Welcome
Welcome to the Ninety-Nine Names Peace Project! We are so happy that you found us.
The Ninety-Nine Names Peace Project is an offering from the Center for Contemplative Expression. Through the practice of Contemplative Expression, participants in the project reflect upon and artistically respond to the Ninety-Nine Names of God. The mission of the Project is to deepen our connection with the Divine, each other, our communities, and nature, while fostering an interfaith appreciation of the qualities of God.
By sharing our experience of God, through these creative endeavors, we hope to identify the barriers that prevent us from engaging in community. Using expressive arts - such as painting, drawing, writing, poetry, dance, movement, music, and theater - we hope to celebrate cultural, ethnic, and religious diversity. Through social networking, we hope to link individuals and communities, in person (through Salons) and virtually (through the Internet). We hope to strengthen the connections that move us toward self-awareness, conversation and, ultimately, peace - peace of mind, peaceful communities, and a peace-filled planet.
We are inviting artists from all over the world to participate in this peace-forming process - artists from diverse religions, ethnicities, locations, ages, and art forms.
Artists, we invite you to create your artistic response to one of the Ninety-Nine Names of God in whatever medium you work, connect with fellow artists online, and tell us about yourself and your community.
Visitors, we invite you to view the creations contained in this website, connect with friends to share them, and consider how your community might become a more peaceful place.
Patrons, we invite you to support our work in this creative peace process, connect with participating artists, and consider what role your community plays in furthering peace.
We hope you will join us!
Merciful in Glass, by Andrew Kosorok...
Merciful, Ar Rahim Andrew has graced the 99 Names Peace Project by contributing photos of his exquisite glass piece depicting Ar-Rahim, the Most Merciful. Read about Andrew’s journey into bridging Christian and Muslim communities through art, dialogue, and friendship. His work and story are wonderful! Additional pieces can be found at Ghost River Studios.
An invitation into Death and Life...
Death (Al-Mumit) A new poem and mandala celebrating death and life, Al-Mumit. What have your recent experiences of loss entailed? Through this process, how did your heart respond? In the cycle of embracing life then letting go, how do you find the fullness in each moment? What might you participate in to foster this aliveness? We welcome your insights….
Celebrating a canine jailbreak...
Hi Everyone, I’ve written a poem and created a new mandala based on Listening (Al-Mujib). The poem was written as I was sitting on my front porch last weekend listening to the sounds of the neighborhood. Suddenly the entire scene shifted when two neighborhood dogs found their freedom. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed experiencing it. When you take a moment to get quiet, what is it you hear? Who contributes to the joyous sounds in your life? Where do the sounds of freedom arise for you? How might you practice listening? Please feel welcome...
Honoring Our Self (Al-Muizz)...
Honoring Self (Al-Muizz) I invite you to experience Honoring Self (Al-Muizz). Along with the mandala, I have written a short essay about how we honor ourselves by being present to what is, all of the gifts life has to offer. Where do you find abundance in your life? What is in your ‘refrigerator of life’ that you have a difficult time noticing and responding to? What is it that you believe you ‘should’ be responding to instead? How might you adjust your behavior to more fully honor yourself just as you are?
Satish Kumar on Global Humanity...
Satish Kumar “The force and the strength for peace will come from people. And that will happen when people start to realize that all the diversity and differences we see of nationalities, of religions, of cultures, of languages, are all beautiful diversities, for they are only on the surface. And deep down we share the same humanity, the global humanity.” – Satish Kumar
Restoring Equilibrium...
Restoring Equilibrium (At-Tawwab) Hello Everyone! In an effort to explore what is behind self-judgment, I’ve written an essay and created a mandala about the process of relinquishing self judgment in order to restore equilibrium in our lives. It is based on At-Tawwab. I hope it speaks to you. What judgments are you holding about yourself that are interfering with your equilibrium? How might you let go of what “should supposed to be” happening in your life and embrace what you are actually experiencing? How do you participate in the gift of being present? Please...
A Time For Everything...
Extraordinary Sensing (Al-Wajid) I hope you enjoy this new mandala, Extraordinary Sensing (Al-Wajid), set to the beautiful poem from Ecclesiastes about a time for every season. What is time revealing to you in this season of your life? How does the impermanence of all influence what you might now be experiencing? Knowing that this too shall pass, do your feelings reveal a sense of attachment or aversion? How may you honor this moment, just as it is? We welcome your insights… Peace to you.
Embracing Uncertainty…...
Peace (As-Salam) I hope you enjoy this new essay and mandala on embracing uncertainty and entering peace. I suggest that rather than focusing on certainty for our safety we instead focus on Love, with a capital “L”, Love from the source of all, the Divine. I believe our lives would transform if we opened our hearts and embraced uncertainty knowing that we are held closely in the hands of God. What are the areas in your life that feel most uncertain? How might you embrace this uncertainty and enter the fullness of the experience? Who can you call upon to help guide...
Celebrating Deep Friendship...
Deep Friendship (Al-Wali) I hope you enjoy this new mandala, my expression of Al-Wali, Friend, Protector, and Governor of All. I’ve included the poem “You Were Born Together” by Kahlil Gibran which expresses our need for both deep connection and open expansiveness in true friendship. How do you balance and hold loving someone deeply while granting them the space they need to expand? What allows you to give your heart openly without losing yourself in the process? How do you befriend and protect yourself, asserting your own needs, while understanding...- Julie: An e-mail received from Diana... Julie, how wonderful. I ...
- Virginia: I am deeply moved by this statement. After my week at the p...
- Lynn Copithorne: Couldn't agree more. I believe that appreciating what we hav...
- Michael Ryan: I was moved and am so grateful for your honest reflection o...
- Don: Julie, It is interesting how life's journeys and experien...
- colleen brezny: Julie, Your Mandala's are deliciously beautiful & tho...
God is Everywhere Photos
