Painting Jesus through studying A Course in Miracles with Tara Singh.

I studied A Course in Miracles for over 30 years. Seventeen of those were aided by the tutelage of Tara Singh. He had a deep insight into this modern day psycho/spiritual scripture. Through his lectures, he could bring people to experience the absolute within themselves, which is ACIM’s purpose. ACIM is Jesus speaking to us directly of the absolute. It is the absolute truth in contemporary terms.  In fact, it will always be contemporary, because its Voice is always in the present. Tara Singh was always in the present, as is the Voice of the Course, which is that of Jesus.

At Tara Singh’s Foundation in Los Angeles, and at some of the retreats he conducted, there was a Prayer Room. It consisted of an Altar and pictures of Holy Beings hung on the walls around the room. The Altar was lit with candles. The walls were lit with pictures of Holy Beings. One of these was Jesus, of course, to honor the Voice of A Course in Miracles.

Somewhere in the beginning of my seventeen years with Tara Singh, I knew he was my life teacher. What came out of his mouth awakened me to the truth of my own being. One could say, “I could not live on bread alone.” What came out of his mouth was the “living bread of God’s words.” He reinforced the truth of what was said by Jesus in ACIM. Without Tara Singh’s insight into this truth, I may have missed the whole point of ACIM altogether. He woke me up for sure. This is what a real teacher does: he dispels the darkness inside of a person and ignites the light in him/her. He does this because this is his function in life to do—to wake people up out of their deep sleep.

Jesus always present.

Like I said, Jesus was always present in the Prayer Room. A painting of Him by Heinrich Hofmann watched over the Altar. Tara Singh considered this portrait of the Christ the best ever done. And the copy in the Prayer Room was special, and was authentic. Many of the copies of this work are not authentic. They do not have the peace and joy of the original, or have the X-factor that makes this painting alive and present. I could see the difference between this one in the Prayer Room, and the ones out there you can buy as posters off the internet. This one is more gentle. Others are actually “angry looking.”

When I began painting Jesus myself, I used Hofmann’s Jesus as a model. I would paint Him in my own style, and somehow invoke the Presence of the Christ to enter my paintings. It was an action of inspiration. I felt the Presence when I would paint the Masters. People felt the Presence seeing me paint. Some people would buy the painting to have that Presence in their home.

I painted Jesus all over the world, like I also painted Babaji and the Divine Mother. These three became the main focus of my subject matter. They were enough for me. I never got tired of painting Them. They always gave new expression to each painting, which was unique. Painting Them never felt “repetitious.” We began calling these three Holy Beings the “Dream Team.” This giclee below of the Dream Team you can purchase here. 

The Babaji on the left I painted in Northern Italy in the Italian Alps. The middle Jesus I painted in Belo Horizonte, Brazil; and the Divine Mother on the right was one of my first I painted in Valencia, Spain. I put them together in this giclee, which is 16 inches x 40 inches. We placed one of these “Dream Team” giclees over our front door. I feel They protect our apartment from any unwanted energies entering. So far I have felt no goblins or malevolent entities in our apartment, so They must be doing Their job.

“Christ of Poland” 

Christ of Poland has more feminine eyes. He was painted in Szczecin, Poland, in the home of Krzysztof and Aga.  I used a very simple palette. Only a few colors. Red hair.  I painted Him on a piece of primed linen. Somehow I got it just right, and the gentleness came through. Because I painted Him on an un-stretched surface, I could roll Him up and take Him with me to Denmark where Anka Lalatovic purchased Him. She had bought a diptych of Babaji and the Divine Mother a few years ago. So naturally I was very pleased that she should have Him. I always say, “The paintings know where they want to go.” And without fail, they sell themselves miraculously to the people who are supposed to have them.

Why paint Jesus?

The reason I paint Jesus is to connect with Him. While painting, with Him in mind, there is a peace that comes over me. I have to be very present with the painting and very aware of the Christ Presence. The more aware I am, the better the painting goes, with more power the painting has to transmit this Presence. I try to drop everything in my mind and just focus on the painting itself. No other conditions come into play.

Another reason I paint Jesus is to help others connect with Him. This was the purpose of the Icon Paintings in ancient times, and it is my purpose as well. When the painting is “in the groove,” and I feel like I have done my job well, the Presence gets stronger and stronger when you look at it. This Christ of Poland does just that for me. I never grow tired looking at it. It is always fresh and new.

The best reason for painting Jesus is I feel I am putting Him out there in a different way. As I know Him through A Course in Miracles, it is a way I can honor those years of study with my teacher of A Course in Miracles, Tara Singh, to whom I am eternally grateful.

You can purchase this painting, Christ of Poland,  as a giclee (printed on canvas) and framed with a simple floating brown oak frame. (18 inches X 22 inches, inclusive of frame) I am offering two of them for sale, each for  $100 off list price of $750 for the rest of JULY. For USA, the price includes crating and shipping. For countries outside the USA, send inquiries to contact@markusray.com so we can give you a shipping cost.

THANK YOU for reading and “Art Looking.”

MARKUS RAY

Click Here to Purchase “Christ of Poland” (Framed Giclee)

PS: This Jesus of Perth Giclee I am also offering on sale: 18 inches x 24 inches; $550 reduced to $425; simple black edge; ready to hang. I only have one of these. Shipping included in 48 states of USA. Direct purchase inquiries to contact@markusray.com