Two Santa Rosa labyrinths in Maryland

Walking two labyrinths of the same pattern, in similar settings near Washington, DC, provided a great opportunity to compare the little design details that give a labyrinth its individual character. Both the private Hallowood Retreat Center and the public Brookside Gardens sited their labyrinths next to small lakes. Both follow the Santa Rosa design by Dr. Lea Goode-Harris and use similar materials, rough gravel for the path and stone blocks to mark the path's boundaries. 

Labyrinth at Hallowood Retreat Center near Sugarloaf, MD

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The two main points of difference are the sense of enclosure and the contrast between the path and its boundaries. 

Enclosure

The Hallowood labyrinth slopes a little more than the Brookside site, toward the water, and is enclosed on the uphill side by a line of shrubs, trees, and large rocks. The waterside vista is toward the retreat center buildings on the other side of the lake. At a labyrinth event that I facilitated at Hallowood, one participant said she felt more enclosed than she expected, given how much of the site is open.  

At Brookside, things are roughly reversed. The lakeside view is toward a large cypress tree and the island that shelters the Japanese tea house and garden.  Away from the lake, the view is up a long hill. 

Contrast

The second major point of difference is the contrast between line and path. The Hallowood labyrinth uses larger blocks to mark the path than the one at Brookside. The roughly 2-to-1 ratio between lines and path gives it a very solid feel, accentuated by the stronger contrast between the dark gravel and lighter blocks. The Brookside labyrinth feels like it's drawn with a pencil, rather than a wide-tip marker, and the path is wider. 

Labyrinth at Brookside Gardens, Wheaton, MD
 Click to view larger image.I rather like the scattering of leftover blocks near the entrance of the Brookside labyrinth. It gives it the suggestion that it's an ancient monument that has seen just a slight bit of decay. 

I'm not saying that one is better than the other, only that these little differences -- and the effect they have on your walk -- are part of what makes it fun to visit outdoor labyrinths.

St. Luke's Episcopal Church labyrinth

[UPDATE BELOW] The outdoor labyrinth at St. Luke's Episcopal Church, 6030 Grosvenor Lane, Bethesda, MD, is always available. This is one of many labyrinths in the DC and Baltimore areas supported by grants from the TKF Foundation.

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Update on Saturday, April 10, 2010 at 2:48PM by Sue Mosher

Since I walked the St. Luke's labyrinth a year ago, I've walked two dozen others. Coming back today, I noticed several things that help this labyrinth really "work" for me: 

• The center is big, much bigger than most medieval labyrinths, which has two noticeable effects: It makes the 11 circuits longer, long enough for me to complete a full round of my paidirean or prayer beads. Plus, it leaves plenty of room in the soft, grassy center for a solitary walker to dance, to turn around with arms stretched wide, or even to lie down. I can imagine all sorts of things that a small group could do with that spaciousness. 
• It has a lovely balance of enclosure and openness: A low wall and well tended plantings augment the natural bowl in which it sits, yet it is also fully open to the sky and the trees elsewhere in the garden.
• There is balance, too, between privacy and awareness of outside activity: I felt completely free to spin around and lie down, yet I was still grounded "in the world," because the background traffic noise from Old Georgetown Road never fades. It instead becomes part of the atmosphere, a constant reminder that everything we do to further our own inner awareness becomes part of our interaction with the wider world. 

I recommend this labyrinth highly if you happen to be in Bethesda for any reason at all. I'm curious whether others find these same qualities helpful or whether you get a different vibe. 

Franciscan Monastery catacombs and garden

You don't need to leave Washington to visit the Holy Land. The Franciscan Monastery near Catholic University has been a pilgrimage destination since the early 20th century. You can tour the church (with catacombs) and also visit the replicas of sites from the Holy Land in the monastery garden.

When you come onto the Monastery grounds, take the left-hand walkway look for the sign for "Visitors Entrance." Enter there, and follow the hallway to the left. You will end up in the Tour Lobby. To visit the catacombs, you must join a tour, which will last about an hour. The last tour of the day is at 3 p.m. The monastery requests a donation of $2, which you can place in a box at the end of the tour.

You do not need to join a tour if you just want to look around the church and enjoy the gardens, which include replicas of several Holy Land sites and the Grotto of Lourdes. 

The monastery is located at 1400 Quincy Street, NE, Washington, DC, a ten-minute walk from Brookland/CUA Metro Station. There is a parking lot, as well as on-street parking in the neighborhood.

A map of the monastery church and grounds is available in PDF format by clicking here. 

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National Museum of the American Indian grounds

The grounds of the National Museum of the American Indian abound with special places created with sacred intention, including four boulders transported from the four cardinal points of the Western Hemisphere and placed in corresponding positions around the museum. The quiet space pictured below, on the north side of the museum, is adjacent to a pond that has developed its own ecosystem, just a few blocks from the U.S. Capitol. At dusk, you may be lucky enough to see the family of ducklings making their way toward dinner. 

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Also worth seeing (besides the museum artifacts themselves), the Potomac Rotunda on the ground floor of the museum is frequently used as ceremonial space.

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National Japanese American Memorial

One of Washington's least known monuments is the National Japanese American Memorial near Union Station. It includes a water feature in zen garden style and a magnificent monument to all those who struggle against injustice, in the form of two cranes trying to free themselves from barbed wire (photo from http://www.njamf.com).

Closest Metro is Union Station (Red line). The memorial itself is at D Street & New Jersey Avenue, NW, 
Washington, DC 20001. 

 Crane photo from http://www.njamf.com

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