What is a Labyrinth?

A labyrinth is a sacred pathway, walked as a pilgrimage. It is found in religious traditions in various forms around the world. By walking a replica of a labyrinth, we are rediscovering a long forgotten mystical tradition.

When it became dangerous to travel to Jerusalem in the middle ages, seven European cathedrals were designated as destinations for pilgrims. One was Canterbury Cathedral, and Chaucer's Canterbury Tales tells the story of a pilgrimage of the time. Another was Chartres Cathedral in France where a labyrinth was laid for pilgrims to walk. At that time entering the cathedral's labyrinth marked the end of a difficult journey and the promise of entry into the 'celestial city'.

The Labyrinth is an ancient tool for meditation, reflection, and quietening the mind. It provides a way to connect to the deep unspoken parts of ourselves, to the mystery of who we are within the profound mystery of life itself.

Some have called the process 'listening to one's soul'. Each person's walk in the labyrinth is different and each person brings different potentials and reasons for their journey. It may be to find a solution to a problem, to deepen one's sense of meaning in the moment, or to just stop thinking. Whatever the reason it is a journey to the centre and about being utterly in the present - body, mind, and soul.

Often confused with the maze, a labyrinth has only a single path to the centre and back, and is not designed to be difficult or the person within it to be unseen. The path winds throughout and becomes a mirror for where we are in our lives. It touches our sorrows and reaches our joys.

Many newly made labyrinths exist today, in churches and parks. Labyrinths are used by modern mystics to help achieve a contemplative state. Walking among the turnings, one loses track of direction and of the outside world, thus quieting the mind.