Professor
Nicholas RoerichProfessor
Nicholas Roerich
10 September 1874 – December 1947
Painter, philosopher, archaeologist, writer, poet, humanitarian.
"Let us see wherein lies the power of this world-wide magnet of Saint Francis. Certainly in his highest ecstasy he approached the Supreme. In an unusual power of consciousness he merged with the Lord. He knew of the high quality of the prayer of heart, which alone can teach vital Love. For him Love was not an abstraction but the daily nurture of his spirit. And one more remarkable quality makes the image of Saint Francis sacred to us: He never condemned. . .
How, then, will you face and conquer the difficulties of life? In sad experience you will soon learn that the shield of negation and condemnation is an unworthy one. Furthermore, you will be convinced that such a shield is harmful. As a magnet of darkness, it will attract everything negative to you. What a sad old-age and future you will prepare for yourselves, spitting the bile of condemnation, unsuccessfully crossing the steps of life and criminally distorting the sacred understanding of Love!
Hence, following the covenants of Saint Francis, filled with Love, create, create . . . and create!
In this constant creation you shall attain the wisdom of Joy. You will find the day too short to express that to which your spirit prompts you. In the name of broad understanding you will begin to approach the realisation of synthesis. The conquest of Beauty and Knowledge will be consummated for you not as dry details, but as sacred signs of the synthesis of evolution. In your creation you will always realise the highest responsibility before the great infinite. This responsibility will be the healing corrective in the transformation of your entire life. This realisation of responsibility will help you once more to abstain from condemnation. Verily, you shall find no time for condemnation and negation. . .
Taken from LOVE UNCONQUERABLE 1931
in the book REALM OF LIGHT
by Nicholas Roerich
with kind permission of the Roerich Museum New York.
When
I paint the Image of Saint Francis I shall choose the moment when the birds
gathered around him. This is prompted by an old reminiscence. I was happy to
have as my first Teacher an extraordinary man: the eminent Master Kuinji was not
only a remarkable artist, but also a great Teacher of life. His personal life
was a secluded one and only his closest disciples knew the depth of his soul. At
noon he climbed out on the roof of his house and after the daily signal of the
cannon shot, thousands of birds gathered around him and he fed them from his
hands – doves, sparrows, swallows and flocks of other city birds crowded
around him, covering his shoulders, hands and head. He used to say to me:
"Come closer, I will tell them they should not fear you." We called
Kuinji "Saint Francis," and the vision of this powerful grey-haired
and smiling figure, covered by the birds in joyous twittering, shall forever
remain one of my most cherished memories. I myself witnessed how crows and other
birds of prey sat there without harming their small brothers. . ."
Roerich is also remembered for his work for peace and in particular for his Banner of Peace which featured a symbol shown in the painting below.
Madonna Oriflamma by Nicholas Roerich
With the kind permission of the Nicholas Roerich Museum N.Y.
The Banner of Peace
It is found:
.
In India - It is the sign of Happiness or Chintamani
.
In China - It appears in the Temple of Heaven
.
In Tibet - It is found in the Three Treasures of Tibet
.
On the breast of the Christ in Memline's well known painting,
The Adoration of Christ
.
On the Madonna of Strasbourg
.
On the Shields of the Crusaders and coat of arms of the Templars
.
On the blades of the Caucasian swords known as "Gurda"
.
On ancient Russian Ikons
.
On Ethiopian and Coptic Antiquities
.
On the Rocks of Mongolia
.
On the breast ornament of all the Himalayan peoples
.
On the pottery of the Neolithic Age
.
On Buddhist Banners
.
On the images of the legendary heroes Gesar Khan and Rigden Djapo
.
And the last but not least, on the Roerich Banner of Peace
which was founded in New York in 1929 and signed into international existence by President Roosevelt in 1935 along with twenty other countries. It was supported by such dignitaries as George Bernard Shaw,
Albert Einstein, H. G. Wells and Rabindranath Tagore. It represents 36 years of Nicholas Roerich's untiring work to bring this symbol and idea of Peace into the Western World.
© Copyright Frank Perry 2000. All rights reserved.
© Frank Perry, 2000. All of these articles are copyright. They may individually be copied and shared with others in a spirit of knowledge-sharing and fair play, but they may not be sold, printed or reproduced in quantity or changed in form without the permission of the copyright holder. None of this material may be reproduced in workshops or lectures of any kind unless quotes are credited or properly attributed.
Magazine and other editors may e-mail me for permission to reprint. E-mail:
