Sadak in Search of the Waters of Oblivion

 What I love about art is its ability to speak volumes in a single image. I'm lucky enough to have visited the St. Louis Art Museum multiple times, and there viewed what I can only describe as one of the most spectacular paintings.

Red is the overwhelming color; different shades highlighting jagged rocks and framing a thin trickle of water. And at the base of the rocks, a man, barely hanging on as he drags himself up the mountain.

It very clearly signifies his struggle to ascend and his near defeat in the attempt. The pervasive feeling is that the mountain is only the most recent of a series of near-insurmountable obstacles he has had to face, and the path he is on seems only to lead to more.

But underlying that feeling, there is hope and faith. This tiny figure against a vast backdrop of danger still clinging, still pushing forward despite the impossibility of his situation, still determined that he WILL succeed - this is why I describe the painting as spectacular rather than simply beautiful.

Of course, after being touched by this piece, I was delighted to find the gift shop sold posters of it, and immediately purchased one for my home. The colors of my poster do not do the actual work justice, but the message is still prevalent.

I also wanted to know more about the art; it's title - which is also the title of this hub - did not ring any bells with me, even though I like to study mythology and ancient or old stories and legends, and I was unfamiliar with the artist, John Martin. Being of the nerdy sort, I did my research, which I will share below.

 John Martin was born at the time of the French Revolution, in the same week the Bastille was stormed. He was apprenticed as a youth to artists, and his first living was made by giving drawing lessons and painting watercolors on china and glass. He eventually supplemented his income by painting oils; Sadak in Search of the Waters of Oblivion was his first canvas displayed at the Royal Academy exhihibit at Somerset House.

In his obituary, it was noted that he wrote of the experience, "You may easily guess my anxiety when I overheard the men who were to place it in the frame disputing as to which was the top of the picture!" He, in fact, felt the painting was ignored during the exhibit, and took it home, only to find that William Manning, a bank governor, wanted to buy it from him.

The piece has been called "the most famous of the British romantic works," and characterizes Martin's style with large, powerfully rugged landscapes backing his scenes. Martin's career was rather successful, although he went through several periods of in his life when his painting was put on hold; in one year, he suffered the deaths of his father, mother, grandmother and son; during another one of his pieces waiting to be hung at the Academy exhibit was destroyed by another artist spilling varnish over it.

Though not his most famous painting, Sadak put him on the artistic map, and I consider myself very lucky to have witnessed it in person.

The story of Sadak comes from a book by James Ridley, and has it's own fascinating history. The Tales of the Genii was published in 1764, and bears the name Sir Charles Morell as the author. In that time, Oriental literature in the style of Arabian Nights was extremely popular, and Ridley decided to capitalize on that trend.

The cover of the book actually lists the author as such: by Sir Charles Morell, formerly Ambassador from the British Settlements in India to the Great Mogul. Morell supposedly translated the Tales from an imam named Horam who had written them on a Persian manuscript. Ridley actually based his stories on those from Arabian Nights, and used the backstory of Horam and Morell as methods to popularize his work.

The popularity outlasted the cover-up, however, and underwent seven editions by 1861, with German and French translations printed.

Ridley weaves a tale of faith, love, and perserverance overcoming jealousy and power in this story.

Sadak is a retired warrior of the sultan Amurath, who is completely content. Having been successful in many battles, Sadak has helped the empire into a state of peace. He lives comfortably with his beloved wife, Kalasrade, and their children. He is faithful, wants for nothing, and is envied by the leaders in the sultan's army for the level of happiness he has attained.

Amurath hears the army leaders wishes for a life like that of Sadak's, and finds that he is jealous that any human should have a life that is more content or successful than the sultan himself. He therefore waits until Sadak is out in the fields training his sons in the skills of battle, and starts a fire at his home, where his younger children and Kalasrade still are. The children are left alone, but Kalasrade is kidnapped to the sultan's property, where his intent is to allow a slave to have her, and then kill her, taking from Sadak his one true love. But before the slave can rape her, Amurath finally sees her for the first time, and her beauty makes him desire her for his own.

Kalasrade wants none of it, and with the help of a eunuch named Doubor - who is in the service of the sultan but owes his life to Sadak's father from a previous battle - she tricks Amurath into leaving her be on one condition. She wants to forget her previous life before becoming his, so she asks that he procure for her the waters of oblivion, which are supposed to make the one who ingests them forget all that went before. He agrees to these terms, before realizing that no one has successfully found the waters or returned with them.

In vengeneance for her trickery, he asks Sadak, who has been frantically searching for Kalasrade since the fire, to perform this task for him. Sadak, being noble and loyal, agrees. Before he leaves on his journey, however, Doubor arranges for him to meet with Kalasrade and he is informed of the entire situation. He sets out on his adventure with faith, that, should he be successful, Kalasrade will somehow be returned to him.

The story is beautiful and sad, with Sadak experiencing the death of his father-in-law and his eldest son, surviving infection with the plague and severe natural disasters. Kalasrade, on her part, deals with Amurath blackmailing her with her own children's lives to succumb to him, the constant fear that Sadak will not survive, and an uprising of the sultan's army against Amurath's residence for his treachery toward their esteemed warrior Sadak.

Martin's ability to capture the story in a single scene is what, I'm sure, made him successful in his career. It has certainly made this painting, initially just the red one that caught my eye, one of my favorite works of art.

Because I'm always interested in art and expanding my limited exposure to it, I thought I'd pose some questions for the comments section.

1. What is your favorite work of art?

2. Who is your favorit artist?

3. Who is a less known artist that you feel deserves more attention?