One: Many (Eka: Aneka)
In the painting One: Many, the canvas explores the beautiful paradox of how the individual and the collective exist as a single reality. In the middle blooms a flower with eight petals, where every petal is rooted in a single, orange centre. This imagery is mirrored by a hand with five fingers and a rosary of many beads; though the fingers and beads are many, they are held together by one palm and a single, unifying thread.
The symbolism deepens with the image of a conch shell: when blown from one single point, its sound resonates in every direction at once, filling the entire space. An upward-pointing light blue arrow represents the singularity of our mind, while a downward green triangle symbolizes the plurality of our actions. At the centre of the palm, an ‘eye of knowledge’ acts as a guide, helping us perceive how these opposites—the one and the many—do not compete, but actually complete one another.
The essence of the work lies in discovering harmony within contradictions. Even the borders of the painting reflect this, with a red line that appears both straight and curved simultaneously. It suggests that nothing exists in total isolation; the ‘one’ always contains the ‘many,’ and the ‘many’ always find their home in the ‘one.’
Look at the people around you in this room. We are all individual ‘petals’ with different lives, yet we are all sustained by the same air and the same human experience. How can you honor your own uniqueness today without losing sight of the ‘thread’ that connects you to everyone else?