Shekhinah

Shekhinah is a Hebrew word describing the manifestation of God’s presence on earth in feminine terms translated as she who dwells within. She is the part of God that does not leave us. She is the guide for the people in exile; she is said to be in the pillar of clouds by day and the pillar of fire by night that guides the Israelites out of Egypt. She is the flame of the burning bush and the cloud on Mount Sinai that Moses beheld.

I see her in the ancient earth goddess figurines of cultures known and unknown. I see her in the Hindu goddess Kali, I see her in the Asherah figurines of early Canaanite peoples. In the Christian context I see Shekhinah in the Holy Spirit and most approachably in Mary the mother, nurturer, and caregiver. Mary is often called upon to intercede on our behalf to a less approachable, more remote, male depicted God figure. Shekhinah moves through them all.

My Shekinah is luminous and strong. She has four arms to suggest her capacity to embrace and love beyond human knowing. In one set of arms, she nurtures and cradles the earth and us. With the other set of arms, she holds a ball of thread and needle, forever stitching back into balance the world we have damaged. Stitched in an arch of silver thread reaching from hand to hand are the words she who dwells within which is a translation from the Hebrew of the name Shekhinah.

The image on her dress is of water and lily pads invoking the dark mystery below the surface and the knowable floating right there for us to see and touch. She has a winged cloak with images of sparkling light reflecting on the rippling shallow water coursing over river stones just below the surface to hint at the extraordinary within the ordinary. She floats in a pillar of clouds at her feet and a pillar fire represented by stars of the distant cosmos above her, this is a reference to Shekhinah as the guide and guardian of the Israelites in their exodus from Egypt in the Hebrew bible. Behind her head are seven overlapping circles that create a pattern called the seed of life. From the concept of sacred geometry this pattern symbolizes the seed of creation from which all life resides, where life begins and returns. The seed of life pattern is also stitched into Shekhinah’s dress with silver threads.

She is embodied in the figure of an older woman, silver haired and radiant – full of wisdom, understanding and persistence. I have chosen the quilt as art medium for a reason. For me, the use of fabric and stitch is connected to the act of being a doer and maker. It is something I learned from my foremothers; the way that making a bedquilt, a garment or meal could be both a necessity of life and a creative expression. Here I use the quilt form, that is rooted in warmth and comfort, as the canvas for Shekhinah. She who dwells within – always there when you chose to seek her.

Photos printed on cotton sateen, machine stitched and embellished with hand stitching and beads. 36×72″ Created Winter 2023