Beneath the Surface

It has been amazing, to us, to see and discover all that lives and grows beneath the surface of the earth. During our time in the Dordogne, we merely scratched the surface. In the first cave we visited, the stalagtytes have grown, not only in vertical, but also in horizontal formations, giving an appearance that may be likened to stars in the night sky. Necks craned and heads tilted back, we star-gazed beneath the surface of the earth. It was every bit as awe-inspiring as watching the stars in the sky...and to see these intricate and infinitely fascinating formations growing, unbeknownedst to us, underground, was a fresh reminder of the many mysteries that are a part of our universe.

In two other caves, we began to learn about the etchings of the humans who inhabited the Dordogne 12,000-20,000 years ago. Fascinating enough are the caves themselves, still actively growing stalagtytes and stalagmytes...columns as thin as a strand of spaghetti or as rotund as the trunk of a centuries-old tree. Did you know that when these columns are broken, they cease growing? Another mystery.

Even more fascinating, are the drawings that have been discovered on the walls of the cave. No one knows why they drew...but it is believed there may have been a spiritual purpose to the drawings. Indeed, one of the guides described the cave as a sanctuary, holy ground. To the untrained eye, in the dimly lit cave, there was nothing more to see than the walls sculpted by underground rivers and glacier melt...but with flashlights and laser pointers, and the trained eye of our guide, we began to see the outlines of the animals, scratched with flint on the walls--the line of a head, a back, legs....of horses, buffalo, even wooly mammoths, and occasionally a human being. Often they followed the concave or convex contours of the cave walls to give the drawings a more 3-dimensional appearace. Sometimes, the lines of one drawing would be incorporated into the lines of another--superimposed to create an entirely new image. Minerals were sometimes used to add color, blown through a hollow bone. It was interesting to note that although the sketches were not more than simple rudimentary outlines, in many of them, eyes were drawn with signficantly greater attention to detail...bringing to my mind the words of Jesus that the eye is the lamp of the soul. I wonder if these ancient humans had this sense as well.

The discovery and excavation of the many caves of the Dordogne yields a glimpse of the life that once existed and still lives beneath the surface, where there is much to learn and there are many un-answered questions. These caves appear not to have been used for living or protection. Why, then, were they used? What did the people do in these sanctuaries, deep in the ground? And what was being communicated through the drawings? Although our guides, with their trained eyes, were able to show us the drawings and help us see the contours of the animals represented, they did not attempt to explain or interpret or analyze or answer the questions evoked within these holy spaces.

"Imagination" and "curiosity" were words we heard a lot, in these caves. These are spaces that evoke awe and inspire appreciation for the creative life force that exists, even beneath the surface.

Blessings to all,

Cheryl