Anti-stress mandalas: how sacred drawings became a fashion trend

Everyone struggles with stress and tension in their own way: someone beats a punching bag, and someone embroiders with a cross. Any monotonous activity that does not require conscious mental effort is useful and helps to distract from annoying thoughts. Recently, anti-stress mandala coloring pages have become popular, for sure everyone has seen these mysterious drawings, consisting of many details. Let's figure out where this trend came from and what do we color when we pick up a piece of mandala.

• A complex image: what mandalas really mean
• How anti-stress mandalas help to relieve stress and calm down
• Coloring the right way: 5 easy tips to help relieve stress

A complex image: what mandalas really mean

First, let's define the terminology. Mehendi tattoos or colorings with images of flowers, animals or other objects consisting of many pieces are not a mandala. The mandala is an ancient symbol in Buddhism, originally it is a map of the Universe, a schematic representation of the universe, as it is represented by Buddhists. The term "mandala" has many meanings, but basic — world, dimension, space. In the vast majority of cases, the mandala — it is a circle, in in which various patterns and images are inscribed.

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Mandala — it's not even so much a drawing as a process. Monks in the temples of India create a mandala by filling selected areas with colored sand. The finished drawing is erased, as it fulfilled its purpose: it made it possible to move away from external and focus on internal knowledge. To some extent, this can be called meditation — a calm and monotonous activity that allows you to listen and hear your thoughts. Perhaps that is why the term "anti-stress mandalas" arose, although in fact these symbols are not created with the purpose of simply relaxing. Their meaning is much more complex and important.

Mandalas became famous in the West thanks to Carl Jung. He noted that his patients, and and he he sometimes, thinking, draw all sorts of meaningless drawings with a pen. Looking closely, Jung saw in them a semblance of mandalas. He began to draw them every day, trying to do it without thinking. As a result, I came to the conclusion that the picture very accurately reflects his state of mind: sadness, joy, anxiety, etc.  The scientist began to use the "mandala method" in the  diagnosis of mental disorders, considering that these drawings — the way to our "I", that unconscious center that directs actions and"

The difference in understanding and interpretation of the mandala in the West and East characterizes quite accurately the profound differences between the two civilizations. If for Western people these are drawings that allow you to express yourself, your Self, and even fulfilling wishes (like letters to Santa Claus!), Then in the East — this is a sacred, magical image of places where deities live, and a person does not appear there at all. Whichever definition is closer to you, remember that mandalas — it is more than just obscure coloring pages or drawings.

Read also: Cosmic sounds of hanga: how they affect a person

How anti-stress mandalas help to relieve tension and calm down

Drawing or coloring, we calm down. There is no secret in it focusing on painting over the fragments, we 

 "turn off" the area of ​​the brain that generates emotions (the amygdala). Without thinking about the source of anger or irritation, we stop feeding this "feeling generator". We can say that at this time we feel nothing.

That is why anti-stress mandalas are becoming especially popular. These are ready-made drawings that need to be colored (occasionally — supplemented). They are good because they eliminate the slightest need to think: know, fill the fragments with different colors and do go beyond the borders. It is actually easy not easy at all.

Coloring is associated with childhood, with carefree times when life was simple and the trees were big. It in itself fills us with positivity and gives us the opportunity to pat your inner child on the head. In addition, this

activity develops fine motor skills of the hands, which, in turn, improves memory, attentiveness, and organization. That is why coloring pages are used for therapeutic purposes, helping people with post-traumatic stress disorder or cognitive impairment to recover.

Anti-stress mandalas can tell a lot about the inner world. The way we choose colors, what shades dominate in drawings, and how they fit together means a lot from the point of view of psychology.

The blue gamma speaks of doubt in oneself, anxiety. Red shades give out aggression, a desire to dominate, and their lack — prostration. Yellow symbolizes optimism and joy, and brown — search for peace and security. Black color means emotional emptiness and exhaustion.

Read also: Color therapy: healthy color solutions for home interiors

Coloring the right way: 5 easy tips to help relieve stress

To paint the mandala yourself is both difficult and easy. By and large, nothing is needed for this  — Here are the contours, fill in with any colors. However, considering the fact that mandalas are antistress — it's still more of a tool for relaxation and stress relief, you must follow certain rules.

Don choose complex designs

If you're not confident in your abilities or if don't have enough time, don take large images with many details. Unfinished work will only irritate and s not bring any pleasure.

Study in silence

Don't try to combine coloring and listening to TV or radio. Extraneous noise will persistently climb into the & nbsp; head and & nbsp; distract. Creating a Mandala — this is a kind of meditation, listen to yourself and your thoughts, get distracted from the fuss around.

Draw with pencils

Colored pencils allow you to create more complex and voluminous drawings. By increasing or decreasing the pressure, you can stretch the color, create smooth transitions from one shade to another. Even with a simple office pencil, it's easy to create an interesting and beautiful drawing.

Experiment

Don't stop with just decorating. Try shading the image with one color by changing the slope of the shading. Or paint over with dots and dashes. And most importantly, remember that anti-stress mandalas — these are optional drawings (examples below). Find an activity you love and create your own masterpieces.

Praise yourself for result

Be sure to admire the finished piece, tell yourself that you well done and it turned out really cool. Thus, it is easy to switch the flow of your emotions from negative to positive.

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Antistress Mandalas — this is a great opportunity to get distracted, to escape for a while from the surrounding bustle into the world of colors and harmony. If you have never tried to decorate as child's play, give it a try. Perhaps this will become your new hobby.

Read also: Attention training: 10 effective exercises

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