
-Erie Chapman
"Self Comfort" Double Self Portrait, Erie Chapman, 1978
