symbol
Mandala
A bounded diagram used in Buddhist (and some Hindu) ritual and visualization. Jung’s later psychological mandalas are a twentieth-century reading, not a sūtra.
Buddhist traditions
Mandala is used in Buddhist traditions.
Mandalas are bounded ritual and visualization diagrams in Buddhist (and some Hindu) practice. The sūtra’s lotus is related imagery, not Jung’s drawing exercise.
from Burton Watson (translation) · The Lotus Sutra, 1993 (this translation); Sanskrit/Chinese recensions much older
used in · sourced · documented
Mandala represents Circle.
A mandala is often a bounded circle or square. The geometry is shared; the rite is not “wholeness” as a New Age caption.
from Burton Watson (translation) · The Lotus Sutra, 1993 (this translation); Sanskrit/Chinese recensions much older
represents · interpretive · documented
Mandala is associated with Buddha.
Some mandalas seat a Buddha or a host. Ritual diagram, not Jung’s patient drawing.
from Burton Watson (translation) · The Lotus Sutra, 1993 (this translation); Sanskrit/Chinese recensions much older
associated with · partially sourced · documented
Twentieth century
Mandala is associated with Analytical psychology.
Jung reads mandalas as psychic diagrams. A twentieth-century clinical-literary use, dated as modern interpretation.
from C. G. Jung · Concerning Mandala Symbolism, 1950 (essay); English in the Collected Works
associated with · sourced · modern interpretation
sources
- The Lotus Sutra · Burton Watson (translation)
Burton Watson, The Lotus Sutra.
- Concerning Mandala Symbolism · C. G. Jung
C. G. Jung, “Concerning Mandala Symbolism.”