Commentary

Original idea arose during a midnight walk through Riftswood (Saltburn by the Sea, UK) in early December 2006. The basis for drawing stems from the view of the tree of life as looking up to the top from the base - on all four points of the compass (hence four apparent trees of life forming a diamond/pyramid). At the heart of this diamond sits the shamanic mushroom Amanita Muscaria, representing the divine egg of life and knowledge. Inside this egg are the symbols for male and female - represented either side by dark and light (see the way the light hits the mushroom). The mushroom/egg is asexual and contains equal parts from both sexes. This cosmic egg is back-lit by a sun symbol (also representative of the four main compass points). Surrounding the egg/mushroom is a permeable rainbow, symbolic of an egg’s outer membrane. This membrane is surrounded by a ring of Psilocybe Semilanceata mushrooms that are symbolic of the sperm trying to enter the egg and perform the miracle that is conception. Below the four-pointed diamond/tree of life sits another tree (as seen from below) with a red pentacle behind it. This is symbolic of the underworld/subconscious and also allows a cruciform (the cross being the symbol for Osiris - the Egyptian god of life, death and fertility) to be made by using all the tree-tops (the green circles). Above the tree of life structure sits a looped snake which represents knowledge and the reptilian dna inherent within some. The looping of the snake above the tree of life allows the whole image to be seen as the Egyptian Ankh - the ancient symbol for life. Inside the snake is one of the famous NASA ‘tether’ ufo’s - a pointer towards possible alien/human hybridisation in our past, or indeed our future. To the West, above the tree sits a stylised owl. The owl resides in the dark and can see well - it has shall we say illuminated vision. To the East, above the tree sits Bast - the divine feline and ancient feminine goddess of the Birth Chamber - also a sun idol. She sits facing East towards the rising sun and blessed light and acts as protector of the sacred egg. Surrounding the whole image is a flowing ring of Ipomoea Violacea (Morning Glory) - this plant contains the compound LSA which is similar and related to LSD, the hallucinogenic compound used by mystics, truthseekers and the illuminati. Behind the whole image the base colours used are indigo blue and black. These are used to produce a subtle oval (symbolic of Isis and the womb) which can be used to represent an eye by turning the picture on its side and viewing the whole image.