Inspired by Spinoza's ladder of understanding and Brazilian concepts and images of Legba's staff -- both messengers of metamorphosis. This painting investigates how we cross thresholds of consciousness through color, ornament, and symmetry. The work treats the vertical axis as a conduit (a contemporary echo of Legba's staff) while the layered florals and textile-inflected motifs serve as rungs on Spinoza's ascent from imagination to reason to intuitive knowledge.