Mandala: Journey to the Center

by Lori Bailey Cunningham

Experience the ultimate journey of self-discovery through mandalas and meditation. Mandala art has been used throughout the world for self-expression, spiritual transformation, and personal growth. Mandala is the ancient Sanskrit word for circle and is seen by Tibetans as a diagram of the cosmos. It is used by native Americans in healing rituals and in Christian cathedrals the labyrinth is a mandalic pattern used as a tool for meditation. An archetypal symbol of wholeness, the mandala was used as a therapeutic art tool by psychologist Carl Jung, who believed creating mandalas helped patients to make the unconscious conscious. Joseph Campbell brought mandalas to the public's attention in The Power of Myth (1988): "In working out a mandala ... you draw a circle and then think of the different impulse systems and value systems in your life.... Making a mandala is a discipline for pulling all those scattered aspects of your life together, finding a center." Journey to the Center provides insights into the significance of mandalas and helps you to use them as a path to greater self-awareness. Mandala offers over 400 breathtaking color photographs of mandalas in manifestations from art, architecture, and nature -- from Buddhist paintings to the Pantheon to atomic structures, and explores how the mandala has been used throughout history and is relevant today as a tool for meditation, personal growth, and expression. Mandala features a gallery of worldwide contemporary mandala art accompanied by inspirational stories from the artists who created them, and provides exercises and examples of specific techniques for making one's own mandalas. Exploring the mandala can lead us on a journey to wholeness, helping us discover the center within ourselves and beyond.

Genres: Nonfiction, Art

160 pages, Paperback

First published January 20, 2002

Reviews

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author gave some good advice, but while trying to prove that mandalas are everywhere, she defined mandalas as circles and spirals. While it's true that circles and spirals can be found in nature, religion, cultures, and such, I do not think I would call them mandalas. That aside, there was some good, basic, beginner artist advice. It was interesting, but not exactly what I was looking for when I read the description of the book.

[Lori · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved all the things I learned about Mandalas in this book. It had great illustrations and photos! I had no idea that mandalas were so meaningful until reading this book. I also enjoyed all the instructions on creating your own mandala and can't wait to creat my own!

[Ken · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm liking this book so far. It has great illustrations and is visually very attractive. As a former proofreader, I am enjoying the typo per page average in this example of books printed in China.

[Lydia Roman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful book :)

[Maria Fitzpatrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book. It is a good introduction to Mandala and gave ideas on how to start to make my own

[Petra's updates are all blocked · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice book for an artistic, New Age person.