In the sandplay training and therapy I offer we use miniatures to help support the process of transformation in the. We refer to these miniatures as symbols. Images created in art are also considered to be symbols. So why use the term symbol. We live in a world surrounded by symbolic images they present in objects, images, music, stories, mythology, religions and more. Essentially we are bombarded with images all of the time. The advertising industry uses them to seduce into buying products, the internet algorithms use them to gain clicks. We are constantly filtering and processing them.
What is the significance of symbols in therapeutic work. When we look at a symbol they have personal, cultural and universal meanings. The terminology is deliberate the word itself is invitational we are not defining our experience by naming it which immediately can bring limitations to our understanding. Symbolic images have the potential to communicate to us what is unknown in our consciousness. ‘the true symbol should be understood as an intuitive idea that cannot yet be formulated in the any other or better way’ CJ Jung We can explore these images by looking at our lives, our histories, our dreams, our fantasises. Through this we can discover aspects and qualities which are out of our consciousness.
We live in a world surrounded by symbolic images. Symbolism is present in images, objects, music, stories, myths, legends, religions. Essentially all around us and from numerous sources. Symbols can have personal, cultural and universal meanings. We use the term symbol in sandplay therapy as the word itself is invitational. Once we name something we begin to define it and in doing so we bring in limitations to the way think, understand and relate to a particular situation or image. Symbolic images have the potential to communicate to us what is unknown or out of consciousness. We trust the symbol to have meaning in the moment even if that meaning is not apparent to us. I have had clients who come back months later and tell me about a symbol they have used previously and the meaning suddenly makes sense. The symbol is simply a vehicle for our consciousness to make sense of an experience.
Symbols relate to the archetypes. For Jung the archetypes are archaic and deeply unconscious potential patterns of psychic functioning which are rooted in the collective unconscious. When we use symbols we are drawing on this deep knowledge and bringing it into our conscious awareness. Once in our consciousness we can bring some thinking to its meaning, its ‘felt’ function and significance and in that way In this way change happens. They help us to think, communicate, understand complex ideas and emotions by representing them in a tangible conceptual way. Over time we can cease to be attracted to some symbols as we have worked with and discharged the energy associated with them. The symbol is an important vehicle of transformation.