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Artist's Notes
I live in the woods and create A Pause for Beauty. It is an offering to the early morning, an effort to start the day right: words and images of beauty and reverence.
I'm fascinated by water
I work with water, and together we create art
And wild rivers are at the center of my life, my imagination
My quiet life. I find a peace paddling wild rivers and wilderness lakes
That I find no where else.
In the Tao, water is a spiritual force.
Water seeks lowly places
Humans seek the high
Water adapts to its container
Humans strive to make the container adapt to them
Water gives, nourishes the Earth.As of 2013, I've been publishing Heron Dance in one form or another for nineteen years. The Heron Dance Book Arts Collection is the culmination of that, my reflections from years on the road and years living in close connection with wild nature, offering art and words from deep inside my core, printed on archival, museum-grade paper and presented in a clamshell box. This year's collection, our first, is entitled The Journey Itself is Home.
- Roderick MacIver, artist, Heron Dance founder. Heron Dance began publishing in 1994. To read more about the history and thinking behind Heron Dance, visit here.
The highest motive in life is to be like water. It fights nothing or no one. It flows from and back to its source and in the flowing smooths and wears away all resistance.
- Taoist Proverb
Of all the elements, the sage should take water as the preceptor
Water is yielding but all-conquering.
Water extinguishes Fire, or finding itself likely to be defeated, escapes as steam and reforms.
Water washes away soft Earth, or when confronted with rocks, seeks a way around.
Water corrodes Iron till it crumbles to dust, it saturates the atmosphere so that Wind dies.
Water gives way to obstacles with deceptive humility, for no power can prevent it following its destined course to the sea.
Water conquers by yielding, it never attacks but always wins the last battle.
The sage who acts as water, is distinguished by humility, embraces passivity, acts from non-action, and conquers the world.
- Tao Cheng of Nan Yeo, 11th century Taoist scholarThe soft and the weak do not expect to overcome the hard and the strong. They simply do.
- Li Hung-Fu (1574)We can alter the course and shape of water, but we can't alter its basic nature to descend, by means of which it overcomes
the hardest and strongest things.
- Chu Ti-Huang (1885-1941)
Become a Friend of Heron Dance!
Friends keep Heron Dance going. While there is no obligation to support this work, Heron Dance survives on a meager budget, and any contribution you are able to make will be deeply appreciated and put to careful use.
Once Zhuangzi dreamt he was a butterfly, a butterfly flitting and fluttering around, happy with himself and doing as he pleased. He didn't know he was Zhuangzi. Suddenly he woke up and there he was, solid and unmistakable Zhuangzi. But he didn't know if he was Zhuangzi who had dreamt he was a butterfly, or a butterfly dreaming he was Zhuangzi. Between Zhuangzi and a butterfly there must be some distinction! This is called the Transformation of Things.
- Zhuangzi (also known as Chuang Tzu) 369-286 BC, Burton Watson translation
One yin and one yang is called the Tao. The passionate union of yin and yang and the copulation of the husband and wife is the eternal pattern of the universe. If heaven and earth did not mingle, whence would everything receive life?
- Ch'eng-tzu (1078-1144)
Taoism posits that man may gain knowledge of the universe by understanding himself.
. . . .
Do you have the patience to wait until the mud settles and the water is clear? Can you remain unmoving till the right action arises by itself?
- Tao Te Ching
my place is on Cold Mountain
perched on a cliff beyond the circuit of affliction
images leave no trace when they vanish
I roam the whole galaxy from here
lights and shadows flash across my mind
not one dharma comes before me
since I found the magic pearl
I can go anywhere everywhere it's perfect
. . . .
A mountain man lives under thatch
before his gate carts and horses are rare
the forest is quiet but partial to birds
the streams are wide and home to fish
with his son he picks wild fruit
with his wife he hoes between rocks
what does he have at home
a shelf full of nothing but books
- Hánshān, whose name translates literally into "Cold Mountain", 9th century from The Collected Songs of Cold Mountain as translated by Red Pine.
To support Heron Dance and become a Friend by mail:Heron Dance is just about to publish its first annual Book Arts Collection, an annual limited edition collection of art and reflections. The Book Arts Collection is art that fits on a bookshelf. The 2012 edition, The Journey Itself Is Home, includes 80 prints of Roderick MacIver paintings (over half of which are 24 inches wide and 12 inches high) and 26 poems enclosed in a portfolio, nested inside a clamshell box. Sitting on a bookshelf, it will look very much like a hardcover book. The collection is the ultimate expression of the work of Heron Dance. We’ve taken the money we used to put into mailing and digital printing each quarter, and created the highest quality collection we are able to create, a work of love. Click here to read more or order.
HERON DANCE ART STUDIO Hummingbird Lane 179 Rotax Road North Ferrisburgh, VT 05473To make a purchase, subscribe or become a Friend by email please message us at: heron@herondance.org. To make a purchase, subscribe or become a Friend by phone, call 802.234.3120. To send a gift announcement, use one of our e-cards.
Additional items and information on journaling:
This Diary inspires reflection on issues at the center of a life lived as art. It contains well over 100 poems by a wide variety of poets and watercolor sketches by Heron Dance artist Roderick MacIver inspired by life lived deep, by creative lives, by human journeys along the edges of our culture. To read more, click here. $45  |
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 A Poet's Moods: Perspectives on Journaling |
 Lined Journal Paper |
 Meditations Journal Binder to hold the The Art Journaling Daybook, A Poet's Moods (Perspectives on Journaling), Lined Journaling Paper, |
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To order the Meditations Journal Binder separately, add to cart below (shipped from Amazon). Cost: $20.00. For a description of the binder, click here.
To order the premium lined journal paper separately, add to cart below. Cost: $13.00. For a description of the paper, click here.
To order the binder and a set of premium lined journal paper together, add to cart below. Cost: $30.00 (this is a $3.00 discount off of ordering separately).
THANK YOU FOR BEING A PART OF THIS WORK!
We're glad you're along for the journey.
Nothing in the world is weaker than water
but against the hard and the strong
nothing outdoes it
for nothing can change it
the soft overcomes the hard
the weak overcomes the strong
this is something everyone knows
but no one is able to practice
thus the sage declares
who accepts a country's disgrace
we call the lord of soil and grain
who accepts a country's misfortune
we call ruler of all under Heaven
upright words sound upside down
- Tao te Ching, as translated by Red PineKuan-Tzu (645 BC Prime Minister of the state of Chi'i) commented:
Water is the source of creation, the ancestor of all living things. It's the bloodstream of the earth.
Wang P'ang (1044-1076 scholar and son of a Chinese prime minister) commented:
Water is the chief of the five elements. It comes from space which is not far from the Tao.
Ho-Shang Kung (159 BC, Taoist master who lived in a hut by the Yellow River—his name means Master Riverside) commented:
The nature of water is like the Tao: empty, clear and deep. As water empties, it gives life to others. It reflects without becoming impure, and there is nothing it cannot wash clean. Water can take any shape, and it is never out of touch with the seasons.
Hsuan-Tsung (712-762 Chinese emperor, poet and calligrapher, Taoist and Zen scholar) commented:
The nature of water is to stay low, to not struggle, and to take on the shape of its container. Thus, nothing is weaker. Yet despite such weakness it can bore through rocks. Rocks, however, cannot wear down water.
- Tao te Ching, as translated by Red Pine
The best are like water
bringing help to all
without competing
choosing what others avoid
hence approaching the Tao
dwelling with earth
thinking with depth
helping with kindness
speaking with honesty
governing with peace
working with skill
and moving with time
and because they don’t compete
they aren’t maligned
- The Tao Te Ching as translated by Stephen Mitchell (Chapter 8). . . .
Friend, I have watched you down the mountain
Till now in the dark I close my thatch door...
Grasses return again green in the spring,
But o my Prince of Friends, do you?
- Wang Wei, (699-759) “A Parting” translated by Witter Bynner
. . . .
[The] sound of the waters is audible to every ear, but there is other music in these hills, by no means audible to all. To hear even a few notes of it you must first live here for a long time, and you must know the speech of hills and rivers. Then on a still night, when the campfire is low and the Pleiades have climbed over rimrocks, sit quietly and listen for a wolf to howl, and think hard of everything you have seen and tried to understand. Then you may hear it – a vast pulsing harmony – its score inscribed on a thousand hills, its notes the lives and deaths of plants and animals, its rhythms spanning the seconds and the centuries.
- Aldo Leopold, from A Sand County Almanac
. . . .
The Master does his job
and then stops.
He understands that the universe
is forever out of control,
and that trying to dominate events
goes against the current of the Tao.
Because he believes in himself,
he doesn't try to convince others
Because he is content with himself,
he doesn't need others' approval.
Because he accepts himself,
the whole world accepts him.
For every force there is a counter force.
Violence, even well-intentioned,
always rebounds upon itself.
The Master does his job
and then stops.
He understands that the universe
is forever out of control,
and that trying to dominate events
goes against the current of the Tao.
Because he believes in himself,
he doesn't try to convince others
Because he is content with himself,
he doesn't need others' approval.
Because he accepts himself,
the whole world accepts him.
Who understands the world is learned;
Who understands the self is enlightened.
Who conquers the world has strength;
Who conquers the self has harmony.
Nothing in the world is as soft and yielding as water.
But none of the hard and the strong can overcome it.
For they can neither control nor do away with it.
Those who would take over the earth
And shape it to their will
Never, I notice, succeed.
The earth is like a vessel so sacred
That at the mere approach of the profane
It is marred
And when they reach out their fingers
It is gone.
- The Tao Te Ching as translated by Stephen Mitchell
. . . .
Even as we yearn for love, companionship and communion, we constantly defeat ourselves by questioning, asserting ourselves at the wrong times, or letting hatred and pride cloud our perceptions. Our alienation is self-generated.
- Deng Ming-Dao, 365 Tao, Daily MeditationsThe ancient masters of the Way
aimed at the indiscernible
and penetrated the dark
you would never know them
I describe them with reluctance
they were careful as if crossing a river in winter
cautious as if worried about neighbors
reserved like guests
ephemeral like melting ice
simple like uncarved wood
open like a valley
and murky like puddles
but a puddle becomes clear
when it's still
and stillness becomes alive when it's roused
those who treasure this Way
don't try to be seen
full not trying to be seen
they can hide and stay hiddenTs'ao Tao-Ch'ung (Sung Dynasty nun 960-1278) comments:
Although the ancient masters lived in the world, no one thought they were special.
Wang Chen (T'ang dynasty military general, 809) commented,
Those who treasure the Way fit in without making a show and stay forever hidden. Hence, they don't leave any tracks.
- Tao te Ching, as translated by Red Pine
The ancient masters were subtle, mysterious, profound, responsive.
The depth of their knowledge is unfathomable.
Because it is unfathomable,
All we can do is describe their appearance.
Watchful, like men crossing a winter stream.
Alert, like men aware of danger.
Courteous, like visiting guests.
Yielding like ice about to melt.
Simple, like uncarved blocks of wood.
Hollow, like caves.
Opaque, like muddy pools.
Who can wait quietly while the mud settles?
Who can remain still until the moment of action?
Observers of the Tao do not seek fulfillment.
Not seeking fulfillment, they are not swayed by desire for change.
- Tao te Ching, Gia-Fu Feng translation
If waters are placid, the moon will be mirrored perfectly. If we still ourselves, we can mirror the divine perfectly. But if we engage solely in the frenetic activities of our daily involvements, if we seek to impose our own schemes on the natural order, and if we allow ourselves to become absorbed in self-centered views, the surface of our waters becomes turbulent. Then we cannot be receptive to Tao.
There is no effort that we can make to still ourselves. True stillness comes naturally from moments of solitude where we allow our minds to settle. Just as water seeks its own level, the mind will gravitate toward the holy. Muddy water will become clear if allowed to stand undisturbed, and so too will the mind become clear if it is allowed to be still.
Neither the water nor the moon make any effort to achieve a reflection.
- Deng Ming-Dao, 365 Tao, Daily Meditations
