The Spiritual Symbolism Of Labyrinths And Mazes

As a child I always enjoyed visiting the English Tudor homes open to the public, particularly Hampton Court, which had a maze to run into, hide in the hedgerow, get to the centre and then find my way back out. Hearing the cackle and playful squealing of other children, even bumping into others as I turned a corner, and encountering many dead ends en-route to the centre, made for a thrilling experience.

I also remember at the circus being in a maze of the hall of mirrors and trying to find my way through so many weird reflections of myself. Frustration would rise up inside of me as joy turned to brief concern or panic. Later I moved to solving mazes in the puzzle books.

There is a distinct difference between a maze and a labyrinth. Mazes are often thought to have, in earnest been established circa 13th century, with one of the most famous being Hampton Court in England. Yet, in fact, maze-like structures were found under buildings from the Roman Empire days, and even used around castles in Medieval Europe to confuse the enemy. So, mazes demonstrated or represented a challenge, it creates the potential for confusion through its many changes in direction and dead ends, forcing one to retrace ones steps.

A labyrinth has only one path that leads in a cuituitious way to center. It is designed to find your way. This is what makes it a path for meditation ~ Lauren Artress

A labyrinth on the other hand is unicursal, having no branches. You enter and get to the center, but follow a path that has you exit from the same entry point. Labyrinths have been found depicted on ancient coins and religious artifacts, and date back to 2000 to 3000 years BC. The Cretan labyrinth, where the Minotaur resided in Greek mythology, is one of the most famous, but other famous labyrinths are found in the Roman, Egyptian, Native American and other indigenous cultures.

Did you know that mazes and labyrinths relate to spiritual evolution? Consider the maze as a representation of our life – that it is an infinite virtual reality matrix of our life events. We enter rooms and hallways embarking upon deeper knowledge; striving to reach our centre; opening rooms and doors to find joy and fulfillment and occasionally hitting a dead end, so that we need to take a different direction. Dependent upon how deep into the maze we have gone and how many successful rooms we have found will influence us as to the level of joy or anxiety we are experiencing in our exploration adventure.

Is your life ‘A-maze-ing’ or a reality of empty rooms and challenges to find yourself a way out of your current circumstances? Regardless there is always a new prosperous maze to explore.

Labyrinths have symmetry about them that has come to be accepted as a representation of faith, spirituality and the philosophy of life. To enter a labyrinth is to trust that the path leads to the goal. It also transcends any specific religion, culture or time, and is viewed as a universal ‘tool’ that assists us as individuals to reconnect with our Higher Self, Spirit or Deity of choice by ‘walking the labyrinth.’

A labyrinth is a symbolic journey . . . but it is a map we can really walk on, blurring the difference between map and world ~ Rebecca Solnit,

It has been said by some that in the case of a maze you enter to become confused or lost, but entering a labyrinth is to enter a path that has no choices to make en route, so one can find oneself.

I suggest you look around your local area for a labyrinth and try it out. Use it as a walking meditation tool and perhaps even build one on your land. In addition, the geometry is viewed as relaxing, so perhaps get a rug with a classic labyrinth pattern or picture for your wall.

Enter the soul’s labyrinth to understand who you are and your purpose for community, and to exit the mazes. Explore with joy.