What is Mandala painting?
A mandala refers to a figure with a sacred meaning, a well-structured structure and a square circle.
Mandala painting, on the other hand, refers to the process of making these figures through various tools. In the great circle with the protective effect of the mother’s womb, we can freely explore, accumulate strength, face the shadows, integrate heterogeneity, and under the guidance of our own unique characteristics, break through the siege, transcend limitations, and comprehend life.
MANDALA IS DERIVED FROM THE SANSKRIT WORD “MANDALA (MANDALA)” AND WAS ORIGINALLY A PLACE WHERE BUDDHISTS CHOSE A PURE PLACE TO HOUSE THE STATUES OF THE BUDDHA AND BODHISATTVA IN ORDER TO ASK FOR SUTRAS AND PRACTICE THE DHARMA. Later, the mandala became a way for practitioners to draw patterns in “mysterious circles” to express the mental experience of the meditation process, and it was also used as a symbolic language to convey the “connection between the universe and divine forces.”
In 1907, Swiss psychologist Carl Jung began to collaborate with Sigmund Freud to develop and promote psychoanalytic theory for 6 years, creating Jung’s theory of analytic psychology of personality. He believed that the mandala was a symbol of the mental core, the archetype of self-nature, and summarized the external form of the mandala as a circle, a square or a quadripartite structure, expressed as a symmetrical arrangement of four parts or multiples of four.
The function of mandala painting
Mandala painting has an integrative effect. Mandala painting is one of the most effective and simple ways of psychological adjustment. Under the premise of satisfying the painter’s sense of security, this mode naturally integrates the opposites in the heart and re-establishes order and balance through expressive means. In mandala painting, the most important phenomenon is the process from disorder to order, at the beginning of the brush, points, lines, surfaces may be disordered, but as the painting process progresses, the pattern will become more and more orderly and regular. And this rule is completely spontaneously established by the painter according to his own feelings.
Mandala painting has its advantages and strengths for children and teenagers. First of all, it belongs to an expressive art therapy, through painting, the subconscious things are expressed as consciousness, reducing the anxiety caused by the delay in language ability; Promote the improvement of motor behavior ability and behavioral characteristics; Promote the improvement of children’s emotional and cognitive functioning; Can increase the frequency and ability of individual interpersonal interaction; In addition to the above universal mechanisms, mandala painting also has a unique healing effect on autistic children. The form of mandala is in line with the unique group psychological characteristics of autistic children, and the consistency and sense of order corresponding to the center and symmetry are more acceptable to them. Another and more important point is that the outer circle of the mandala symbolizes the protective power of the self and has a protective function. This is important for children with autism for their sense of protection and protection-based security.
Mandala painting is mainly divided into two forms: non-structural mandala and structural mandala. “Unstructured mandala” requires the painter to draw in a circle of a specified size, and the painter can draw any pattern according to his hobbies or the imagery that appears in his mind. “Structured Mandala” has a given mandala graphic template, and the process of painting only requires the painter to color the template.
In the process of practice, due to the uniqueness of individual psychological states and autogenic processes, some of their appearance is more standard, and some are irregular. In addition, since autogenization is a long-term and evolving process, this uniqueness is reflected in the different stages of the individual at the same time. Therefore, the mandala displayed by each individual at each stage is different, and what we need to do is to combine the works of different stages for comprehensive analysis and comprehension so as to better explore the psychology of the painter.
Jung once said, “Mandalas often appear in states of mental disorder. Their purpose in painting mandalas is to reduce mental disorder and achieve inner order, which, although not yet felt at the conscious level, expresses order, balance and wholeness. “If your child has emotional, language, cognitive problems, or if you feel that there is a problem with your emotions, stress, psychology, etc., you may wish to seek help to try mandala painting therapy to pay attention to it and go to the light.
Dear you, would you like to give it a try?
