The immortalising smile

Leonardo da Vinci is truly immortal. He achieved wonders in many walks of life. Not only in the world of art, but also in the worlds of literature, the sciences, architecture, engineering and many other fields he became a real immortal. His most important and significant artistic work, which fascinates the entire world, is the Mona Lisa.

Mona Lisa was the wife of an elderly nobleman. Da Vinci took quite a few days to paint her portrait. She used to come and sit before him, but she would never smile and she was never in a mood to be entertained. Da Vinci tried in so many ways to make her smile. Finally, he resorted to music and he hired a band of musicians to entertain her. The musicians played for a few days, but there was still no response from Mona Lisa.

One day, just for a fleeting second, she gave a faint smile, and da Vinci was able to catch it. That smile has immortalised her, immortalised the artist and immortalised the art. Artist and art have been immortalised by just a faint smile, a smile that has an enigmatic touch. Even now a soul-touch is there, and that soul-touch has conquered the heart of the world. Because of that smile, the artist and the art at once have touched Immortality's Shore and become immortal.

From:Sri Chinmoy,Transfiguration and other stories, Agni Press, 2007
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