Mandalas for Centering Strength
The Art of Releasing Control
At times, this feeling is mirrored in our art and healing practices, as participants face a blank page that waits to be marked upon. Having no idea what our creations are going to look like is a lesson in trusting the process, seeing where the art-making leads us. This relinquishing of control in art-making can teach us how to trust the greater process of living and healing, as expressed in wisdom of the following poem.
“Allowing”
by Danna Faulds
There is no controlling life.
Try corralling a lightning bolt,
containing a tornado. Dam a
stream, and it will create a new
channel. Resist and the tide
will sweep you off your feet.
Allow and grace will carry
you to higher ground. The only
safety lies in letting it all in –
the wild with the weak; fear,
fantasies, failures and success.
When loss rips off the door of
the heart, or sadness veils your
vision with despair, practice
becomes simply bearing the truth.
In the choice to let go of your
known way of being, the whole
world is revealed to your new eyes.
This summer, we are exploring the art of the mandala – creating within a circle. Our first workshop addressed how to let go of our anxieties through the process of intuitive mandala drawing and how to create an intentional mandala for centering strength.
Using a black piece of paper that represents the void, mystery and the unknown, we began by using a white pencil — a light wand, so to speak — to shed illumination into our drawings. Symbolically, we used it to plant a seed in the center of a circle drawn on the black paper.
Participants said:
“I learned that you can create art for yourself without concern about the appeal of it to others!”
“I thought I was not artistic or creative, but now the creative healing arts will be part of my new life.”
“I was able to delve deeper into my emotions.”
“Amazed that art is more than visual, that it can be therapeutic.”
Thank you to Lexington Medical Foundation for sponsoring these series of classes.
Join Us
In our next class, Mandalas for Harvesting Gratitude, we will learn another technique for creating mandalas.
Tuesday, July 16th
1 – 5 pm at Lexington Medical Center
To register for this free offering, call:
Libby Daniels 791-2289, or
Jennifer Peagler 791-2617