Cosmic Forces

of

Mandalas & Yantras

The cosmic spiritual forces of the mind can often be awakened when you are meditating on powerful esoteric images that symbolise the cosmic forces of divine beings, or the celestial gods of various spiritual traditions. The Hindus meditate on their Yantra symbols, while Buddhists engage their meditations on deity Mandalas sa

There are advanced meditations taught by highly advanced Yogics, Spiritual Teachers and Kung Fu experts, that make use of ritual symbols. These ritual symbols, are said to be wonderful meditational aids, and those engaged in meditative visualisation with them, attain good progress in speaking directly to their unconscious selves. What is produced by these symbolic visualised meditations, is a mystical sense of wholeness - a connection with the spiritual forces withins

Mandalas and Yantras take the meditator on a wordless spiritual journey into the deepest recesses of the mind, providing the key to unlocking the mysteries of our minds. These mysteries are believed to contain all that the mind has experienced in past lives. The Hindus and Buddhists as well as the Chinese believe that the mind is a continuing momentum. This continuum never really dies. Instead it goes from one rebirth to the next, shedding one skin for the next, the quality of its rebirth depending on the Karma it creates in each lifetime

Thus it is of a deeper spirituality that we speak when we engage the ritual symbols for meditational purposes. There are several differences between Mandalas and Yantras

The differences between Mandalas & Yantras

*MANDALAS*

Buddhists use Mandalas in their medtations. Each Mandala symbolises a particular divine being. Over time, the meditator works to develop the qualities of that divine being Mandalas symbolise cosmic forces that take manifestation as celstial and divine beings - Buddhas and Bodhisativas who are surrounded by their senior disciples and their attendants, all of whom represent separate aspects of their power and qualities. The Mandalas signifies the realms of their fields of influence

When we meditate on a Mandala, we focus on the specific divine being within the Mandala. Over time, it is believed, some form of transcendence and a merging of consciousness take place, so that the meditatior actualises the qualities of the divine being or Buddha inside the Mandala. At a more advance stage this spiritual practice enables the practitioner to actualise as the Buddha himself. The Mandala Meditation are regarded as being intensely spiritual

*YANTRAS*

Hindus meditate on Yantra symbols. This meditation is believed to take the meditator back to the earliest origins of creation

Yantras focus on the symbolism of the divine trinities and these are expressed in the form of geomerical triangles. The most famous of the Yantras is the Yantra of the Illustrious One, which consists o nine triangles superimposes one over another an all converging on a central point. This is know as the Shri Yantra and it symbolises the cosmic field of creation in its state of creation. Everything is formless still but the triangles signify the male, the female and their union - the trinity concept of creation

This is of course very similar to the Chinese idea of Yin, Yang and Wholeness. The Hindus believe that the Shri Yantra can also symbolise the god Shiva and the goddess Shakti, divine beings of the Hindu pantheon. Meditating on the Yantra is believed to take the mind back to the earliest origins, to the source of creation when man was formless. Both the Mandala and the Yantra are said to have the most amazing powers to effect inner transformation. Whatever Mandala or Yantra you come into contact with, simply meditating on the symbols is usually sufficient to bring about a deep and lasting transformation. The images of these spiritual symbols speak directly to one's inner conscious mind and then who knows what mysteries they will proceed to unlock info

source: Discover Yourself - Lillian Too

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