Refine thy rapture. —Aleister Crowley
The preparation for this talk feels guided and orchestrated
beyond my control. Each day in my community, I meet wisdom-keepers sharing
succinct and relevant gems from their life learning. My process is partly to
compile this collective research on themes related to time, ritual, cycles and
creation. I started to ask those near me to reflect one-word responses to these
four themes, resulting in an anthropological survey to stimulate the universal
connections in the foundation of my talk.
“The woman on the stage is weaving wonder, not witchcraft.
But her skills are potent as any sorcery.” In Chris Anderson’s TED Talks
guidebook, I found immediate connection to this element of magic and power in
the journey of spreading a message worth sharing. An initial doubt around
sharing this language in potential to lose credibility was shed. It is in fact important
to address this authentic, common though visceral experience. What if we
acknowledge our connectedness, these small wonders that reassure us each we are
on our path?
The opportunity to communicate widely, with such support and
encouragement is daunting, but also feels natural in my life trajectory. 5
years ago, my story appeared in a collective journal bound by Levi’s jeans and
TED India, exhibited at TED Global 2011 in Edinburgh. It is a time of sharing.
Curiosity, originality, universality, and joy are underlying
this preparation. In the collecting, distilling and editing of information, it is also a synthesis of wisdom into symbolic and image form. I hope to
create a mandala on stage while speaking, which would be revealed at the end of
the talk.
Celebrating Onam, the Kerala harvest festival, I recognize
the need to find an inner center and calm while riding the wave of abundance in
my life.
With gratitude,
Krupa Jhaveri, BFA, MPS, TIEATC
International Art Therapist & Art Director
Trauma-Informed Expressive Arts Therapy Consultant
TEDxWilmington Women Speaker on Art as Ritual & Resilience (October 27, 2016)