INTERVIEW: Fay Rowland

Fay Rowland introduces her new book, 40 Days with Labyrinths: Spiritual reflections with labyrinths to ‘walk’, colour or decorate, ideal for Lent study and meditation …

What is a labyrinth?

A labyrinth is different from a maze, although they look similar. A maze is a puzzle that tries to trap you with dead-ends, blind alleys and wrong turns. You have to battle a maze and try to beat it.

A labyrinth is the opposite. There are no wrong turns; you cannot get lost. Instead there is one, long, twisting path that always leads from the start to the finish. A labyrinth guides and soothes; it is a calming walk that may take you in unexpected directions, but you are always sure of arriving safely.

How long have labyrinths been a part of Christian spirituality?

Labyrinths long predate Christianity but, like many helpful practices, have been co-opted as symbolic of life’s walk with God. In Mediaeval times, when pilgrimages to holy sites were popular, walking a labyrinth could be a more accessible alternative, and many were found in the walls, floors or grounds of churches and cathedral across the country. Chartres Cathedral famously houses a much-copied labyrinth from around 1200 and later examples include a particularly fine design under the tower of Ely Cathedral. This dates from the late 1800s, when renewed interest in labyrinths coincided with a surge in church building. However, the earliest known church labyrinth was laid in the Basilica of St Reparatus in Algeria in 324. Interestingly, this is of the square, Roman design, often seen in Roman villas and public baths, illustrating the church’s practice of making itself more appealing to local culture by adopting and adapting contemporary practice and ‘baptising’ it to God's work.

Does the use or study of labyrinths feature in other religious traditions?

You can find labyrinths over much of the Old World, from the famous labyrinth of the Minotaur in Ancient Crete to petroglyphs in Goa, where the meaning behind the designs has been lost to the mists of time. Labyrinths are also common in the coastal regions of Scandinavia, where folk religion sees them as trapping malevolent trolls (although this requires peculiarly dim trolls, since it is impossible to get lost in a labyrinth).

In present times, labyrinths are most closely associated with the more contemplative flavours of Christianity, being found at retreat houses such as Launde Abbey, and with Buddhism, where the peace and serenity that walking a labyrinth can bring are very helpful in practising meditation.

Labyrinths also have increasing use outside religious sites, where the benefits of forgetting the pressures of life in the enfolding paths of a labyrinth have been embraced by hospitals, schools, parks and prisons.

In what ways can labyrinths help us with our mental and spiritual well-being?

Whether the labyrinth is full-sized and outdoors, or a drawn labyrinth on paper, there are many health and well-being effects from walking labyrinths. The seeming incongruity of walking for many minutes only to return(almost) where we started can help us to gain perspective on the setbacks and reversals that are common to human experience. Then, when we feel that perhaps the journey was a waste of time, suddenly we have arrived! 

The long journey gives us space to simply ‘be’, with the excuse of walking or colouring the path with pencils as a way of occupying our bodies to free our minds. In the Christian tradition, this can helpfully be combined with Bible study or prayer, viewing the path as an opportunity to spend time in God's presence.

How should readers approach the labyrinths in your new book 40 Days with Labyrinths?

There is no ‘right’ way to walk a labyrinth, but for each of the forty designs I suggest ways that might be helpful. Readers can feel free to mix and match as suits their needs.

If, like many of us, you come with a hundred small tasks buzzing around your head, you could use the first circuits of the labyrinth to mentally lay these distractions at the side of the path - you can write or draw them there if you like. As you progress, try to slow your pace and slow your breathing, perhaps pausing at each turn. You can repeat a short, simple prayer such as “Come, Lord Jesus.”

As you reach the centre, spend time talking to God about anything that is on your mind. There is no need to hide anything - God knows it all anyway and still loves you, so relax and be comforted. You can leave the labyrinth at that point and return to the world taking God's presence with you, or you can retrace your steps and look at the concerns that you laid at the side of the path on your way in. Which of those do you need to pick up and which can you leave?

When do you find are the best times in the day or week to ‘walk’, colour or decorate labyrinths? Do you have a particular favourite style or type?

I love to walk full-sized labyrinths whenever I can, but if one is not available, then ‘walking’ and drawing finger labyrinths is a favourite way to slow my 100mph mind. I often have an audio Bible playing in the background, or I simply talk over the day’s tasks with God as I colour the stones that border the path. The labyrinth itself is not magical, but it gives me an excuse to slow down and spend time in silence without having to worry about getting the laundry done.

My favourite designs, both to draw and to ‘walk’, are the intertwining Celtic knots. These may have just one path that links back to itself, or two paths that loop through each other but never meet, making an intriguing allegory of the different life paths that we might take, or perhaps our relationships with others. 

I also like the Baltic style, which often has a spiral in the centre and, unusually for a labyrinth, a choice of path. As you enter, you can choose to take the short route directly to the centre and return via the long route through the labyrinth, or you can choose the reverse. Again, this makes an interesting meditation on how we might approach life decisions.

Fay Rowland is a mum and mathematician, Trekkie and theologian, scientist and sewing ninja. She writes inter-generational Christian resources, including a number of books, and her interests include the overlap of science and faith, children’s spirituality and beautiful algebra. She lives in the English Midlands with her pet dragon.

40 Days with Labyrinths: Spiritual reflections with labyrinths to ‘walk’, colour or decorate is available now in paperback and as an eBook from dltbooks.com and all good bookstores.