02
Oct

Demonstration 1510

2015/10/02
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to explain the process a bit…

this was close to my 15th attempt to record a creation with these stones.. nearly gave up many times, both cuz it was getting late and because the location was less than ideal for making a complex hairline arrangement. nowhere to sit, so crouching or standing became the only practical options. standing while bending over is hard on the back, whereas crouching is hard on the knees and feet. This is why i’m standing here to begin with. balancing the base and column are usually less strenuous weight-wise, tis more problem solving complimentary angles. then, when i get closer to adding the top, i crouch down temporarily to use my back strength more. Also, it seems, the closer my perspective is to the critical (top) balance point, the more stability i sense through my hands. Also the forehead makes a risky but useful extra stabilizer for large top rocks. :)

It takes awhile for the creation to develop here because so much attention must go into placing the foundation with foresight of the total top weight. Why? because things can change drastically (even dangerously) once the large top is added to a hairline counterbalance where everything rides as close to the opposing limits as possible (“as impossible as possible”). . . these high tension arrangements have an incredible feeling to the touch when they lock together more and more toward zero. I look pretty motionless for much of the video, but in my mind’s eye, it kinda feels like navigating inside a colorless Rubik’s cube of contact vibrations and threads that i really don’t even have all the words to describe. purely experiential! and i’d say the few moments before zero are the most uncertain. when letting go becomes a bit of a guessing game, riding the line between balance and collapse. Sooner or later, if i have the patience, i usually find zero, sometimes quite unexpectedly.

I wasn’t even going to record again, but glad i did.. this is one of those ones i’d be very hard-pressed to replicate. for windless days only. i accidentally killed it by splashing slightly too much water.

 

WIKI:

Sādhana (Sanskrit: साधन; Tibetan: སྒྲུབ་ཐབས་, THL druptap, Chinese: 修行), literally “a means of accomplishing something”,[1] is an ego-transcending spiritual practice.[2] It includes a variety of disciplines in Hindu,[3] Buddhist,[4] Jain[5] and Sikh traditions that are followed in order to achieve various spiritual or ritual objectives

221 Responses
  2. Luisa Caro
    Reply

    I love your search….of zero…of “imposible”……in the middle of everything……jumping up nature into other dimesions…..opening minds and hearts to go beyond…..creating exuberance of contradictions into simplicity and posibility…..i love you boy……you are expanding humanity…making people remember there is no up and down,,,,there is no heavy and light…making people remember the mistery of connection…..opening ways to move the fit point of consiousness…this is so amazing and important in what you do…And you are making it in such a simple way…..mastering existence…….keep on searching………..all the love…. <3

  3. Luimar Zibetti Garza
    Reply

    I like to imagine these rocks have waited for centuries for someone to do something with them other than just pick up the smooth ones to fling and have “skip” the water 1….2……3…… maybe 4 times…

    Each of these rocks have a distinct energy vibration and you’ve harnassed so many of their notes of balance.

  9. Manu Topic
    Reply

    C est encore une fois un putain de plaisir de te lire ! En plus d être un Stone Balancer hors pair tu es aussi un poète ! J adore cette façon que tu as de décrire ça , ça me parle en tout cas ! Je dirais que c est même exactement ça! Bravo Michael !

  33. Stanislav Pachinski
    Reply

    It’s amazing that ultimate moment when you let go, totally worth the patience of only watching it XDD at first I thought it would be on fast forward, but it’s real time. Just a – ma – zing. Officially your fan!!!

  56. Laura Fabian
    Reply

    i wish you did workshops. i feel like i could use the internal journey and balance of doing and not doing that you engage. thanks for sharing, michael.

    1. Bill Atherton
      Reply

      Watch what he is doing. The ‘trick’ is tripoding, finding 3 points of contact or more between stones. You can do this if you’re steady and patient, just give it a try sometime.

    3. Gravity Glue
      Reply

      Best teachers are the rocks! I can talk for hours about vibrations and tripods, and patience. But the best way to learn is to just gather rocks and start balancing. I also recommend taking photos of ur work so u can refer back and imagine ways to step up the challenge. Maybe add another rock on a tip. Or counterbalance something. Infinite possibilities. But every rock in an arrangement has at least 3 contact points to the next rock. Very close or far apart. Here, the contact points are extremely close together. Which exponentially increases the challenge

    4. Guillaume Ohz
      Reply

      Thank you very much, sir, to take a moment to answer me, and actually to almost everyone! We all love your work, and people who try to share their passion is the most amazing people. As a hand back (sorry if it’s not right term, I’m not english), I would love to tune your piano !

  77. Brian Fairfield
    Reply

    Is there really a concern from people thinking you’re an illusionist, or is that title used for another reason? Either way it’s fun to watch you enjoy your stone. I set stone in a very different way, but I’m fairly certain we share the same love for the material used.

    Although I may be a tad more abusive to it… :)

  115. Vince Moye
    Reply

    A Big THANK YOU for sharing the video of you plying your skill in action. It looks as difficult as I had imagined. Seeing you beside your creation gives it the scale I wanted to see as well. Thanks again!

  123. Kraig Eichelkraut
    Reply

    interesting, your opinions. I have done this for years in my travels here and there cross America and always found great satisfaction in it. Never did it for an audience per se but always mindful that a passer-by may notice and wonder. That was always audience enough for me.

  133. Carmen Gibson Bartelds
    Reply

    “I do not think there is any thrill that can go through the human heart like that felt by the inventor as he sees some creation of the brain unfolding to success . . . Such emotions make a man forget food, sleep, friends, love, everything.” – Nikola Tesla

    1. Composed Equilibrium
      Reply

      I’ve had days like that, just last week. But it usually ties in when I am playing with time. My best balances come about when time isn’t a factor and I can relax knowing it doesn’t matter how long it takes.

    2. Lucian Bogdan
      Reply

      This is more than mindfulness,I think…this is what happens when you get in the flow of creativity,when literally ALL YOUR ENERGY is focused and used to CREATE…eventhough this is the act of creating something soooo mindblowing and fascinating!!The art of creating something so beautiful,so peaceful…organic food for your mind and soul :)

  180. Donna Carr
    Reply

    i would just like to say that when i look at these works, i can’t help but absorb this fantastic feeling of tranquility, thank you, i haven’t had too many things do that for me

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