Editing Circle (section)

===Symbolism and religious use===
[[Image:God the Geometer.jpg|thumb|right|200px|
The [[compass (drafting)|compass]] in this 13th-century manuscript is a symbol of God's act of [[Creation myth|Creation]]. Notice also the circular shape of the [[Halo (religious iconography)|halo]].]]
From the time of the earliest known civilisations – such as the Assyrians and ancient Egyptians, those in the Indus Valley and along the Yellow River in China, and the Western civilisations of ancient Greece and Rome during classical Antiquity – the circle has been used directly or indirectly in visual art to convey the artist's message and to express certain ideas.
However, differences in worldview (beliefs and culture) had a great impact on artists' perceptions. While some emphasised the circle's perimeter to demonstrate their democratic manifestation, others focused on its centre to symbolise the concept of cosmic unity. In mystical doctrines, the circle mainly symbolises the infinite and cyclical nature of existence, but in religious traditions it represents heavenly bodies and divine spirits.

The circle signifies many sacred and spiritual concepts, including unity, infinity, wholeness, the universe, divinity, balance, stability and perfection, among others. Such concepts have been conveyed in cultures worldwide through the use of symbols, for example, a compass, a halo, the vesica piscis and its derivatives (fish, eye, aureole, mandorla, etc.), the ouroboros, the [[Dharmachakra|Dharma wheel]], a rainbow, mandalas, rose windows and so forth.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia | editor-first=Jean-François | editor-last = Charnier | title = The Circle from East to West | first = Yahya | last = Abdullahi | encyclopedia = The Louvre Abu Dhabi: A World Vision of Art | date = October 29, 2019 | isbn=9782370741004 | publisher=Rizzoli International Publications, Incorporated}}</ref> [[Magic circle]]s are part of some traditions of [[Western esotericism]].