In sand therapy the therapist provides the person with two sand trays with dimensions of approximately 28.5 by 19.5 inches and 2.75 inches deep. The inside is painted blue, to create the illusion of water. The sand tray is about table height which corresponds to the field of vision of the person working with the sand, so that the whole tray can be seen at a glance. Two trays are provided to give the person the option of working with wet or dry sand.
The therapist provides a magnificent array of miniature figurines and objects that depict all areas of life:
- People: men, women, families of similar proportions and children of different ages. Different cultures and occupations are also represented, soldiers, kings, queens, police, fireman, etc.
- Animals: Both wild, domestic and prehistoric
- Birds: eagle, owl, hens, chickens, swans, birds of prey and all kinds of birds
- Nature: Earth, rocks, stones, plants, trees, shrubs, moss, flowers and vegetables etc.
- Ocean: fish and sea animals, shells, coral, and driftwood
- Fantasy: Wizards, witches, dwarfs, fairies, unicorn and Santa, etc.
- Religious symbols: icons, cross, statutes, angels, cherubs, Buddha, etc.
- Shadow: Scary, dragons, monsters and ugly objects
- Transportation: Land, sea and air. All vehicles, military, domestic, cars, buses, farm and construction, etc.
- Buildings: Church, school, different kind of houses, lighthouse, windmill, castle, waterwheel and famous buildings
- Other structures: Bridges, fences, wells and towers
- Miscellaneous: Mirrors, flags, stop/go/no entry signs, feathers, toy umbrella, beads, bricks, string, purse, glasses, money, sun, moon and stars, etc.
In working with the miniatures and sand the person creates various three-dimensional pictures / landscapes / sculptures in the sand. It gives the person a symbolic way of experiencing their feelings and viewing their life which involves body, soul and spirit. The miniatures/objects used by the person represent the active movement of energies within the person at the time of creating the picture / landscape / sculpture.
Sand therapy allows for creative freedom and spontaneity in working with personal and life journey issues through use of symbols. Symbols are central to sand therapy. They provide insight into the world of the unconscious and some of the inner abstract areas of life become more accessible and visible to the person.
Jung states “Symbols always express something we do not know”. (1969)
The symbolism of the different objects is an aid to both the person and therapist in seeing some of the potential meaning that is occurring in the process of the sand therapy. However, what a symbol means depends upon the context; one must take cognizance of several levels; such as the personal, past and present life of the person, their cultural background, their religious beliefs, customs and tradition.
In human development the child’s first experience of life and the world is by touching and grasping things; out of this experience the child comes to an abstract understanding of the world, and begins the process of individuation.
In sand therapy the person’s creative energies can be stimulated and their spiritual and psychological life can be expressed creatively and made physically visible by working with their hands. This ‘hands on’ approach in sand therapy initiates a process that can lead to insight, healing and wellbeing of the whole person.
The hands are very sensitive and they form the bridge between the person’s inner world and external world which can be touched, made concrete and visible in their picture / landscape / sculpture in the sand tray.
Ammann says: “The hands take up the unconscious flow, make it visible and touchable in the sand, and they are the real mediators between the spiritual and material world” (1991)
In working with the sand and miniatures the person is free to use their imagination and creative abilities, to play and fantasize and can give concrete expression and externalize what is happening in their inner world. Each of us travels through life with an invisible part of us that lives in our unconscious we have some awareness of this from our dreams, or in being present to the silence and stillness of our own person and soul. Sand therapy can heal wounds that have hindered or delayed the course of normal development and in so doing begin a process of growth and wholeness of personality.
While the sand therapy sessions are in progress the person is actively engaged in the task and not much talking takes place. The role of the therapist is to witness, observe and to recognize what is happening for the person in their interaction with the sand and miniatures. Their job is to maintain a protective, supportive, nonverbal understanding attitude during this quiet time - a sacred period, when the sacred inner stirrings of the person may be played out in the sand through the use of symbols. The therapist maintains a conscious silence not aloofness but a meaningful presence. It is this safe, accepting environment which facilitates the person’s inner life to be voiced and expressed. Jung said “Learn your theories as well as you can, but put them aside when you touch the miracle of the living Soul”. (Jung 1928)
When the person has finished creating their picture / landscape / sculpture they sit with it for a time and are then invited to give the tray a title and talk about what comes to mind as they view their creation. The therapist’s analysis of the tray must not interrupt the flow of the persons own insights, emotions and feelings from their creation. The therapist refrains from interpretating the tray at this stage of the therapy. It is the experience of the process that heals, not the theoretical interpretation of the process or the symbolic meaning of the objects used by the person. The person can step back look at their picture / landscape / sculpture from a distance and come to a new awareness of that inner life which previously they may have only dimly felt and known. As the person leaves the therapy room they hold in their soul the image of the tray.
After the session the therapist takes photographs and maps the symbols on the tray and keeps them until the end of the therapy. In subsequent viewing and discussion of the photographs the therapist joins with the person in their search for meaning and understanding and how the pictures / landscapes / sculptures are connected to their life experience. It is the joined shared review of the series of trays that enlightens, heals and leads to transformation of the personality.
Labovitz Boik and Goodwin paraphrased Ammann analogy of the sand tray: “It is like ‘a soul garden’, a kind of container for the display of the person’s psychic life. It is an ‘in-between-space’ where the person’s inner and outer life can develop and reveal itself. The tray is that free, empty and sacred space where the person has the opportunity to create her/his own world and transform this existing world with fresh insight." Ammann (1991)
Children are naturally drawn to the sand tray. It appeals to their spontaneous instinct to play, explore, fantasize and make believe. Adults also need a place apart, an empty space like the sand tray where they can give expression to their inner pictures and experience themselves in a new way.
Our lives as adults are crammed with activity, knowledge and information of all kind. We are bombarded with noise, street traffic, radio, television, mobile phone, iPod and the computer. Our minds and hearts are constantly engaged in an internal dialogue and pent up emotions and feelings. Sometimes the balance of life is tilted and we can be neglectful of the life space of the soul.
One might be curious as to why we use sand instead of clay, stones or some other material. A client made the following connection, she said, “stones are primordial matter, sand is matter ground by the infinity of time. It makes one mindful of eternity. Sand is matter which has been transformed and has almost become liquid and spiritual”. (Ammann. R. 1991).
The connection with the sand helps to ground and centre a person. Some people experience working with sand as enjoyable, relaxing, playful, fun and tranquil. If we move our hands through the sand we experience its fluidity and its soft and gentle texture. As we allow the sand to fall between our fingers it pours like water creating particular designs or formations in the sand. We can use our breath, ‘breath is life’ to blow the sand and watch it rise and glide smoothly over the surface sometimes leaving wave like patterns, in so doing we become spiritually connected with the sand.
An analogy can be made between going deep to find the beauty of the ‘true self’ in sand therapy and digging deep in the desert to find the crystallized ‘desert rose.
Note: This article was inspired and influenced by C.G.Jung’s book, Memories, Dream.Reflections (1961) and Ruth Amman’s book Healing and Transformation in Sandplay (1991) B.labovitzBoik & E.A.Goodwin book ‘Sand Therapy (1994).
Sand Therapy is a unique form of psychotherapy developed by Dora Kalff a Swiss based Jungian analyst and was a student of Jung. It was modelled on the original work of Margaret Lowenfield who developed the ‘World Technique’ of sand play with children. Sand therapy is based on the theory of C. G. Jung. While the technique of sand therapy was not explicitly mentioned in his ‘Collected Works’ he does describe his way of working with sand at the lake shore near his home. (C.G. Jung 1995)
