Beautiful Mandalas And Their Meaning
My introduction to the Mandala concept was after watching a film called Samsara, made by the same guy that made Baraka.
There’s a scene where Tibetan monks are all kneeling around working on a spectacular piece of art, pouring sand out of tiny horns with ridiculous precision.
It kicks in at about 1.55. Check it out:
Apparently they blow it all away after completion as a lesson in not becoming attached to things. Couldn’t do that myself, I’m way not Zen enough.
For those Tibetan Monks, Mandalas are supposed to be a representation of the universe. I don’t think the images themselves are meant to be a literal universal expression, rather simply an expression of the artists themselves.
The word Mandala has become a widespread umbrella term for circular geometric patterns.
Carl Jung described the process of creating a Mandala as an ‘expression of the self’. Here’s a good page that explains them in much more detail than I could here.
Having experimented in drawing loads of these myself, I can verify that the process is incredibly relaxing and meditative. Comparing the images to various emotional and psychological states can yield some fascinating insights into what’s going on inside.
Here are some lovely pictures of Mandalas from various traditions.
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