A very popular motif in adult anti-stress coloring books, the mandala is also a highly symbolic drawing. Different spiritual traditions use this type of circular diagram, particularly in India, Tibet, and Japan. We invite you to discover how to use mandalas and their powers.
The term mandala means “circle” in Sanskrit. It refers to a circular drawing, always organized around a central point.
Mandalas, found in various spiritual traditions such as Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism, are more or less elaborate. They can be figurative or abstract, but always possess a symbolic meaning.
In India and Tibet, it is said that these diagrams represent the entire universe. In Hinduism, the mandala is a sacred space used to invoke Hindu deities. In Buddhism, it serves as a support for meditation practices.
In Tibet, the Vajrayana Buddhist school creates this type of complex drawing with colored sand to represent both the order of the world and the impermanent nature of all things. These sand mandalas are ephemeral works meant to be swept away as soon as they are completed.
More broadly, circular designs can be found well beyond the borders of Asia, in North American shamanism and even in Christian religion, as evidenced by the rose windows and stained glass of churches and cathedrals.
Mandalas, whose existence has been attested in Asia for at least 2000 years, can be used for spiritual and therapeutic purposes.
In the West, it was the psychoanalyst Carl Gustav Jung who popularized the mandala as a therapeutic tool. Even today, these circular designs are used in art therapy workshops and personal development courses.
In the 2010s, these patterns with complex and fascinating shapes became mainstream with the trend of adult coloring books. This practice, devoid of religious or ritual significance, serves as a simple leisure activity. However, mandalas prove to be particularly effective in refocusing attention and helping those who color them to relax.
The creation of mandalas or simply coloring this type of drawings is known to be beneficial against stress, attention disorders, and anxiety.
This circular drawing is colored from the center to the periphery, if possible with mindfulness to better calm the mind. Even when one does not follow these instructions, the complexity of the pattern helps to refocus and soothe oneself.
It compels the person drawing or coloring to focus their attention on the present moment. This meditative coloring thus helps to free oneself from mental ruminations, obsessive thoughts, and anxieties.
Whether practiced in art therapy or as a simple hobby, this activity has the advantages of being accessible to both children and adults and requiring no particular artistic talent.
In Buddhism, mandalas are most often used as supports for meditation and introspection. In the West, they are especially popular as art therapy tools to develop concentration, creativity, and calm the mind.
But these are not the only possible uses of these drawings with powerful symbolism. In various spiritual traditions, mandalas represent the Universe as a whole and the entirety of the person.
Through their geometric, symmetrical shape organized around a center, they symbolize the unity of self and the world, coherence, balance, and harmony. These drawings can therefore be used to harmonize a place or space, either in the context of a ritual or in daily life.
The vastu shastra, which is a form of Indian feng shui, provides recommendations for arranging temples and homes in a way that promotes the good circulation of vital energy or prana. This ancient Indian art advises placing mandalas in the home to remove blockages and facilitate the circulation of prana within the house.