A 2,500-year-old labyrinth has been excavated in Kambainallur village in Dharmapuri district of Tamil Nadu.Archaeologists believe it could well be the largest in the world.With a complicated network of paths, labyrinths have been a fertility symbol associated with many cultures. They represent a unique pattern of consciousness and have been used as meditation tool since the Neolithic period.
Ancient people used to worship labyrinths to be blessed with a child, to attain success in their pursuits and for long life for their cattle, experts say.“All the rituals were in practice since the ancient period. Every ritual followed today is just an extension of the fertility cult in this region,“ said Sugavana Murugan, who along with Sadhanandham Krishnakumar, discovered the site a month ago. Even though it is difficult to find one's way inside a labyrinth, it is believed that those who come out through the right path are blessed by the almighty , he said.
Soon after the discovery, the duo sent details with pictures to Jeff Saward, a London-based expert in the field of labyrinths and mazes, for his opinion. After studying it in detail, Saward said, “The pattern is exactly same as the one which is found on the clay tablet from Pylos in Greece, one of the oldest laby rinths in clay found in the world.“
The labyrinths and mazes, according to Saward, have been found to be in existence since the Neolithic period. “Maze is a multi-curved category where we have multiple pathways to reach our goal whereas in labyrinths there is only one pathway which leads inexorably to the goal from the point of entry,“ said Saward, who is editor of `Caerdroia', the journal of mazes and labyrinths.
This square labyrinth found in Kambainallur contains seven paths. “This labyrinth has been under worship from time immemorial. It was found among cist burials, which has made it easy for archeologists to predict its age,“ said Murugan, who is a member of the Krishnagiri District Archaeological Research Centre.
Ancient people used to worship labyrinths to be blessed with a child, to attain success in their pursuits and for long life for their cattle, experts say.“All the rituals were in practice since the ancient period. Every ritual followed today is just an extension of the fertility cult in this region,“ said Sugavana Murugan, who along with Sadhanandham Krishnakumar, discovered the site a month ago. Even though it is difficult to find one's way inside a labyrinth, it is believed that those who come out through the right path are blessed by the almighty , he said.
Soon after the discovery, the duo sent details with pictures to Jeff Saward, a London-based expert in the field of labyrinths and mazes, for his opinion. After studying it in detail, Saward said, “The pattern is exactly same as the one which is found on the clay tablet from Pylos in Greece, one of the oldest laby rinths in clay found in the world.“
The labyrinths and mazes, according to Saward, have been found to be in existence since the Neolithic period. “Maze is a multi-curved category where we have multiple pathways to reach our goal whereas in labyrinths there is only one pathway which leads inexorably to the goal from the point of entry,“ said Saward, who is editor of `Caerdroia', the journal of mazes and labyrinths.
This square labyrinth found in Kambainallur contains seven paths. “This labyrinth has been under worship from time immemorial. It was found among cist burials, which has made it easy for archeologists to predict its age,“ said Murugan, who is a member of the Krishnagiri District Archaeological Research Centre.
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