Symbolism used in
The Sophia Foundation Logo
Etched and designed by Ella-Lou O’Meara based on indications by Lorraine Forbes
The Sophia Foundation’s logo is in the form of a mandala. The symbols used in the logo are a visual representation of Sophia or Divine Wisdom. They are universal and open to interpretation. Symbols transcend ordinary words and offer a living and powerful influence on our psychological and spiritual life. Their meaning lives and grows with penetration and imagination and there are many layers that continually reveal themselves evoking new meanings and new depths.
Sophia, whose name in Greek means wisdom, is manifested in the different incarnations of the Divine Feminine – including in many ancient cultures and religious traditions Athena/Aphrodite (Greek), Minerva (Rome), Innana (Sumeria), Isis (Egypt), Shakti (Hindu), Tara (Buddhist) and Mary (Christian). One of her symbolic representations is the Mystic Rose.
Vladimir Solovyov, a Russian mystic and the founder of Sophiology regarded Sophia as the pinnacle of creation. He believed that all creation has come into existence by way of the Divine Wisdom that Sophia embodies. She is the “plan” of creation and participates in the work of creation.
Some indications for the symbols used in the logo are as follows:
The Circle represents the infinite source of all things – that from which all things emerge and dissolve – the centre of which is everywhere and the circumference nowhere. Some would call it God.
The Cross implicit within the Circle represents the four great mystery streams of East, West, North and South that have guided humanity from the start of humankind’s physical entry on the earth. Each has had specific qualities and gifts which they have brought to further the development of humanity. The four streams come together in the centre with the Rose or Sophia to take humanity forwards to the next stage of its evolutionary path of development.
The Mystic Rose represents the Divine Feminine, the feminine face of God, the Holy Spirit or Sophia. It symbolises the life-giving core of our being – the Soul. The source of love is the Divine Centre. The Rose was the symbol of the Goddesses of old and was absorbed by Christianity from the indigenous Celtic traditions of Europe where Mother Mary became associated with the Rose inviting all to open their hearts – “her beauty leads us to God, and her fragrance attracts our Soul to the Christ as bees are attracted to rose blossoms”. As an initiatory path, The Sacred Way of the Rose symbolises the hidden feminine Wisdom tradition and the Way of the Heart.
Dante in his Divine Comedy regarded the symbol of the Sun and the Rose as inter-dependent and ultimately inseparable. It is the Sun that gives life to the Rose, and the Rose makes manifest the Sun’s power and glory. A full comprehension of the mystic interpretation between the Creator and His Creation marks the end of Dante’s journey and the highest attainment of spiritual vision.
The Rose is arranged in four petals, indicating the squaring of the circle or the uniting of the opposites.
The Thorns represent sacrifice and the pain and suffering that are a necessary catalyst for growth. Goethe said, “And unless you have this Death and Becoming you are but a gloomy guest on the dark earth” and Albert Einstein said, “In the midst of every crisis, lies great opportunity”. In the Christian tradition this is represented by the Crucifixion and the Resurrection of the Christ.
The representation of the Rose and the Thorns is a timeless representation of the dual nature of relationships and encompasses both beauty, love and joy as well as challenge, pain and difficulty. It also represents the union of the masculine and the feminine where the purity of the Rose is protected by the Thorns. Jung talks about our Shadow where we suppress those unacceptable aspects of ourselves into the unconscious and need to undergo the painful process of integrating them into consciousness for growth and individuation.
The Rose Bud is the potential for new growth and a renewal of our spirituality out of freedom as humanity takes the next steps on its path of evolutionary development.
Within the Rose the sepals have taken the form of eight, the number of regeneration or resurrection. The Jewel in the Centre represents Om Mani Padme Hum the mantra at the heart of many Buddhist traditions and commonly translated as the “Jewel in the Lotus”. It is associated with purifying the heart chakra which is associated with compassion, love and spiritual growth, making it the central point in the transformative journey. It is also the symbol of the “still point”, the deep centre of the soul in which the Indwelling Deity is enthroned.
The Fleur de Lys refers to the purity of Sophia but also represent Christ or the Holy Trinity. The three petals have also been associated with faith, wisdom and courage.
The Twelve Stars in Revelation 12.1 refer to the twelve apostles or the twelve tribes of Israel where Mary is “clothed with the Sun” with “twelve stars above her head” and is the continuity with the original people of God but now for the whole of humanity in a new creation where there is a marriage of heaven and earth. The Stars are the stars of the Virgin’s crown as well as the Milky Way. Dante had a mystical vison of the Empyrean (700 years later found to compare with the Milky Way galaxy) which he describes as countless beings around the throne of God at the centre. According to Dante, the whole is fashioned in the form of a Rose or Sophia.
