Walking A Labyrinth

I attended a talk today by labyrinth “expert”, Lauren Artress.  I’m pretty sure she wouldn’t claim the word “expert”. But she is one of the people who has widely promoted the use of labyrinths in this country and others.  She has written several books about labyrinths – and she is my neighbor.  I am borrowing some text of hers and from my notes on her wonderful talk today.  If you want to know more about her and her work on labyrinths, click HERE for her website “Veriditas”. --- which means the greening of the world.

I am lucky to have a labyrinth in my neighborhood – and you likely are too.  They are proliferating and are found in parks, on church properties, on college campuses, in camps and retreat centers.  The idea of walking the labyrinth has become understandably popular.  So, why?  Why do we walk the labyrinth?  Here is Lauren’s answer;

Walking the Labyrinth quiets the mind, opens the heart and grounds the body ... Some find answers to questions long asked, some find healing, creativity, a sense of wholeness ... It also is a way to quiet your mind, get a perspective on your life – what do you seek?

The labyrinth is not a maze. There are no tricks to it and no dead ends. It has a single circuitous path that winds its way into the center. The person walking it uses the same path to return from the center and the entrance then becomes the exit. The path is in full view, which allows a person to be quiet and focus internally.

There are many ways to walk the labyrinth and there are many sizes and styles of labyrinths.  But here is one way she suggests you walk…  Before you enter, take a few breaths to remember why you want to do this.  As you begin walking toward the center, what do you want to release?  In the center you might see if there is something you are “receiving” from this walk.  On the way out you focus on what you are carrying back into the world.

Remember that the spiritual path does not have a goal.  The goal is not to get to the center and back out.  The goal is to deepen your life.  Blessings on your walk..