What is a Mandala? | beatacypcar

Mandalas are everywhere!

The word 'mandala' in Sanskrit, which was a language of ancient India, means 'circle', and it is often referred to as a magic, healing and sacred circle.

One of the greatest painters, Raphael, wrote: 'The perfection of the circle pleases the eye, and it can be observed that nature almost never tends towards any other form'.

Mandalas have religious and therapeutic use. They are present in most cultures and in nature.

In Buddhism and Hinduism, a mandala is a spiritual and ritual symbol representing the Universe.

The basic form of these mandalas is a square with four gates containing

a circle with a centre point. They often exhibit radial balance and are commonly used as an aid to meditation.

Tibetan monk creating a sand mandala.

After the festival the sacred mandala is destroyed. 'The destruction of the mandala serves as a reminder of the impermanence of life. The coloured sand is swept up into an urn and dispersed into flowing water - a way of extending the healing powers to the whole world'.

BBC Religions

Hindu Yantra

Hindu Yantra usually consists of upward and downward pointing triangles, which represent the perfect union of the divine masculine and feminine. The lotus petals signify transcendence and purity.

In Christianity, the Celtic cross, the rosary, the halo, the aureole, rose windows, and mandorlas are the examples of mandalas.

Their role is to help followers focus on spirituality.

Mandorla

Native American dreamcatchers

Rose window

Aztec Sun stone

Mandala in nature

Prayer beads/rosary

Mandala in architecture - Rose window

in Alexandra Palace, north London

Mandala in Western psychology

and philosophy

Carl Gustav Jung, a renowned Swiss psychoanalyst and philosopher, introduced a mandala into modern Western thought and psychology.

Mandalas are defined by Jung as magic circles, containing certain design motifs that he found to have a universal nature, across cultures and across time.

Jung drew mandalas every morning and observed they reflected his inner state at the time of drawing.

In his view, creating mandalas helps explore the unconscious mind and this way contributes to achieving wholeness.

He concluded that mandalas:

help stabilize, integrate, and transform inner life
have a healing effect through symbolic expression of our conflicts
enable the creator to achieve greater self-understanding
express innermost thoughts, feelings and intuition.

Giordano Bruno, an Italian artist and thinker living during the Renaissance, created a series of mandalas. Reflecting on the process, he came to a conclusion that mandalas bring about positive changes to individuals who use them.

Mandalas in colouring books

Nowadays, mandalas are immensely popular due to the colouring books for adults which improve the mindfulness practice.