What would you do, if you unexpectedly discovered for yourself the largest labyrinth in the world?
If you are in any way like me, you would definitely take the challenge of exploring it, would you not?
However, as we found out, getting to the Viking temple at the center of this labyrinth was only half the challenge...
Getting out ended up much trickier!
The written instructions we had been given turned out to be wrong. Every “correct” step led us deeper into the woods. Eventually, after making a complete circle and, in amazement, facing the same Viking temple at the center of the maze, we had to stop, take a breather, and rethink our entire strategy. Because — to paraphrase Albert Einstein — doing the same thing and expecting a different result would be a sign of insanity. So, we decided to do something sane for a change and started retracing the steps that had successfully led us to the center of the labyrinth — one by one.
Since the map proved to NOT match the territory, we had to ditch the map and start relying on the inner guidance. We had to reverse-engineer our journey to the center by memory. Thankfully, I teach and practice Dream Yoga, where one of the key practices is the Practice of Remembrance.
So, just like remembering our dreams by recalling the very last one that occurred right before awakening, then the prior one, and so on, we had to recall over 100 questions that we had answered on our way to the temple at the center of the labyrinth — in the reverse order.
When you get a bird’s eye point of view, you may discover that you have more wisdom than you think. You have more creativity than you are used to using and more freedom than you allow yourself to believe.
And that experience served for my partner and me as a great confirmation of my long-standing recognition: Instructions can only take you so far, but resourcefulness is what gets you free. In life, we often follow systems, teachings, or protocols that are supposed to work well… until they don’t. So, when the map does not match the territory, the only way forward is upward.
I invite you to join me this Saturday for a Community Meditation inspired by this experience in the Labyrinth, and anchored in the ancient teachings of Dream Yoga.
Namaste,
Lama Tantrapa
