Images of the Whale in Sandplay by Women With Issues of Molest
Mary Jane Markell
Journal of Sandplay Therapy 1994 DOI: 10.61711/jst.1994.03.2.685 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Case study Case report Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 3 |
| Population | Women who were molested, as seen in sandplay therapy (three clinical cases) |
| Key findings | Argues that the whale is a cross-cultural archetypal image of Loss and Return and healing, and that the Jonah myth expresses descent and transformation through an encounter between ego and Self. Proposes that the whale motif in sandplay with women who were molested functions both as a return to the Mother and as a transcendent symbol that unites opposites and restores a sense of wholeness. |
Abstract
Archetypal images of the whale are reviewed cross-culturally and from earliest prehistoric times. A powerful shamanic image, the whale suggests mythic powers of Loss and Return, as well as healing. A further exploration of the Western mythology of Jonah and the Night Sea Journey in the belly of the whale presents an archetypal motif of descent, regression, and journey into the transpersonal realm for a purposeful encounter between the ego and the Self leading ultimately to transformation. These initiatic mysteries are then related to the frequently observed use of the whale in sandplay processes by women of molest. The whale motif becomes both a return to the Mother as well as a transcendent symbol capable of uniting paradoxical opposites and restoring a lost sense of wholeness. Three clinical cases are reviewed.