Labyrinths have been used as meditation tools for over 4 000 years, with the Ancient Greeks being the first known labyrinth architects – with labyrinths depicted on old coins. Importantly, a labyrinth is quite different to a maze, which is really a puzzle with branching passages, dead ends and different directions to choose from along the way. A labyrinth – be it Medieval or Classical - has a single, often circular, path leading to the centre, and the same single path is used to walk back out again. So while mazes are difficult to navigate and are considered an analogy of life, labyrinths are easy to follow and are used to encourage inner peace and spiritual growth through meditation and prayer.

Labyrinths are old news to the Celtics, Native Americans, Mayans, Romans, Spanish, Turks and Greeks, but they are relatively new in South Africa – and their popularity is soaring. Now dozens of labyrinths can be found across the country, in every environment and virtually every province, with over 50 open to the public. They are made of stone, quartz, gravel and slate; lavender, cacti or simply painted on cement. In fact, any material that can define the path can be used, even taped on a floor or penned on fabric.

The Reconciliation Labyrinth is a uniquely South African creation, originally designed by Cape Town social worker Clare Wilson in 2002. The design incorporates the image of a person with raised arms, and has two, rather than one, path leading to the centre. The two entrances in the design recognize that because of apartheid all South Africans cannot start their journey to reconciliation at the same place. Says Wilson: “In the Reconciliation Labyrinth the path sometimes allows us to travel alongside each other, sometimes it takes us away and sometimes towards each other, but if we keep walking, when we are at the furthest point from our divided entrance, we find we are actually in the same path as each other. We then pass each other and walk the path of the other as if in their shoes. Then you exit by a third and brand new path.” The Reconciliation Labyrinth – one of which is at Kommetjie near Cape Town – can also be walked to explore intra-personal dilemmas, to find reconciliation in a relationship or to understand conflict situations.

When entering a labyrinth, it’s advised to remove jewelry and watches, cellphones and small change from pockets, to meditate on a thought or say a simple prayer in order to encourage intuition – or you could just take a few deep breaths. The idea is that as you walk inwards, you leave behind daily stress and worries, then as you take time at the centre clarity is received, and as you walk out that clarity goes with you back into the world.

In South Africa the following labyrinths are open for public enjoyment, though there are also many more:

Western Cape
At Slangkop lighthouse, Kommetjie, there’s a Reconcilliation Labyrinth of grass, sand and stone; St Georges Cathedral in Cape Town has an 11-circuit Medieval labyrinth and Oude Molen, also in Cape Town, has a 7-circuit Classical labyrinth of mounds of grass. Robben Island has a newly-built labyrinth and in Stellenbosch, Jan Marais Nature Reserve has a 7-circuit Medieval labyrinth of gravel and river stones and Rustenberg Wine Farm has an 11-circuit Medieval labyrinth also of river stones and brick. You'll find the Cabernet Sauvignon Labyrinth, reputed to be the only vineyard labyrinth in the world, on Simonsberg Wine Estate, north of Stellenbosch. Mooreesburg and Calvinia also have labyrinths – Medieval and Classical respectively. An unusual 7-circuit Classical labyrinth of lavender can be walked in Plettenberg Bay

Eastern Cape
In Graaf-Reinet in the Karoo, the Obesa Nursery has a Classical labyrinth of cacti and the picturesque mountain village of Hogsback has two labyrinths to walk.

KwaZulu-Natal
The Anglican Cathedral in Pietermaritzburg as a maze-type labyrinth of shrubs and Durban boasts an unusual mosaic labyrinth.

Gauteng
Labyrinth options abound around Johannesburg and Pretoria and there are a few special offerings such as the Peace Labyrinth for Africa at the Beattitude Healing Centre in Pretoria. Johannesburg has at least four public labyrinths at Kyalami, Benoni, Chartwell and Cresset House, and Celtis Lodge in the Magaliesburg, just outside the city, has a 7-circuit Classical labyrinth built of grass and stones. At Hartebeespoort Dam, there’s an 11-circuit Medieval labyrinth of tiles and brick.

Ever popular also, are portable labyrinths of clay or stone. These are no bigger than an average novel and the labyrinth has been grooved into the stone. Instead of walking the labyrinth, a finger is used to follow the grooves to the middle and back out again. Still, there’s nothing quite like the real thing and walking a labyrinth silently and meditatively as a path to peace.

Useful contacts:
SA labyrinths listing: www.soekershof.com/spiritescape.htm
Reconciliation labyrinths: www.labyrinths.co.za
Labyrinth history: www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/labyrinth
Further reading: http://www.labyrinthsociety.org/