| Labyrinths are found in many spiritual traditions and cultures. Smaller “wall labyrinths” inscribed near the entrances of sacred places were traced with the finger to quiet the mind before entering. Labyrinth designs appeared on Cretan coins from 350 BC, on ancient pottery shards and in Neolithic tombs. The same design was found in Africa, Asia, Russia and the pre-European Americas. Over 300 stone labyrinths still exist in Scandinavia where fisherman even today walk them for a blessing of a good daily catch.
Labyrinths predate Christianity by over a millennium. The earliest known Christian labyrinth dates back to 324 AD. It is believed that one adaptation of labyrinths in the Christian Church was as a site of pilgrimage. Early Christians took a vow to visit the Holy City at some point in their lives. During the Middle Ages, as the Crusades made travel to Jerusalem unsafe, other means were needed to honor that sacred commitment. Labyrinths were built in the floors of the naves of designated cathedrals and may have provided a safe means to fulfill the pilgrimage vow. Christians making pilgrimages to these cathedrals would be able to complete their physical and spiritual journeys in the safety of the cathedral labyrinths. The center of the labyrinth symbolized Jerusalem for these early Christians, and walking the labyrinth became an important spiritual practice and a likely substitute for the pilgrimage to the Holy Land.
Today 21st Century pilgrims are rediscovering labyrinth walking as a tool in their spiritual journey.
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