Circles appear in nature, in the sun, moon, stones, caves,
flowers, and so on. Human beings have learned to draw circles, perhaps
imitating the forms they saw in nature. A circle can be created with a single
flourish, a stroke of the brush. This is an important meditative action in Zen
Buddhism. The resulting empty circle is called an "enso." The more common way to
draw a circle (without a paper plate!) is by establishing a point to become the
center of the circle. Using this center as an anchor point, a string, stick, or
other instrument is swung 360 degrees around the center to draw a circle. This
necessary action in the creation of a circle has become intensely layered with
meaning. For example, in a large circle, a person may stand on the center to
draw the circle. Thereafter, the center point becomes cognate with the person
herself. The surrounding circle can manifest the universe of which the person
is a part. Even looking at a smaller circle, the artist can identify with the
center as if they were standing there. Therefore, the centered circle can help
the artist feel a part of the Cosmos. This establishes a line of thought
whereby the center of the circle can also be thought of as the Center, the
navel of the world, the Oomphalos where creation manifests, where all that is
enters into being.
Many legends and folktales describe the birth of a people as
emerging from such a center (a cave, an underground spring, a mountain). So,
the reverence for caves and mountains among ancient peoples can also be
considered a focus on “centers”. People began to build structures to emulate
such natural sites. The ziggurats of Iraq are stepped mountains. They are also
prototypical 3-D mandalas. To mount the steps of the ziggurat is to move closer
to the center of the mandala. We see similar designs in the great mandalas of
India and Tibet. The message seems to be: the center is a point of perfect
alignment with the powers that be, i.e., the Cosmos. Mandalas are apparently built
to commemorate such an experience, and also as a guide back to that experience.
CG Jung built on the Eastern traditions in establishing his
concept of the psyche (which is illustrated as a mandala). The center in Jung’s
schema is the Self. So, one way to interpret mandalas is that the center
symbolizes the Self. However, it is more complicated than this, because Jung
opined that the whole mandala also exemplifies the Self, as well as all the
psychic elements being arranged by the matrix of the Self: ego and other
archetypal elements.
I personally believe that the design construction of a
mandala can flow between having a visible center and having a non-visible
center. Just as a center point is necessary to draw a circle, I believe that a circle
establishes a center, even when you cannot see the center. It has to do with
the way our brain organizes visual gestalts, or patterns. In creating mandalas
you may emphasize the center or not. Depending on your goal for your mandala
work, you might establish a visible center or not. I prefer to let people decide for themselves
about whether to make a center point or not, so as to have a more natural
expression of what they are experiencing at the time.
The center of the mandala is very important.
