Sacred Geometry and Harmonious Proportion/Color and Form

Sacred Geometry & Harmonious Proportion

Nature designs most of the living world according to a proportion that is often called the golden mean. This golden mean, or golden ratio, is represented by the Greek letter N and numerically as 1.618. . . This ‘divine proportion’ is the perfect natural division, even the growth of our own bodies follows this pattern. Our navel, for example, divides our bodies into two parts of which the lower is 1.618. . .(N) times as long as the upper. Since we have evolved in accordance with this golden ratio, it is believed that we have an intrinsic attraction for designs that are based on this proportion.

Sacred, or symbolic, geometry is not mathematics, but a branch of philosophy and cosmology. It is a spatial language that is used to study the order of space. The practice of sacred geometry is also a kind of meditation and gateway into states of consciousness in which timeless truths may be revealed.

Other examples of the golden mean include mandalas, plans of certain cathedrals, as well as myriad forms in Nature including sunflower heads, pinecones, and oak trees. Knowledge of how this proportion manifests itself in Nature is one example of biognosis. By designing according to these proportions, sacred geometers believe that the places thus created will have a greater internal resonance with their inhabitants.

Vishu Magee writes that sacred geometry attunes our mind to fundamental cosmic ordering principles. Yet he cautions that mastery of these ordering principles can be an impediment to our work if we fail to suspend it in favor of mystery. By mystery, Magee refers to the creative process that goes on inside of us and develops most effectively when left unhindered by the rational mind. Richard Feather Anderson, teacher of sacred geometry, advises to first draw the design and then to check afterward to see how closely the golden mean has been followed. By proceeding in this manner, we can train our intuitive mind to recognize this divine proportion.

Color & Form

Color and form are the two basic tools of design. All architectural forms are some combination of circle, triangle, and square. Sacred geometry is concerned with architectural forms. Form is analogous to the bones of an animal. It provides a place with its structure. The most basic architectural form that we humans have experienced is that of living between the Earth and the Sky. This design of the outer world is mirrored in our psyche as the design of our inner nature. The circular forms of tipis, yurts, and hogans express a harmony with these forces of Earth and Sky, as well as the four directions. In contrast, pyramids, ziggurats, and stupas express a tall sloping form that resembles a great mountain, reaching for the divine.

Color, according to Rudolf Steiner, gives soul to form. Soul, as defined by Anthony Lawlor, is the force that animates thoughts, words, and actions. So we can say that color animates, or brings to life, form.

To many people, color is a subjective experience in that we associate certain personal beliefs and experiences with each one. Yet beyond our personal associations, colors are truly different in that each one has its own wavelength and vibrational energy. For example, red has the universal effect of seeming to come toward the viewer while blue, because of its wavelength, appears to move away. Thus, it is not simply coincidence that ‘hot’ red often stimulates passion, while ‘cool’ blue suggests rest. All colors, then, evoke feeling, both personal and universal. No color invokes neutrality, according to Santo Pietro, although one possible exception might be grey.

Most important to understand is that color is a powerful design tool. Indeed, Christopher Day cautions against the excessive use of strong colors, since they have the ability to ‘force their mood’. Yet every activity, he says, requires a particular feeling.

Day sees green as the color of balance. This is, in fact, the central color of the light prism. Colored light, although more subtle than pigment, has a greater therapeutic effect, Day reports. Color, along with sound and fragrance, produce these sensual vibrations that gently tap on the boundaries of our awareness of place. Conscious placement of subtle vibration has a key role in evoking this feeling of aliveness.