CritterDalas

ColoringDalas

Sacred Circles of L...

By ShaRi

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You dance inside my heart where no one sees you.
But sometimes I do, and that sight becomes this art.~Rumi

http://womandalas.blogspot.com/2008/12/critterdalas.html




WigdetDala



WidgetHorseHeadala

Widget, the World Watcher is an animated television series which debuted in syndication on September 29, 1990. The show focused on a 4-foot-tall (1.2 m), purple alien from the Horsehead Nebula named Widget who could shapeshift, usually by spinning like a top into different forms.




SwariWingDala

The Mute Swan is less vocal than the noisy Whooper and Bewick's Swans; the most familiar sound associated with Mute Swan is the vibrant throbbing of the wings in flight. This sound is unique to the species, and can be heard from a range of 1 to 2 kilometres (0.6 to 1 mi), indicating its value as a contact sound between birds in flight.




SpiderTailDala



AlladinsTailDala

Originally, the Tarantella (Pronounced As: târntel) was a legitimate Italian folk dance of lower to middle classes. The Tarantella has gone by many odd spellings such as Tarentule, Tarantel, Tarantella, and Tarentella . The name essentially means in English "Tarantula Spider (pronounced tranchl.") In Buzabatt, (near Kashan, Persia), it was reported that a Tarantella dance existed just as in Sicily. If the spider specified as "Stellis " had poisoned anyone, they were advised to dance to the sound of music.




RAinDeerDala

Name etymology ~ The name rangifer, which Linnaeus chose as the name for the reindeer genus, was used by Albertus Magnus in his De animalibus, fol. Liber 22, Cap. 268: "Dicitur Rangyfer quasi ramifer". This word may go back to a Saami word raingo.(i named it RAindeer BEE4 i looked it up!)




PistaStarDala

Ballet Manila opens its new season with a highly festive choreographic program fusing classical, contemporary and Filipino folk dance nuances set amid colorful Filipino Christmas traditions in “Paskong Pista.”




CrowDala

a RAven flew over me today in the park



CrowCathedRAlDala

RAven magic is a powerful medicine that can give you the courage to enter the darkened of the void. Raven is the guardian of ceremonial magic and in absentia healing. It is the power of the unknown.~frOM The Medicine Cards Written by Jamie Sams and David Carlson



TiggerFlowerDala

This rare melon is a beauty to grow with dark orange zigzag stripes over a bright yellow surface. With a wonderful fresh fragrance similar to Queen Annes Melon, Tigger is a unique offering for specialty and farmers markets.




AladdinsDreamDala

Aladdin (Arabic: علاء الدين, ʻAlāʼ ad-Dīn; literally meaning in English; "nobility of the faith") is one of the tales in The Book of One Thousand and One Nights (Arabian Nights), and one of the most famous, although it was actually added to the collection by Antoine Galland.




SnakesOnaWalldala

The Rainbow Serpent (also known as the Rainbow Snake) is an important mythological being for Aboriginal people across Australia, although the creation myths associated with it are best known from northern Australia. The Rainbow Serpent is seen as the inhabitant of permanent waterholes and is in control of life's most precious resource, water. He is the underlying Aboriginal mythology for the famous Outback "bunyip". He is the sometimes unpredictable Rainbow Serpent, who vies with the ever-reliable Sun, that replenishes the stores of water, forming gullies and deep channels as he slithered across the landscape, allowing for the collection and distribution of water.




SsserpentDala

Serpent is a word of Latin origin (from serpens, serpentis "something that creeps, snake") that is commonly used in a specifically mythic or religious context, signifying a snake that is to be regarded not as a mundane natural phenomenon nor as an object of scientific zoology, but as the bearer of some symbolic value.



SssnakeDala

The serpent is one of the oldest and most widespread mythological symbols. In some instances, serpents serve as positive symbols with whom it is possible to identify or to sympathize; in other instances, serpents serve as negative symbols, representing opponents or antagonists of figures or principles with which it is possible to identify. Serpents also appear as ambivalent figures, neither wholly positive nor wholly negative in valence. An example of a serpent used as a positive symbol is Mucalinda, the king of snakes who shielded the Buddha from the elements as the Buddha sat in meditation. An example of a serpent used as a negative symbol is the snake who tempted Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, as described in the Book of Genesis.




HairsO'MineDala




MineHairDala

These were made frOM shots of my very own Hair!




MineHairDalas 1 & 2



MineHairDala3

Sometimes there are so many variations on a theme!














MineHairDalas 4 & 5


frOM DeAnna Dimmitt's~http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref=home#/album.php?aid=2018900&id=1495990860&ref=mf~photo of Dakota frOM Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary~http://www.wildspiritwolfsanctuary.org/


comes ShamandalaDakota



and RAvenDala











and ShamandalaRaven









EyeOfRAkuDala

These 'critter portraits' come from close-up shots of the markings on the critter portrayed. I love the warm fuzzy earthy feel of these wOMandalas that I have not adjusted the color on. They remind me of Navajo blankets/rugs.




RAkuStripesDala





AlladdinsDala


A classic Two Grey Hills rug, prized for its hand-spun, hand-carded wool, natural colors and extremely tight weave.




AlladdinsCrossDala


Most weavers shy away from the sand painting subject, fearing retribution from the gods. This tapestry-quality example is by Ruby Manuelito, last re-maining weaver in the family of famed medicine man/weaver Hosten Klah.




RAkuDala



Quite often, one photo renders many variations...

WhiskersDala






frOM http://cunningtonfarms.com/pages/navajo-rugs.php



RAkuEyesDala

frOM http://cunningtonfarms.com/pages/navajo-rugs.php



RAkuWhiskersDala

frOM http://www.radianteguide.com/web_pages/states/arizona/sedona/sedona.html




PunkkuDala

Of course, I can't resist playing....




FuzzikuDala

These seem to resemble traditional Navajo clothing.






RAkuWebDala







JaguarSpinDala

Sometimes one photo geneRAtes a seemingly endless variations on a theme. Sew it is with this magnificent photo of a jaguar by my friend Rose. An e-mail called Spins on Reality frOM Michelle Miller Allen McCallum: Your mandalas are so amazing, I am in awe. You found it! Beautiful website!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Endless bottomless potentials...and makes me think of all the dimensions we don't know about, of our existing...




InfinityRoseCrossDala

Look closely. The jaguar is in this too!




JaguaRoseDala

The spots on the edges of this leaf inspired the use of the jaguar in this wOMandala.

"May the Rose on its
Golden Cross of Light
Disperse the Darkness of the Night"~Rick Allen




JaguarStarDala

Sew beegins the variations on a theme formed by zeroing in on the spots of the jaguar.



It's like using the computer to peer into the structure of nature, gaining access to it's essential beauty.~Joseph Wentland











JaguarStarDala2

Mandala-making is an exploration of the indelible geometry that is part of nature.~Karel Sloane






We cannot exist on our own, every piece is important to the whole. We all reflect each other and yet we emit uniqueness.~Victoria Toth



JaguarWheelsDala

I have settled into the format of mandala in my expressive interactions with the computer. I find that the mandalic form contains my ideas and visions in a way that allows them to feel whole and complete and to express their spiritual source.~Cynthia Baxter



JaguarWheelDala

To me, unity means that we are all connected with nature: the heavens, the earth and all of its creatures and plants. When we truly feel that connection, we will choose to live in harmony with nature. We will come to understand that when we harm another or abuse our natural environment, that we will also harm ourselves.~Marian Osher




JaguarTreeDala

Color stimulates and heals through its warmth and presence in our lives, brightening our way and illuminating our path.~Chris Flisher



JaguarTreeDala2

After all to love yourself is to heal yourself. I think that a mandala is the roadmap to our selfconsiousnes.~Cora Dupuis




SnowballDala

To me a mandala is a circle of life and feelings.~Dustin Poore





KowabungaDala

It is with these wOMandalas that I began to explore the use of critters as the basis for mandalas.



KowabungaDala2

Life forms evolve from a Geometric Sequence, the molecules of our DNA; even our Solar system has a divine Geometric pattern.~Nicolaas Maritz




BastDala

Not only did this kitty silhouette make a good background, she also made a lovely wOMandala of her own!
In ancient Egypt the cat was worshipped as a sacred animal - the mother or creator. Bast is the Egyptian Goddess and protector of cats, women and children. She is Goddess of sunrise. Her goddess duty changed over the years, but, she is also known as a goddess of love, fertility, birth, music and dance.




BeeDala

After many tries, I finally got this shot of a bee on a purple mountain aster!
The purple mountain aster radiates integration and harmony of all paths.


May the Blessed Bees bee fruitful and multiply, and forgive us our trespasses against nature.








KittyDala

The reflection of this shot of a car fender reminded me of the silhouette shot of my kitties staring out the front door which forms the background of this wOMandala.




KowaMamaDala

A totem is any entity that watches over or assists a group of people, such as a family, clan or tribe (Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary and Webster's New World College Dictionary, Fourth Edition)




LaceButterflyDala

We are isolated entities, but integral parts of an unified whole.~David Chaplin




MamaDala

Mother nature, our provider, is going through a cycle of change. Humanity, her caretakers, are experiencing the effects of that change. As disruption occurs a ceremony begins. The primary source of a person's ill health is not in the body. It is due to a fundamental imbalance in the spirit. Mother nature, our mirror, is inviting us to step inside the circle and experience the ceremonial dance of reunion. The choice is yours.
When I was a child my father, a Cherokee Indian, often took me into the woods so I could discover the many little sounds of life awakening. This gift from my father opened my heart to the birds, plants, rocks and animals, which have become my allies. Sharing simple pleasures is a part of the Indian way. I would now like to share a small gift with you. Each day upon arising step into nature, physically or mentally. The first thing you see, become it. Take on its characteristics for a few moments. Breathe into it and allow it to become a part of you. In this way a deeper insight about yourself is gained, as you discover the heartbeat of life awakening.




PapillonDala

The Mandala is at once a cosmic blueprint, a diagram of countless universes, our world, the earth and our bodies. It is presented as a tool for spiritual growth and mystical experience, a map for your journey to awakened enlightenment, alive with sacred possibilities.~Leon Woods




RAvensDala

When you contemplate the mandala, you are harmonized inside.~Joseph Campbell




RAvensWheelDala

Each mandala that I make reminds me that the same thread of life travels through each and every one of us. Our lives are bright and sparkling, though just a small spark in the great web of creation; each one unique thought crafted by the same forces. Each of us is needed to complete this thing we call creation, each one of us holds things together and gives life it's shape and color. All of us are given value in the mandala of life as both an individual and as so much more than the sum of our parts. No part is greater than the next and none so great as what we all make when unified.~Amy Olsen




SaltDala

Since time immemorial, animals have served as harbingers of personality traits we, as humans, all aspire to achieve. This makes animals some of the most powerful symbols in our spiritual toolbox.
Animals afford us visions of how our lives could be if we lived more simply and lived with purity of thought and emotion. Therefore, incorporating animal totems into our lives affirms our spiritual goals.
By focusing on the attributes of our totems, we internalize these traits and thus begin to externalize the very character we absorb from our totems.




StanleyDala

Webster's Dictionary defines a totem as: "A natural object, usually an animal that serves as a distinctive, often venerated emblem or symbol – usually a means of personal or spiritual identity."




BatLeafDala

Sometimes these wOManDalas come from the actual critter, and sometimes they come frOM something that reminds me of a critter.
I believe the purpose of any mandala is to provide some pattern to pull the mind in and away from whatever external inputs are distracting the mind and causing stress in the body.~Scott Syphrit




BatsDala

"...it is said that the seed of enlightenment
in each person's mind is nourished
by the dynamic process of visualizing
and contemplating a mandala." Venerable Lobsang Samten




SwanDala

It expresses and shows deep feelings about ourselves and relates to our center of energy or our inner self.~Shayne 5



PortalDala




When working on the background 4 one wOMandala,

An Other one is often born!

Can you sea a dRAgonfly in this one?

MountDala

Through the All Forever
Wee are Soaring
~Rick Allen




WhaleDala

What can i say? i saw a whale's tail whilst forming this wOMandala :-)
The mandala form seems to offer an unlimited opportunity for integrating depth of meaning with surprising visual beauty.~Chuck Thurston