Mandala

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For other uses, see Mandala (disambiguation).
Buddhist mandala
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Buddhist mandala

Mandala (Sanskrit maṇḍala "circle", "completion") is of Hindu origin and is also used in most Dharmic religions, such as Buddhism and Hinduism, to refer to various tangible objects. In Vajrayana they have been developed into sandpainting. In practice, mandala has become a generic term for any plan, chart or geometric pattern which represents the cosmos metaphysically or symbolically, a microcosm of the universe from the human perspective.

A mandala, especially its center, can be used during meditation as an object for focusing attention. The symmetrical geometric shapes tend to draw the attention towards their center. Psychiatrist Carl Jung saw the mandala as "a representation of the unconscious self," [1], and believed his paintings of mandalas enabled him to identify emotional disorders and work towards wholeness in personality. [2]

Contents

[edit] Mandala in Hinduism

In Hindu cosmology, the surface of the earth is represented as a square, which, after the triangle is the most fundamental of all Hindu forms. The earth is represented as four cornered with reference to the horizon's relationship with sunrise and sunset, the north and south direction. The earth is thus called Caturbhrsti (four-cornered) and is represented in the symbolic form of the Prithvi Mandala. The astrological charts or horoscopes (Rasi, Navamsa, etc) also represent in a square plan the ecliptic—the positions of the sun, moon, planets and zodiacal constellations with reference to the native's place and time of birth. The Vaastu Purusha Mandala is the metaphysical plan of a building, temple or site that incorporates the course of the heavenly bodies and supernatural forces. The Mandala of the hexagram, somewhat resembling the Star of David, is an archetypal symbol for the sacred union of opposite energies.[3] Formed by the intertwining of the "fire" and "water" triangles this symbol represents the masculine and feminine principles in perfect union. In India, the symbol represents the "cosmic dance" of Shiva and Shakti [4]. The Star symbol has been found on temples in India from almost 10,000 years ago. In addition to the balance between man and woman, the Star symbolizes the Nara-Narayana or perfect meditative balancing state achieved between Man and God, and if maintained, results in "Moksha", or "Nirvana", i.e., release from the bounds of the earthly world and its material trappings. [5]

[edit] Mandala in Vajrayana Buddhism

Tibetan monks making a temporary "Sand-Mandala" in the City-Hall of Kitzbühel in Austria in 2002
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Tibetan monks making a temporary "Sand-Mandala" in the City-Hall of Kitzbühel in Austria in 2002
Details of Sand-Mandala
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Details of Sand-Mandala

A kyil khor (Tibetan for mandala) in tantric Buddhism usually depicts a landscape of the Buddha land or the enlightened vision of a Buddha: "a microcosm representing various divine powers at work in the universe." [6] Such mandalas consist of an outer circular mandala and an inner square (or sometimes circular) mandala with an ornately decorated mandala palace [7] placed at the center. Any part of the inner mandala can be occupied by Buddhist glyphs and symbols [8] as well as images of its associated deities, which "symbolise different stages in the process of the realisation of the truth." [9] Mandalas are commonly used by tantric Buddhists as an aid to meditation. More specifically, a Buddhist mandala is envisaged as a "sacred space," [10] a Pure Buddha Realm [11] and also as an abode of fully realised beings or deities. [12] It is regarded as a place separated and protected from the ever-changing and impure outer world of Samsara. [13] It is thus seen as a Buddhafield [14] or a place of Nirvana and peace. In many tantric mandalas, this aspect of separation and protection from the outer samsaric world is depicted by "the four outer circles: the purifying fire of wisdom, the vajra circle, the circle with the eight tombs, the lotus circle." [15] The ring of vajras forms a connected fence-like arrangement running around the perimeter of the outer mandala circle [16] The mandala is also "a support for the meditating person," [17] something to be repeatedly contemplated, to the point of saturation, such that the image of the mandala becomes fully internalised in even the minutest detail and which can then be summoned and contemplated at will as a clear and vivid visualised image. With every mandala comes what Tucci calls "its associated liturgy...contained in texts known as tantras," [18] instructing practitioners on how the mandala should be drawn, built and visualised and indicating the mantras to be recited during its ritual use.

The photograph at right is a good example of a Tibetan sand mandala.[19] This pattern is painstakingly created on the temple floor by several monks who use small tubes and rub another metal object against the tube's notched surface to create a tiny flow of grains.[20] The various aspects of the traditionally fixed design 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.

The visualization and concretization of the mandala concept is one of the most significant contributions of Buddhism to religious psychology. Mandalas are seen as sacred places which, by their very presence in the world, remind a viewer of the immanence of sanctity in the universe and its potential in his or her self. In the context of the Buddhist path the purpose of a mandala is to put an end to human suffering, to attain enlightenment and to attain a correct view of Reality. It is a means to discover divinity by the realization that it resides within one's own self.

A mandala can also represent the entire universe, which is traditionally depicted with Mount Meru as the axis mundi in the center, surrounded by the continents. A 'mandala offering' [21] in Tibetan Buddhism is a symbolic offering of the entire universe. Every intricate detail of these mandalas is fixed in the tradition and has specific symbolic meanings, often on more than one level.

The mandala can be shown to represent in visual form the core essence of the vajrayana teachings. In the mandala, the outer circle of fire usually symbolises wisdom. The ring of 8 charnel grounds[22] probably represent the Buddhist exhortation to always be mindful of death and impermanence with which samsara is suffused: "such locations were utilized in order to confront and to realize the transient nature of life."[23] Described elsewhere thus: "within a flaming rainbow nimbus and encircled by a black ring of dorjes, the major outer ring depicts the eight great charnel grounds, to emphasize the dangerous nature of human life."[24] Inside these rings lie the walls of the mandala palace itself, specifically a place populated by deities and Buddhas.

One well-known type of mandala in Japan is the mandala of the "Five Buddhas", archetypal Buddha forms embodying various aspects of enlightenment, the Buddhas are depicted depending on the school of Buddhism and even the specific purpose of the mandala. A common mandala of this type is that of the Five Wisdom Buddhas (a.k.a. Five Jinas), the Buddhas Vairocana, Aksobhya, Ratnasambhava, Amitabha and Amoghasiddhi. When paired with another mandala depicting the Five Wisdom Kings, this forms the Mandala of the Two Realms.

[edit] Mandala Offering

Whereas the above mandala reprents the pure surroundings of a Buddha, this mandala represents the ordinary universe. This type of mandala is used for the so-called mandala-offerings, during which one symbolically offers the universe to the Buddhas or one's teacher for example. Within Vajrayana practice, 100,000 of these mandala offerings (to create merit) can be part of the preliminary practices before a student can begin with actual tantric practices. This mandala is generally structured according to the model of the universe as taught in a Buddhist classic text the Abhidharmakosha, with Mount Meru at the center, surrounded by the continents, oceans and mountains etc..

[edit] Mandala in Nichiren Buddhism

The mandala in Nichiren Buddhism is called a moji-mandala (文字漫荼羅) and is a hanging paper scroll or wooden tablet whose inscription consists of Chinese characters and medieval-Sanskrit script representing elements of the Buddha's enlightenment, protective Buddhist deities and certain Buddhist concepts. Called the Gohonzon, it was originally inscribed by Nichiren, the founder of this branch of Japanese Buddhism, during the late 13th century. The Gohonzon is the primary object of veneration in some Nichiren schools and the only one in others, which consider it to be the supreme object of worship as the embodiment of the supreme Dharma and Nichiren's inner enlightenment. The seven characters Nam Myoho Renge Kyo, considered to be the name of the supreme Dharma and the invocation that believers chant, are written down the center of all Nichiren-sect Gohonzons, whose appearance may otherwise vary depending on the particular school and other factors.

[edit] Other meanings of mandala

a contemporary mandala made from a photograph of tree fungus.
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a contemporary mandala made from a photograph of tree fungus.

In the West, mandala is also used to refer to the "personal world" in which one lives, the various elements of the mandala or the activities and interests in which one engages, the most important being at the centre of the mandala and the least important at the periphery. Depicting one's personal mandala in pictorial form can give one a good indication of the state of one's spiritual life.

[edit] Mandala in Discordianism

One of the lesser-known emblems of Discordianism is a mandala found in the Principia Discordia. It is pentagonal in shape and consists of five identically-shaped linked elements, each of which forms one point on the outside of the mandala. As is noted in the caption, "No two of the five elements interlock, but all five do interlock". Inside of the pentagon formed by these elements is the Five-Fingered Hand of Eris.

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ http://www.crystalinks.com/mandala.html
  2. ^ See C G Jung: Memories, Dreams, Reflections, pp.186-197
  3. ^ http://www.faqs.org/faqs/judaism/FAQ/05-Worship/section-79.html
  4. ^ http://www.indiantemples.com/Tamilnadu/chiddance.html
  5. ^ http://en.mimi.hu/yoga/moksha.html
  6. ^ http://www.mandala21century.org/the_mandala.html
  7. ^ http://www.jyh.dk/indengl.htm#Symbols
  8. ^ http://www.jyh.dk/indengl.htm#Symbols Mandala by Jytte Hansen
  9. ^ http://www.hinduonnet.com/fline/fl2122/stories/20041105000106500.htm
  10. ^ http://www.exoticindiaart.com/article/mandala/
  11. ^ http://www.lotsawahouse.org/id136.html
  12. ^ http://www.hinduonnet.com/fline/fl2122/stories/20041105000106500.htm
  13. ^ http://www.angelfire.com/electronic/awakening101/sudgrad2.html
  14. ^ http://home.swipnet.se/ratnashri/ngondro.htm
  15. ^ http://www.jyh.dk/indengl.htm
  16. ^ http://www.jyh.dk/indengl.htm#Circles
  17. ^ http://www.jyh.dk/indengl.htm
  18. ^ http://www.asianart.com/mandalas/tibet.html
  19. ^ See Sand Mandala http://www.artnetwork.com/Mandala/
  20. ^ http://www.artnetwork.com/Mandala/gallery.html
  21. ^ http://www.berzinarchives.com/tantra/meaning_use_mandala.html
  22. ^ http://www.bdcu.org.au/scw/thanka.html
  23. ^ http://www.yoniversum.nl/dakini/charnel_g.html
  24. ^ http://www.sootze.com/tibet/mandala.htm

[edit] See also

 Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

[edit] Select bibliography

  • M Brauen, The Mandala, Sacred circle in Tibetan Buddhism Serindia Press, London, 1997
  • S Cammann, Suggested Origin of the Tibetan Mandala Paintings The Art Quarterly, Vol. 8, Detroit, 1950
  • Sylvie Grossman and Jean-Pierre Barou, Tibetan Mandala, Art & Practice The Wheel of Time, Konecky and Konecky, 1995
  • Giuseppe Tucci, The Theory and Practice of the Mandala trans. Alan Houghton Brodrick, New York, Samuel Weisner, 1973
  • Roberto Vitali, Early Temples of Central Tibet London, Serindia Publications, 1990
  • Alex Wayman, "Symbolism of the Mandala Palace" in The Buddhist Tantras Delhi, Motilal Banarsidass, 1973
  • Gold, Peter (1994). Navajo & Tibetan sacred wisdom: the circle of the spirit. ISBN 0-89281-411-X. Rochester, Vermont: Inner Traditions International.

[edit] External links

[edit] Mandala General

[edit] Tibetan Sand Mandala

[edit] Mandala as art

[edit] Mandala Software

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