Significance of Mandalas in Asia

A single source word that can provide a key to the understanding of Asian artistic creations is “Mandala”, a diagrammatic matrix through and from which flow a succession of changes within a certain order. In Sanskrit, the term means a circle and a centre, a continuum, a universe; like a wheel and the hub that rotates it, yet remains fixed. It has appeared as a symbol of continual change, creation, preservation, transformation and dissolution. Inherent in the cosmic movement in space and time, the concept of Mandala has pervaded Indian speculative thought, construction, art, ritual and philosophy.

Although Mandala reflects eternal change, there is order in that change, called “Rta”, provided by the centre space or the axial pole when it extends into a three dimensional structure. Full of complex symbolisms, mandalas are metaphors that go well beyond their meanings, into mystery, magic and meditation through sounds, structures and sacred drawings.

Four basic properties can be discerned in a Mandala; a center, a symmetry, a square, a triangle or a circle and cardinal points. The first property is fixed, while all the others may vary according to the purpose and nature of a specific Mandala. The cardinal points, for instance, may be four or multiples thereof or none at all. A Mandala could be very basic drawing of a circle and a square or designed very elaborately, creating an architectural replica of the universe, with all its shades of colors and creatures, heavens and hells, letters and gestures, time and space.

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