This painting is a reflection of my experiences as I undertook that journey. This walk passes through a land immersed in Islamic culture, as the Kashmiris are Muslim. As a consequence I have used as the etheric web of the painting in the form of the white dots a traditional Islamic pattern. 

The cave is at a height of 3,888 metres and is believed to be the spot where Bhole Shankar revealed the secrets of immortality and the creation of the universe to Maa Parvatiji. It is also believed to be the summer abode of Lord Shiva – one of the supreme gods of the Hindu trinity – the great yogi, the indefinable, the guardian of the absolute, the divine, the pure. Amarnath means the immortal god and the sign of his presence is the Shivalinga – the mark or sign of the supreme god. This Shivalinga is in the form of an ice stalagmite that waxes and wanes with the moon's cycles. Two smaller stalagmites represent Parvati, his wife and Ganesha, his son. 

This walk can be very testing as the cave is only accessible during July/August, the rest of the year it is covered in snow. As these are some of the highest mountains on earth it is not only an awesome walk but also dangerous. Indeed during the pilgrimage of 1996, 260 people died in one of those terrifying Himalayan storms that one can encounter at any time of the year in this region of the world.

Throughout the painting I have used photographs taken during my experience. As the pilgrimage took place during the July moon of 1980 it coincided with the 13th moon of the year in the Dreamspell Calendar and took place in the Year of the White Cosmic Wizard ruling endurance, transcendence and emphasizing timelessness and enchantment.

In the heart of Shiva, rather than the traditional twelve petalled Anahata Chakra I have used thirteen petals, symbolizing the Thirteen Moons one lives through during each transit of Earth around the Sun. This symbol is personally more appropriate and meaningful for me, especially in view of the fact that the Shivalinga waxes and wanes with the Moon's cycles and I find that living from my Heart center is much more easily achieved when I align myself consciously with the cycles of nature.

With gratitude to all those wonderful Indian souls who helped enrich and ennoble this personal journey as I found myself the only soul of European descent on this journey with the exception of my traveling companion, Tim. This painting is dedicated to Tim who fell to his death within one moon of this pilgrimage while attempting to scale Mount Changabang in another profoundly sacred region of the Himalayas.

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