The Holistic Act of Creation

 Whether you’re a painter, musician, athlete, juggler, Greek yogurt-maker, business owner, unicyclist, web designer, or writer, not to mention any of the other hundreds, or thousands, of types, you’re engaged in Creative Work. Something you do involves being creative, conceiving something, making something out of nothing. And, if you’re lucky, people pay you for it. Which means you’re probably pretty good at what you do.

Even if people don’t pay you to create, you may still have a sense of duty when it comes to your particular vein of Creation. You may get a bit squeamish when you don’t put pen to paper for a few days, or when your hands haven’t touched a keyboard in a minute (I know I do). If this sounds familiar, then you probably regard what you “do” – your vein of creative work – as your “Craft.”

I love Stephen Pressfield’s definition of “Craft.” Check it out:

“A pro views her work as craft, not art. Not because she believes art is devoid of a mystical dimension. On the contrary. She understands all creative endeavor is holy, but she doesn’t dwell on it. She knows if she thinks about that too much it will paralyze her. So she concentrates on technique. The professional masters how, and leaves what and why to the gods.”

Pressfield’s philosophical take on craft vs. art has stuck with me ever since I first read this paragraph on page 78 of The War of Art (the one book I’d take with me to a desert island). On the surface, he’s calling out the Creative person’s tendency to over-identify as an “artist.” He knows this can be dangerous if it causes us to over-sanctify, if you will, the act of Creation.

If we look a bit deeper at what Pressfield is saying, we see an emphasis on “technique” and the “how.” Technique, of course, within our Craft. But is this all?

I believe that if Pressfield wrote a “War of Art, Part 2,” he would have something to say about how this “technique” and “how” mentality could be extended across our entire day-to-day lives. Not only in our Crafts, but also in our ways of carrying ourselves, our diets, our exercise routines, and our ways of interacting with others. For it’s not as though these other areas are to be viewed as disconnected from our creativity.

The Buddha said in his “Metta sutta” discourse,

“Standing, walking, sitting or reclining, as long as he is awake, let him develop this mindfulness. This, they say, is ‘Noble Living’ here.”

I take this to mean that no aspect of life is exempt from being treated with the same respect and attention as an artist’s Craft.

As Creative people, we’re here to help the world in some way. To bring something into being is an act that mirrors that of the Supreme Creator, God, Higher Power, Source, whatever you want to call it. So why not bring this ethic to each and every area of our lives?

I find it most interesting Pressfield’s use of the world “holy.” He would probably hate me for this blog post, as I’m doing the very thing he clearly admonishes against — spending too much time investigating the mystery. But once I see something, I can’t un-see it. A true Craftsman, it seems, not only understands the holiness of creative endeavor, but the holistic nature of a Creative life. To live a whole life, not only is that going to reinforce the creative work, but it is noble.

So now that I’ve seen this, I can’t talk about it anymore, at least not today. It’s time to do the work. It’s time to Live the Life.

September 2018