The
labyrinth, found world-wide, suggests pilgrimage and discovery.
In Jungian terms, it is an archetype, a divine imprint.
Take that first step.
Follow the winding path into the center.
Pause, reflect and return bringing out a new-found perspective.
A full-size Chartres-design labyrinth has been taken to the women’s
prison and set up in the gym twice a year for an entire day allowing
both inmates and staff to experience the meditative walk.
In preparation for walking
the labyrinth and to teach a form of personal relaxation and reflection,
handheld labyrinths are used in the women’s dream group. As
they are shared around the circle, women run a finger over the path,
some with eyes closed.
A stone labyrinth warms
as it is held. The wooden labyrinth has a different feel. Paper reproductions
are given out, as are instructions so they can draw their own labyrinths.
"In my beginning is my end...
In my end is my beginning."
East Coker
From Four Quartets by T.S. Eliot
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An Alternative to Walking
Twenty-first century multitasking hinders meditation.
Stress complicates contemplation.
We can choose otherwise.
The labyrinth is an option.
Sitting quietly, moving hand, finger, pencil or
crayon over a lap-held labyrinth helps to focus attention
while calming and centering the mind and body.
Some Labyrinths that I use in my work include:
- Wooden Chartres Rose
- Metal Chartres Rose
- Soapstone Cretin Seven-Circuit
- Ceramic
- Sand Chartres Rose and Cretin Seven-Circuit
- Paper copies of both Chartres Rose and Cretin Seven-Circuit
Labyrinth
- Insert printed page in plastic page cover or paste
to cardboard:
- Color
- Trace path in with one color and out with a different color
- Cover with sand for tactile sensation
- Paper Labyrinths are
- Versatile
- Very inexpensive
- Portable.
- Draw free-hand using starter points creating a
labyrinth anytime, anywhere.
Thanks for these suggestions from fellow members
of the American Society of Clinical Hypnosis: Wayne Martin, LISW, BCIAC,
Fort Worth, TX, Martin Center for Pain Control; Helen Adrienne, LCSW,
BCD, New York City Mind/Body Medicine practitioner; and Susan Dowell,
LCSW, New York City, Clinical Hypnosis trainer and practitioner.