A good friend of mine here in Asheville recently bought her first house. We met in a meditation class in 2006 (I think) and have taken so many meditation, herbalism, flower essence, essential oil, and energy healing classes together that I couldn’t count them all if I tried.
She wanted me to paint an emerald green heart chakra yantra on her bedroom wall next to her bed. A yantra is a geometric image that contains the energy of whatever spiritual property is being depicted. There are yantras for each of the chakras, as well as different deities and energies in the hindu tradition. It’s a concept that isn’t limited to Hinduism, of course, but this particular style and word seems to be mostly aligned with Hinduism and the yogic tradition. I honestly don’t know who first created them but I find them really beautiful to look at and love that they are believed to contain the very essence and energy of that which they depict. Each yantra can have endless interpretations. Some are very simple and focus on the lines, some have specific colors with meaning attached, and some are incredibly complex and beautiful- expounded upon by the artist’s vision. We kept it simple with these.
The lighting in this photo makes it seem darker than in is in real life.
In her other room, she wanted the yantra of the throat chakra.
She wanted it to be seen from the living room and the side door when you enter the house.
I’m very happy with how they turned out and she is too- although she is on vacation and hasn’t seen them in person yet. It’ll be a nice treat for her to come home from the beach with some new art up in her home. They’re hand painted and imperfect, and that’s what makes it special. They’re clearly not a vinyl sticker- they are painted by a human’s hand, carrying with them a living, divine energy.
HARPER LEICH 