There are many marvelous things about dogs. Humans have long enjoyed relationship with them. Rudyard Kipling wrote, “When the Man waked up he said, ‘What is Wild Dog doing here?’ And the Woman said, ‘His name is not Wild Dog any more, but the First Friend, because he will be our friend for always and always and always.’” As a spirit guide, dogs signify devotion, constancy and unconditional love. They are also a great guide in teaching children the meaning of devotion.
Lesson on Devotion
For this lesson, we create a mandala using the words, “GOD” and “DOG.” Mandalas are an experience in meditative art found cross-culturally. They signify cosmic unity and their creation can be enjoyed at any age.
Making the Mandala
Mandala means “circle,” so first, make a circle of paper. Using plain 8.5″x 11″ paper, make a perfect square, 8.5″ X 8.5″, by folding it into a right triangle. Cut off the excess.
While still folded in a right triangle, fold again at the center to make an equilateral triangle.
Then fold again from the same center point as the first folding to create another long wedge triangle.
You may fold again, keeping the same center. The tighter the fold the more even the curve of the circle. When finished folding, cut the edges away to even them into a straight line.
Open the paper to begin work on your mandala circle.
For this exercise we meditate on the words GOD and DOG. At the top of the mandala, write the word GOD. At the bottom, write DOG. Connect the top word to the bottom word with O’s to make a square.
Now begin to play with shapes. The creases of the paper provide radiating lines from the center. You may choose to trace these out to the edges and incorporate a star in the center. It is helpful to choose just a few colors (~5) and use these again and again to create the pattern.
Feedback from the children:
“Dog is God backwards!”
“They are fun to spin!”
Image credits
Dog and boy going fishing 1632224
