Sacred Circles and Spheres


Research by
Michael P. Garofalo
 

April 28, 2008

Quotations      Links      Bibliography      Notes

Valley Spirit Center Sacred Circle

The Ways of Walking

Valley Spirit (Gu Shen) Concept

Valley Spirit Center  Red Bluff, California

Valley Spirit Center Sacred Circle  

Vesica Pisces

Walking Meditation

The Way of Four.  By Deborah Lipp.  Llewellyn, 2004.  336p.  ISBN: 0738705411.   

Way of the Shaman.  By Michael Harner.  Harper San Francisco, 1990.  208 pages.
ISBN:  0062503731.

Ways of the Strega.  Italian Witchcraft: Its Lore, Magick and Spells.  By Raven Grimassi.
St. Paul, Minnesota, Llewellyn Pubs., 1995.  Index, 285 pages.  MGC.  ISBN: 1567182534.  

Wheel Crosses and World Ages

Wheel of the Year: Living the Magical Life.  By Pauline Campanelli.  Illustrated by Dan 
Campanelli.  St. Paul, Minnesota, Llewellyn Publications, 1989, 1993.  
ISBN: 0875420915.  

The Wheel of Time Sand Mandala.  By Barry Bryant.  A visual scripture of Tibetan Buddhism. 
Harper San Francisco, 1995.  271 pages.  ISBN: 0062500880.  

Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner.  By Scott Cunningham.  Llewellyn's Practical Magick Series. 
St. Paul, Minnesota, Llewellyn Publications, 1994.  Index, bibliography, glossary, 218 pages. 
ISBN: 0875421180.  A very good introduction to the Craft by an open-minded person.  

The Wisdom of the Elements: The Sacred Wheel of Earth, Air, Fire and Water.  By Margie McArthur. 
Crossing Press, 1998.  176 p.  ISBN:  0895949369.  An excellent resource!

Return to Webpage Index

Quotations
Sacred Circle, Medicine Wheels, Four Elements, Bagua, Sacred Spheres,
Pagan Circles, Circular Mandalas, Circle Symbolism and Myth, Henge,
Magick Circle, Labyrinth, Neo-Pagan Circles

"When I began drawing the mandalas ... I saw that everything, all the paths I had been following, all the steps I had taken,
were leading back to a single point - namely, to the mid-point.  It became increasingly plain to me that the mandala is the center.
It is the exponent of all paths.  It is the path to the center, to individuation ...  I began to understand that the goal of
psychic development is the self ... I knew that in finding the mandala as an expression of the self I had attainted what
was for me the ultimate."
-   Carl Jung

"To our way of thinking the Indians' symbol is the circle, the hoop.  Nature wants to be round.  The bodies of
human beings and animals have no corners.  With us, the circle stands for togetherness of people who sit
with one another around the campfire, relatives and friends united in peace while the sacred pipe passes
from hand to hand.  To us this is beautiful and fitting, symbol and reality at the same time, expressing the
harmony of life and nature."
-   John Fire Lame Deer, Richard Erdoes, Lame Deer Seeker of Visions

Eight Trigrams of the I Ching

"The Medicine Wheel is a symbol of all creation, of all races of human beings, birds, fish, animals, trees, and stones.  It's in the shape
of a wheel.  The circle shape represents the earth, the sun, the moon, the cycles of life, the seasons, and day to night.  Movement
around the outside of the Medicine Wheel is in a clockwise direction, the rotation path of mother earth.  At the center of the wheel
(the hub) is the Creator, who sits in perfect balance.  Outside the center, there is an inner circle representing the Old Woman (the
earth), Father Sun, Grandmother Moon, and the four elements.  Four distinct colors, set in the four directions, lay on the perimeter,
separated by beads representing the moon's cycles. Leather, laid from the perimeter, in straight lines, to the center (the spokes of
the wheel) represent spiritual paths leading us to the center, to perfect balance, to the Creator.  The meaning of the number four, as
it is in Native American life, is evident in the Medicine Wheel. 4 = four directions + four seasons + four elements (earth, air, water
and fire) + the four races of human being.  The wheel also teaches the four aspects of our nature…physical, mental, emotional and
spiritual.  The easterly direction on the Medicine Wheel represents the new light of day, the place of all beginnings.  South is the sun
at the highest point, a place of youth and innocence.  West is from which darkness comes, the place of the unknown. North is the
place of winter, the place of wisdom.  With the Medicine Wheel, we call upon the moons, animals, angels, finned ones, the elements,
the Sun, Clan mothers, Spirit Keeper and the Star Nations, to help us manifest our needs, and to remember who we are, what is
to come, and why we are here. The month, which you were born, determines your starting place on the medicine wheel and your
beginning totems.  All people, travel the wheel at their own speed.  The important message of the medicine wheel is that you allow
yourself to keep traveling, rather then tying yourself to one position and blocking your energies from growing and changing.  The
Medicine Wheel is a powerful tool to get to know yourself and your guardians.  Each Native American Indian band have their
own ceremony and meanings of the Medicine Wheel.  Come and join us around this wonderful place we call the great
medicine wheel.
-   The Medicine Wheel, Gale Trinkwon from Nanaimo, British Columbia, of the Tia-o-qui-aht First Nation

"The relations of every kind to which this wheel symbol is open seem limitlessly numerous, as also its connections with
other, equally traditional "pantacula" or small wholes.  Indeed, while the symbol of the wheel is the expression of movement
and multiplicity, it is also the symbol of original immobility, and of synthesis. Just so, it is the symbolic expression of expansion
and concentration – of centrifugal energy, which moves from the center to the periphery, and of centripetal energy, which
returns to it center, axis, or font and source, to extend itself once more, following a universal law obeyed by the tides of
the sea (ebb and flow) and the earth (condensation, expansion)–like the diastole and systole, the inhaling and exhaling,
of the human being or the universe, that is, of the microcosmic as of the macrocosmic.  This symbol as well, is the manifestation
of that which, being only virtual (the point) generates a space or plane (delimited by the circumference).  And it is therefore
obviously bound up with space and time, and associated or united to any idea of cosmogony and creation. In this same sense,
the superficial or external movement of the wheel would be bound up with manifestation, while the virtuality, the immobility
of the central point or axis would be connected with the immanifest.  The special modalities of the symbol of the wheel arise
by radiation, or by the "actualization," of the "potentialities" of the central point, which becomes "present" in time, creating a
spatial field.  We have seen that a point generates a plane, that is, a space. That central point is an axis in tridimensionality.
Accordingly, the symbol of the wheel is closely tied to every axial and vertical symbol.  And it is the same with all projections
of the vertical, that is, with the creation of horizontal planes or spaces articulated through an axis, which they reflect, one
of them being the limited perimeter of our world, cycle, or any field defined in relation to the spatio-temporal coordinates."
-   Symbolism of the Wheel

"A wheel was shown to me, wonderful to behold. Divinity . . . is like a wheel, a circle, a whole, that can neither be understood,
nor divided, nor begun nor ended . . . no one has the power to divide this circle, to surpass it, or to limit it."
-   Hildegard of Bingen  

The sacred circle at Stonehenge, Wiltshire County, England.

"North is the direction of the Element Earth and the Power of Body. Its Nature forms are rocks, clay, sand, and soil. In human life,
this is the physical dimension and the sensing realm. In connecting with this direction, pay attention to your physiological processes,
to the sensations in your body, to your biological needs, and to your physical health. Healing modalities include good nutrition,
hygiene, body language awareness and change, relaxation, and rest.
East is the direction of the Element Air and the Power of Mind. Its Nature forms are the winds, the atmosphere, and the breath. In
human life, this is the mental dimension and the thinking realm. In connecting with this direction, pay attention to your thought processes,
to your ability to reason, to your attitudes, and to your mental health. Healing modalities include self-talk analysis, affirmations,
journal writing, cognitive restructuring, and education.
South is the direction of the Element Fire and the Power of Action. Its Nature forms are flames, lightning, and electricity. In human life,
this is the behavioral dimension and the doing realm. In connecting with this direction, pay attention to your repertoire of activities, to
the amount of time you allot to work and to play, to the quality of your alone time, to the nature of your interactions with others, and
to your behavioral health. Healing modalities include play, exercise, time management, life restructuring, breaking destructive or
outmoded habits, career development, positive behavioral change, and goal setting and achievement.
West is the direction of the Element Water and the Power of Emotions. Its Nature forms are oceans, lakes, streams, rivers, wells,
springs, dew, precipitation, and fluids in the body. In human life, this is the emotional dimension and the feeling realm. In connecting
with this direction, pay attention to your moods, to your feelings about yourself and about others, to the levels of intimacy and trust
in your relationships, and to your emotional health. Healing modalities include guided imagery, active listening, expressing feelings,
sharing feelings, giving comfort and being comforted, singing, dancing, drawing, and other forms of artistic expression."
-   Sacred Circle, Sacred Sphere: Mapping Consciousness with Seven Directions.  By Selena Fox.

"The wheel is a common symbol of the Buddha’s teaching, of truth, and can be seen as a simple mandala. As it turns, the centre
remains still while everything else turns around it.  From the micro level of atoms and molecules, to the macro level of planets
and their orbits, circles and spheres are found in every aspect of our experience, and seen used in the symbolism of many
primitive and tribal cultures.  The Buddha taught that identifying one’s self with any point on the wheel itself was to become
tangled amongst the beginnings and endings, births and deaths – rebirths – that always lead to suffering. The centre is the place
of observation without observer, action without actor."
-  Buddhist Circle Symbolism 

"Mandalas are used worldwide in Tibetan rituals, medicine wheel ceremonies, and Jungian therapy, as a symbolic representations
of the Cosmos as it relates to the Self.  The word mandala comes from a Sanskrit root meaning "enclosing the essence."
-   Debbie Ann Brett  

"Now raise the sword and walk the round,
By cold blue flame this place we claim,
An banish all that is profane,
Within this round is sacred ground.

Now send the swirling clouds on high,
From censer's depth to starry deep,
Send forth on air our bond to keep,
Cold matter to embrace the sky.

From sacred cup a mystic space,
Where we the threads of magick lace,
Let streams of cleansing water pour,
With rune five-pointed guard this place.

Create a haven for Her grace,
A seat for Her whom we adore.

From East on mighty wing be sped,
Wild spirits of the air and storm,
From South with flaming aspect dread,
Let fiery guardians take their form.

From Western seas with tossing foam,
Oh watchers issue from the deep,
From Northern glades, from beds of loam,
Let kobolds granite vigil keep.

Oh Elements receive our call,
An Powers gather to our rite,
And build four mighty towers tall,
To ring us from the world this night.

An guard this circle on the hill,
Where we are met to work our Will."
-  Tom Williams, "L' Adoration de la Terre: A Ritual in Sonnets."

"We come spinning out of nothingness, scattering stars…
the stars form a circle, and in the center we dance."
-  Rumi

"The circle is celebrated in the form of the nimbus or halo depicted around the heads of saints. Ritual dance is invariably
performed in a circle whether it be as a group or individually such as the sufi’s whirling dervish. The dwelling places of
indigenous people were sacred habitats. From yurts to tipis to igloos to kivas, the circle formed the basis of their design.
Sacred architecture from Stonehenge to the domes of cathedrals, temples and shrines and basilicas are testaments to
the reverence and importance of the simplest of all geometric forms, the circle. Even the cosmic dance of the Hindu god,
Shiva, is performed within a circle of flames.
-   Sacred Circle

"A wheel, or circle has been a sacred symbol to many cultures over time. It can be found in the temples of Egypt, in the land of
the Incas, represented in the Celtic rites as in Stonehenge, and in countless other peoples. The Anasazi of the South Western
United States built their temples, or Kivas, in circular form. Early Native Americans also used the circle for their teepees, their
camps, and daily rituals. The importance is not the circle itself, but what it represented-change. The circle shown in the Medicine
Wheel is used to represent the changing cycle of the seasons. This could literally mean the weather, the seasons of life (birth,
mid-age, old age), or the changes surrounding the development of projects."
-  Mark Dodich

Bighorn Medicine Wheel
Wyoming

"The Medicine Wheel is sacred, the native people believe, because the Great Spirit caused everything in nature to be round. The Sun,
Sky, Earth and Moon are round. Thus, man should look upon the Medicine Wheel (circle of life) as sacred. It is the symbol of the
circle that marks the edge of the world and therefore, the Four Winds that travel there. It is also the symbol of the year. The Sky,
the Night, and the Moon go in a circle above the Sky, therefore, the Circle is a symbol of these divisions of time. It is the symbol
of all times throughout creation."
-   Native American Spirituality 

"The circle is perhaps the most ancient of mystical symbols and the most universal of all dances. It is the earth and
the sun in eternal movement, an unbroken, unbent line symbolizing continuity and eternity. The circle dance represents
wholeness. The dance brings life full circle."
-   Sacred Woman, Sacred Dance

"A Sacred Circle is a group of people who sit in a circle, in the literal and relational sense, and honor the sacredness of their
divine nature as individuals and as a group. Not only does each participant take guidance individually by listening to the
“inner voice within”, but this guidance is offered to the center of the circle and comes back from it in an augmented
resonant manner.  Each guidance, each soul and life experience, when offered to the center, begins to resonate with
one another and creates what we experience as a resonant field. The resonant field is the living whole that radiates
back toward each of us. It operates as a source of light that illuminates our individual blind spots, makes us grow and find
clarity. Then we are in the situation of being able to offer back more and more resonant experience to the Center, and so
on. The resonant field works definitely like a complex dynamic system. It creates new layers of reality that transcend and
include our individual reality. It offers us more freedom than ever, we are given the opportunity to perform our soul
mission and honor the dharma."
-  The Transitioner: Sacred Circles  

"The location of the inter-dimensional portal,
The gateway to ascension
The alchemical fifth element, which is spirit
Alchemical gold—light, the sun as center of the solar system and as spiritual illumination
The heart chakra
Christ love, unconditional love, unity consciousness—the capstone of the pyramid
A place of perfect balance of Being
The center of the universe, the Great Central Sun
The heart center of Earth, which is Shamballa
The heart of human existence."
-  Metatron's Wheel, Portal to the 5th Dimension 

"A circle doth answer to unity, and the number ten; for unity is the center, and circumference of all things; and the number ten
being heaped together returns into a unity from whence it had its beginning, being the end, and complement of all numbers.
A circle is called an infinite line in which there is no terminus a quo nor terminus ad quem, whose beginning and end is in
every point, whence also a circular motion is called infinite, not according to time but according to place; hence a circular
being the largest and perfectest of all is judged to be most fit for bindings and conjurations; whence they who adjure evil
spirits are wont to environ themselves about with a circle."
-   Agrippa, Three Books of Occult Philosophy

"The High Priestess goes to each of the four directions in turn and draws a
Banishing Pentacle, saying:

Guardians of the East (South, West, North),
Powers of Air (Fire, Water, Earth), we thank you
For joining in our circle
And we ask for your blessing
As you depart
May there be peace between us
Now and forever. Blessed be.

She raises her athame to the sky and touches it to the earth, then opens
her arms and says:

The circle is open, but unbroken,
May the peace of the Goddess
Go in your hearts,
Merry meet, and merry part.
And merry meet again. Blessed be."
-  Closing the Circle, Internet Book of Shadows

"Creating Sacred Space is central to Wisdom Tradition spirituality and wisdom schools. It holds that in the act of dedicating
or claiming sacred space we do indeed create an actual context for contact with the Numinous and its aspects. In that vane,
our Wheels are not a " gimmick" -- they have a life and power all their own that is supported by centuries of many traditions.
The elemental "beings" that we invite are "real" in their ability to interact (to be in relationship) with us. If it is what we want,
they will help us to reshape our lives to the highest good we are capable of perceiving at that point in time. There are natural
and actual correspondences between shapes (i.e. the angles of the planets, or squares, circles and triangles, etc.) and energies,
things and concepts, but, the mysteries are not static or frozen in time: they change and grow with the changes that occur
in humankind. Every space that we create has its own natural energy or underlying principle and teaching to offer. For instance,
in a sweat space dedicated to the sacred, the "real" heat of the ceremony is a different kind of hotness which can burn away
many of the things which separate us from the sacred. The ritual circle as sacred space is thus not a place arbitrarily set apart
from the realities of the world, but on the contrary, it is truly aligned with the essence of creation through the coordinates of
North, South, East and West. Because of that alignment and the power inherent in such space, we are actually aligning
with and participating in the primal act of Creation. And, through each sacred space we create, the mystery grows
and evolves by our commitment."
-  Sacred Circles Institute   

The nature of God is a circle of which the center is everywhere and the circumference is nowhere.

"Zero (0) is not 'nothing."  It's a circle, without beginning or end.  Holy.  Healed."
-   Wallace Black Elk, Lakota

This sacred circle is located on the moors, north of Madron, in Cornwall, England.  The
center stone is called "Mên-an-Tol" which means "holed stone" in the Cornish language.   

"It is no accident that the wheel shape has been a cosmic symbol for cultures all over the world. The wheel or circle
speaks to our deepest and most innermost self and is an integral part of All That Is.  Ancient peoples knew this intuitively.
Joseph Campbell, who studied the mythology and symbolism of humans worldwide and found numerous examples of
the circle in religious art, concluded, “The whole world is a circle. All of these circular images reflect the psyche.”
Manly P. Hall, a great metaphysical scholar and philosopher from the 1920’s wrote about the circle, “One of the
simplest lines and figures, the whole secret of corporeal nature emerges…The Trinity of the circle (center, radius
and circumference) shows the Divine Trinity…The circle begets nothing of itself as it is already complete, consisting
as it does of an infinitude of sides. It is the greatest of all polygons…”   The primary lesson that the Wheel teaches
is about balance. The center of the wheel is metaphorically many things, including the center of the Self, spiritual
illumination and the gateway to ascension. As you start to bring yourself into balance in all the aspects represented
in the Wheel, you will naturally move toward that center.  The circle with the dot at its center is the oldest symbolism
for the primal womb containing the spark of creation. It depicts the creation of the world by God, with God immanent
in His/Her creation. God is spoken of as a circle Whose center is everywhere. But the circle also tells the story of
human as creator. The human ego or seed atom is at the center of each individual’s personal world; it defines the
circumference of his or her own individual creative power."
-  Sacred Circle Hoops  

"Mandala means 'circle' in the Sanskrit language, and mandala art refers to symbols that are drawn, sketched or
painted in a circular frame. Mandala art has been used throughout the world as a process of self-expression, in the
service of personal growth and spiritual transformation.  Tibetan Buddhism has employed mandala art for thousands
of years to capture the images of the countless demons and gods which it believes both plague and uplift humanity. 
Navajo sand painters use them in their healing rites.  Many native people use the Medicine Wheel, a mandala
form, to connect to earth energies and the wisdom of nature. The very fact that mandalas are drawn round can
lead us to an experience of wholeness when we take the time to make them and then wonder what they mean. 
In the strict use of the mandala, there is a central point or focus within the symbol from which radiates a symmetrical
design.  This suggests there is a center within each one of us to which everything is related, by which everything
is ordered, and which is itself a source of energy and power. Virtually every spiritual and religious system known
to man asserts the reality of such an inner center.  The Romans worshiped it as the genius within. The Greeks
called it the inner daemon.  Christian religions speak about the soul and the Christ within. In psychology we
speak of the Higher Self."
-  Mandala Symbolism

"Wheel symbolism was ubiquitous in ancient religions.  The whole universe was envisioned as a vast wheel whose rolling
could be seen in the cycles of heavenly bodies and in the progress of seasons.  Small wheels, as models of the cosmos,
accompanied the dead into their graves. Wheels were used as magical protective emblems on helmets, shields, weapons,
and houses. Celtic gods exhibited wheels in their hands or by their sides. Altars and tombstones were decorated with wheels.
One of the Celtic names for the Goddess, Arianrhod, designated her the Goddess of the Silver Wheel (the stars), whose hub
was the Revolving Castle, Caer Sidi, hidden in the underground spirit-land of Annwn.  Similarly in India, Mother Kali continually
ruled the Wheel of Time (Kalacakra), where all the life-breath of the world was fixed "even as the spokes of a wheel are
held fast in the hub."  A comparable hub was the omphalos of Greek myth, ruled by the Goddess Omphale, to whom
Heracles-the-Sun was subject.  His mythical twelve labors represented the slow progress of the sun through the twelve
zodiacal houses. Priests of Heracles traditionally dressed as women, which led to the development of the late Hellenic myth
about the sun hero disguised in female clothing, working among the ladies on Omphale's spinning wheel.  The Etruscans called
the Wheel-goddess Vortumna, She Who Turns the Year, and the Romans altered this name to Fortuna, the Goddess whose
constantly turning heavenly wheel marked all the seasons and the fates of men. Sometimes she was envisioned as a trinity,
the Fortunae, or Fates, whom the Greeks also called Nemesis or the Moerae.  She ruled the kyklos geneseon, the wheel of
rebirth and of transformations throughout time. The ancients' belief in reincarnation produced many cyclic images of existence
rather than the linear patriarchal insistence that an individual could have only one life, ending in a permanent choice between
heaven and hell.
-   The Wheel by Barbara J. Walter from The Women's Dictionary of Symbols and Sacred Objects  

"The Sacred Circle with its directions is called by some, the "Magic Circle," and by others, the "Medicine Wheel." Some
traditions emphasize the four compass directions of the Circle. Others work with the four compass points plus a central
point representing unity. Some also include two additional directions in the center, up and down, to create a Sacred
Sphere as well as the Sacred Circle. Qualities, images, colors, and other symbolic associations with the directions
vary from path to path, but the idea of Sacred Circle as a place of balancing, healing, and wholeness extends across
traditions. ...  While the map of consciousness with its seven directions and Sacred Sphere form works well for me and
for others, it is important to note that it is but one of many maps within Paganism today. Traditions vary not only in the
number of directions honored, but the correspondences associated with each direction and the order in which the
directions are worked with in ritual. It is important that practitioners chart their own maps according to their own
traditions, preferences, and experiences."
-   Selena Fox, Sacred Circles, Sacred Spheres

    "In Celtic culture, a nemeton was a sacred grove used on occasion for performing ritual animal sacrifices, and other such rituals. The grove itself might be personified as Nemetona, attested in votive and founding inscriptions. The word may be traced in the Irish Nemed husband of Macha and in naomh ("holy"). 
    It is well known that Druids, according to Roman writers Pliny or Lucan did not meet in stone temples or other constructions, but in sacred groves of trees. In his Pharsalia Lucan described such a grove near Massilia in dramatic terms more designed to evoke a shiver of delicious horror among his Roman hearers than meant as proper natural history: no bird nested in the nemeton, nor did any animal lurk nearby; the leaves constantly shivered though no breeze stirred. Altars stood in its midst, and the images of the gods. Every tree was stained with sacrificial blood. the very earth groaned, dead yews revived; unconsumed trees were surrounded with flame, and huge serpents twined round the oaks. The people feared to approach the grove, and even the priest would not walk there at midday or midnight lest he should then meet its divine guardian. Testimony of such groves has been found in Germany, Switzerland, Czech Republic and Hungary in Central Europe, in many sites of ancient Gaul in Britannia and Ireland. Sacred groves will have been widespread until the Romans attacked and conquered Gaul in increments."
-  Nemeton - Wikipedia   

"Three Rings for the Elven-Kings under the sky,
Seven for the Dwarf-Lords in their halls of stone,
Nine for Mortal Men doomed to die.
One for the Dark Lord on his Dark Throne,
In the Land of Mordor, where the Shadows lie. 
One Ring to Rule them all, One Ring to find them,
One Ring to bring them all, and in the darkness bind them
In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie."
-   J. R. R. Tolkien, Lord of the Rings  

Why does the snowflake melt?
To enliven spring flowers.  
Why does summer sun blaze?
To ripen the garden.
Why does the leaf fall? 
To bring forth beautiful snow…
Why do the seasons dance so? 
To embrace us in the sacred circle.
-  Sacred Circle, "Mystical Poetry," Deborah Morrison   

"In Tibetan Buddhism, Mandalas come in two varieties; it can represent the universe, as it is used in the
Mandala Offering Ritual, where one symbolically offers the entire universe. For this, several rings can be
placed on top of each other filled with rice and precious objects (see right). During the offering one
recites mandala offering prayers. In the center of the mandala is Mount Meru, the central axis in the
Buddhist (and Jain) cosmos.  The best-known mandalas are part of the world of Tantra; they represent
the "3D Palace" of a specific meditation-Buddha or deity. In the Tibetan tradition, they come as thangkas
(scroll-paintings), wall paintings, sand-drawings and 3D models of e.g. wood or metal.  A mandala
can be "read" and studied like a text and most important, be used for tantric meditation. The purpose
of a mandala is to acquaint the student with the tantra, and thus allowing the student to identify with
the deity and its sacred surroundings as the mandala."
-  Tantric Symbols

Let word be deed by this decree.
As it is said, so must it be!
(Sit verbum factum hoc decreto.
Ut dictum est, sic statim fiat!)"
-  Saturnalia, Casting the Circle Instructions, by Apollonius Sophistes

"Within the circles of our lives
we dance the circles of the years,
the circles of the seasons
within the circles of the years,
the cycles of the moon
within the circles of the seasons,
the circles of our reasons
within the cycles of the moon.

Again, again we come and go,
changed, changing. Hands
join, unjoin in love and fear,
grief and joy. The circles turn,
each giving into each, into all.

Only music keeps us here,
each by all the others held.
In the hold of hands and eyes
we turn in pairs, that joining
joining each to all again.

And then we turn aside, alone,
out of the sunlight gone

into the darker circles of return."

-   Wendell Berry, Circles of Our Lives

"The Circle is the most common and universal signs, found in all cultures. It is the symbol of the sun in its limitless or boundless aspect. It has no beginning or end, and no divisions, making it the perfect symbol of completeness, eternity, and the soul.  The circle is also the symbol of boundary and enclosure, of completion, and returning cycles. The circle most familiar to us is that of the wedding ring which encircles the finger associated in ancient times with the heart. The wedding ring symbolizes not just a pledge of eternal ove, but the enclosure of the heart- a pledge of fidelity."
-  Secret Language of Symbols

"Myths serve four purposes:  To awaken wonder by bringing us back in touch with the child within;
To fill all corners or niches of an image with the Mystery; to validate social order; and, to teach us
how to conduct ourselves during the stages of our lives."
-  Joseph Campbell, The Masks of God: Creative Mythology  

"Map of the Horizon," by Tracy Harris

"We call upon you Oh creatures of Earth,
To protect this Circle and Aid in Our Rites.  
Wherefore do We Bless and Consecrate Thee, 
So Mote It Be.
We call upon you Oh creature of Water,  
To protect this Circle and Aid in Our Rites. 
Wherefore do We Bless and Consecrate Thee,  
So Mote It Be.  
We call upon you Oh creatures of Water and Earth, 
 To protect this Circle and Aid in Our Rites.  
Wherefore do We Bless and Consecrate Thee, 
So Mote It Be.  
Oh Thou Circle, Be Thou a meeting place of Love and Joy, 
In Perfect Truth and Trust 
A Shield against all wickedness and evil intent, 
A Rampart of Protection for All who stand herein!  
Wherefore do we Bless and Consecrate Thee, 
By the Holy and Sacred names of Athena, Cerridwen, Rhiannon, 
Mercury and Pan ... 
This Circle is Cast, safe and secure,  
Sacred Space created for all that is Pure!  
So Mote It Be!"
-   Casting the Sacred Circle, by Silver Wolfe  

Islamic pilgrims circle the sacred Kaaba in Mecca

"The power of the world always works in circles.  The sky is round, and I have heard that the earth is round like a ball,
and so are all the stars.  The wind in its greatest power - whirls.  Birds make their nests in circles, for theirs is the same
religion as ours.  The sun comes forth and goes down in a circle, and the moon does the same.  Both always come back
to where they were.  The life of man is a circle from childhood to childhood.  And so it is in everything where power
moves."
-   Black Elk Speaks, Wallace Black Elk, Lakota 

"The four-quartered Circle of Magick is a central element in most Western magickal rituals.  It is called the "portal between
the worlds," a means of connecting with the Deities, Spirits, and Elemental Powers of a realm beyond the material universe.
It is envisioned as a vortex with which we focus on our own innate psychic powers, called forth by ritual actions from the
subliminal depths of the mind and soul.  It is a "sacred space," a sanctuary for communion with the old ones, the deities of
our faith.
Many levels of symbolism are intrinsic to the Magick Circle.  Among these metaphors are metaphysical and mystical
concepts that describe the greater reality within which our lives are experienced.  The four "corners" of the Circle of
Magick correspond with the compass directions and their associated Elements (Earth, Air, Fire or Water).  A fifth
Element, Spirit, is often associated with the center of the Circle or with the Circle as a whole."
-   Bran the Blessed, Circle Symbolism 

"The most important thing to teach your children is that the sun does not rise and set. It is the Earth that revolves around
the sun. Then teach them the concepts of North, South, East and West, and that they relate to where they happen to be
on the planet's surface at that time. Everything else will follow."
-  R. Buckminster Fuller, Interview, 1983

"Dancing in the circle at sunset,
the sky in crimson hue.
The song it comes upon me,
glistening like the dew.
I cannot hear the music,
nor can I hear the words.
I feel it in the depths of my soul,
the song of other worlds.
Worlds of flight and fancy free,
those worlds of imagination,
Worlds belonging to the trees,
and worlds of constellations.
Worlds that live within our minds,
our hearts, our souls, our being.
And worlds of crossing over
where my ancestors are singing."
-  Broomhilda, Song of Other Worlds

"The circle is the energy of Ceremonial Order. It is an expression of the will which drives through into outer manifestation; it is
that which embodies both the periphery and the point at the center. It is the will to "ritualistic synthesis," if I might so word it.
It is Necessity which is the prime conditioning factor of the divine nature - the necessity to express itself; the necessity to
manifest in an orderly rhythmic manner; the necessity to embrace "that which is above and that which is below" and, through
the medium of this activity, to produce beauty, order, perfect wholes and right relationships. It is the driving energy which
Being emanates as It appears and takes form and lives. It is the Will towards Expression. Today, as regards humanity, its
highest expression is organization."
-   Alice Bailey   

DNA (Deoxyribonucleic acid)

    "Enter your circle and light any altar candles you are using. If you are using quarter candles, start at the North
point (or East if that’s your preferred direction) and light the four candles walking deosil (clockwise) around the
circle. Return to the altar and light the incense. Before the start of any ritual, magical working or divinatory activity,
a witch will first 'Ground and Center' to booster the self's resources by infusing 'Personal Power' with 'Earth Power'
producing calm within the inner-self ready for the work ahead.  Now you are ready to begin.
    Stand in front of your altar or the center of your circle if you are not using one and face your preferred direction.
Concentrate and build your personal power within you.  When it has reached a fine pitch (you’ll know when it has
with practice), hold out your projective hand (right if right handed) palm down at waist height and point your fingers
at the edge of the physical circle on the ground (you could also use the athame if you wish). Push out with your
personal power and see and feel the energy flowing out from your fingertips (athame). Visualize it as a bright light
(coloured if you wish) and slowly walk deosil around the circle. Now form it with your visualization into a swirling
circling band of magical glowing light the exact width of your circle.
    When you can see the band of light swirling about you expand it with your visualization and stretch it over and
around you in the form of a dome, it should encompass the whole ritual area. Now extend the energy down into
the earth, see it forming into a complete sphere of pulsing glowing light as you stand at its center. Feel it solidifying
into a living glowing reality all around you. Sense the edge of the circle and the difference in vibration within and
without of it. You may even feel the temperature rise, as the air inside grows warm, charged with your energy
and alive with power. When the circle seems complete and solid around you, cut off the flow of energy by
turning the palm and clenching your fist pulling it back to your body."
-   Serena, The Magic Circle III

"The Circle is the sacred center in which most formal rituals take place.  Like a cauldron in which we mix and stir
our magick elixir, the Circle forms the psychic boundaries that keep unwanted energy out, while allowing the
the magickal energy within to be contained until transformation is complete.  As such, the Circle is seen as a
"place between the worlds" - a place outside the ordinary stream of time and space, yet a place that inevitably
influences this stream.  Thus we say, 'The Circle closes between the worlds, to mark this sacred space, where
we come face to face.' "
-   Anodea Judith, "HOME Cooking: The Magick Circle"

"The motion and the power of sacred spheres

Must be inspired by angelic movers,

Just as the hammer’s art is by the smith.

 

And that heaven which myriad lights make lovely

Takes its image from the deep Mind that turns it

 And of that image makes itself the seal.

 

 And as the soul within this dust of yours

 Has been diffused throughout the different members

To suit each one to some distinctive function,

 

So the Intelligence deals out its goodness

By multiplying itself among the stars

As it revolves on its own unity. "
-   Dante, Paradiso, Canto II, 127-138. 

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Notes
Sacred Circle, Medicine Wheels, Four Elements, Bagua, Sacred Spheres,
Pagan Circles, Mandalas, Wheel Symbolism, Magick Circles, Henges,
Labyrinths, Neo-Pagan Circles, Nemeton

My first studies of the Sacred Circle began in 1976, when I studied various Tarot systems, Goddesses, Neo-Paganism, ancient religions, and Western Magick.  Being a graduate in philosophy (B.A., 1968), I have always been interested in mysticism, ancient philosophy, religions, mysticism, art, will, and ritual.  

Since 2000, I did a fairly detailed studies about Sacred Circles found in Chinese Pua Kua Chang (Bagua Zhang), the Chinese Trigrams of the I Ching, meditative circle walking, shamanism, and labyrinths. 

In August, 2006, my wife, Karen, and I started creating an outdoor Sacred Circle on property we own in Northern California at the Valley Spirit Center.  Our emphasis is upon using the symbolism and energy of Sacred Circle to enhance creativity, contribute to good physical and emotional health, encourage playfulness and imagination, get outside in our our gardens and outdoor relaxation and meditation areas, have beautiful places to practice mind-body arts, study ancient rites and rituals, explore mystical states of consciousness, expand our gardens, and simply to enjoy ourselves with dance, gardening, art, song, theatre, and poetry. 

A "Nemeton" (ne-MEH-tun) was a sacred grove of the Druids, a sanctuary of trees, a location in the woods were religious ceremonies, rituals, and sacrifices to the gods occurred.  Groves of oaks were especially favored by the Druids.  'The grove itself might be personified as Nemetona, attested in votive and founding inscriptions.'  Our Valley Spirit sacred circle is a Nemeton.  A useful ritual for dedicating a Nemeton is found in "The Solitary Druid" by Robert Lee Skip Ellison, pp.196-198.   

"Harm no one, and do what thou Wilt."
Peace,
Mike Garofalo
 

Here is a chart of the associations, attributions, and symbols we are using in our design concept for a
Sacred Circle at the Valley Spirit Center. 

Sacred Circle at the Valley Spirit Center Chart of Associations, Attributions, Elementals, Spirits, and Symbolism Eastern and Westers Magicks
Valley Spirit Sacred Circle Symbolism	Eastern Cosmos Trigrams	Five Elements 五行 Wǔxíng	Western Cosmos Magick	Daily Cycle Human Age
North Green Earth Winter Body Oaks	K'un Earth North Winter 土	Earth Center Yellow Dragon Spleen, Smell Mother Valley Spirit	Body, Flesh, Beings Sensations Touch Earth, Soil, Stone Birth and Death Night New Moon Pentacle, Coins North Winter Trees and Shrubs Salt Oak Trees	Midnight 12 am - 3 am Conception to Birth to 10 Years Old: Babies,  Childhood, and 90-100+ Years Old Birth and Death
Northeast Lime Green Cypresses	Chen Thunder	Wood East Blue Dragon Liver, Sight Oldest Brother		Early Morning Sunrise 3am - 6am 10 to 20 Years Old
East Yellow Air Spring Mind Spirit Olives	Li Fire Spring East 火	Fire South Red Phoenix Heart, Sound Second Son	Mind Thinking Air Smell Metal, Swords Childhood and Youth Dawn Crescent Moon Spring East Incense, Bells Olives, Aspens	Morning 6am - 9am 20 to 30 Years Old Young Adults
Southeast Orange Bottlebrush	Tui Lake Valley Irrigated Field	Metal, Lake West White Tiger Lung, Taste First Son		Mid-Morning 9am - 12pm 30 to 40 Years Old
South Red Fire Summer Will Action Bay Laurel	Chien Heaven South Summer	Metal, Sky West White Tiger Lung, Taste Father	Will, Spirit Intuition Wood Fire Sight South Adult and Middle Age Midday Summer Full Moon Staff, Stave Red Candle Almonds Walnuts	Noon 12 pm - 3pm 40 to 50 Years Old
Southwest Purple Redwoods	Sun Wind	Wood East Blue Dragon Liver, Sight Oldest Sister		Afternoon 3pm - 6 pm 50 to 60 Years Old
West Blue Water Autumn Emotions	K'an Water West Autumn 水	Water North Black Tortoise Kidney, Touch Second Daughter	Emotions, Blood Feelings Water, Cups Taste Middle and Old Age Evening Waning Moon West Autumn Cauldron, Chalice Willows, Laurels	Late Afternoon Sunset 6 pm - 9pm 60 to 70 Years Old Wise Elders
	Inner Entrance
Northwest Turquoise Liquid Ambers	Ken Mountain	Earth Center Yellow Dragon Spleen. Smell First Daughter		Evening 9pm - 12 pm 70 to 80+ Years Old Wise Elders
Center White	Tai Chi Grant Ultimate		Wholeness Harmony Interdependence Individual Self Circle Web White - All Colors

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Valley Spirit Center Sacred Circle Red Bluff, California Constructed by Mike and Karen Garofalo. Construction began in July, 2006.  Notes about the Sacred Circle at the Valley Spirit Center
	Looking towards the north west.  October 15, 2007 The Raywood Ash trees are starting to show a bit of their reddish autumn color.  The brown fence of the vegetable and herb garden is to the right.  A wire fence has been put in place around the outside of the sacred circle to support the vertical growth of vines and figs.  All potted trees, shrubs, and bulbs are ready for autumn planting.  Entrance doors have been covered.  Walkways have all been laid out with bricks.
Looking towards the south west.  October 15, 2007 A wire fence has been put in place around the outside of the circle to support the vertical growth of vines.  All potted trees, shrubs, and bulbs are ready for autumn planting.  Entrance doors have been covered.  Walkways have all been laid out with bricks.	Looking towards the southeast.   August 2, 2007. Working on the fire pit in the center of the sacred circle.  Rowdy dog joins in the action and fun.  To the right of Rowdy is the large blue bowl that the represents the "sacred well," and the Powers of Water, in the East.  Behind and to the right of Mike is a painted sculpture of the Green Man on a light green pole.   The entrance behind the Green Man now has a covered doorway.  The bricks in the second and third circle have all been set in place.
Looking to the south.  May 6, 2007. Mike is working on the installation of water lines and electrical lines into the Sacred Circle.  We will have drip lines in the third circle, and use both drip lines and hoses in the fifth circle for watering.	Looking towards the southeast quadrant.  April 23, 2007. Karen enjoying the beautiful Spring day. In the background are willows and Lelyandi cypress trees. We keep the weeds and grasses out of the inside of the third circle.   All posts have all been cut to their final height.
Looking towards the east quadrant.  February 4, 2007 12 of 17 posts for the 5th outer circle are in place. Karen with her arms outstretched. The yellow post marks the eastern direction. We have added many rocks inside the 2nd circle. The 1st circle, a brick fireplace, will be added in April, 2007.	Looking towards the west quadrant.  February 4, 2007 12 of 17 posts for the 5th outer circle are in place. Mike holds a level and a square. The blue post marks the western direction. Dirt is being added to the southern part of 3rd and 4th circles.
Planting Begins.  October 16, 2006 Looking towards the south-east. The entrance to the inner circle is from the northwest.	Repainting the South Red Pole.  September 4, 2006  Looking towards the northwest.
Relaxing in the evening.  September 3, 2006.	Digging hole for cross quarter post.  September 3, 2006.
Looking towards the north-east quadrant.  August 7, 2006.

Notes about the Sacred Circle at the Valley Spirit Center

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Mandala of Kalachakra, Tantric Buddhism, Tibet

American Indian Stone Medicine Wheel Form

Gilgal Refaim, Circle of the Giants, Golan Heights, Israel

Crop Circle, England

The Lakshmana-mandal stone labyrinth at Sitimani, near Bijapur, Madras, India

Halo around the Moon

Jesus Christ, Light of the World, with a halo around his head.

Shiva and Parvati (Shakti), the Inseparable God and Goddess in Hinduism
Here personified as the Sun (Shiva, Ha) and Moon (Parvati, Shakti, Tha)

Halo around the Sun

Labyrinth in the Chartres Cathedral, France