About Mandalas

The word Mandala is of Sanskrit origins. “Mand” means essence, and “la” signifies container. Therefore, we can define the Mandala as a circle that contains essence.
If we are observant, we will notice that the universe is organized in a circular formation revolving around a center in permanent interrelation. Analogous with and inspired by nature, Mandalas have accompanied man throughout history and can be found in very different cultures.
Observing, painting and/or meditating with Mandalas permits entry onto a magical path of wisdom. This path leads us back to who we really are, helping us to connect to the Universe of which we form a part.

We thank Julio Sánchez for allowing us to reproduce here his wise words.
“The bird makes its nest and the spider spins its web. The planets orbit around the sun and the particles spin around the nucleus of an atom. A remote wisdom seems to extend through each and every corner of nature in a circular way. Only a few men – who were also wise – realized that if they created similar shapes and forms, the human spirit would fall into line with the rhythm of the universe. This is how Mandalas were born, sacred designs inspired by the secrets of nature. Modern artists have now added new and varied combinations to traditional Mandalas. This interest in an archaic and deep form is the murmur of salvation, an indication that we are not alone in aspiring to encounter the invisible harmony of a great Geometry.

Julio Sanchez

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Yantras: The human being is a microcosm that perfectly reflects the macrocosm. We possess an energetic double, an astral (psychic) body, a mental body and a casual body. All of these bodies constitute means by which the spirit is manifested. While in the macrocosm energies are infinite, in the microcosm energies are potential – partly or highly activated according to an individual’s training.

In the methods and practices of yoga, we find a form that is called yantra yoga.

What is a yantra?
A yantra is a geometric figure, a diagram of force that synthesizes a type of universal energy.
There are yantras that dynamize the mental plane, the sentimental. Other yantras work at the centers of force (chakras).
On the exterior part of the yantra, there is a square that contains four “doors” – the North, East, South and West. In our microcosm, North is the zone of the head, South is the base of the spine, East is the heart and West is the back. Within the square and its four “doors” is a sacred, protected space.
The exterior circle of the yantra symbolizes the entire world with all of its planes and energies. The central point of the yantra represents the divine transcendence that lies at the center of all creation, the place where the energies of creation appear and to which they return. The down-pointed triangle represents the energy force bhakti. The entire universe is created by the actions of these energies. The petals represent rays, which correspond to the chakras.

How is a yantra meditated?
One must sit in a meditative posture with the back straight. The yantra should be placed on a wall, its center aligned with the middle part of the forehead where the mental center anja chakra (the third eye) resides. The distance between the yantra and the self must be the equivalent of one’s height. One must then fix his or her gaze on the yantra, covering the entire figure. Maintaining all attention on the yantra for a period of between three and five minutes, within a microcosm, is highly beneficial. Spiritual energies will be dynamized. The average period of concentration on a yantra is between ten and twenty minutes. The accumulative effects of the meditation of a yantra over several days can be found in one’s own microcosm as well as in the environment, which is filled with a beneficial protective energy. The effects are even greater when the meditation with a yantra is performed in a group.

Daniel Ciuciulete

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Crop Circles or agrolyphics are precisely designed complex geometric patterns. They often appear in fields, but they may also be found in ice, snow and sand. They consist of hollow areas formed by vegetation mysteriously crushed to the ground, making geometric figures that seem engraved.

Though crop circles are not a recent phenomenon – it is possible to find testimonials of them dating back to 1678 – they became a great point of interest in 1990 with the appearance of such forms in the English countryside. It is estimated that more than 10,000 crop circles have been found since 1976, the original of all completely unknown.
Those who have studied the subject identify certain constants that permit the distinguishing of original crop circles from those copied by groups of people. In the case of original crop circles, there are molecular changes in the seeds located inside of the forms that are made. Electromagnetic changes may also be noted. The crushing of vegetation to the land seems to be the result of a heat source, which causes a knot where the plan bends. The crushing of original crop circles is almost always concentric.
Most crop circles appear in England, in Wilshire, more specifically around Averbury and Silbury Hill during the summer months (June, July and August) when vegetation is at its maximum stage of development. In August, when the harvest begins, the formations disappear.
My interest in crop circles is purely aesthetic. I am attracted by these natural Mandalas and geometric structures. The spiral of Fibonacci, the pentagram or five-point star, the golden rectangle and the vesica piscis, among other forms, possess the capacity to provoke a harmonious resonance in the human being.

Floki Gauvry

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Giant Mazes: With one or two fingers traversing a three-dimensional maze, experiencing the physical body as a Mandala and the personal consciousness as the center of the universe, being amazed at the experience of seeing one’s own image reflected in an infinite Mandala inside of an octagonal camera of mirrors, making a pilgrimage into meditation mazes constructed with sacred geometry, physically breaking into giant Mandalas like the Tibetan Wheel of Life – these are experiences that connect us to the field of being.

Especially in such turbulent times that accelerate our lives, these sacred tools of transformation facilitate the expansion of consciousness to a vision of unity. Such instruments help to cure fragmentation, extending a clearer vision of reality as an interconnected all that is full of meaning. With this comprehension, love surges spontaneously and violence diminishes or disappears, for it is unsustainable for one part of a body to have the purpose of harming another part of the organism.

From the perception of the consciousness of unity underlying all things emerges a sense of love, solidarity and care for humanity and the planet. It reminds us of our responsibility to promote peace in the communities in which we live.
Working with Mandalas helps us to discover the cosmos in the midst of chaos. Its purpose is to open the doors to the soul, which connects us to the universal spirit.
One of the keys to this door is silence – silence to hear and to be heard. Learning to be in silence is an art, for the silence to which I refer is not only on the outside, but also in the heart and mind.
In silence, we can cultivate an internal attitude that is non-judgmental and uncritical – an impersonal witness able to look at us with curiosity and love. It accompanies us in our paths, our processes, serving as a mirror and converting us into more real and more conscious beings.
With silence, we connect with our innate joy. In the utilization of the tools of transformation of consciousness, there are no set rules, no one to say, “That must be done like this.” Instead, each is his or her own teacher and is free to experiment, allowing for the flowering of creativity and happiness that do not depend upon success in the satisfaction of our desires and needs. The happiness of which I speak is the joy of life and being, the joy of having contact with one’s essential humanity.

Lic. Ana Inés de Avruj