A blank canvas… imagine the possibilities!
SUMMARY: Sandplay uses the principles and processes of symbolic language, gestalt, and interpretation to support the imagination to open door. The process allows a softening of boundaries through play and opens doors to the wisdom of the inner healer in the unconscious, through a light trance like state.
“If you want your children to be intelligent, read them fairy tales. If you want your children to be more intelligent, read them more fairy tales.” – Albert Einstein
How it works
After you set your intention, you may start by simply playing in the sand. The narrowed focus of the tray allows a sinking into Self as images and feelings of the psyche arise. Sometimes folks only work the issue through movement of the sand. Others gather and place symbols in the sand. Some may have obvious meaning or sometimes they just call you. The arrangement and movement of the symbols in, out and around the tray allows you to see yourself and your relationships from many perspectives. It opens doorways into the deeper levels of the psyche.
Whilst we may spend some time talking at the beginning and end of a session, sandplay is primarily an experience of witnessing your inner landscapes as they are expressed and evolve in the sand. Integration will include a group sharing of mandalas. Stories are released and new ones are created, dreams and visions can be explored and brought into being, relationship issues get clarified and traumas resolved. Many aspects of Self can be discovered and embraced through a process that seems to be subtle but can be very powerful.
There is something so natural about playing in the sand. The play evokes a child-like innocence, an inner harmony as you create and destroy, judgment is suspended. It’s a meditation in movement, a dive into the unknown and a meaningful method to integrate other strong experiences.
Gentle music takes you on a journey to support a meditative experience and bring you out again at the end. Sandplay sessions are usually about 1 hour long, a little more if two people are working in the same tray.
When you feel finished, you will be invited to draw a mandala to express the energies you have awoken. This symbolic expression may be very primitive, free flowing or very detailed. You can bring your own art materials with paper to suit your preferences or use the ones provided. It is not about whether you can draw or not. It is to assist you in integrating the experience and continue to play with the new relational fields.
In Groups
Each person will do their sandplay with a witness whose role is to be present to the creation process and care for them. The witness does not facilitate the process but holds deep presence and awareness for the player. Sometimes someone’s experience can be facilitated by gestalt type questions or shifts in perspective if they get stuck. Breath or movement can also be used to move the energy. No matter what the symbols might mean to someone looking on, the only relevant meaning is the one the player assigns to a piece. There is often as much learning for the witness as the person creating the sandplay.
Bring your camera or phone so your witness can take pictures of your trays. They are a record of your evolution and of relationships that may well manifest in the future.
When finished, the witness will help the player get settled to draw their mandala and provide them with a drink and snack. They will then put the players symbols away and set up the tray for the next session. Some people prefer to be out in nature during this time or simply remain more introspective. After a short break, the roles are reversed.
Integration
During integration, we share the mandalas with each other. The integration is primarily about understanding the symbolic meaning of experience and its application in ordinary life. Dreams, visions and meditations may further illuminate the meaning of your sandplay. You may wish to look up reference books about symbols or mythology to gain further insight into your experiences.
“Without this playing with fantasy,
no creative work has ever yet come to birth.
The debt we owe to the play of the imagination
is incalculable.”
– CG Jung
