By bernheim
We are thrilled to invite visitors a new way to commune with nature in their own personal way with the opening of the Meditation Trail.
The Meditation Trail was created in honor and memory of Lily Banerjee, whose family chose to honor her with a donation to Bernheim for the installation of this special trail.
It is sited along Bernheim’s beloved Bent Twig trail and consists of six spurs, each with its own meditation prompt based on a positive attribute of a nearby tree. Signage provides engaging information about the tree itself and then offers a meditation prompt for focusing on that tree’s positive quality. Beautiful handmade wooden benches and decks – crafted by the skilled hands of Bernheim staff – offer a welcoming place to pause, contemplate, breathe and center oneself.
Themes for the meditation prompts include abundance (persimmon), generosity (tulip poplar), strength (red oak) and several others. Since specific trees along the path inspire the themes, Bernheim’s Meditation Trail offers a mindful experience in nature that is profoundly connected with this particular area of forest. Our hope is that visitors who follow the trail will feel a deep connection to the place and a powerful sense of the restorative power of nature — a mental and spiritual lift that they can take away with them.
This past April brought a return visit from Murray, Kentucky artist, willow sculptor and 2019 Artist in Residence Justin Roberts. Roberts came back to Bernheim to create and install Traverse Divine, an entry archway portal into the Meditation Trail.
Traverse Divine taps into the sacred geometry that is all around us, such as the coil of a snail shell and the fan of a pinecone. The installation design is based on the shape of two circles intersecting.
Arts in Nature Curator Jenny Zeller describes the area created by these transversal lines as Vesica Pisces, known as the mother of geometry, and representation of the divine union from which everything else is born. Vesica Pisces symbolizes balance and harmony. It is where the mind, body, and earth meet and its use and meaning weave in and out of all cultures and designs. As you set forth on the meditation trail, know that you are a part of this sacred design.
The Meditation Trail is self-guided, free and available during all of Bernheim’s operating hours.