Welcome! This week’s Inspiration Mandala is called “Light and Shadow”.
This week’s mandala is from my own personal mandala archives. It’s one of my first hand drawn mandalas. It’s very rare in my collection as it’s drawn with a black and white fine liner. Also, a lot of my more recent mandalas are more symmetrical. And that’s the beauty of mandalas – they can be created in so many different ways. Enjoy!
Embrace the light and shadows in yourself.
The light is a guide to the best in yourself and
the gifts that you bring to the world.
The shadow is also a guide to what
there is left to learn and explore.
Mandalas are an ancient and sacred art form that involve creating patterns and shapes within a circle. Mandalas have been around for centuries. They have been used in various cultures and traditions (ranging from Tibetan Buddhist sand mandalas, Native American medicine wheels, and rose stained glass windows in Gothic cathedrals). Mandalas have also been used by psychiatrist Carl Jung with his patients after he discovered that drawing within a circle could be used as a tool for self-expression.
There is power when you create a mandala with an underlying intention. The act of sitting down and drawing a mandala also creates an opportunity to be still and totally absorbed in the task at hand. Drawing a mandala can be relaxing and form part of mindfulness practice. Its calming effect can ground and centre us. It can also provide us with a tool for self-expression and reflection.
Mandalas can also be used as part of a meditation practice. You use the mandala to settle your mind and provide a focus point for your eyes to rest on during your mediation. Whenever your mind gets distracted then bring back your focus to the mandala. For more information on how to mediate on a mandala.
Looking for more Inner Creative mandala inspiration?
Then head over to previous Mandala Inspirations (see some more links below), or the Mandala Play Adventure series where I created a different mandala each day from the same colouring page for 30 days.
You can also get these weekly Mandala Inspiration posts delivered straight to your inbox each Monday, as well as other free mandala colouring pages and creativity tips, by signing up here for the special Mandala Inspiration Inner Creative mailing list.
Please share any comments below.
I love this Natalia. The black and white, shadows and light, I’m saving this as an inspiration to keep learning and exploring.
Thanks Jane – so pleased :-). I just love the versatility of mandalas. It’s really up to each person as to what interests them and emerges when they start drawing. This week’s mandala has also made me think about how I can change up my current mandala style and play with some more asymmetrical shapes. Happy mandala making!