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Welcome on the official website of the
Tables of Chartres cathedral
Meditation, visual and mental training
The "Tables of Chartres cathedral" are an archaic european visual meditation technique which has been passed on from generation to generation in secret by french Roma. They call them"Garden of initiation" (illustration below).
Looking at the coloured shapes (left) with crossed eyes puts the mind in an extremely alert state, balances hemispheric dominances and may lead to remarkable experiences. While the gaze is resting motionless on the "Tables", the mind can roam freely and gain introspective insights that our everyday consciousness can hardly ever access. With the Tables the practitioner can consciously establish his hemispheric balance, refine his sensory perception and often enough clearly (and calmly) observe emerging content of the subconscious. The eyes can also benefit from this meditation: remarkably often meditators report dramatic and lasting improvements of their eyesight.
During the meditation the coloured shapes shown on the left (two rows of Tables arranged vertically) serve as an anchor for the eyes and the mind. The eyes look at the Tables in an unusual way: the right eye looks at the left row of Tables, the left one at the right row. In order to do this the eyes must be crossed slightly (a finger held up at half distance can serve as a "crutch").
If you want to try this technique you can copy larger Tables onto your computer and print them in colour on A4-paper. (You may need to modify the brightness of the colours. The blue tends to come out too dark in print.) By looking at them with crossed eyes a third (virtual) row of Tables becomes visible between the original two. It is on this central row of Tables that the eyes are brought to rest during meditation.
A detailed desription of this meditation technique can be found in George Pennington's german book: Die Tafeln von Chartres, Walter/Patmos 1994, PB € 9,95. The book describes the historical and cultural background (Grail legends, gothic cathedrals), how to make ones own Tables for meditation and how to use them. It deals with the effects of this meditation on body and mind as well as the psychological and philosophical implications. Whoever wants to explore this meditation technique in depth is strongly advised to get hold of this book.
(Note to english readers: The book has not been published in English yet. The first chapter however is available below.
It was suggested to translate the term "Tables" as "Tablets". The author prefers to use the word "Table", since historically there were three tables in the Grail Legends: the first one on the occasion of the Last Supper, the second one set up by Joseph of Arimathea and the third one by King Arthur, the legendary "Round Table". To indicate that he is talking about more than just furniture he is writing the word "Table" with a capital "T".George Pennington discovered the Tables in 1979. Before he had tried different other approaches to meditation without much success. With the Tables of Chartres Cathedral he found access immediately and without difficulty: day after day he sat for hours contemplating them. He found this form of introspective perception fascinating and extremely beneficial. In his book he describes the Tables as a mirror in which the meditator can percieve and reflect himself and his life situation with unusual clarity.
His first book, The "Little Handbook for Players of the Glass Bead Game" (Irisiana 1981) was inspired by his meditation. It was published several times in Germany as well as in English (by Element Books 1983). Unfortunately it is out of print today.
His third book "Vom Schielen und Schauen" (Haug 1996) has become very popular in Germany as a guide to self-help with regard to eye problems, especially crossed eyes. Since during the meditation with the Tables perception becomes its own object of study, one learns many helpful things about perception in general and about vision in particular. The book is the fruit of this learning.More information about the Meditation with the Tables:
English introductory text
Part 1 of George Pennington's BookWith this link you can order the Handbook on the Tables of Chartres (in German) from Amazon: