Course Four: Rites 165
rinth found on ancient Cretan
coins and in many places
throughout the world—
from Spain to Scandinavia,
and from Arizona to Af-
ghanistan. One example has
been found in a 4,000-year-
old Neolithic grave in
Sardinia. This one is the easiest
to lay out without sophisticated measuring equipment.
I have created several on-the spot on sandy beaches,
and also mowed them into long grass in fields.
The archetypal seven-ring labyrinth design pre-
vailed throughout the world for millennia. Its imme-
diate successor, the Ro-
man mosaic labyrinth, has
survived into modern
times as a wide border
framing a central picture,
usually of Theseus slaying
the Minotaur. The nine-
ring path of the square Ro-
man design methodically
fills one quarter before
progressing to the next,
where the pattern is repeated.
A great breakthrough came in the development
of the Medieval labyrinth design. This had eleven rings
and the paths ranged freely through the quadrants. In
contrast to the square Roman pattern, these were typi-
cally round or octagonal. The
earliest surviving full-sized
example dates from 1235
CE and is set in mosaic
into the floor of
Chartres Cathedral in
France. I have visited
this and walked it. This
Chartres design has be-
come very popular, espe-
cially among New Age
Christians, and it has been re-
produced many places (in-
cluding churches) in recent years. Indeed, there are
now entire “Labyrinth Projects” going to help estab-
lish these all over.
A few years ago,
I created a unique new
labyrinth design. The
path (in this case, the
solid line) winds
around interlaced im-
ages of the Goddess
and the Hornéd God. I
call it the Dearinth,
which means “House of
the Gods,” or temple.You can create your own Labyrinth from materi-
als available anywhere. I recommend a variation on
the classic Cretan design that provides for a direct
path out from the center, so several people can walk
it at once without bumping into each other on the
way out. Such a design is called a processional laby-
rinth.
This pattern can be laid out on the ground with
lime, stones, bricks, or even a long chain or rope. It
can be grooved into the sand at the beach, mowedinto long grass with a lawnmower, or cut out of turned
sod and planted with flowers for a more permanent
installation. It can even be marked on a floor with
masking tape or painted onto a large piece of canvas.
All you need to do to mark it out is start in the middle,
and use a compass cord to inscribe a series of seven
concentric circle paths, each wide enough to walk
through (also allow room for the barrier, of course).
Then connect the rings with arcs in the pattern shown,
to make one continuous looping path.
“Build it, and they will come.” I guarantee you’ll
not only have fun yourself, but folks will come from
all over just to walk your labyrinth!Resources
My own statues of Gods and Goddesses and Elemen-
tal wall plaques (including a Dearinth mini-altar)
are available from: http://www.MythicImages.com.
Large tapestries printed with Labyrinths and Celtic
designs can be obtained from Ancient Circles:
http://www.AncientCircles.com/textiles.
All kinds of Labyrinth designs and products—as well
as detailed instructions for laying out your own
Labyrinth pattern—are available from Labyrinth
Enterprises at: http://www.labyrinthproject.com.Roman LabyrinthChartres LabyrinthDearinth
Processional labyrinth- Rites.p65 165 1/15/2004, 9:08 AM