Description

The Kalachakra Mandala

Through meditation on the Kalachakra mandala, monks invoke the qualities of the deity, striving in a ritualized way enter the mandala and become the deity themselves. This practice is not usually public, and mostly occurs behind temple walls.

In the public realm, the Kalachakra mandala is sometimes rendered as a thangka, a traditional style of Tibetan art frequently used to depict mandalas, and also as a sand mandala. Sand mandalas are performed as a cultural display in universities or other institutions by traveling monks. Upon completion, they are destroyed in a ritual meant to honor the impermanent nature of reality.

The symbolism of the mandala is rich. It is a two dimensional depiction of the three-dimensional palace of the deity Kalachakra. At the top of the palace, or the center of the mandala, dwells the god himself. Arrayed around the halls of the five-story palace beneath his feet are 722 other deities, all submitting to the great god Kalachakra who symbolizes the unstoppable passage of time.

The floors of the palace depicted in the Kalachakra Mandala, from the ground up, represent:

Enlightened body

Enlightened speech

Enlightened mind

Enlightened wisdom

Enlightened great bliss

Arrayed around the palace are four elemental rings and two outer rings. From the inside out they are:

Earth

Water

Fire

Wind

Space

Wisdom

Taken together, all of these elements compose a microcosm of the universe, ruled by time personified.