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During my presentation on the first day of the AIM training in Brazil, I mentioned the labyrinth of Chartres. I received various questions about it, and decided to write a post on it.
During are last course on Sacred Geometry in 2009, we explained in great detail the construction and the spiritual effects of labyrinths. Labyrinths have been around for over 4000 years and are found all over the world.
They have been an integral part of cultures such as Maya, Celtic, Greek, and even Native American (The Hopi called the labyrinth the symbol for “mother earth” and equated it with the Kiva). During the crusades, they were used to symbolically represent the pilgrimage to the Holy Land.
Today, labyrinths are mainly being used for reflection, meditation and prayer. They are found in many sizes and shapes, and are created in various materials,
There are three basic designs — seven circuit, eleven circuit, and twelve circuit, from which the seven circuit one is the most popular. The Cathedral in Chartres, France is the most famous example of an eleven circuit design. Another famous aspect is the spectacular rose window over the great west doors. It has the same dimensions as the labyrinth and is exactly the same distance up the west wall as the labyrinth is laterally from the cathedral’s main entrance below the window.
An imaginary cosmic hinge located where the doors and floor intersect would, if closed, place the rose window directly on top of the labyrinth, thus the sparkling, coloured light of the window and the darkness of the labyrinthine pilgrimage are combined.
A labyrinth and a maze are not the same. A maze has dead ends and many trick turns. A labyrinth has only one path leading to the centre and back out again. There are no dead ends.
When you walk a labyrinth, you meander back and forth, turning 180 degrees each time you enter a different circuit. As you shift your direction you also shift your awareness from right brain to left brain. This is one of the reasons the labyrinth can induce receptive states of consciousness.
Each person’s walk is a personal experience. How one walks and what one receives differs with each walk. Some people use the walk for clearing the mind and centring. Others enter with a question or concern. The time in the centre can be used for receiving, reflecting, meditating, or praying, as well as discovering our own sacred inner space. What each person receives can be integrated on the walk out. Your walk can be a healing and sometimes very profound experience or it can be just a pleasant walk.
Labyrinths are truly spiritual places. The design itself is inherently powerful. The space and the experience of walking it are also very sacred and powerful and help us feel a greater sense of Oneness. It is a tool for people of all beliefs to come together for a common spiritual experience, and can be used in combination with CoRe to get out of the labyrinth that is our existence and to find the way home.
Willy De Maeyer
