What is a Mandala?
Man-da-la Pronounced (mun/ dl e) Noun, plura. = las
Mandala is a Sanskrit word. Mandala means Sanskrit circle. It is pronounced muhn’-duh-luh by Tibetans.
History and Function of the Mandala
Mandalas are visual images or symbols simply constructed or can be as complex as a grand wall mural. They are works of spiritual art that, upon gazing, brings healing to the viewer. Mandalas from any source share an arresting beauty and universal appeal. Mandalas are used for meditation and to healing. In spiritual traditions worldwide, mandalas focus and reflect the spiritual content of the psyche for both the maker and the viewer. They are used as a healing and transforming art in Native American sand painting, Hindu and Tibetan Buddhist rituals, and modern psychotherapy. When a Buddhist monk gazes at a mandala while in meditation, he sees a map which leads him on the path to nirvana.
The many uses of a mantra
1. A mandala has a calming and relaxing effect on the mind and body, thus focusing and strengthening the will to heal.
2. A mandala can give form and expression to an intuitive insight into spiritual truth, by releasing the inner light of the soul.
3. The mandala is a magnifying glass or mirror for all of us. A mandala has the regenerative and curative power to activate the latent powers of the mind. The meditative process helps to focus and open the heart to the healing power of unconditional love.
4. A mandala can bring joy as it facilitates the healing of a sense, of psychological fragmentation.
5. A mandala can make the invisible, visible – expressing situations or patterns of ultimate reality that can be expressed in no other way.
6. A mandala can reveal unity between human existence and the structure of the cosmos – opening up a perspective in which things can be understood as a whole.
Construction:
Most mandalas consist of one or more circles with a square inside it. Inside the square is again, a circle. Mandalas are used in the practice of Buddhism in Japan and Tibet. Their symbols are associated with the cosmos. Tibetan monks say, it is a reflection of the world of the gods. Mandalas are traditionally painted on walls, on paper, and are also made in colored sand or powder on the ground. In some cloisters, new mandalas are made every day.