The Big Fish: Consciousness as Structure, Body and Space. (Consciousness, Literature and the Arts)

While debate continues in the fields of the sciences and humanities as to the nature of consciousness and the location of consciousness in the brain or as a field phenomenon, in the Vedic tradition, consciousness has been understood and continues to be articulated as an infinite field of intelligence at the basis of all forms of existence. This infinite field of intelligence is accessible to human awareness, being the very nature of the mind and the structuring dynamics of the physiology-from the DNA, to the cell, tissues, organs, and to the whole body and its sophisticated functioning. This two-part volume, The Big Fish: Consciousness as Structure, Body and Space, considers in Part One the Vedic approach to consciousness, specifically referencing Maharishi Vedic Science, and discusses themes pertinent to the arts, including perception and cognition, memory as awareness, history and culture, artistic performance and social responsibility, observatory instruments as spaces and structures to enhance consciousness, and, beyond metaphor, architectural sites as multi-layered enclosures of the brain detailed in the Shrimad Devi Bhagavatam and, as cosmic habitat or Vastu aligned to the celestial bodies. Presenting some more general consciousness-based readings, Part Two includes essays by various authors on Agnes Martin and her views on art, perfection and the "Classic", unified field based education and freedom of expression versus censorship in art, prints from the Renaissance to the contemporary era as allegories of consciousness, the work of Australian artist Michael Kane Taylor as beyond a modern /postmodern dichotomy, the photographic series The Ocean of Beauty by Mark Paul Petrick referencing the Vedic text the Saundarya-Lahari, a Deleuzian analysis of the dual-screen multi-arts work Reverie I, and an account of the making of Reverie II, a single-screen video projection inspired by the idea of dynamics of awareness. This book, therefore, presents a broad range of interests and reading while offering a unique, yet profoundly transformative perspective on consciousness Annotation. "While debate continues in the fields of the sciences and humanities as to the nature of consciousness and the location of consciousness in the brain or as a field phenomenon, in the Vedic tradition, consciousness has been understood and continues to be articulated as an infinite field of intelligence at the basis of all forms of existence. This infinite field of intelligence is accessible to human awareness, being the very nature of the mind and the structuring dynamics of the physiology - from the DNA, to the cell, tissues, organs, and to the whole body and its sophisticated functioning." "This two-part volume, The Big Fish: Consciousness as Structure, Body and Space, considers in Part One the Vedic approach to consciousness, specifically referencing Maharishi Vedic Science, and discusses themes pertinent to the arts, including perception and cognition, memory as awareness, history and culture, artistic performance and social responsibility, observatory instruments as spaces and structures to enhance consciousness, and, beyond metaphor, architectural sites as multi-layered enclosures of the brain detailed in the Shrimad Devi Bhagavatam and, as cosmic habitat or Vastu aligned to the celestial bodies." "Presenting some more general consciousness-based readings, Part Two includes essays by various authors on Agnes Martin and her views on art, perfection and the "Classic", unified field based education and freedom of expression versus censorship in art, prints from the Renaissance to the contemporary era as allegories of consciousness, the work of Australian artist Michael Kane Taylor as beyond a modern / postmodern dichotomy, the photographic series The Ocean of Beauty by Mark Paul Petrick referencing the Vedic text the Saundarya-Lahari, a Deleuzian analysis of the dual-screen multi-arts work Reverie II, and an account of the making of Reverie II, a single-screen video projection inspired by the idea of dynamics of awareness."--Jacket Table of Contents 6 Acknowledgements 8 Contributors 10 Introduction 12 Part One: Infinite Mind/Infinite Body: Awakening and Re-envisioning Consciousness 22 1. Preamble—What is Consciousness? 24 2. In Sight—Cognition or Darshana: Expanding Artistic Vision 56 3. Memory as Smriti—100% Wakefulness The Seat of Creativity and Retrieval 98 4. Performance as Yagya or Offering: Socially Responsible, Transformational Art 136 5. Capturing Light—Outer and Inner The Maharishi Vedic Observatory as Site Specific Cosmic Structure, Astronomically Aligned Monuments and Sun-Dependent Art 182 6. In Visible Cities: Metaphor? Or Body and Built Environment as Structures of Wholeness 246 Part Two: Expressions, Visions, Perspectives 292 Foreword 294 7. Agnes Martin on Beauty and Perfection in Art 296 8. Unified Field Based Art Education: Toward a Socially Responsible College Art Curriculum 308 9. Allegories of Consciousness: Perfection in Printmaking from the Renaissance 318 10. Signs of Reconciliation—Prints by Michael Kane Taylor 326 11. Ocean of Beauty In the Mind of the Beholder—A Suite of Photographs by Mark Paul Petrick 348 12. Deleuzian Sensation and Unbounded Consciousness in Reverie I 354 13. Reverie II: Revelation, Consciousness and Peace 364 14. 1 Stands Out 382 Bibliography 386 Part One: Infinite Mind/Infinite Body 386 Part Two: Expressions, Visions, Perspectives 400 Glossary of Sanskrit Terms 408 A 408 B 408 C 409 D 409 G 410 H 410 I 411 J 411 K 411 L 412 M 412 N 413 P 413 R 414 S 414 T 415 U 416 V 416 Y 417 Content: Table of Contents Acknowledgements Contributors Introduction Part One: Infinite Mind/Infinite Body: Awakening and Re-envisioning Consciousness 1. Preamble--What is Consciousness? 2. In Sight--Cognition or Darshana: Expanding Artistic Vision 3. Memory as Smriti--100% Wakefulness The Seat of Creativity and Retrieval 4. Performance as Yagya or Offering: Socially Responsible, Transformational Art 5. Capturing Light--Outer and Inner The Maharishi Vedic Observatory as Site Specific Cosmic Structure, Astronomically Aligned Monuments and Sun-Dependent Art. 6. In Visible Cities: Metaphor? Or Body and Built Environment as Structures of WholenessPart Two: Expressions, Visions, Perspectives Foreword 7. Agnes Martin on Beauty and Perfection in Art 8. Unified Field Based Art Education: Toward a Socially Responsible College Art Curriculum 9. Allegories of Consciousness: Perfection in Printmaking from the Renaissance 10. Signs of Reconciliation--Prints by Michael Kane Taylor 11. Ocean of Beauty In the Mind of the Beholder--A Suite of Photographs by Mark Paul Petrick 12. Deleuzian Sensation and Unbounded Consciousness in Reverie I. 13. Reverie II: Revelation, Consciousness and Peace14. 1 Stands Out Bibliography Part One: Infinite Mind/Infinite Body Part Two: Expressions, Visions, Perspectives Glossary of Sanskrit Terms A B C D G H I J K L M N P R S T U V Y.