Manly's Pregnant Designs: Mother Mandala Paintings

Manly’s pregnant women will beautify the Manly Arts Festival 2009 with their bellies as painted canvasses.

Pregnant women can join into a creative workshop and learn to colour a pattern called a ‘mandala’, which will be transferred onto their bellies. The word mandala is ‘Sanskrit’ for circle, representing unity and wholeness.

A mandala is a sort of cosmic diagram that reminds us of our relation to the infinite, the world that extends both beyond and within our bodies and minds. For pregnant women about to give birth the colouring of the mandalas are a great way to reflect on a larger picture of life. As a new mother to be there is only so much shopping you can do to prepare yourself for the new journey ahead. 

Adding some art to your belly is a great way for many mums to focus on themselves and to relieve some of the usual stress associated with preparing for birth. In some traditional cultures around the world ‘henna’ was used to paint flowers on the pregnant women bellies as a sign of blessings, protection and good luck for the unborn child.

The word mandala might be unknown to many but the principle of this design is definitely not. You can see reflections of primal mandala patterns in for example flowers, the rings found in tree trunks and the spiralling outward and inward of a snail's shell. Wherever a centre is found radiating outward and inward, there is wholeness--a mandala.

In modern day culture we do not have many rituals left initiating new stages in life. Nowadays most initiations are celebrated by buying consumer goods. Creative expressions such as the Mandala painting are great ways to assist in establishing a sacred space; and as an aid to meditation and trance induction. With the latter the mandala paintings can be used as visualisations during the birthing process. Women can recall on their strength by imagining the mandala image during birth. The patterned image is a simple image to recall. It attributes to stay focused and to bundle your energy in a centred thought.

In mandala painting workshops pregnant women also celebrate the fact of reconnection with a long lineage of female heritage. To become aware of  the invisible web of ‘motherhood’ through the ages. The navel button, the centre of the mandala, can be seen as the invisible cord of connection. Knowledge about this lineage can support the mother to be in giving birth. The birthing mother will be able to relate to a natural power source of ‘mother earth’.

Your personal coloured mandala can be transferred and inserted into a light box and this soft light can be put into your birthing room.

Don’t miss this opportunity to really become part of the art with body, mind and soul!