 
About this Website A Mandala [from the Sanskrit for circle] is a complex design that, in Eastern Spiritual tradition, is used in religious practice for meditation or contemplation. The images are prescribed by tradition and are drawn, painted, modelled [as in sand sculpture], or even danced. In Jungian Psychology, the mandala [or magic circle] is visualized in dreams symbolizing the dreamer's striving for unity of self and completeness. On this webpage you will find several mandalas that I've made using computer software, most notably Adobe Photoshop and Kai's Power Tools. I developed a mandala page because I found myself using Photoshop and Imaja "Bliss" and Kai's Power Tools as a means of enjoying colour on a computer screen. The images that I created that pleased me often took the form of Mandalas. Jung suggests the mandala is a form of expression often found in dreams -- so I'm not surprised to find myself using them in my waking dreams. [C.J. Jung, Mandala Symbolism, Bollingen Series, Princeton University Press, 1972] Then I became interested in my fellow WEB-MANDALA-ites. No matter what one does, there are others who are also doing some form of it and who are willing to offer information, education, services, and, yes, even web bunk. The links I found by searching for "mandalas" range from traditional Buddhist expressions to individualistic, non-traditional practices to abstract, academic treatments of the subject and, of course, to religious proselytizing. I found one person who teaches Mandala making and several people who sell mandala images. I haven't taken a mandala course, but given my own experience with the relaxation that comes from mandala making, I can recommend it. Most of the mandala pages listed on the Internet are religious or spiritual in nature. I neither believe in, nor practice, nor wish to promote this form of spiritualism. Nor do I wish to suggest that you ignore the spiritual pages and practices. What do I have to say about what you choose to do? I find the mandala links, both academic and spiritual, to be interesting and informative. Ray Rasmussen: [ Other Websites ] [ Email ] Copyright: You are free to use any of my mandala images. If you do, please link this page. |