This is
my new creative endeavor – creating and painting mandalas - also known as
“sacred circles,” or Yantras, using sacred geometry, as taught by Guada in a
Free Class at Guada’s Circle.
In a
recent previous post – Focus As A Gateway – I was explaining how I felt a need
for focus and balance as a way to bring the mind to a place of stillness. Creating and painting this mandala gave me
that focus and balance, and an inner meditative Stillness of Being. I’m hooked! :)
Geometric
mandalas are a sacred anciet art based on the language of patterns, like an
underlying cosmic blueprint, an art form of the cosmos, revealing that our
existence is inseparably and inherently one with the matrix of the Infinite –
an inseparable, *inherent* union; the
circle being the symbol of this wholeness, or Oneness. My limited understanding is that this oneness
with the Divine, the interconnectedness of matter and spirit, is symbolized in
the space where two circles cross each other forming what is called a Vesica
Piscis – symbolically where Divine Consciousness and Human Consciousness are
One; reminding me as I make the mandala that the Sacred is intimately present
within – is both Here and Everywhere in the Universe simultaneously - meaning everything is sacred.
The seed
of life at the center of many mandalas represents the heart of Existence
itself, expanding into form; a symbol of sacred propagation of Life ItSelf; the
Vesica Piscis symbolizing the Womb of the Universe from which all life arises. Of course not all mandalas start with the
seed of life pattern; but are obviously just as sacred, using other sacred symbols, such as the sanskrit OM(AUM) symbol at the center. Buddhists and
Hindus have used sacred geometric mandalas as symbols of the interconnectedness
of the workings of the cosmos and meditative aids – or Yantras. The Buddhists are also well known for their
incredible sand mandalas that are “destroyed” after being meticulously created
by monks over days and days as a symbol of the impermanence of life, and
non-attachment.
I love
creating mandalas as an art form; the creative design using the precision of
sacred geometric patterns, and the detail of painting them in; the focus in the
creating of it, and the balance that emerges in the design. Just like the “spiritual path” – a
combination of focus/practice, balance/equanimity, and the meditative Silence
of just Being. In most of my art
experience I seem to work in circular fashion naturally, either circles,
spirals or vortexes, as if it is primordial. See Something About Circles for an
explanation and a look at my early Vortex art.
This is
the basic seed of life pattern made with a compass:
See the Vesica Piscis in each intersection of a circle
From this
template you can create a different design by erasing lines and adding other
lines to make different shapes and designs.
The possiblilities are infinite. :) In the
mandala that I created, I added straight lines and a star pattern emerged, so I
just went with it, making it a focal point; erasing parts of the outer circular
lines around it, except the ones surrounding each point of the star. I also created a wave line through each petal
of the seed of life at the center, giving it a more fluid look.
I darkened this so you could see
the design better
I then
outlined each petal, and started filling in on one side with a water color
pencil, which turns into water color paint when water is applied with a brush! Quite amazing actually. I like the effect in the purple star
points. They look like amethyst crystals
with varieties of shading and light…
Not quite complete?
I
contemplated filling the rest of the circle in with more color, but intuitively
it felt complete. Part of the process is
listening intuitively to how the “painting” expresses itself, how it speaks to
you, as in any artistic process….
Be sure
to check out Stacy Wills’ mandala creations at A Magic Mom and Her Mandalas. Some of them look like
stanined glass windows! Be sure to scroll
down to see a variety of her mandalas using geometric design patterns. She has recently begun using a different
creative style and technology to create a more fluid affect.
~*~
“In reality only the Ultimate
(Infinite) is…
the rest is a matter of name and form.”
Nisargardatta
