Tangled thoughts

Tangled thoughts.

Sometimes...

it's all just

too much...

"Just be you"

"And please, if you decide to approach this...do it with all the compassion for yourself that you can find. You are probably not a great artist or writer or psychologist or spiritual adept. So don't expect to draw like Leonardo DaVinci, write like Jane Austen, analyze like Carl Jung, or have insights like the Buddha." -
"Just be you."
~ Cheri Huber in How You Do Anything is How You Do Everything - A Workbook

I am passionate about turning others on to the creative, relaxing and insightful practice of making mandalas. There are many ways to make them, from hand-drawn to digital, to coloring pre-made mandalas. What I like most about it is that it's spontaneous, intuitive creativity. It's creativity as self-discovery and release...especially at times when words escape us...we can always make marks and doodles inside of a circle. And..it's so very interesting to see what turns up...and how it changes even as we create it. What's equally interesting is "how we are" in the process of creating, which can tell us a lot about ourselves. Ahh...this is such revealing work.

Whew...I experience a sense of relief and release of emotions and a sense of satisfaction after making/working on a mandala. I often work on one a little at a time, not always in one sitting. That creative time is becoming an Oasis for the Spirit for me. Each stroke, squiggle, squirl, curly-Q and curve... is an inner-mirror and mystery of the self. Only we can determine what it all means...to and for us. For me, that message comes from Spirit as intuition, a flash of insight, or syncronicity of information or a person shows up. My mandalas are often confirmation of an idea, feeling or emotion I've not consciously realized. The answers do come by continually being open to the process, by being open to the mystery, having passion for (seeking) the answers...and exploring the questions. Journaling, self-dialogue, free-writing with the mandalas helps too. I find this entire Mandala Journey of artistry and exploration...is exhilarating and fascinating! I trust that if you choose to exlplore it, that you will too.

Please note: Sometimes there's a tendancy to compare our work with the work of others, that comes with being human. Cheri Huber has advice on that too. In the same book as noted above, she writes:

"Comparing yourself to anyone else is like comparing apples and oranges. No comparison is possible! ...Just see if you can become more interested in the process of comparing than in what is being compared". (Again... "Just be you.")

"I am a wild flower"

I am a wild flower

Free to grow

in whatever way I choose.

I grow in some of the unlikeliest places.

I survive and thrive in ideal...

and less than ideal conditions.

I am hearty.

I know how to find sustenance...

I am a wild flower.

I am strong.

I am fragrant.

I am beautiful.

I am varietal.

I am free spirit.

I reach for the light, and find it.

I am a wild flower...

growing...and free.

"I bloom, anyway"

I bloom, anyway.

Breaking through the layers

of stone and rocks

and the hard clay of life

I bloom no matter what.

Reaching up, seeking my own

touching the sky and kissing the stars

I bloom...anyway.

Mandala Challenge: "Connect"

"In nature, we never see anything isolated, but everything in connection with something else which is before it, beside it, under it and over it." ~Goethe

The focus of this week's Mandala Challenge is: "Connect"...along with its siblings: Connection, Connecting, Connected, Connector. Also invited on this week's journey is Connect's contrary cousin, "Dis-Connect"..and its siblings too. Sometimes simply being aware of a polar opposite is all we need to either shift, or realize the reality of where we are so we can shift to where we want to be...or celebrate where we are! So, some connections might include those to: celebrate...to look forward to...to grow into...let go of (like my ocassional connection to mindless eating)...or reconnecting with a creative project, a defered dream...a person...or situation... the sky's the limit!

So...let's let's allow the awareness of "connect" be our companion over the next week or so.

What would that connection, or disconnection energy look or feel like if captured in a mandala?

Might it be helpful to create a "connect" and "disconnect" mandala?...a symbol of releasing...and embracing?

"Our life is composed greatly from dreams, from the unconscious, and they must be brought into conneciton with action. They must be woven together." ~Anais Nin


If you've not yet joined us, you're invited to share your mandalas and thoughts at the Mandala Oasis Yahoo! Community - or by leaving your blog link under comments. Ocassionally I will post our regular Creativity Promppts here, but the most will be posted at the Mandala Oasis Yahoo! Community.

Creating Your Own Mandalas

"The creative process is about surrender, not control." ~ Julia Cameron

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Below is my prescription for making mandalas, or "Mandala Medicine" as I like to call it; the Process is indeed medicine for my soul. It's relaxing...takes me out of my mental meanderings and allows my heart and soul to express.

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Ahh... self-expression without boundaries...through spontaneous creativity: marking, drawing, doodling, collaging, painting etc. inside the circle in whatver way you like;,,, setting the intention to release the energy of what we're feeling onto the page and into the circle...letting our energy articulate in images and symbols when words escape us.

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In making Mandala Medicine...whatever visual energy we express in the circle...it is what it is...and its relase is one more step closer to emotional, mental liberation...and the door of insight is opened; whether we realize it at the time or not.

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The photo above shows what I use in creating my Mandala Medicine. I gravitate to markers. Create yours using whatever medium you're drawn to or what you have on hand. Allowing yourself to express is the main ingredient needed. Let your heart, emotions, frustrations, joys and inights soar! There are countless ways to make mandalas...which Google will attest to...this is one of them.

HERE WE GO!
1.) Draw or trace a circle of any size (a CD or a plate traces nicely...anything round!) and color, doodle, or paint, inside the circle without giving it much thought; whatever shapes, lines objects you are lead to intuitively draw...let it happen. Simply play! ~ Use whatever medium you're drawn to: crayons, markers, glitter glue, glitter/metallic pens, colored pencils, paint, collage, beads, found objects of any kind, you name it! ~ Allow yourself to get into the flow of 'just creating'...moment by moment, intuitively and spontaneously. Have fun! There are no mistakes. A seeming-mistake becomes another doorway to what lies deeper within. - This is spontaneous creativity, nothing planned here! So...begin!
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Now, if you've gotten started...that's wonderful, no need to read further; but if you're thinking..."Wait a minute..there's got to be more to it than that"...there isn't...but I can provide a bit more insight and guidance, so...please read on.
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2.) As much as possible, surrender to the process vs. straining to create a certain end result. Follow your inklings and urgings in selection of color, medium and whatever forms you create in the circle. This process is for your personal release of emotion, physical feelings, inspiration and creative expression. Creating in the circle informs you of..you! This is a healing process, it's medicine for your soul. So, if you have a difficult time doing this...take a few deep breaths, be patient and set the intention to give yourself permission to express that very energy (resistance, fear, grief, joy, love...whatever you're feeling,..no need to name it) inside the circle...it's a good release. You might even hear yourself exhale with an "Ahhh.."
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3.) Remember there are no mistakes. A seeming-unintended mark or blob becomes another message to be revealed. You will know when your mandala is finished; then, make another one, then another! You'll likely discover that the more mandalas you create...the more you release and the better you feel! The sacred circle of the mandala is a safe space for the energy of your emotional body, as well as your physical body to express. For each mandala you create, place them where you can see them; and reflect on them every chance you get. Then make another one...and put it so you can see it too. Repeat!
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4.) Remember to keep your heart open so you can hear and feel the message of your mandalas, and the messages of your heart; giving them your attention, they will eventually speak to you in some way. It might be a whisper of a thought, a feeling, a dream...or an idea, so be sure to pay attention to any inklings you receive and follow where the threads leads by journaling, talking about it aloud, or sharing with kindred, like-minded souls (the Mandala Oasis Yahoo Community is a good place to start).
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5.) Consider jotting down: how you feel about your mandalas, what feelings came up, how you feel about making them...or just a word or phrase or two, it doesn't have to "make sense; or what you feel when you look at it...and any other insights that come. ~ Notice the colors, shapes, symbols and how they feel to you. ~ Mandalas have also inspired individuals to write poems, affirmations, prayers and short stories, and conversations between themselves and the mandala energy. This is amazing stuff!! And if you're not drawn to write anything down, that's OK too! Mandala Medicine works whether your write what you've created, or not!

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6.) Most of all, allow yourself be a vessel for what needs to come through...regardless of what it looks like. All of your creations are clues to the mysterious, beautiful, hidden treasure that is YOU!

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Creating mandalas is creative play, and a form of meditation for many. Read how making mandalas has helped others at this link... scroll and read the inspiring "comments" that other bloggers left.

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To become part of our online community, meeting others who are passionate about making mandalas (including digital mandalas) consider joining the kindred Mandala Oasis Yahoo Community that I started (click here to join) Share with others from all over the world doing this amazing, healing and revealing...and innately creative work.

"I am enough"

This poem made it way to me as I opened myself to the message of this mandala. I have a feeling there will be more to come:

"I am unique
I stand tall
I flower

Alone on a hill

Balanced in eternity

Rooted through and through
I am enough"

There is an elaborate root system far beneath, and beyond my flesh and bones. It holds me up when I feel like I'm stranded on a hill, or a mountain...of life's challenges and requirements. Then, this Root System acts on my behalf...oftentimes even before I have asked. Yes, that's Grace, for which I am very thankful. I then realize that as I stand on that mountain wondering what to do, and where to start...this Root System reminds me that I am not alone, and that It's always here doing what it does naturally: feeding, nurturing, supporting, assuring and showing me the way. Now I see...I don't just have this root system, it has me! And, I discovered something else....I'm not alone on a hill or mountain...I am bathing in an Oasis of Spirit!

"Yes...
I am enough
I am more than enough
...And I flower"