About My Mandalas...
On this page, I tell the story of the development
of my mandalas, and share how you can obtain a personalized mandala for your own soul-path journey.
Mandala Series
#1... Roots of the Lotus (2008-9)
The mandala
to the right is one of a series of mandalas I created in the early hours of the morning, enveloped and surrounded by Stevin
McNamara's Chakra Meditation Music. The series took seed in me during late January of 2009 when my friend Michelle Tocher,
an extraordinary story-teller, asked me to describe my 'creation myth'. I could not answer her with words, but only through
a sketchy pastel. That drawing reconnected me with the story of the founder of Tibetan Buddhism, Padmanabha, who was born
from the midst of a lotus flower. The story haunted me for some inexplicable reason and for several weeks I researched the
iconography of Tibetan mandalas. Then, for nine gestating months, I forgot about them.
At the beginning of
October, I felt called to go on an artists' retreat, offered by artists Anne McTaggart and Yvetta Yaneff. Anne had journeyed
to Dharamsala earlier in the year where she witnessed the creation of a sand mandala under the direction of the Dalai Lama.
Yvetta brought Hawaiian Lomi spiritual practice together with a long-term devotion to the creation of healing mandalas. During
that weekend, my work was guided by one clear intention: to embody the lotus who, despite turbulent waters, remained deeply
rooted with its radiant face open to the sky.
That weekend represented a watershed for me. It was a bridge
reaching across two times – the old world of relative stability and the world that was being born of economic turmoil
and a group psychology of fear. I came home with a tool and a spiritual practice – and the mandala series was born.
Each mandala of the series represents a re-creation of the world. It reminds me that in every moment the world is created
and falls away to be recreated in the next. It reminds me that the social and cultural structures we believe to be so entrenched
are, on one level, figments of a collective imagination. And it reminds me that we have the capacity to re-configure the
world with the beliefs, feelings and actions we chose. It connects me to the Buddha's knowledge that clinging to old foundations
and structures is a form of attachment, the root of unhappiness. Immersing myself in the mandala practice has stretched my
roots, has helped to stabilize in the turbulence of these past months. It has allowed me to reach out to others with reassurance
that they have the capacity to navigate through uncertainty with joy rather than fear and to see the deeper gifts and opportunities
offered by this time. I offer you this mandala with love, and the knowledge that we are all co-creators in this extraordinary
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What people have said about my mandalas...
"What a gift for me to experience your mandalas -- each one unique, revealing
buried treasure, vibrating with intensity and purity of colour. They -- and you -- are mesmerizingly beautiful!"
"Thank you Marilyn for the amazing mandala and your words.
It touched me and my husband in the deepest of ways….threading together all that we know too to be true. And supporting
our lives, work, inner musings and more."
"Thank
you so much for the beautiful mandala. I have it sitting on my piano. I have read through the description several times, always
taking something new, as I do in looking at the mandala. What sticks with me most in this moment is the image of the lotus
deeply rooted in turbulent waters with face wide open to the sky. And that each moment the world is created. It reminds
me that each and every moment I could choose something to change my moment, my day, my life, my world. It's really in those
moments that our lives are created, are changed, are reified."
"Marilyn, I received the beautiful mandala! I absolutely love it. The note you wrote made me cry, but in
a good way. I am staring at it right now and it makes me feel very good. I'm going to frame and put it near my computer
so I can see it. It will remind of the beauty in my soul, as well as and the beauty in the soul of my coach."
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Mandala
Series #2: Soul Pathway Mandalas, 2009
Gradually, in early 2009, my mandalas began to change form and I realized that they were no longer about the recreation
of my 'personal' world. They began to reflect the soul pathways or blueprints of possibility that called out to me from the
deepest part of my clients and friends.
As I began to share these creations, I also began to realize the
wordless impact they had on those who received them. Clearly, my inner artist had touched a deeper chord of truth and those
who received or commissioned them felt deeply seen and acknowledged through this unusual language.
The first
of this type of mandala, I shared with a dear friend who told me that her grandaughter, Scarlett (see photo on the right),
who was visiting her when the mandala arrived, was immediately drawn to creating her own 'circles.'
The 4-part
Athena series below was one I did for one particularly beautiful woman who is in the midst of accessing and expressing her
deep soul gifts in the world. This is what she said about the experience:
"Experiencing the mandala process with Marilyn can best be described as a sacred gift.
Her insightful questions lead out a depth of honesty that is as healing as it is informative. When that process culminates
in her presentation of a beautiful, personalized mandala, it is truly transformative. When I look at my mandala, I go back
to the honest answers that emerged in my dialogue with Marilyn - the mandala has become an important personal touchstone in
my journey."
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Scarlett, her 'circle', and her grandmother's medicine shield mandala...
"Scarlett came back and announced she
needed to draw some “ circles” like that lady. So ..you inspired her…and here is the documentation of that.
You should know that she has, up till now..only drawn and painted “ girls” and “ ladies” as she describes
them. And so…for me, this is significant and I hope for you too… that you inspired this bundle of pure creativity."
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Would you like me to create a personalized
mandala for you?
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Contact me at marilyn[at]visionlegacy.com
for details.
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