Divine Inspiration?

VIA ARTISTIC INTERPRETATION

Above: A composite wooden sculpture turned into a Mother’s Day card. It is of Itiba Cahubaba, Fifth Earth Goddess, also known as the “Bloodied One”. The Taino believed tat she gave birth to the Four Fathers of Humankind via a cesarean procedure and died in childbirth. Called, the Four twins, one of them is Deminan, the father of the Taino. The other three brothers translate as “Of No Importance.”

Above: The author's Marohu, the Sun-god. Silkscreen print on handmade paper.

Above: My interpretation of Boinayel, the twin god of rain. Silkscreen print.

Today on September 26, 2025 my Kacike in Jamaica, Robert “Kalaan” Pariman of the island’s Yucayeke Yamaye Guani a Peoples Community, an indigenous tribal group, of which I am a follower, sent message below about honoring our Indigenous Yamaye Taino spiritual guides who represent the East.

 

Above: Jamaica’s Yamaye Taino’s seal with an image of the island and the island’s national bird, the endemic “doctor bird” or sissors tail hummer, called a colibre and zum-zum, for the sound that this fighter’s wings make. Their shimmering features represent golden or 14k guanin.

I found this day’s message from the Kacike below somewhat revealing. Some artists, when creating artwork, “leave themselves open” to whatever inspirational “vibes” care to enter the creative work process. For example, Leroy Clarke, a Trinidadian painter would blow his blood from a nostril, spraying it over an Africa inspired painting which he was creating. Now deceased, his artworks in color, were beautiful.

Above: Leroy Clarke’s black and white print is just one style he used, plus multicolored acrylic paintings.

My experience with the spiritual beings above, one of Itiba Cahubaba, the Taino’s Fifth Earth Mother, got accolades in a DC gallery exhibition 31 years ago in 1964. The oneman exhibition was titled, “Honoring the Memory of Itiba Cahubaba”, which was held at DuPont Circles’s Fondo del Sol, Multicultural Museum. As can be seen, in the attached Washington Post’s article, the art critic loved the piece.

While doing these above pieces I was not aware then that the three deities above, would be honored today.

The Message: “Today, we honour and reflect on the beauty and gifts of the East. As we do so, we are grateful for all the teachings, laws, and medicines it provides. We give thanks to our Cemi Marohu, the giver of the Sun, and Boinayel, who brings us the blessings of rain, restoring and bringing balance to our lives. As always, we give thanks to our dear Great Mother, Itiba Cahubaba, who teaches us about responsibility, commitment, compassion, and our relationships with one another, our community, and our ancestors. We honour them and give thanks for the presence of the ancestors' voices in these stories, healing us and helping our community to stay connected and maintain its continuity. We are grateful for the ancestral knowledge of the East that guides us on how to live our lives in a Yamaye way, and that centers us in who we are, so that we will continue to commit to learning and sharing for generations to come.”