Letting Steam Vent at Hverir– Fumaroles, Mud pots, Cracks and Vents

Steamy Sunrise, Hverir

While sitting at home five weeks into quarantining myself, I decided to look through photos from my February trip to Iceland. I came across the folder with images from Hverir, a hot geothermal area in Northern Iceland where the temperatures of the fumaroles and mud pots reach 200 degrees Celsius. It seemed so appropriate to work on images where the built-up pressures within the earth were causing cracks and geological formations to allow all the steam inside to vent. I remember standing there at sunrise absolutely mesmerized by the combination of fog and light. I was being invited to see while my vision was simultaneously obscured. Often the lack of clarity with which we view the world comes from inside and our own skewed perceptions, but here it was the earth itself that was creating the obstacles and I suddenly understood the fog was as beautiful as the light.

Sunrise over a Surface Pool at Hverir

In this unique area, which looks a lot like Mars and even has similar geology, volcanic vapors mix with surface water that is concentrated near drainage canals from Mount Namafjall. The landscape is strewn with hydrothermally altered hyaloclasites, which are volcanic pieces of rock with glassy pieces that are formed when volcanoes erupt near water.

Drainage Channel from a Heart of Snow on Mount Namafjall

This is the main channel from Mount Namafjall. Steam from geothermal energy is being released near the summit, above a heart-shaped concentration of snow. Looking at this image again now, especially being in the process of helping my son recover from Covid, made me reflect that sometimes so much pressure is built up in our hearts from worry, empathetically experiencing the suffering of others, or from our own heartbreaks that we feel our hearts might explode. The earth is so wise and creates its own drainage canals in situations like this to allow the build up of gas to be transferred to other areas to be released in small amounts so as not to create a major eruption.

Cracks in the Earth Hverir

Whenever I am in an interesting geological area, I think about psychology and concepts of selfhood. I see the earth as my body and the forces that create its appearance as symbolic of the dynamic relationship between the ego and unconscious, whether I am alone or interacting with others.  Sometimes we hold on to ideas of who we are too firmly, terrified that a crack might appear in the facade we have created to live easily in the world. The earth knows cracks are good and that a strategic network of cracks can allow the balance of inner and outer forces to be achieved. Equanimity is often easier to experience when we don’t let others get too close, because compromise and negotiation are not required, but the tradeoff is loneliness. However, if we can’t allow cracks, we can never really merge. Quarantine time is giving me the opportunity to both find old cracks and allow new ones that arise from the pressure of spending so much time alone or with my mother (who I took out of senior living for safety’s sake) and to understand what I need to do to stay balanced. I cannot wish this virus away, but I can choose how to respond to the changes in my life that are occurring as a result of this global problem and I can use my time wisely and grow.

Dragon Head in a Mud Pot

On the west side of Hverir, the area is characterized by mud pots, which eat away the rocks create sulphur. Interestingly, this area was where half of Europe obtained sulfur in Medieval Times for gunpowder used in wars. Now we are in a new war and perhaps viewing images from this area also holds answers. I love watching mud pots and seeing what shapes are momentarily created. This one reminded me of a dragon’s head. In Christian traditions dragons are considered evil, while in the Orient dragons symbolize supernatural power as well as wisdom, strength, and hidden knowledge, all of which would serve us well right now. If we don’t shine a light on our unconscious and bring our projections to light, then they will eat away all boundaries and subsume us instead of letting us grow and evolve. Rather than looking at unconscious desires or reactions as evil, we would be better served by recognizing that they have the force and power to help us accomplish a great deal if we can tame them by letting them take shape. This way we can better understand them and create a healthier life.

Spouting Fumerole

The eastern side of Hverir is characterized by fumaroles like this one. It is always interesting to observe how drawn to them I am, how I love the way they constantly release steam and how I see the process and the amorphous energy that is emitted as symbolic of the source of creativity and freedom. These fumaroles did not disappoint and I was equally drawn to the Martian like landscape their sulphuric emissions helped form.

Path to a Fumerole

I looked everywhere to see if I could find out whether human hands created this pathway or if it was created naturally. It seemed too perfect to have just happened, but then again nature is continually surprising us with her perfection through the Fibonacci Spiral, symmetry in genetic sequencing, and the way trees communicate to name just a few examples. Perhaps these rocks were arranged this way by natural forces having nothing to do with man. It did seem rather magical to me and like a pathway to greater realizations.

Patterns from Geothermal Activity, Hverir

When I am in Iceland, I am always looking down. I’ve photographed patterns left in the sand by melting glaciers and the patterns created by geothermal activity. There is so much movement in Iceland, because the geology there is changing at a much faster rate than it is elsewhere on earth. Globally continents are changing about the rate your fingernails grow each year, but in Iceland it seems geology is being altered at an even faster as a result of all the volcanic activity and shifting tectonic plates, as well as climate change. Everywhere you look, there are traces of change, which makes Heraclitus’ adage that the only thing that is constant is change seem truer than ever. And though this quarantine time may feel like has lasted for an eternity already, it hasn’t and it will transform into a new way of living when the time is right.