“The Magician”
“The Magician” - created July 26th, 2021
THE MANDALA PROJECT - How it came to life
If you know someone whose day would be brightened by this Mandala, please pass it along! Even more magical, with a love note from you!
The Mandala Project: #44
Creating mandalas is usually the result of gathering a collection of elements and bringing them together in an interesting way, but every now and then the raw environment offers up magic already in full swing, and it’s on me to be paying enough attention to see it.
There was a subtle beauty in this captivating collection of rocks and grasses casting long shadows in the evening sun, but the real treasure was the fascinating multi-patterned orange and cream rock that resembled a sort of trilobite fossil. I loved it so much I carried it home to study it further, and it wasn’t until much later as I was turning it over in my hands that it became clear why I was so powerfully drawn to it.
In my Shamanic journey of cultivating relationships with animate helping spirits, one of the most beloved mentors I have come to seek counsel from is the powerful wizard and sage of Arthurian legend, Merlin. I feel his presence and guidance in many challenging situations when curiosity, courage and a trust in magic are needed to find my way forward.
So I was both surprised and delighted when I shifted the orientation of the rock upside down—and there he was.
This stone talisman has stayed with me for over two years now.
It’s been a part of a number of rituals, and the one I’m most grateful for is its place among the sacred touchstones we entrusted to support Lily’s passing last June. It contributed a steady and reassuring presence on her final earth day, a beautiful expression of the grounded and heartbreaking weight of reality, and the infinite possibility of magic.
You discover treasure when you open to perceive the glimmers of magic all around you, but when you’re willing to deeply enliven it with the wonder of your imagination then its warmth truly finds home in your being.
"Earth Elder" - The Mandala Project: #41
Grief is becoming intimate with the immovable truth that we’re not meant to hold on to or possess that which we love.