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A labyrinth is an ancient symbol that
relates to wholeness. It combines the imagery of the
circle and the spiral into a meandering but
purposeful path. The Labyrinth represents a journey
to our own center and back again out into the world.
Labyrinths have long been used as meditation and
prayer tools.
A labyrinth is an archetype with which we can have a
direct experience. We can walk it. It is a metaphor
for life's journey. It is a symbol that creates a
sacred space and place and takes us out of our ego
to "That Which Is Within."
Labyrinths and mazes have often been confused. When
most people hear of a labyrinth they think of a
maze. A labyrinth is not a maze. A maze is like a
puzzle to be solved. It has twists, turns, and blind
alleys. It is a left brain task that requires
logical, sequential, analytical activity to find the
correct path into the maze and out.
A labyrinth has only one path. It is unicursal. The
way in is the way out. There are no blind alleys.
The path leads you on a circuitous path to the
center and out again.
A labyrinth is a right brain task. It involves
intuition, creativity, and imagery. With a maze many
choices must be made and an active mind is needed to
solve the problem of finding the center. With a
labyrinth there is only one choice to be made. The
choice is to enter or not. A more passive, receptive
mindset is needed. The choice is whether or not to
walk a spiritual path.
At its most basic level the labyrinth is a metaphor
for the journey to the center of your deepest self
and back out into the world with a broadened
understanding of who you are.
Sacred Geometry buffs and friends, welcome! I would
like to share with you the basic history and
information on building your own labyrinth.
Labyrinths have been around for over 4000 years and
are found in just about every major religious
tradition in the world. They have been an integral
part of many cultures such as Native American,
Greek, Celtic and Mayan. The Hopi called the
labyrinth the symbol for "mother earth" and equated
it with the Kiva. Like Stonehenge and the pyramids,
they are magical geometric forms that define sacred
space.
During the crusades, they were used to symbolically
represent the pilgrimage to the Holy Land. Today,
labyrinths are being used for reflection,
meditation, prayer and comfort. They are found in
many sizes and shapes, and are created in sand,
cornmeal, flour, painted on canvas, fashioned with
masking tape or string for a temporary design, or
built in a permanent fashion from stones, cut into
turf, formed by mounds of earth, made from
vegetation, or any other natural material.
There are three basic designs -- seven circuit,
eleven circuit, and twelve circuit. The most common
design found around the country today is the seven
circuit, seen on the left side of this page. These
seven circuit designs were found on pottery from
over 2000 years ago. Chartres Cathedral at Chartres,
France is a very famous example of an eleven circuit
design, as seen to your right. One of the most
famous aspects of the cathedral in Chartres is the
spectacular rose window over the great west doors.
It has the same dimensions as the labyrinth and is
exactly the same distance up the west wall as the
labyrinth is laterally from the cathedral's main
entrance below the window. An imaginary cosmic hinge
located where the doors and floor intersect would,
if closed, place the rose window directly on top of
the labyrinth, thus the sparkling, colored light of
the window and the darkness of the labyrinthine
pilgrimage are combined.
The labyrinth symbol is also found throughout India,
as far away as Sumatra and Java and in the American
Southwest, although many questions remain around
when it first appears and how it spread to many of
these regions. |
