LABYRINTHS

About 15 years ago I attended a workshop at Unity of Fairfax presented by a young man who had a degree in Sacred Space. Oh, wow! In addition to his presentation of sacred sites throughout the world, we built a labyrinth, which is creating sacred space, and walked it in prayer. Oh, double wow! It makes my soul tingle to think of it.
The labyrinth is an ancient symbol that relates to wholeness. Labyrinths are not mazes; you cannot get lost. You follow the path to the center and back out which symbolizes your own transformative journey to your own center and back into the world. This involves your brain in intuition, creativity, imagery and the search for possibility. You can walk alone or with a group, in silence or with soothing music, as a prayer or in meditation, in joy, as a ritual. Walking the labyrinth clears the mind and gives insight into the life journey.
Fifteen years ago I thought of labyrinths as being outside the mainstream of spiritual acceptance. You can imagine how exicted I was 2 years ago to find a listing under the activities section of our local newspaper for a labyrinth at the Warrenton Methodist Church. It is beautiful--a path of flagstones with flowers, shrbs and trees as well as benches. It was suggested to me that pausing at each turn to remember family and friends, dead and alive, was a meaningful approach to the labyrinth. I found it very moving. I like to walk the labyrinth each Eastertime. There are several designs, but my favorite is at Chartres and dates to 1220AD.