Last year I had a strong prompting to learn about the Labyrinth after reading an article in New Age Magazine about a labyrinth at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco, modeled after the Labyrinth on the floor of Chartres Cathedral in France.
Walking the Labyrinth is a transformative experience that I have shared with many people who have been curious about its purpose. In keeping with my desire to acquaint you with sacred opportunities, the following is a description of the Labyrinth and its function from the brochure put out by Grace Cathedral.
“The Labyrinth is an archetype, a divine imprint, found in all religious traditions in various forms around the world. By walking a replica of the Labyrinth, laid in the floor of Chartres Cathedral around 1220, we are rediscovering a long-forgotten mystical tradition: the walking meditation.
Three stages comprise the walk: the first (until you reach the center of the Labyrinth) is shedding - a releasing, a letting go of the details of your life. It quiets the mind. The second-Illumination-is when you reach the center. You are encouraged to spend as much time in the center as feels right. The center is a place of meditation and prayer and a place to receive what is there for you to receive. As you leave, following the same path out of the center as you came in upon, you enter the third stage - Union - which is joining with the Divine, your Higher Power, or the sacred healing forces at work in the world. Each time you walk the Labyrinth you become more empowered to find and do the work for which you feel your soul is reaching.”
I can attest to the validity of these statements, for the experience in the church and the meditative walk was very enlightening. Everyone’s experience is different and there is no right or wrong way of walking or receiving from the labyrinth. You get what you need when you’re there, and you may receive something entireley different on your next visit.
If you are interested in walking the Labyrinth, check in your area to find out where one is located. Since this article was written in 1996, many have appeared throughout the country in cities and towns large and small. Walking a Sacred path: The Rediscovery of the Labyrinth as a Spritual Tool, by Lauren Artress, tells the story of the Labyrinth, and by now there are many more books to check out giving descriptions of how the labyrinth can change lives.
From Seasons of the Soul print edition, Spring 1996