The Halcyon Temple
The Halcyon Temple was created to be a bright interval of peace set in the midst of adversity. Based on the Greek myth of
, the dome seeks to embody a place of unexpected rest from the outside world.
The imagery on the outside of the temple is made of sacred geometry focused on connection with nature and calling calming energies in.
The screen prints all focus around Khepri, the Egyptian sun god of creation, who gets up daily to roll the sun across the sky for us. He is the god of rebirth and transcendence.
The digital images on the North, East and West flags are all of intentional festival spaces that have personally shifted something for the artist.
The inside the temple there is a centrepiece chandelier made of amethyst to soothe the mind and emotions and anchor the energy of the space.
Photo by Chandra Moon
The guardian image of Alycyone flits throughout the chandelier, declaring that this space is meant to be protected.
On the altar in the middle sits Horus, the Egyptian god of resurrection and watchful protection. Horus is the sky, his eyes the sun and the moon, and he watches over all creation, the uniter of the lands of the living and the dead.
The temple is focused on calling in any deified being of unconditional love to protect and provide rest for the inhabitants of the temple.
Throughout the week I saw this temple very successfully fulfilling its purpose.The altar was filled will flowers picked from the field throughout the week, and there was rarely a time when I saw the space without an inhabitant.
Honestly, I seldom felt like entering. Normally when I do installations like this I go in and check on people, see how the vibe feels, take some photos, etc. It takes some managing. But at Solstice, the feeling of calm I got from it was so apparent that I had no worries about managing the vibe.
It was nice that the dome wasn’t skinned and you could look through into the inside of the temple. I walked by often on my way to the pond, peeking in at those in a state of worship. There was often only one or two people inside, silently sitting in a meditative pose or talking to one another quietly. I saw several acts of prostration, prayer, as well as some chanting. It filled my heart with joy every time I saw.
Unlike much of the work that I do which is focused on bringing community into a space to connect, the spirit of the Halcyon Temple desired to be something different. It chose to be quiet and safe, allowing for a space of solitude, ease and harmoniousness.
All of the feedback that has come so far was that the space succeeded in being a point of calm and spiritual connection for people at the festival. I was so grateful that I could be a channel for a space that was useful.
I really believe that non-denominational temple space is so important for people. We live in a climate of transience that is becoming unattached to place or culture. For me creating nomadic spaces where individuals can connect to something greater than themselves is essential in helping to create a world where people feel an ethics of responsibility to each other and the planet.
Thank you so much to all of the organizers and participants who make this festival such a magical space. It truly is one of the rare gems of the world.
Early morning meditation in the Halcyon dome @ #omsolsticegathering2016
A video posted by megadaze (@megadaze) on Jul 1, 2016 at 5:25am PDT
Video by Megan Faith Stiver
