Mandalas: Finding Modern Meaning in this Ancient Art

What is a Mandala?

A mandala has come to mean any pattern created to represent personal or cosmological wholeness. To get a better idea of how this symbol transcends spiritual mythology, it's important to understand some of the religious branches in which we see mandalas play a role:

Hinduism

Buddhism

Christianity

Islam

Native American rituals

Aboriginal Australian rituals

Clearly, the pattern of a center extending out toward the exterior through various layers to a final wholeness is a universal theme which resonates across cultures and spiritual beliefs.

Possibly the most widely recognized mandala is that of the Tibetan ritual sand mandala creation, in which an intricate design is carefully crafted over a period of days and immediately swept up after its completion as a symbol of life's impermanence. A similar exercise is depicted in the video near the end of the page.

In the following section we explore how we can personally tap into the power of the mandala.

The famous Sand Mandala Kalachakra, or "Wheel of Time."

Every two to three years the sacred Buddhist ceremony of Kalachakra is held. Some half a million pilgrims come from around the world to partake in the ceremonies and seek enlightenment. Many come on foot and some travel for more than a year to reach their destination.

Once the 10-day ceremony begins, His Holiness the Dalai Lama and other high-ranking lamas participate in sacred rituals, one of which is the creation of the elaborate sand mandala Kalachakra. Monks and lamas work attentively and carefully from 6am to midnight every day of the ceremony before it is completed and destroyed.

Lauded German director Werner Herzog produced a fascinating documentary of these ceremonies, entitled "Wheel of Time."