How to Design Your Own Mandalas

Learning about Sacred Geometries

man•da•la n : Any of various ritualistic geometric designs symbolic of the universe, used in Hinduism and Buddhism as an aid to meditation. — Dictionary.com

The mandala may traditionally be used as a spiritual tool for meditation, but it can also be treated as a contemplative work of art. Artists of all kinds are intrigued by the endless creative possibilities that exist in these sacred circles, the intricate design work that is often based on the step-and-repeat principle, center, and symmetry.

If you are interested in learning more about mandalas or creating your own by hand or with graphic software, you will enjoy the following projects and resources we've compiled about mandala making, history, types, and symbolism. You can also learn more from these mandala making books.

Mandala Making Project

Mandala Workshop: A Gentle Reflection
By Emelisa Mudle
Put aside one hour and create a beautiful place to be alone, light a candle, and put on some gentle music while following this gentle guide to creating your own mandala in any medium you choose.

Mandala Information & Making Hand-Drawn Mandalas Websources

Cheryl Finley's Mandala Oasis
Creativity coach, Soul Collage® facilitator, and founder of the Yahoo! Mandala Oasis Community, Cheryl Finley shows you how to Create Your Own Mandalas in several project tutorials and showcases her own mandalas and creative journey on her creativity-inspiring blog.

The Mandala Project
A wonderful place that teaches about the mandala pattern, mandala's in nature, art, and culture. This informational site includes the 'mandala approach to teaching' and information about the mandala and labyrinth projects.

Mandala: The Art of Power ... the Power of Art
Ray Whiting's Web site features a contemplative hands-on tutorial for drawing and working with your own mandalas, a description of mandala types, and a gallery of beautiful mandala art.

Mandala Peace Arts
A resource featuring an inspiring mandala gallery with templates to help you create your own mandalas with different colors, designs, and patterns. Includes templates for children's mandalas.

Buddhist Craft Activities: Making Mandalas
Learn how mandalas have evolved as a meditation object for awareness and concentration techniques. Understand the design techniques to mandala making (center and symmetry), and view sample mandalas to inspire your own craft.

Online Mandala Makers & Photoshop Tutorials

Mandala Maker: Make Your Own Mandala Online
Design your own mandala by dragging and dropping different shapes into a design palette, rotating, scaling, and changing the shapes until you are satisfied with your design. (Requires Flash Plug-in)

How to Make a Mandala in Photoshop
Modern Gypsy's simple step-by-step tutorial for making digital mandalas in Photoshop. Knowledge of advanced software features / techniques recommended.

How to Make Earth Mandalas
Tutorials and templates for creating mandalas from digital photographs with Photoshop.

Ray Rasmussen's Making Mandala Lesson
A detailed mandala making lesson that provides an image for you to use in Photoshop and plenty of instruction / commentary on the process.

Ruth Temple's Mandala Gallery
A showcase of mandala art "sacred geometries" by Ruth Temple with brief descriptions of how they were created.