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Bridges Between Worlds: Ancestral Spirituality

  • By: Laura Martinez

Art can translate the invisible, taking us to places where words do not always reach. These illustrations invite you to contemplate the world from a spiritual dimension inspired by Indigenous wisdom: the moon as a guide and the third eye as a door to intangible realities. 

The spiritual beliefs of Indigenous peoples still challenge us in the modern world. Although daily life is deeply influenced by world transformations, ancestral teachings continue to be a source of wisdom and balance.

Chía

Chía, the lunar goddess of the Muiscas, illuminates the night, guides travelers, and controls the tides and crop growth. The Muiscas, an Indigenous community from the Cundiboyacense highlands in Colombia, revered Chía as a symbol of balance and clarity. Her name, which in the Muisca language means “light” or “clarity,” was central to the Muisca agricultural rituals and ceremonies led by the Xeques, or priests.

Ancient myths describe her as a protective deity capable of controlling the flow of water and bringing prosperity. Her presence transcends these stories and continues to be a relevant symbol in the city of Chía, near Bogotá, which bears Chía’s name as a testimony to a heritage that invites us to reflect on the balance between modernity and ancestral wisdom. Although direct worship of the goddess has diminished, many communities continue to recognize her symbolism as an emblem of the spiritual connection with nature.

The Third Eye

The third eye, with roots in ancient spiritual traditions, represents a vital connection to the universe. It is the channel through which the visible and the invisible meet. Although its origins are in Eastern traditions, many Amazonian communities in Colombia, Brazil, and Peru also associate it with the ability to perceive the “invisible fabric” that connects all beings: not only humans but also animals, plants, elements of nature, and even the memories of those who are no longer physically present.

This connection reflects the idea that everything in the universe is interrelated and that the spiritual is not a distant abstraction, but something that can be tangibly experienced. This illustration captures a concept but also proposes a deep look at what links us to the cosmos. In Indigenous traditions, this vision is not a privilege, but a latent possibility in each of us, waiting to be cultivated through sensitivity and an open spirit.

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About the Author

Laura Martínez was born and raised in the Colombian Caribbean and identifies herself as a sentimental artist. Her work stands as a political bet, where social criticism and protest art are the pillars on which she builds her narrative.

Laura firmly believes in the transformative power of art and in the capacity of each individual to contribute to social change. She has a clear commitment to what she loves and believes in and therefore trusts in the construction (for many utopian) of a better future. “The social function of the artist is to provoke and encourage humanity, that’s why I decided from full awareness that my task in this world is to CREATE instead of answering.”