Beware of Meditation Coloring Books

I received the following question from a reader: “Our children have been receiving coloring books and coloring pages from relatives and friends at church which we’re not sure about. Some have told us they’re great for relieving headaches and just fun to do. Abeka has also put coloring pages with this type of theme in the 3rd grade Arithmetic Test books. They used to have an animal or some cute picture to color after speed drills were completed, but now they’ve switched to these objects and patterns. We started researching these types of coloring books and are alarmed to see the association with meditation and Buddhism. While the pages themselves may or may not be evil, they definitely lead down a wrong path. We’ve discarded any books or pages. Because of your location and knowledge of cultures in the east, we were wondering if you know any details about these coloring pages.”

REPLY FROM BROTHER CLOUD: This is the first I have heard about coloring books using mandalas, but the mandala is strictly pagan in origin and purpose. They are used in Hinduism and Buddhism, and especially in Tibetan Buddhism, which is highly occultic. Tibetan Buddhism uses mandalas (circle) as symbols of the enlightened mind (nirvana) and the path to it. (In Hinduism, yantra is a similar concept.) There are endless forms and interpretations. “The mandala represents in visual form the core essence of the Vajrayana teachings.” One popular mandala is the Five Buddhas, representing the various paths to enlightenment. The mandala is a meditation tool. The practitioner meditates “to the point of saturation, such that the image of the mandala becomes fully internalised in even the minutest detail and can then be summoned and contemplated at will as a clear and vivid visualized image.” “Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you. And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty” (2 Corinthians 6:17-18).

​Friday Church News Notes, December 6, 2019, www.wayoflife.org [email protected], 866-295-4143)

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