Lessons Learned From Walking the Labyrinth

Walking the Labyrinth
by Naomi Colb

It is said that the gates to enlightenment are guarded by the twin dragons of paradox and confusion.

I often walk the labyrinth, outside of Grace Cathedral located on the top of Nob Hill in San Francisco. While I walk, I do my best to breathe deeply and open my 5 senses to receive each moment from 360 degrees.I experience gratitude that I am walking easily and all my senses are working well....and...with a mind cleared of the static of everyday doing.

Walking the labyrinth, I am often gifted with lessons that allow me to move beyond the conflict between good and bad,dark and light, into the creative flow of living. I am OPEN to moving out of my darkness into the LIGHT.

Here are a few Lessons I have learned walking this sacred pattern:

1. Sacred is a human distinction. All of creation is sacred. Pigeons and humans...we are all creations of the one creator.
2. Birth and Death are the great levelers.In the Labyrinth, we ALL enter and exit exactly the same way....just like birth and death.The half way point in the center of the Labyrinth comes at a different time for for each of us, depending on our pacing.
3. Presence = Presents + Gratitude + Appreciation. How many people, plants and other creatures contributeto my moment to moment experience on my journey?All of creation is here to share their presents of presence.
I use my walk to move out of the darkness of preoccupation
and disconnection, into the light of mindfulness and gratitude for the wealth of each moment with each step.
4.Certainty
I will arrive at my final destination.No way to get lost, if I simply stay on my own path. Spirit is guiding my steps one breath at a time. I am literally receiving inspiration from respiration. There is no way to do this wrong. Life is one foot in front of the other.
5. Receiving and Giving
On my way toward the center of the labyrinth, I receive the wisdom of the Universe in general or listen for the solution to a specific situation. In the center, I express gratitude and respect for whatever I have received with some simple ritual.Then I go forth from the center and share whatever gifts I have received!
6. Non - attachment
People enter my life and walk beside me for a while...then go their own way, on their own evolutionary path...just as they do here, on the Labyrinth.
7. Freedom
I am free to walk at my own pace in my own style, no matter who is watching.
With the Labryinth, I remember that I am a multi-dimensional being connected both to the center of the earth and the limitless reaches of the universe

Want to walk a labyrinth from home? Click here to "walk" the Labyrinth online, even while you are in bed with your laptop.

About: Naomi Colb
Naomi Colb offers holistic lifestyle coaching, training, and seminars to women over 50, who are challenged by aging,and challenging situations like major surgery, menopause, empty nests, loss of loved ones, becoming caregivers etc., to recover their passion for living! She believes when women experience their lives as satisfying and fun, everyone around them is nurtured as well.


Find Naomi Colb on LinkedIn & Facebook OR contact her by e-mail:msnaomicolb@yahoo.com