It happened to Chiyono.
Carrying water in her bucket she admired the the silent splendor of the reflecting full moon.
And then, the bottom fell out, the water was gone, the moon disappeared.
Chiyono, it is said, became enlightened:
She realized herself to be a hollow bamboo,
A flute on the lips of the infinite:
An empty bucket.

Finding God, enlightment, had been Chiyono's life ambition. 
She wanted to become a monk, a meditator,
devoting herself to the search.
Because of her physical beauty she was rejected by many monasteries. 
She burned and scarred her beautiful face.

With  her head shaved, disguised as a man she entered the monastery.
Only at night, alone, washing herself, her secret was revealed. For years she lived a simple life of meditation.
One night it happened to Chiyono.

The 20^th century mystic Osho comments:

"Enlightenment is like an accident. But don't misunderstand me --I am not saying don't do anything for it. If you don't, the accident will not happen.

It happens only to those who have been doing much for it, but it never happens because of their doing --and it never happens without their doing. All your meditations will just create an accident-proneness, an invitation, that's all. Be ready for the accident, for the unknown - ready, waiting, receptive. Without the invitation the guest will never come!"  

 'No Water, No moon'

or

'The Ultimate Accident'

In her own words:

'This way and that way
I tried to keep the pail together,
Hoping the weak bamboo
Would never break.

Suddenly the bottom fell out.
No more water, 
No more moon in the water_
Emptiness in my hand'.

This sculpture is dedicated to my companion Ma Anurag Vedi.(Janet Perry)

Jody Nelson from Alberta has  been the model.

In the Zodiac of Enlightened women she represents Aquarius

  Nistal Prem de Boer

To create a bronze out off a clay model, I will have to make rubber molds held a shape by a plaster mother mold. In these molds I will be creating the wax positives from which the bronze will be cast.

The waxes are send to the founder in Ottawa who will be creating the ceramic shells for each copy and who will be pouring the bronze.

The sculpture will come back to me in many pieces. They will have to be welded together and then the finishing will start. The last stage of the finishing is the patina that can be done in many ways to suit the taste of the buyer. .

I will be casting a maximum of 8 copies of this sculpture.

  My "No Water, No moon", will be mounted on a basalt rock and water will spill out off the broken pail into a concrete basin.

'No Water, No Moon, is the second life size bronze in my enlightened women series.

'The Arrowsmith Woman' has been the first, and the next two female Buddha's are on the drawing board:

Meera, the Hindu queen, dancer and singer and Maria Magdalena of the Christian tradition.