DON’T PUSH
Hello, it has been a while. Life has an interesting way of rearranging a few things with little notice. Since my last blog post in September 2016, I have been caught up in exactly just that. In the days that followed, I found myself in this inevitable phase that every […]
And It Still Feels Like Home
Home is the place where, when you have to go there, they have to take you in. — Robert Frost Nearly four decades later, Kelantan still feels like home to me.
Walking Through the Doorway of Memory
“Memories are a funny thing. Sometimes they disappear without your permission and you can search through the landscape of your mind, but they remain hidden. Other times they come back, again without your permission. In your unguarded moments, in places you never expect. They can come back warped and incomplete. […]
Confucius Wisdom
A common man marvels at uncommon things; a wise man marvels at the commonplace. — Confucius
Return to Africa
When I visited Egypt and Morocco in 2004 and 2006 respectively, I thought there was something more to Africa, something that would only unravel outside of these northern African countries. As much as I had enjoyed my travels then, I was determined to see the real Africa one day. Ironically, […]
Nothing, Everything
Yūgen is a Japanese word pertaining to a profound awareness of the universe which evokes emotions that are inexplicably deep and too mysterious for words. Here in the far north eastern corner of Tasmania, Yūgen came to me whilst I was watching the sunset on the beach. It was my most […]
Heaven’s Here on Earth
Tracey Chapman’s music keeps me company tonight, as I revisit some old travel journals: You can look to the stars in search of the answers Look for God and life on distant planets Have your faith in the ever after While each of us holds inside the map to the […]
His Ageless Face
The door to the monastery was shut tight and there was not a single sound or movement inside. I had not come all the way to give up easily so knock, knock, knock I did whilst expecting my effort to be met with silence. But the door opened, and in […]
The Absolute Works with Nothing
The Absolute works with nothing. The workshop, the materials are what does not exist. Try and be a sheet of paper with nothing on it. Be a spot of ground where nothing is growing, where something might be planted, a seed, possibly, from the Absolute. — Rumi Translated by Coleman Barks
Above and Beyond
The Buddha teaches us to see above cause, beyond effect; above birth and beyond death; above happiness and beyond suffering.
Thinking of Nepal
The images from quake-stricken Nepal are of devastation, grief and mourning. The stories we read break our hearts and leave us feeling helpless that we couldn’t do more to help. That is being human. That is what is expected of human tragedies of that magnitude. I have been to Nepal […]
Purpose
This passage from 365 TAO Daily Meditation by Deng Ming-Dao resonates at so many levels: Suddenly, things snap into focus. I’ve been pursuing unity all my life, But could only glimpse the monstrous vision in fragments; It has haunted me for years. Each time I sighted it, I struggled to […]
Portrait of Nature – Myriads of Gods
I came across ‘Portrait of Nature — Myriads of Gods’ a few nights ago and was touched in such a profound way that I saw it three times back to back! It is a documentary about Japanese photographer Nobuyuki Kobayashi’s feel for divinity in nature, his artistic expression of its […]
A Nudge
I have recently returned from a two-week visit to Wellington. With it being February, it was a great time to visit. The balmy days of late summer delivered many special moments spent with family doing things and doing nothing altogether. And my niece’s coming of age celebration was the icing […]
New Year, New Look
Happy New Year! A year ago I did something that I thought I would never do: I started blogging for the first time! Now this was a big deal for me because other than the want to take the first step in manifesting what my heart was nudging me to, […]
Zen Things
The new year or any time during the year is as good a time for me to make resolutions, but as 2014 draws to a close, it is natural to pause and reflect on the year past and renew intentions for the coming year. Here are twelve things on the […]
Walking to the Beat of my Own Heart
I walk to the beat of my own heart as there is no other beat I can attune myself to.
Returning is Renewal
Lately a lot of my time has been spent on professionally inspired activities, taking me away from the working of my book. They are all good, seemingly offering boundless possibilities to satisfy my appetite for creativity. No complaint there. All human endeavours, however, are temporary and provisional. At the end […]
A Tribute to the Alps
My previous post was written just before I left for Europe to attempt the Walkers’ Haute Route. I am now home having completed the trek, and done some city walking in Budapest, Paris and Hong Kong. So, it’s back into routines, back to the every day. Life clicks right back […]
The Call of the Mountains
I have been busy preparing and training for the Walker’s Haute Route, a 188km trek that starts in Chamonix (France) and ends in Zermatt (Switzerland). It is a strenuous route that traverses below the summits of ten out of the twelve of the highest peaks in the Alps, and crosses […]
Impressions of Japan
I got tired of lugging tons of cameras and film with me so I thought I would keep it simple on my recent trip to Japan – only an old Nikon film camera, a toy camera Holga, a brand new digital camera Lumix GM1 and some rolls of film. This […]
Giving Shape
Inspired by my recent travel to Malaysia, I am keen to give shape to ideas for a special section of the book. Focussing on idea development by way of designing pages in a physical book mockup helps tremendously, so I am going to keep at it.
The Invisible Thread
I have been traveling for the last three weeks: Takayama, Tsumago and Nagoya in Japan; Penang and Kota Bharu in Malaysia. Here in my birthplace, Kota Bharu, I am finally finding time to reflect more deeply on the journey thus far. I have come to this town for a small […]
The Tunnel
I took time for solitude last Sunday: a solo bike ride on the Great Victorian Rail Trail (the longest continuous rail trail in Australia). It is not something that I seek on a regular basis, for I lead a fairly simple, mindful life always with time for introspection. But solitude […]
Mothers
I owe to my mother (top left photo shows me at 10 weeks’ old) for everything that I am. Happy Mother’s Day to all mothers around the globe. No gift to your mother can ever equal her gift to you – life. — Annonymous
Tell Me What You See
There is one thing that I notice about working on this book: I find new details in some of my images which I had previously missed or dismissed for technical and/or aesthetic reasons. I remember noticing the child’s chubby cheeks and her big black eyes when I took this photo. […]
The Guest House Revisited
My restlessness finally got the better of me, so I decided to put on my art director’s hat and have a play with the page layout. I picked The Guest House as a starter, and included two additional images on a double spread. Other than the book size, I have […]
Our Light
Recently, I had a discussion with a friend on how each of us could help heal the world. A peaceful and loving world does not have to start with a revolution; rather, it starts from our own awakened state. Our quest for truth, wisdom and knowledge bring us closer to […]
This Body Is Not Me
This body is not me. I am not limited by this body. I am life without boundaries. I have never been born, and I have never died. Look at the ocean and the sky filled with stars, manifestations from my wondrous true mind. Since before time, I have been free. […]
Soul Baring
I am visiting Wellington to mark my grandmother’s passing a year ago. The little time that I have outside family commitments, I am glad I get to spend with a new artist friend who has, perhaps unwittingly, shown me a thing or two about following one’s heart and in that […]
Three Months
Three months ago, I took the first step in realising a dream that I have been harbouring for a long time: to weave the stories, experiences, insights, and perspectives gained from the lessons on my journeys into a book. This blog was conceived to share my book authoring experience. Nineteen […]
Butterfly Sighting
I was curating some photos last night, in preparation for a special chapter in the book. A myriad of emotions came over me, as I revisited the period of my dear grandmother’s suffering before her passing last April. A moth appeared from nowhere, and fluttered in front of the computer […]
The Berber Girl and Her Half Smile
I encountered this young, beautiful Berber girl and her little brother outside their desolute cave home during my trek in the High Atlas Mountains. The boy was curious about my camera whereas his sister was quietly sitting there, taking it all in and only spoke in her barely audible voice […]
Where We Come From
Look, and it can’t be seen. Listen, and it can’t be heard. Reach, and it can’t be grasped. Above, it isn’t bright. Below, it isn’t dark. Seamless, unnamable, it returns to the realm of nothing. Form that includes all forms, image without an image, subtle, beyond all conception. Approach it […]
Roots
I left my birth place some thirty five years ago. Even though it was my parents’ decision, I left with an eager heart of a young teenager, and an idealistic mind that only wanted to see the world as an utopia which didn’t include that little town nestled in what […]
Tao
I would like to share an excerpt I have been contemplating on tonight. It’s from Tao Te Ching (the Book of the Way), which is the classic text of Taoism, the ancient Chinese school of thought: There was something formless and perfect before the universe was born. It is serene. […]
Childhood Friends
This is one of my favourite photos taken at an orphanage in Kathmandu, where I spent sometime as a volunteer in 2007. I remember how this image came to be captured clearly. It was my second day at the orphanage, and these boys had just come inside from a basketball […]
Breathe
I have been tossing some images and words around, struggling to qualify them so they can take their rightful place in the book. It seems the more I analyse and deliberate, the further I am from finding what I am looking for. It has been frustrating. In times like this […]
Sand
You don’t even have to understand the desert: all you have to do is contemplate a simple grain of sand, and you will see in it all the marvels of creation. — The Alchemist.
Desert Salesman
He couldn’t have been more than 13 or 14, but he had the demeanour of a man three times his age. He carried his wares — mostly fossils — in his shoulder bag, and convinced me to take a look at them. I was curious about the origin of the […]
The Guest House
This being human is a guest house. Every morning a new arrival. A joy, a depression, a meanness, some momentary awareness comes as an unexpected visitor. Welcome and entertain them all! Even if they are a crowd of sorrows, who violently sweep your house empty of its furniture, still, treat […]
Man. Superman. God
There was a big crowd in front of the Christchurch Cathedral on this glorious winter day, 3 July 2006. The national rugby team, the All Blacks was on stage in front of the Cathedral signing autographs. It wasn’t exactly my scene, so in this instance I’d rather be an observer […]
Time
I have been thinking a lot about time, how it has flown and how it is passing. The past increases, the future recedes. No doubt this heightened sense of time has been brought about by recent life events and precious two months spent with ageing parents over the New Year. […]
Finding Stillness in the Simplest Moments
For in that stillness, I may just hear the ocean whisper the secrets of eternity.
A Gift
So I had a birthday a few days ago. A milestone birthday. A surprise gift came in the post. It was a beautiful oil painting by my 14-year-old goddaughter. I was delighted to say the least, not only by Cheryl’s thoughtfulness but also by the juxtaposition of meanings and symbolism […]
The Sun Never Sets
The title alone should suffice, but I think the following excerpt from Rumi’s Say I Am You would complete this sunset image taken on the Great Ocean Road: I am dust particles in sunlight. I am the round sun. To the bits of dust I say, Stay. To the sun, […]
Welcome
Happy New Year and Welcome to my blog. Before me lay one hundred and eight pages. One hundred and eight EMPTY pages! Other than a metaphorical compass pointing to my intended purpose for a book, I have almost nothing else at this stage. No form, no structure, no concrete theme. […]
