Nepal. Life between worlds…

- Hello, what is your name?
- Hello, Alex.
- And I am the god Shiva. Nice to meet you…

(From meetings and dialogues in Kathmandu.)

Today we increasingly turn to such concepts as the soul, the subconscious, the subtle planes, realizing that the laws of our world are not limited only to the laws of the external, material world.

The inner world and the outer world are closely intertwined and actively influence each other. And without understanding this relationship, it is simply impossible to understand what is happening today with each of us, to understand the laws by which our world lives and develops.

The peoples inhabiting Nepal have never lost this connection between the two worlds. Here, these worlds exist in inseparable unity since ancient times. Children absorb the habit of living in two worlds at once from birth along with their mother’s milk. And numerous deities and legends associated with them help in this, interactions with which are part of the daily life of any Nepalese from birth. In this series of photographs taken in Nepal in 2025, through my personal living direct experience, using photography not only as a visual language, but also as part of a spiritual and meditative practice, I want to touch the experience of the Nepalese. Use this experience for a better understanding (not with my head, but with my heart) of the laws by which not only the material, but also the spiritual component of the world of each person lives and develops. Use the experience of the past for the future through creative and artistic experience and rethinking.

Hariti Mata  

In Nepal, there is a temple of Hariti Mata — a goddess who is revered as the protector of children, able to heal diseases and help cope with poverty.

According to legend, Hariti is considered the wife of the god Panchika, the spirit of nature. They had 1000 children, 500 boys and 500 girls. To feed them, she stole and devoured other people’s children. Buddha saw what was happening, and to stop the insatiable deity, he stole her beloved daughter Ananda. When Hariti discovered the loss, she was inconsolable. Seeing her grief, Buddha said to her: look, the loss of even one child out of a thousand causes you so much grief. What do the parents of the children you kidnap feel? After these words, Hariti repented of her actions, and from then on became the protector of all children. And Buddha, seeing her repentance, returned her beloved daughter Ananda to her.

 While working on this story, I prayed with believers at Boudhanath Stupa, made a pilgrimage to the cave of Guru Padmasambhava, meditated in sacred places for the Nepalese, took part in the rituals of local sadhus near the Pashuptinath temple, participated in Buddhist pujas in monasteries, stood in the same line to make sacrifices to the goddess Kala, together with other Nepalese came for a blessing to the living goddess Kumari. Some of the photos were taken during dynamic meditation and various interactions with local residents. On the other hand, for several weeks I led an ordinary life in Kathmandu, doing the same everyday things as the locals, trying to feel and share not only the rhythm of spiritual but also everyday life of people. And only in the unity of these two aspects did the holistic picture of the worldview and life of people in Nepal begin to open up before me.