Mandala In The Religion
"The integrated view of the world represented by the mandala, while long embraced by some Eastern religions, has now begun to emerge in Western religious and secular cultures. Awareness of the mandala may have the potential of changing how we see ourselves, our planet, and perhaps even our own life purpose."
(From Mandala: Journey to the Center, by Bailey Cunningham)
MANDALA IN HINDUISM
A yantra is a two- or three-dimensional geometric composition used in sadhanas, or meditative rituals. It is thought to be the abode of the deity. Each yantra is unique and calls the deity into the presence of the practitioner through the elaborate symbolic geometric designs. According to one scholar, “Yantras function as revelatory symbols of cosmic truths and as instructional charts of the spiritual aspect of human experience"
MANDALA IN BUDDHISM
Mandalas are commonly used by tantric Buddhists as an aid to meditation. Some monks spend hours creating temporary sand mandalas which are painstakingly created on the temple floors using small tubes of differently colored sands. In these mandalas they use the various traditional designs to represent symbolically the objects of worship and contemplation of the Tibetan Buddhist cosmology. To symbolize impermanence (a central teaching of Buddhism), after days or weeks of creating the intricate pattern, the sand is brushed together and is usually placed in a body of running water to spread the blessings of the Mandala.
CHRISTIANITY
Mandala forms are prevalent throughout Christianity: celtic cross; rosary; halo; aureole; oculi; Crown of Thorns; rose windows; Labirinth on the floor of Chartres Cathedral.
Orthodox Christianity; in the icons. Trinity, the Burning Bush for example. in the dome of the church: the apostles and Christ Pantokrator
In their earliest forms within Hindu and Buddhist art works, they were graphic symbols of the universe. In latter manifestations they arose off the parchment and gave inspiration to western church architecture in the shape of great multicolored "Rose" windows throughout the cathedrals of Europe. Here, the new element of light came into glorious effect, literally illuminating the spiritual and religious representations of the church.
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