Man in The Maze

“Man in The Maze”
By James N. Muir

"There and back again – thru’ the Labyrinth of Life, Man returns to the Source bearing the Gift of Insight gained."

In this Native American sculpture, (I’itoi/Se-he-ha, “Adam”) represents the totality of all humankind successfully completing the journey without, and within, standing, as in this sculptural depiction in the Hopi “Sipipu”, the “anteroom” wherein a retrospective life review, “Self-Judgment Day”, and purification takes place.

His flute is decorated with the blue feather of Truth coupled with the white feather of Surrender, under the all seeing eye of the Spirit Eagle soaring high above the earth. The Traveler stands at the threshold, reviewing at his feet the shining map of his Journey through the Labyrinth of Life, the winding path that adds up to the successful completion of his journey to At-One-ment – just “one small step for man, but a giant leap for mankind.”

Thus the “Maze, actually a “Labyrinth,” is the worldly path the flute-playing “man-in-the-maze” has traveled to serve as a timeless guide, inviting modern-day travelers to embark on their own journey of (self) discovery.

“The longest journey is the journey within…”

The “Man-in-the-Maze,” is a major symbol of Arizona’s first Nation People’s heritage. It is an enigmatic symbol recognized in at least five of the Native cultures of the Southwest: the Zuni, Gila, Tohono O’Odham (formerly Papago), is the Great Seal of the Salt River Pima Maricopa Indian Community outside of Phoenix, and, as directly relating to Sedona, the HOPI descendants of the amalgamation of the Anasazi/Sin Aqua peoples who populated the area predating the Anglo presence by hundreds, if not thousands, of years.

Sedona is the ideal location for this sculpture representing the pre-historic timeline of the ancient “Palatkwapi Trail” (Palatkwapi-Place of the Red Rocks” ancestral home of several of the HOPI clans) crossing Hwy 179 about at the Beaverhead Flat Road intersection and partly overlooked from the cliff dwellings up Woods Canyon. The Palatkwapi Trail Trade Route was well-traveled for more than 1200 years connecting the HOPI Mesas via the Winslow area and Stoneman Lake to the Verde Valley salt mines and on to present-day Jerome’s copper, azurite, and mineral mines above Toozigoot. In 1583 HOPI guides led the Spanish explorer Antonio de Espejo from their Mesas (Awatobi) to Jerome’s silver mines with the ancient trail later becoming part of the “Star Line” Stagecoach route across Central Arizona including one of the stations being located just south of the, now, Village of Oak Creek.

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