Mandala Medicine
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The art of Mandala Medicine
After one of my own counselling sessions with my Holistic Counselling teacher, I was offered the invitation to draw/create mandala's for 30 days.
At first the purpose of this medicine didn't make sense to me in relation to what I was seeking counsel for. However - after a few days of giving it a go, I actually enjoyed the process and looked forward to using it as a daily meditation.
On my first day and attempt at a mandala in the back yard, I was gifted a visit from a local Tawny Frogmouth.
What do mandala's have to do with my healing?
I didn't know this at the time but have since learned that for the purpose of healing, drawing mandalas is a form of sensorimotor art therapy - a specific type of psycho-biological therapeutic art to address reconnection of neural pathways that have been undeveloped or injured for various reasons. I consider it a non verbal therapy to help heal neural pathways and reaches the non-verbal or pre-verbal part of self that requires connection.
"In the products of the unconscious we discover mandala symbols, that is, circular and quaternity figures which express wholeness, and whenever we wish to express wholeness, we employ just such figures." Carl G. Jung.
As I'm on my own journey of healing and acknowledging my own challenges, wounds, undeveloped parts of self; new layers, realisations, blocks and resistance to life pop up all the time. It's quite an interesting path to study psychotherapy modalities and be a client of it at the same time.
I was at a stage of feeling like all the help and healing I was seeking and receiving on my own journey to receive the modalities I was learning - wasn't working on me. It seems to work for everyone else, but why isn't it working on me? I was getting frustrated, agitated and needing more and deeper validation that ''if all this stuff actually works, why don't I feel like it is working on me?''. The age old internal belief of "why aren't I healed yet if I've done all this work?"
I brought this concern to my own teacher in a counselling session and we worked with my inner child and internal parts with a few modalities such as Internal Family Systems, Creative Visualisation, Family Constellations, The Work (beliefs) and more. After one of the sessions, I was offered the invitation to create/draw mandalas for 30 days.
Homework - ick. I have a long standing resistance to homework but this wasn't homework as such - it was an offer - if I was up for it. No pressure, no real deadline, no specific requirements - it was all up to me. Ok I can handle that and maybe I can make them as pretty as I like and however I like - ok so maybe it's not homework after all.
I don't have art experience, I've never really tried to draw anything, my knowledge of colours and techniques with pencils, crayons, watercolours and other such arty mediums is minimal. I've tried my hand at many crafts and creations but colour to paper is not my forte. I didn't let that stop me, I used other mandalas as a spark of inspiration, drew a circle on a page and took it from there - surprisingly the hands keep moving and the colours keep me engaged in the creation process. I keep going.
"A mandala is the psychological expression of the totality of the Self."
Carl G. Jung
So I began my 30 days...
On my first day I made a nature mandala in my backyard. It was a nice process, I had plenty of spring roses dropping their petals so I collected those and then some other flowers around the yard and from the Jacaranda and Frangipani trees across the street. I gathered up some of my crystals and seashells then found some twigs and feathers. Once the mandala felt completed, I sat with it to take it in.
Next moment I hear an unusual sound up in the trees, a flapping of sorts that is not usual from the familiar natural fauna in the area. So I looked up and I saw a Tawny Frogmouth on a low branch of the neighbours tree that leans on our fence.
I knew they were nocturnal creatures so was curious why it was showing itself mid morning. Was it lost, was it looking for its tree to perch in and rest until dusk?
It was literally just meters away from me. We looked at each other, I stayed quiet, no fast or loud movements. We acknowledged each other quietly and sat in stillness for some time.
Perched on the branch even with the neighbours dogs barking and making a fuss, the creature was unbothered until it had enough of this location and in a split moment of my turning my head away, it flew off into the distance.
My mind was finding a way not to make this mean anything other than the bird was finding a place to rest until evening, but I was also curious of ''what does this mean - nature offers messengers, what does this bird represent?'''
I mentioned this experience in my next session and was informed that this was 'big medicine'. At this time I'm letting the medicine kick in - however it needs - even if it feels like I have no felt sense of change or impact.
I've shared my 30 day journey on Instagram - visit @remedies_to_restore.me to see my posts about my experience of this remedy.
xo Kylie
November 2024
On my first day I created a mandala in my back yard with flower petals, crystals, rocks, seashells, twigs and feathers.
On this same day I was visited by a local Tawny Frogmouth which are said in Australian indigenous lore to be 'secret keepers'.
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