Sensazione

April 3, 2013 — 9 Comments

Refinement of all the senses leads to a full and more interesting life. Leonardo da Vinci was a student of all phenomena. His seven guiding principals for living were at the heart of all his work. They are his core values, upon which his reputation rests.  By reading his notebooks and  studying his drawings we can see that his constant eagle eye was at work observing nature. Sensazione, or the development of all the senses, was a big reason Leonardo became as productive as he did.  He felt that by making notes and drawings of his sensual observations he grasped more of the meaning around him.  He used his notebooks to create, invent, and make beautiful art.

He gives advise on keeping a listener engaged by carefully noting his posture, body language, and facial expressions. By focus and intent to see clearly sight can be developed into insight. The training of all the senses to be more apt, more receptive, and more able to understand reality was a lifetime practice of the master.  Vision, hearing, smell, taste, touch and synesthesia (the ability to describe one sense in terms of another) were all parts of this whole.  Sight became the best developed of his abilities, which contributed to his artistic talent.

How do you use your senses to take in the world?  Have you ever tried to improve on what you have in the sense department?  I was a potter for many years, so my sense of touch was developed beyond the others during that time.  I had to feel the center of the wheel, and the thickness of the clay with precision or….no pot was made…back to mud.  Taste and smell may be my most developed senses now.  I cook, bake, and experiment as a cocktail creator.  I like making a variety of  teas and baths with my garden herbs. Do you have one particular sense that is your strongest?  We know what Leonardo would do.  He would forever practice to refine them all.