Transpersonal Psychology
incorporates everything commonly known or stereotypically associated with
traditional psychology, but expands on that into more of a whole person,
mind-body-spirit approach. In it's simplest definition, Transpersonal
simply means "beyond the personal," or in this case, beyond personal
psychology. Transpersonal Psychology expands on traditional (only 100
years old) psychology by including Eastern philosophies and approaches, native
and indigenous wisdom and teachings, and allowing for Spirit in any form or
belief system. It is very Jungian, including strong metaphor and
symbolism, as well as working the unconscious and the conscious.
Storytelling, artwork, music, dance, etc., are all common supplements to regular
psychological/therapeutic attempts.
I have found this flavor of approach
to work extremely well with adolescents. It provides an avenue for Spirit
to be honored, and for ceremony and ritual to be experienced in a growing secular
world. The metaphors, symbols, and artwork generated help youth
communicate deep feelings they may be unable to vocalize with words. The
physical manifestations of their process, their art work and personal stories,
for example, give them tangible reminders of their growth and process.
Below is a list of approaches I have
used successfully with this mindset. The descriptions are vague, and I
would strongly advise against just jumping in and using these without
understanding the concepts behind them and the dynamics they are working.
Some require a sequence to follow, and others require a strong therapeutic
backup after "opening up" the youth. Please contact me to learn
more about implementing these approaches...
The Hero's Journey
Vocabulary.
These are terms I would weave into a program to help create the flavor of
mythology, heroes, ritual and ceremony:
Hero: In
mythology and legend, a man who is endowed with great courage and strength,
celebrated for his bold exploits, and favored by the gods.
A person noted for feats of courage or nobility of purpose, especially
one who has risked or sacrificed his or her life.
Intention:
A course of action that one intends to follow.
An aim that guides action, an objective.
Having the mind and will focused on a specific purpose.
Journey:
The act of traveling from one place to another; a passage.
Mystic:
Inspiring a sense of mystery and wonder.
Pilgrimage:
A long journey or search, especially one of exalted purpose or moral
significance.
Sacred:
Dedicated or devoted exclusively to a single use, purpose or person.
Ritual and Ceremony--What
are they??
Ritual: The
body of ceremonies or rites used in a place of worship.
A ceremonial act or a series of such acts.
According to Malidoma Somé, an African teacher and specialist in the
area of ritual and rites of passage, a ritual is an attempt to honor Spirit
through illogical means. At face
value, the ritual is not logical, but an attempt to represent or honor those
deep feelings and questions all people have.
It is the symbolic representation and meaning behind the ritual that has
the power.
Ceremony:
A formal act or set of acts performed as prescribed by ritual or custom.
These are the smaller, individual components of an overall ritual.
For example, we have a ritual of honoring the coming of Spring each year.
This constant and highly specified ritual dictates what, how and when
ceremonies will be performed.
Transpersonal Approaches:
Sacred Site: This
would be a special section of land set aside specifically for performing
ceremonies and rituals. It is
situated somewhere near the placement or home, but is private and as secluded as
possible. This is the special spot where many of the following
components are actually held. It
could be presented as a special place, with near-graduate level students in
charge of "caretaking" the site as part of their growing
responsibilities, which also completes the final Return and Contribution stage
of the Hero's Journey.
Intention Box:
This is a box or container of some sort where a youth can write an
intention of purpose or desire and place it inside.
The contents of the box are sacred, and not to be looked at.
This gives the student a safe place to put his written prayers, hopes,
dreams, etc. Typically, there would
be a ceremony at regular intervals to release the intentions.
Giveaway
Box: This is essentially the
opposite of the Intention Box. Here,
the youth is encouraged to deposit a written note regarding anything he/she
wants to get rid of or give away. Again,
this is not for general reading, and should be disposed/released of in a
ceremonial way.
Rock Cairn:
This would be a pile of rocks at the Sacred Site which is slowly built up
over time by boys picking a stone, putting some sort of prayer or intention into
it, then placing it with all of the previous stones.
It is a shrine of sorts, and can be constructed randomly or slowly
sculpted into some design.
Fire
Area: Fires play an integral
part worldwide in ceremonies and rituals. The
fire area could be for simple bonfires or for storytelling and celebrations,
burning of Intentions or Giveaways, or as a place of vigil or meditation and
contemplation, etc.
Prayer
Ties: Borrowing from
Native American and other traditions, these are small packets or simple pouches
one makes while observing sacred space and time.
Each prayer tie contains some prayer the person wishes to put forward,
and there are a number of ways to effectively "release" the prayers.
"Cluebox"
or Quote box: Similar to
weather proof containers often found on mountain peaks for putting your favorite
quote or "clues to life" in, this could be a place or container for a
youth to place his thoughts or quotes regarding his recent program or life
experience. As always, there are
appropriate ways to honor or use the clues.
Pilgrimage:
This would be a long, graduation walk.
Ideally, this would represent the student's gain in trust, represent the
antithesis to his being brought into placement, for example, against his/her
will, and allow him some introspective time to shift from one part of life to
another. It metaphorically and
symbolically creates the next steps in life and the ability to endure and
perform where needed.
Tattoo Removal:
For those boys wishing to get out of gangs, or merely "clean"
themselves up after those years of self-destruction, physical removal of tattoos
could be woven into a "jumping out" type of ceremony.
Storytelling:
Stories reflecting many aspects of the youths' journey, culture, ethics,
history, etc., could be woven into many aspects of the program.
Storytelling was the original form of entertainment and the way cultural
histories were passed from generation to generation.
Indeed, many cultures use stories for everything from teaching toddlers
rules to personal therapy.
Personal Mythologies:
These are stories we try to evoke from the boy that tell in mythological
or symbolic terms what he/she thinks or feels
This is a safe way to let him open up and present something about himself
in a way that is safe for him or her but clear enough for others to understand.
Bundles:
These are collections of things from the student that are accumulated and
stored for future use. Two examples
are as follows:
*Graduation Bundle--Papers, photos, stories, symbolic items, etc., are
continually stored for a boy to receive when he exits the program.
These will be strong reminders of the powerful and positive things he
experienced along the way through the program.
*Release Bundle--Again, these are items, letters, reminders of a sort of
things the boy wishes to let go of. It
could be a picture of his gang sign, or who he was when he arrived in placement,
or bad news from his family and friends. This
bundle should be disposed of in a ceremonial way.
Masks:
Making masks is a powerful way to let a student express his feelings
about himself. Making masks over a
period of time allows us to track his or her internal progress.
A mask is a reflective tool, promotes creativity and artwork, and again
prompts a safe way to express more unconscious thoughts and feelings about
oneself. Masks could be woven into many other ceremonial components
including Bundles, Giveaways or Ceremonial Fires. They're a wonderful tool for working on identity issues.
Vision Quest:
Certainly the most powerful component we could include.
Taken from many Native American tribes, this is an introspective time in
which a young man seeks vision and clarity.
Usually lasting from 2-4 days, although sometimes longer, the boy is
essentially left alone in the wilderness to sit and wait for his vision to come.
He is monitored for safety reasons, but his goal is to remain alone until
his message is received.
Sweat Lodge:
A Native American purification ceremony.
It includes the four elements (water, air, fire and earth), with strong
ceremony and reverence. Because of
the dynamics of this rite, key aspects gained include safety, purification or
cleansing, and a releasing of prayers and negative thoughts. Sweat lodges are
especially beneficial to female survivors of sexual abuse or incest.
"The Journey":
A mythological guided imagery with strong supporting experiential
exercises designed to help create an internal rite of passage.
This component utilizes artwork, metaphor, interpersonal exercises, etc.,
to help a youth face his or her internal fears and move past them. Although this is a highly therapeutic model, certain
ceremonial aspects could be introduced to give it a deeper flavor.
Power Shields:
Similar to masks, these are symbolic shields built in a ritualistic
manner to demonstrate a person's strengths.
The shield is constructed from raw materials and ornately designed with
power animals, symbols and other items the builder wishes to include in the
shield's "medicine."
Drum Building:
Building one's own drum is a powerful experience.
The ritualistic aspects help give personal metaphors and bring one's
personal process into view. Incorporated
within the drum building experience are drum journeys, meditations and playing.
After all of the ceremonial parts, the boy still has a drum he created,
with his prayers and intentions built into it.
Drum Playing:
There are an infinite number of ways to drum.
Most common is the Native American flavor so prevalent lately, and the
multi-rhythmic styles such as African, Reggae, etc.
Drumming helps to center the person, to help them find their own personal
"rhythm, and to learn to listen to those around them.
Once again, drumming helps create personal metaphors which in turn help
track a person's process.
Art Room:
Where possible, I would set up a room or area specifically for creating
art in. Drawing, writing, collage,
etc., are all ways to help someone process unconscious feelings in a
metaphorical or symbolic way. The
very room itself helps encourage creativity, and could be used therapeutically
as well as for fun.
Magnetic Poetry:
Although poetry is another way to express one's feelings, many people,
particularly high-risk boys, have an aversion to trying it.
One way to circumvent the argument that one doesn't know how to write is
to provide the words, so to speak, and merely have the student arrange them.
The magnetic poetry packages that are out are ideal for this.
With hundreds of words to choose from, you simply leave a boy alone with
the magnetic words and somewhere to stick them.
Again, the idea is that the unconscious will speak symbolically through
the verses, giving therapeutic people more input in which to help. Poems could be typed up and kept in the student's file,
Graduation or Release Bundles, etc.
Holotropic
Breathwork®: This is a
psychotherapy coming out of the Transpersonal Psychology field. Besides being therapeutic, it works many other aspects we are
looking for here. One of the major
dynamics to Breathwork is that it works the birth/death/rebirth areas, making it
ideal for weaving into the overall Hero's Journey Model in an attempt to create
a symbolic or ego death needed there. It
also creates personal metaphors and quite often personal mythologies, uses
ceremonial components to make it a deep experience.
Often, groups of participants are split into two groups, one breathing
and one sitting "in service" to the breather.
This helps teach one to be aware and in service to others, while the
other person learns how to be taken care of.
They switch roles halfway through the experience, giving each a taste of
both dynamics. This is very good
practice for those with entitlement issues or codependent tendencies.
Mentor
Program: Mentoring helps close
the Hero's Journey cycle, fulfilling the need to Return and Contribute.
It teaches how to give, how to listen to one's elders, and helps the
community at large. By sponsoring and participating in an elaborate mentoring
program, not only would the boys learn from their elders but get the
satisfaction of helping others. Also,
with the loss of initiation in this culture, elders have also lost their role in
that system as teachers, storytellers and initiators.
Re-creating a need for our elders helps insure our value and use for the
community when we reach that age.
The
Legacy©: David Oldfield's (www.midwaycenter.com)
workbook for parents. Guided back
through issues of their adolescence, parents and other adults leave a written
"Legacy" for their children, showing an empathy for the time period
and constructive comments on how to avoid many teen problems.
