“The leaf of every tree brings a message from the Unseen world. Look, every falling leaf is a blessing” - Rumi
I found this little 1.5 inch by 2.5 inch leaf on a morning adventure walk around the neighborhood and was compelled to pick it up and paint upon it to preserve it.
After weeks of waiting patiently for it to dry so I could paint it like a paper, I guilded the incredibly fragile leaf in gold and waited again.
Then, I transferred a delicate Tehzib pattern, modified by the droplet composition with S-spiraled branches
And finally, with trembling, untrained hands, I used the finest of brushes to slowly and patiently paint the pattern.
To say it was a labor of love and that I am hooked to the bliss of falling down the rabbit hole of “Tehzib” is an understatement.
The beauty, symmetry and patience within the art of illumination is completed as an act of devotion to the Divine.
The Kaaba in the base of the design represents Divine Source in the existence of everything in the Universe.
“Doing as others told me, I was blind. Coming when others called me, I was lost. Then I left everyone, myself as well. Then, I found everyone, myself as well”...
“You’re a leaf, scattered by an invisible wind. Don’t you know something is moving you?” - Rumi
