I was sitting cross-legged when an eagle came and landed
on my shoulders. The eagle merged with me and took
off flying, so that my head became its head and my arms
its wings. It felt completely authentic. I could feel the air
under my wings, as solid as water feels when you row in
it with an oar. It was substantial. You could push off
against it. So this was how birds flew! I realized that it was
impossible for a bird to fall out of the sky; all it would
have to do was extend its wings; the solid air would hold
it up with the same power we feel when we stick our hand
out the window of a moving car. I was pretty impressed
with this movie that was playing in my head but I still had
no idea what it meant. I asked the eagle, Hey, what am I
supposed to be learning from this? A voice answered
(silently): You're supposed to learn that things that you
think are nothing, as weightless as air, are actually
powerful substantial forces, as real and as solid as earth.I understood. The eagle was telling me that dreams,
visions, meditations such as this very one—things that I had
till now disdained as fantasy and illusion—were as real and as
solid as anything in my waking life.
I believed the eagle. I got the message. How could I not?
I had felt the solidness of the air. I knew he was telling
the truth.
Which brings us back to the question: Where did the eagle
THE WAR OF ART