Most geometers are familiar with the Mandelbrot set, the pioneering fractal geometry archetype credited to polymath Benoit Mandelbrot in 1980. Fractal images now appear in countless contemporary geometric art forms including fractals in film and video, both static and animated. Landscapes are particularly suitable subjects; my animator buddy Dave Van Dyke makes use of them frequently.
The Wikipedia page for the Mandelbrot set has a generous assortment of interesting links, including the Buddhabrot, previously featured here in GeometryCode.com’s archives – and numerous presentation I’ve given on sacred geometry over the past 16 years – and intriguing shapes such as the Mandelbulb:
In case you’d like a more extended visual meditation on this fascinating geometry, here’s a 1-hour video offering a deep dive into the intricacies of this quintessential modern geometric classic.
For those with both mathematic and metaphysical interests, fractals seem like a perfect metaphor for symbolizing both the thought system of inclusion – ever joining and restoring the mind to the interconnectedness and ultimate Oneness of our essential, eternally shared nature … and exclusion – divisively fragmenting, bifurcating and alienating seemingly separate selves into warring factions of countless varieties … while the intrinsic Unity we all share patiently awaits our return to that unchanging awareness. I have much more to share about this on another blog I maintain, ACIMblog.com.