Walking the Labyrinth

By Mary Jo

Because I'm thisclose to finishing my book and don't have time to write a new blog, I'm invoking Wench Privilege to rework an old one on labyrinths. 

There are two reasons for this. Firstly, I had two friends staying over the weekend so we drove to the nearby Benedictine foundation and walked the labyrinth on their beautiful leafy grounds.  It was peaceful and relaxing even with the Baltimore Beltway and a county road maintenance yard literally a stone's throw away.  Or less.  <G>

Also, a few days ago I reread my contemporary romance, The Spiral Path.  The title comes from a labyrinth that was part of the hero’s healing journey, as well a metaphor for the complexity of the characters’ lives and relationship. (And the reason I reread it now was because when I'm finishing a book, I don't want to be distracted with wondering what happens next in whatever story I'm reading. <G>)   

I discovered labyrinths when I visited my author friend Ciji Ware, who was living in San Francisco at the time.  She and her husband marched us up the hill to Grace Cathedral after dinner and we walked the labyrinth on the cathedral grounds.  There is something immensely soothing about the process—right and left brain being balanced, even if several noisy teens are walking at the same time.

Intrigued, I did some research and found that originally the words labyrinth and maze were used interchangeably, but these days, “maze” is usually used for walkways surrounded by towering hedges with dead ends and an intention to confuse.  The famous maze at Hampton Court in England has a man on a platform in the middle to tell baffled tourists how to find their way out. <g> 

A labyrinth, in contrast, is generally two dimensional and has a distinct pathway through.  You follow the path in to the center.  After contemplation, you follow the pathway out.  The route swings you around so that you can be close to the center and not reach it, then become headed off to the perimeter again.  Rather like life, which is why walking a labyrinth is such a meditative experience.  Here’s a Wikipedia description that will probably tell you more than you really want to know about labyrinths <g>: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Labyrinth

It turns out that Grace Cathedral in San Francisco is central to the current revival of interest in labyrinths.  Some medieval cathedrals had labyrinths inside.  People who couldn’t make the pilgrimage to Jerusalem (which most couldn’t), could walk the cathedral labyrinth on their knees, praying all the way.  (And those stone floors were hard!) 

Intrigued by the idea of labyrinths, several staffers from Grace Cathedral went to Chartres in France, couldn’t find anyone to give them permission, so they moved the chairs and rugs and copied the pattern, then took it back to San Francisco. They created both an indoor and an outdoor cathedral.

Now there are labyrinths everywhere, usually at churches.  There are also portable labyrinths on canvas rolls so they can be moved around.  To find one near you, check the Labyrinth Locator.

While the labyrinth was central to The Spiral Path, I included mazes in a couple of historicals.  In Dearly Beloved, the villain tries to hunt the heroine down in a maze so he can kill her.  (I visited Hampton Court’s maze for the research.  It was easy to imagine skullduggery there!  In Silk and Shadows, the hero and heroine find some privacy in the center of a maze.

I’m lucky to have a labyrinth within two miles of my home.  There is another that I've often walked on New Year's Day after attending an annual open house given by friends who live nearby.  It's a good way to balance thoughts of the old year and the new.

How many of you have experienced labyrinths?  Tell me some of your labyrinth experiences.  And if you haven’t—have I whetted your appetite to seek one out?

 

Mary Jo

Comments

[Anne Gracie]

Mary Jo, I love your book, The Spiral Path, and ever since I read it I've been fascinated by labyrinths and have sought them out. I've even made them in sand and walked them with friends. It's a great activity to do at the beach - there's something magical about making it in sand and then walking the path.

There's a site here that shows you how to draw one
http://www.labyrinthnetwork.ca/children.htm

[maryjoputney]

From MJP:

What a lovely idea to make a labyrinth on the beach! Walking one in the sand, with the wind from the sea--peace and meditation indeed.

It was also interesting to see the pattern for creating one. That site made it look fairly easy. I'd been wondering how on earth it could be done informally, but now I see how.

Kind of embarrassing to admit, but when I reread The Spiral Path last week, it seemed like a really good book. *g*

[Elizabeth Hawksley]

I loved this blog, Mary Jo.

In England we have a number of very ancient labyrinths, called mizmazes. My cousin took me to one up on the South Downs near a Bronze Age burial chamber. It was a hot day and there was the scent of thyme and the sound of bees humming. We walked the mizmaze and it was very soothing to the soul, just as you describe.

[Patricia Rice]

I adored SPIRAL PATH! I'm hoping you'll re-release it some day.

I was amazed at how compact a labyrinth can be and still take a while to wind around. But I could have done without the Beltway. "G"

[theo]

SPIRAL PATHWAY is a great book! Since you've just reread it again though and it's fresh in your mind, I have a question; Did you find yourself at times reading it as if you are just a reader rather than the author? I know I've stumbled across a few things I've written in the past and had to ask myself if I'd really written it.

I've never had the opportunity to walk a labyrinth or maze. I'd love to do that, but I'm not even sure we have any here. Guess I'll just have to wait until I get to Scotland ;o)

[maryjoputney]

From MJP:

Elizabeth, the mizmaze and the smell of thyme sound wonderful! I googled mizmaze and I see it's a turf labyrinth. I've not seen that sort--here, they're generally some kind of stone--but next time in England, maybe I can look a mizmaze up.

[maryjoputney]

Pat, I could have done without the Beltway, too. At least the county maintenance yard was quiet. *g* But the setting was lovely, and I'll take peace wherever I can find it.

[maryjoputney]

From MJP:

Theo, I'd suggest checking the Labyrinth Locator, or googling Labyrinth + name of your town or county. You might be surprised to fine one close than you think.

And yes, I can more or less read one of my older books as a reader. Not that I don't remember that I wrote the story or how it comes out, but I can be drawn into the story all over again.

Pat, I forgot to respond to your comment about getting The Spiral Path out there again. Someday if I have time, I'd like to figure out how to get an e-edition up to the book would be available in at least one form. It's my favorite of my three contemporaries.

[NinaP]

Hi Mary Jo!

I love the Benedictine foundation's labyrinth, noise and all. I still keep the feathers collected there on display. They remind me to fly when I'd rather peck the ground like a chicken. Maybe I need to go back and re-read The Spiral Path. My favorite scene is where the hero is cataloging his life while setting the path's stones.

:-)
Nina, thankful for the memories

[Anna B]

I work at a Catholic hospital and we have a roof top healing garden with a labyrinth at our Cancer Center. When having a stressful day I often go up there and walk the labyrinth. Even though I am in the middle of the city, it's very peaceful and restful. Patients have said walking it helps them accept the diagnosis and get ready to fight the cancer.

I confess I've never read The Spiral Path, I'll find a copy to read.

[Joanna Bourne]

How very interesting. I went to the labyrinth locator and found some close by. I am immediately filled with ambition to go walk them . . .

[maryjoputney]

From MJP:

Nina, I like the feather symbolism of fly like an eagle or peck like a chicken. *g* Despite the traffic noise, the Benedictine sisters' labyrinth is lovely.

Anna B., how wonderful that your cancer center has a labyrinth in the rooftop garden. It's a blessing for both patients and staffers.

The Spiral Path is out of print (though eventually I want to put up an e-edition), but there should be used copies readily available. The book is about healing the spirit (among other things), so there is an element of spirituality in the story.

Joanna, I hope you enjoy walking your local labyrinths. What is a writer if not a curious beastie? *g* Not to mention that it's the sort of field trip that one can always justify as "research!"

[maternity nursing clothing]

Interesting! Outside you can try not to get lost in the worlds most famous maze or visit the Privy garden restored to its 1702 glory.

[Nicola Cornick]

A fascinating post, Mary Jo. Thank you! I love the mysticism of the labyrinth. Like Elizabeth I have wandered amongst some mizmazes and lost myself in the atmosphere. I love mazes in general and the potential they have.