L’arte del simbolo

From the great temples of India carved into the rock to the spiers of the Sagrada Familia, art is the source and bearer of symbols. For Raimon Panikkar the symbol is essential to the life of man and of every civilization. For the first time his writings on the subject are collected together, and the images allow us to contemplate his words

For Pannikar the lack of a symbolic life is the biggest gap in our societies. Man is handicapped, he has no bridges with the sense of everyday life and with the infinite. Man recognizes the symbol above all in nature. Kailash is the sacred mountain of Hindus and other religions; it is excellence, the symbol that unites man with heaven and destiny. Panikkar himself, in old age and at the risk of his own life, made a pilgrimage to Kailash, in present-day Tibet.

Man recognizes the symbols in nature (mountains, trees, fire, water), and reconstructs them with his own hands: he has the art of the symbol to create bridges with meaning. The symbolic man becomes an artist man, images are born from him, buildings, miniatures, architecture, music. Shiva, who while dancing creates the universe symbolized by a circle from which fires shine, is one of the most engaging images of humanity.