Issue date: 9/27/07 Section: News

Media Credit: Derrick Manuat The Labyrinth at the Religious Center is available each Tuesday for anyone wanting to take part in the centuries-old ritual.

In between classes, work, organizations and all the other responsibilities of college life, students have the chance to escape or relieve their stress by walking the "Labyrinth Peace Walk" in the Religious Center's dome room.

While images of David Bowie or the Minotaur might come to mind, the labyrinth is in fact a large canvas painted with a blue, 7-circuit turning path leading to a circular area in the center.

The Labyrinth Peace Walk is available from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. every Tuesday.

According to the Rev. Paul Burden of United Campus Ministry, the point of walking the labyrinth is to follow the winding path to the center and back as part of a meditation, spiritual reflection or thinking exercise.

"It provides people with an opportunity to have some quiet, reflective time," Burden said. "I find it to be a very helpful time of spiritual renewal."

While the Religious Center provides fliers with suggestions for using the labyrinth - such as walking slowly and in a peaceful rhythm, pausing at the center for reflection and not rushing or forcing the experience - the exercise is ultimately meant to be a unique experience fitted to the walker's needs and desires.

"The neat thing about the labyrinth is that there are no hard and fast rules about walking it," Burden said. "You can walk it multiple times. You can walk it quickly or slowly. You can even stop in the middle to meditate."

Although the walk is hosted by the Religious Center, it is not solely a religious experience. Burden maintains that students of all faiths and religious practice are welcome to walk the labyrinth.

"An agnostic or atheist can enjoy it as much as a Christian or a Hindu or a Buddhist," Burden said.

The Religious Center labyrinth can have anywhere between one to half a dozen people walking it each week. Burden himself also uses it.

"I find it to be a very helpful time of spiritual renewal," Burden said. "Sometimes when I walk the labyrinth, I maybe walk it with certain things in mind and I may focus on those as I pray or meditate. Other times, I may walk it without anything in mind. Sometimes just walking can be very refreshing, walking without any particular agenda."

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