Exploring the Labyrinth_ A Guide for Healing and Spiritual Growth - Melissa Gayle West [0]
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
West, Melissa Gayle.
Exploring the labyrinth: a guide for healing and spiritual growth
Melissa Gayle West. — 1st ed.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references.
eISBN: 978-0-307-78960-0
1. Labyrinths—Religious aspects—Psychology. 2. Spiritual life.
I. Title.
BL325.L3W47 2000
291.3’7—dc21
99-28662
ILLUSTRATIONS BY RICHARD WAXBERG
The illustration on this page is based on a
design by Robert Ferré.
v3.1
To Gretchen,
book midwife extraordinaire,
for her dedication to the labyrinth
To Peter,
for introducing me to the labyrinth
and to She Who Knows,
always and forever at the Center
Acknowledgments
It takes one village to raise a child, they say, and I think no less is true for writing a book. I am deeply grateful for all the help and support I received during the writing of this book. This book has a multitude of parents, not one.
Thank you to Gretchen Schodde, my mother, Tibby Elebash, Alana Karran, Debra Jarvis, Jean Frinak, Barb Fischer, Alexandra Hart, Sharon Kaylen, Krista Heron, and Peter Wallis for their love and support during the transformative time of writing this book. Deep gratitude to my daughter, Elise, for allowing me the space to spread my wings; may I give you back that same gift, in love, many times over. Thanks to the wonderful staff at Harmony Hill for sheltering me and nourishing me, physically and emotionally, during the writing time: Gretchen Meyer, Maureen Kluver, Cindy Auwarter, Joe Hensley, and Fang.
Thanks to Harriet Bell: Your belief in my writing and your editing artistry brought me to a new level of the craft of writing. Heartfelt thanks as well to my literary agent Sarah Jane Freyman and to that little voice that suggested she ask me in her gorgeous British accent one Sunday morning, “Melissa—have you ever heard of labyrinths?”
Thanks also to all those interviewed who gave generously of their time and wisdom as well as to all the workshop participants and clients who taught me about the labyrinth through their own experiences and stories.
Most of all, a deep bow in gratitude to the labyrinth and to the Spirit that forms its very matrix. May this book be a testimony to your power and love, and may it inspire others to know you.
Contents
Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Dedication
Acknowledgments
PREFACE
Part One
Meeting the Labyrinth
CHAPTER ONE: WHAT IS A LABYRINTH?
CHAPTER TWO: WALKING THE WALK
CHAPTER THREE: THE POWER OF THE LABYRINTH
Part Two
Making the Labyrinth
CHAPTER FOUR: MAKING YOUR OWN LABYRINTH
CHAPTER FIVE: CREATING A WALKING LABYRINTH
CHAPTER SIX: CONSTRUCTING YOUR LABYRINTH
CHAPTER SEVEN: CARING FOR YOUR LABYRINTH
Part Three
Playing and Healing with the Labyrinth
CHAPTER EIGHT: MAKING THE LABYRINTH WORK FOR YOU
CHAPTER NINE: CREATIVITY AND INTUITION
CHAPTER TEN: HEALING THE HEART, HEALING THE SOUL
CHAPTER ELEVEN: HEALING AND ILLNESS
CHAPTER TWELVE: RITUAL AND CELEBRATION
POSTSCRIPT: GRATITUDE WALK
ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY
APPENDIX: LABYRINTH RESOURCES
Preface
It was Mother’s Day, May 10, 1998 when the New York Times published a front-page article titled “Reviving Labyrinths: Paths to Inner Peace.” There has been much publicity about labyrinths, but that article was the first to use the term “labyrinth movement.” I immediately went to the American Heritage Dictionary to look up the word “movement.” One definition said “the activities of a group of people to achieve a specific goal.”
There