In honor of a beautiful teacher, Angeles Arrien, and the immense beauty in my life, this month I will be reflecting on gratitude every day. From May 9 until June 9, I will be writing at least a little something about gratitude every day.
Today I am thankful for this beautiful Mandala and what it represents. It was made at Bastyr, and as soon as it was completed, it was washed away.
Tibetan Mandalas are created as a tool to aid in the path to enlightenment and closeness to the deities. Mandalas have much to teach us about wisdom and compassion. They can also teach us about impermanence and detachment to outcome. The monks who make them meditate and chant to the divine energies so that those who look upon the Mandala may receive healing blessings.
Impermanence is a tricky business for us sometimes. We can often find that we become attached to material things or people in our lives, and when they return to source we can experience disspointment, grief and even dispair. Grieving is a normal part of life and death, and should be fully experienced as we move through it. It can be a wonderful reminder of how blessed we were to have that person physically with us in this human experience.
Much more frequently, I find myself struggling at times to be unattached to the outcome of situations. I want things to turn out a certain way, and when they don’t I can fall into a trap of desperation. What a beautiful reminder this Mandala is- life is impermanent, but we are taken care of by Spirit. We get what we need, we learn beautiful and at times difficult lessons. We have a opportunity to affect others in a beautiful and powerful way in our short time in this place. Are we making the most of that opportunity?
*Thank you to the Monks who made this Mandala. And thank you for agreeing to let me take pictures and post to my blog*