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Labyrinths
Places of Healing and Inner Connection Five Excellent Examples in Taos December 19, 2009
By Rachel Preston
 I experienced my first labyrinth years ago, when completing my master’s degree in architecture in Europe. The labyrinth was tucked into a shade-protected corner of a lovely yet overgrown formal garden at an Italian villa outside Rome. As I approached the hidden world before me, the sound of clacking wooden heels on stone and concrete walks gave way to the silent swooshing of grass. I wanted to take off my shoes. Before I could, a tiny gravel walk appeared before me, inviting me into the hidden world behind a hedge of arborvitae. A small meadow unfolded before me. Within it were undulating circles of riverrocks, winding in and around each other, with gravel walks between. The paths were just wide enough to walk if you paid close attention to your footing.
For as long as man has tried to impose order on the land, man has endeavored to create places of beauty. One can only assume that man was inspired by nature’s tendency to organize—he witnessed flower petals in their rhythmic swirls, the way palm leaves order linear bursts of long, green sub-leaves, and the waves that form in sand dunes and snow as the air and wind blow across a flat terrace of land. Thus, once nomads turned to agriculture, and land became a possession rather than a privilege, man borrowed these subtle markers of nature to delineate places which were “mine,” which was followed not long after by “beautiful” and “connected.” They claimed the land for themselves and then began competing to outdo each other in terms of creating beauty.
The earliest historical labyrinths showed up almost simultaneously in locations around the world about 3,000 years ago. There are labyrinth designs in the fibrearts of the American Southwest, Indo-European ceramics in Greece, Cretan coins; they are carved into petroglyphs, temple sculptures in South America and clay tablets from the Middle East; illuminated in Christian mystical manuscripts and set in mosaic, murals and paintings throughout Europe. Romans used labyrinths for training horse and rider to communicate silently and function in tight quarters as one being.
Labyrinths can be connected to music (rhythm), mathematics (geometry), geography (position within the world and solar orientation), and even spirit (sacred geometry and the chakras).
But most of all, a labyrinth is a place of reflection, a place where one can go within.
A labyrinth is not a maze—there are no wrong turns in a labyrinth. You cannot get lost. Rather, one enters and, as in life, has some sense of “going somewhere.” Only, in the labyrinth, the destination is usually obvious. There’s a center circle or square visible from the moment one enters the space. The path one walks winds nearer, and then further away, from that central destination point. Just like life. Pam Montgomery, owner of the labyrinth at the San Geronimo Lodge, calls the labyrinth a “journey”—and in the journey of life, there are no shortcuts. Jumping over the walls, which divide the paths to get to the center, will only put you on a path that will likely lead you back out of the labyrinth, where you started. That’s the point, though. Walking a labyrinth is a moment in itself—a tiny commitment to starting and completing. In these days, where many are experiencing frustration and worry, a labyrinth walk is a way to take a few moments where we can find silence and allow the mind to fall away, and see what resides in the places within ourselves that we are usually too busy, or too worried, to listen to.
On a physical level that also relates to a cosmic or spiritual level, labyrinths have at least seven—and sometimes as many as 11 or 14—places where the person walking it turns 180 degrees to access another path. Each turn is aligned to the spiritual principles of the chakras, and also to sacred geometry, and even, in some cases, to the 14 Stations of the Cross.
No matter what the basis, the esoteric meaning is still essentially the same. The first path one makes is primal. It sings to us, “I am alive.” This is the moment when we separate from our selves and our worries, and just come into being “Right Here, Now.”
The second path is about relationships. It is a way we can connect to our shared humanity. This path is where we often find the loneliness we temper by staying busy, and ask, “What am I doing here?”
The third path is about our inner strength. We come back into the presence of here and now and recall that we are not, in fact, alone at all. This is the path of remembering “I am.”
The fourth path is about compassion and love. It aligns with the heart chakras. This is the place where we find ourselves thinking about our families and friends, wishing for what we miss, longing to love and show support, and wondering how to.
The fifth path is about our voice, our breath. We connect to the higher authority within and without as we take in each breath. Not only are we not alone, but we can connect at any time to those we love and that which we believe. We remember to call someone, suddenly. This place is about spiritual security. For some, this path becomes “I am connected (to Spirit, God, Universe, etc).”
The sixth path is the third eye. It is our inner guidance system. Now, we are becoming open, as we’ve shed each layer of fear in the previous paths. We can trust. It’s okay. We are okay. We begin to open for what’s coming next.
The seventh path is opening to divine guidance. This is the place where we come to the center, literally and figuratively. We’ve peeled the onion of ourselves and what remains is the light of what some would call our Christ Consciousness. It is the part of us that is unencumbered by our past or the stories we tell ourselves. Here, we find the answer to the questions that linger, the ones we hopefully had the foresight to ask before we started. It need not be a long series of questions—in fact, one is best. When we have started by setting an intention, the answers seem to come. Inspiration comes. Creativity. We find ourselves infused with hope, faith, strength and determination—gifts of the universe, available anytime for anyone.
There is an entire travel industry developing around people looking for the connection that labyrinths offer. This powerful and transformative experience is now available at five locations here in Taos, and at hundreds of places in New Mexico.
Pam and Charles Montgomery have created both formal and informal labyrinths at the San Geronimo Lodge on Witt Road off Kit Carson, east of town. Entrances to both the formal labyrinth and the informal one—which they call a “Prayer Path”—are just inside the San Geronimo gates on the right. Parking is shortly beyond the entrance to the paths. The formal labyrinth is beautiful, with gravel paths and riverrock stone walls that were lovingly placed by members of the family at this summer’s family reunion. The prayer path winds around the property in no formal organization and has 14 stations for rest and inspiration, each with a theme. The last 15 yards or so are lined with prayer rocks marked with the families’ prayers for both the living and the dead. Walking the Prayer Path is a creative and extraordinary experience that unfolds differently for each person. Feel free to stop by.
Katherine and Louis Costabel at the Adobe and Pines Inn built their labyrinth on the north side of the main house at the inn this summer. Pecan hull paths circle through stacked mortared stone walls, to a center with a pond and waterfall. This labyrinth is probably the largest in town. The Adobe and Pines is at the southern end of Paseo del Pubelo Sur, on the east side of the road past Ranchos. Parking is by the bed and breakfast entrance. Walk back up the long driveway about 200 feet to the north to discover and experience this beautiful showcase labyrinth. Feel free to stop by.
Another new addition to the Taos labyrinth scene is at the Mabel Dodge Luhan House, which is east on Kit Carson and north on Morada. The home itself is incredible, and Taoseños and visitors alike should be sure to experience the magic history and essence of this place. The property is a private retreat center, so please be sure to ask permission to visit at the main guesthouse office. This labyrinth is lovely, with gravel walks and riverrock walls. Views of Taos Mountain peek between two trees that frame the view from the entrance.
Taos artist Bren Price built the oldest labyrinth in Taos in 1999 at the Touchstone Inn on Paseo del Pueblo Norte. The labyrinth was blessed by a Native American shaman at the moment of the transition of the millennium and carries with it an ancient magic. This exquisite labyrinth, with its earthen paths and riverrock walls, has some of the most incredible views of Taos Mountain and is shaded by beautiful, established trees. In spring, irises and flowers overflow the labyrinth walls into the paths. It is the most green and alive labyrinth I have ever experienced. Call the Touchstone Inn for permission to visit.
The Greater World Earthship Community is the home of a Cretan style labyrinth. The labyrinth paths are earth and the walls are stone. The labyrinth, being within the private community, can only be accessed with permission and in the presence of the owner, Michael, whose email is mjb403@yahoo.com.
Hopefully, this information will invite you to wonder and reach out to experience one of these incredible sacred places, right here in Taos— to find a piece of you that you might have forgotten was there. After all, that’s what sacred space is all about.
Rachel Preston is an architectural designer whose focus is on technology-free green design, historic preservation and creating spaces of sanctuary, including designing labyrinths. You can email her at intentiondesign@gmail.com or visit her website archinia.com.
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