Customer Reviews

Meditation Symbols in Eastern and Western Mysticism

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I purchased the large-sized paperback version of this book before the latest hardback became available. Mine has four beautiful color plates and numerous b&w illustrations, all of which are extremely rare examples of spiritual art. One must get used to Hall's rather generous definition of "mandala", which includes a lot more than circular pictures. He seems to mean any meditation picture or symbolic diagram of spiritual reality. Of special interest are sections on Christian mandalas by Hildegard of Bingen and also diagrams interpreting the writings of Jacob Boehme. There are also explanations of various Buddhist and tantric yoga art works and their use. Hall explains these pictures and compares Eastern and Western traditions, as expressed in these "mandalas." He also gives us a generous dose of his personal philosophy regarding spirituality and the meaning of life. While his style is sometimes difficult to follow--no bullet points here--it is worth the effort. This is not a book on how to make mandalas or even on how to use them in meditation. Still, I recommend this to any student of esoteric spirituality.