An Invitation to Walk
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The labyrinth may be a set path, but it does not offer a set experience. Instead, it offers a door that anyone may go through, to discover realities that meet each person where each most need to be met.
-- An Altar in the World, Barbara Brown Taylor |
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What is a Labyrinth?
A labyrinth is a circular pattern with a circuitous pattern within it. It is one continuous path, intended for meditation and reflection. The path invites you to deeply relax without the need to focus on where you are going--you simply have to take the next step
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Benefits of Walking a Labyrinth
Walking the Labyrinth quiets the mind, opens the heart and grounds the body ... Some find answers to questions long asked, some find healing, creativity, a sense of wholeness.
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How to Walk a Labyrinth
There is no right or wrong when using a labyrinth, but rather what feels right at the time of your labyrinth experience. That being said, below are some guidelines to get you started on your path through the Labyrinth.
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Guidelines for Walking the Labyrinth
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Release
Walking into the labyrinth This is the time to quiet the mind, let go of the mind chatter and release your troubles. Open your heart to feel whatever it might feel. Become aware of your breathing. Take slow breaths. Relax and move at your own pace. |
Receive
Standing or Sitting in the Center This is a place of reflection. Pause and stay as long as you like. Open yourself to your higher power. Listen to that small inner voice. In the safety of the labyrinth have a heart-to heart talk with yourself. |
Return
Walking out of the labyrinth When you are ready, begin walking out the same path you followed in. Walking out, integration of your experience happens. Experience the sense of well-being, healing, excitement, calm or peace. |
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A Brief History of Labyrinths
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Ancient Cultures
Archeological findings date labyrinths to the Bronze Age (about 4000 years ago) when simple 7-circuit designs began showing up in Europe, the Middle East and parts of Asia as carvings and drawings on clay tablets, stone walls and coins. Greek and Roman mythology suggest the labyrinth to function as both a place of rebirth and protection.
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Medieval Europe
Labyrinths began to appear in the Middle Ages in churches in Europe. They functioned as a symbolic substitute for making a physical pilgrimmage to the holy land; a time-honored journey for achieving spiritual and psychological renewal. The most famous of these labyrinths was inlaid into the floor at Chartres Cathedral in France in 1201 A.D.
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Modern Resurgence
In the 1970’s a renewed interest in labyrinths began to surface in Europe. In the 1990s, labyrinths began popping up all over the US. Rev. Lauren Artress, Canon at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco as she helped people rediscover this ancient cont
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Source: Relax4life.com. 2020. Information, Ideas And Activities With Labyrinths. [online] Available at: <http://www.relax4life.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/booklet-11-8-1-1.pdf> [Accessed 27 May 2020].1/booklet-11-8-1-1.pdf.