Mandala: Journey to the Centre

by Lori Bailey Cunningham

For millennia, 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 an ideal diagram of the cosmos, an object of meditation that can lead one to enlightenment. It is used by Native Americans in healing rituals. In Christian cathedrals and gardens, the labyrinth is a mandalic pattern used as a tool for centering and contemplation. An archetypal symbol of wholeness, the mandala was used as a therapeutic art tool by psychoanalyst Carl Jung, who believed that mandalas created spontaneously in dreams or waking life were unconscious attempts to heal one's inner self. Joseph Campbell brought mandalas to the public's attention in "The Power of Myth" (1988): "making a mandala is a discipline for pulling all those scattered aspects of your life together, finding a centre". "Mandala: Journey to the Centre" explores how the mandala has been used throughout history and is relevant today as a tool for meditation, personal growth and expression. This book offers over 400 breathtaking colour photographs of mandalas in mainifestations from art, architecture and nature - from Buddhist paintings to the Pantheon to our own cellular structure. It also includes illustrated exercises and examples of specific techniques for making mandalas and using them as a path to greater self-awareness. A special international gallery of contemporary mandala art and community healing projects is accompanied by stories from the artists who created them, providing inspiration for our exploration of the mandala - a journey to wholeness that can help us discover the centre 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 X is in the hot air fryer called Delhi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice book for an artistic, New Age person.