dennisdonohue on DeviantArthttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/https://www.deviantart.com/dennisdonohue/art/Yggdrasil-96783235dennisdonohue

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Daily Deviation

October 4, 2008
Yggdrasil by ~dennisdonohue is an ambitious piece that surely fulfills every expectation: 600 hours of work on little over a year to produce this "...most recent work that depicts Yggdrasil/the World Tree in many different ethnicities, as well as a chain of evolution through the trunk, and in a third aspect is a lesson in Kundalini Yoga". It shows.
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Yggdrasil

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In Norse mythology, Yggdrasil is the World Tree, a great ash tree located at the center of the universe and joining the nine worlds of Norse cosmology. The trunk of the tree may be thought of as forming a vertical axis around which these worlds are situated, with Ásgard, realm of the gods, at the top and the Hel, located in Niflheim, at the bottom. Midgard, our world that is inhabited by humans, is located in the middle and surrounded by Jötunheim, land of Jötunn, both of which are separated by the ocean.

According to Atiteco myth, The existence of the Flowering Mountain Earth precedes that of the world as it is known today. Before there was a world, a lone tree stood in the center of all that existed. As the creation of the world approached, the tree was impregnated and its branches grew a single fruit of each thing known to humankind. In addition to physical objects such as rocks, it grew lightening and even segments of time. As the tree bore more and more fruit, it was no longer able to support everything which grew upon it, and so the fruit fell, smashing open upon the ground and scattering seeds about. These seeds took root and grew, nurtured by the original tree and protected beneath its canopy, eventually crowding out the Father/Mother (Ti Tie Ti Tixel).

The Tree of Life, or Etz haChayim ( עץ החיים ) in Hebrew, is a mystical symbol within the Kabbalah of esoteric Judaism used to describe the path to God and the manner in which He created the world ex nihilo (out of nothing). The Kabbalists developed this concept into a full model of reality, using the tree to depict a "map" of creation. The tree of life has been called the "cosmology" of the Kabbalah. In kabbalah, Etz Chaim is a mystical symbol used to understand the nature of God and the manner in which He created the world.

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Kundalini (kuṇḍalinī is कुण्डलिनी in Sanskrit), literally "coiled". In Indian yoga, a "corporeal energy" - an unconscious, instinctive or libidinal force or Shakti - envisioned either as a goddess or else as a sleeping serpent coiled at the base of the spine, hence a number of English renderings of the term such as 'serpent power'. Kundalini is considered a part of the subtle body along with chakras (energy centres) and nadis (channels). The overall conception has many points in common with Chinese acupuncture.

Yoga and Tantra propose that this energy may be "awoken" by such means as austerities, breath and other physical exercises, visualization and chanting. It may then rise up a subtle channel at the spine (called Sushumna) to the head, bringing psychological illumination. Each chakra is said to contain special characteristics. Yogis tend to attempt this alone, Tantrics in couples, both usually under the instruction of a guru.

When Kundalini Shakti is conceived as a goddess then, when it rises to the head it unites itself with the Supreme Being (Lord Shiva). The aspirant gets engrossed in deep meditation and infinite bliss.
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DavidRNagyArt's avatar

Absolutely beautiful!