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Recent News... Just for Pope Gregory... |
2004-09-01 - 12:53 p.m. Turning Circles I had forgotten the deep peace of the cathedral. For me, cathedrals and ancient forests, where the light is green from thick canopy, are the places where I have the sense of touching the eternal. Also, once on a tatami mat, at the edge of a garden, just beyond the world�s largest Buddha, where the evening breeze blew through Kyoto. Evensong prayer at the National Cathedral. A long meander through the bishop's garden where the roses bloom abundantly and Gen envies the robust iris still blooming on the eve of September. Watching the day move towards sunset, guppies splashing in the pond, rubbing the fuzzy lamb's ear plant, so like the soft stuffed animals of childhood. We walked the labyrinth. Two huge pieces of canvas with painted labyrinths were laid in the arms of the transept, while a harpiest sat quietly in the center, playing. The labyrinths are identical to the one inlaid at Chartes cathedral in France. You need socks. No shoes on the painted labyrinth. Don�t fret. If you don't bring your own, they have bags of plain white socks to loan. It takes forever and no time at all to walk a labyrinth. I suppose, that's part of the point, fully being exactly where you are at that moment in your journey. What is a labyrinth? The labyrinth's use as a spiritual tool dates back to the 13th century, when it was placed in the floors of gothic cathedrals in Europe. Christian pilgrims once walked it as a symbolic pilgrimage to Jerusalem. An ancient circular pattern found in cultures throughout the world, the labyrinth has only one path that leads to the center and back out again. There are no tricks and no dead-ends. One of the oldest labyrinth patterns, associated with the Cretan myth of the Minotaur, was discovered on stone tablets in Greece dating back from 1200 BC. The labyrinth is often experienced on both conscious and unconscious levels. It's shaped in a circle - a universal symbol of wholeness and unity. Its meandering path is a metaphor for the meandering, ever-changing path of life. Many religious traditions incorporate labyrinths. In Judaism, the Tree of Life, called the Kaballah, takes the form of an elongated labyrinth. The Hopi medicine wheel is another example of a labyrinth. Labyrinths are undergoing a rediscovery of sorts and can now be found not only in places of worship, but also in retreat centers, hospitals, prisons, parks, airports and community centers. By one estimate, there are more than 1,000 labyrinths in the United States alone. One of the most common labyrinth designs is the eleven-circle labyrinth, which is named for the eleven paths that lead to the center After the labyrinth, we meandered through the crypt, with the prosaic motivation of locating the restroom. Along the way, we made it through most of the chapels, including sneaking behind the high altar of the Bethlehem chapel, which is my favorite �nook� in the National Cathedral. (So, ha, for everyone who thought it was the space window. If you don�t know what the space window is, you should visit the cathedral. Or look it up on their website.) I�ve always thought cathedral design was interesting that way. There is the overwhelming size of the cathedral, interrupted by chapels, integrated into the architecture. It makes sense, in a way. Huamns can�t handle that feeling of hugeness, unless we can also focus on a smaller scale. All the reflection makes a person hungry. On the way home, we treated ourselves to a nice dinner at Persimmon, great place in Bethesda. (You know, many religions call for food after reflection, a way of grounding yourself back into the world. I wonder if that�s instinctive? God knows, every church seems to have a fellowship hall with a kitchen.) Byram, you should take your love to see the roses in the Bishop's Garden before they fade completely to winter blight. � � � 
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