Grubbs, Geri A.
ENGAGING WITH THE ARCHETYPAL CAT: THE IMAGE OF THE CAT IN SANDPLAY THERAPY

Journal of Sandplay Therapy, Volume 23, Number 1, 2014

In English

ENGAGING WITH THE ARCHETYPAL CAT:
THE IMAGE OF THE CAT IN SANDPLAY THERAPY
Geri A. Grubbs
Woodinville, Washington, USA

KEY WORDS: Sandplay therapy, cat qualities, symbol, archetype, feline, dreams, Bast, Sekhmet, Middle Ages, myth, serpent, Egypt, familiar, folk medicine, cat as medium, Celts, cat, Self, dreams, woman, adult, female, clinical example.

ABSTRACT: Historically, cats have had a profound influence on the imagination. Beginning with the Egyptian era as goddess Bast and Sekhmet, its archetypal energy has been incorporated in our religious beliefs, cult activity of the Middle Ages, mediumship of the Celts, and into the unconscious of people today as expressed in their dreams, stories, and creative expressions. Symbolically, cats represent our instincts that can guide us toward greater inner vision and act as a protective influence, an example of which is given in a Sandplay therapy process of a middle aged woman, along with two of her dreams. Qualities that we personally see in a cat represent conditions within us on a deeply felt, collective and personal level. When our cat energy is active, analyzing our projections onto it may help us see our subjective reality and complexes, dark and devouring qualities, as well as its healing and guiding principles in our lives.

In German

AUSEINANDERSETZUNG MIT DER ARCHETYPISCHEN KATZE:
DAS BILD DER KATZE IN DER SANDSPIELTHERAPIE
Geri A. Grubbs
Woodinville, Washington, USA

SCHLAGWÖRTER: Sandspieltherapie, Charakteristik der Katze, Symbol, Archetyp, katzenartig, Träume, Bast, Sekhmet, Mittelalter, Mythos, Schlange, Ägypten, bekannt, Volksmedizin, Katze als Medium, Kelten, Katze, Selbst, Frau, Erwachsene, weiblich, Fallbeispiel.

ABSTRACT: Symbolisch repräsentieren Katzen unsere Instinkte die uns zu größeren inneren Visionen führen, aber auch als beschützende Einflüsse wirken können. Ein Beispiel davon wird in dem Sandspielprozess und den Träumen von einer Frau in den mittleren Jahren dargestellt.