Mandalas and Paintings
I am honored to share some of the beautiful mandalas and paintings from my book, Pathways to Wholeness, in color. They are also in color in the e-book format.
Holotropic Breathwork session of an Argentinean participant. “In the Lap of the Goddess” Silvina Heath (Neptune conjunct her natal Moon). “I am a spirit not yet born—sitting in the lap of the Goddess, cozily wrapped in her arms. I feel so good there! We are both looking toward a bright, white star which sends us rays of light. I am thinking this is where I have to go, but not yet . . .”
“Kundalini Mother” Katia Soliani (world transit of Uranus conjunct Neptune). An experience of profound love for all beings in a session of Holotropic Breathwork.
Holotropic Breathwork session. “Tree of Life” Alejandra Scigliano (Sun trine natal Jupiter, Pluto trine Uranus, and a world transit of Jupiter conjunct Neptune). “Immediately, I could feel my energy raising upward and opening my crown chakra and chest, with rhythmic movements reaching a state of ecstasy. At the same time, all that tremendous energy was rooting passionately rooting downward into the earth. This experience inspired me with the strength and determination to realize a long-held professional dream.”
Holotropic Breathwork session of a Russian participant, during a world transit of Saturn square Pluto.
Holotropic Breathwork session. “Endgame” John Ablett (Uranus opposition natal Pluto, Pluto square Pluto, and Pluto conjunct Moon). “In a dangerous ‘stalemate,’ I am choking myself with the umbilical cord, overwhelmed with distress at the death of my twin brother in the womb. My mother dissociates from herself in order to save me, to tell me to hold on, and I emerge, feet first.” https://sites.google.com/site/holotropicmandalas/
Holotropic Breathwork experience. “Pilgrimmage to My Inner Buddha” Alejandra Scigliano (transiting Sun-Neptune in square with natal Neptune). “I felt immediately inspired to paint the mandala, which was surprising because I had faced a major creative block for two years with almost no output. But as soon as I started to paint, I was taken right back into the session and transported into another dimension. I was able to understand my whole life journey and the glow I feel when I connect with that source of inner wisdom or Buddha nature that is at the heart of everyone.”
Holotropic Breathwork session of an English participant. “Spirit of the Forest” John Ablett (Uranus square natal Sun, a world transit of Sun square Uranus, and Mars conjunct natal Neptune). “A shamanic male figure, part human, part animal, invites me to engage in a test of strength, forehead to forehead. The energy of male aggression then transforms into a more spiritually balanced and positive form." https://sites.google.com/site/holotropicmandalas/
Shamanic experience of a Ukranian participant in a Holotropic Breathwork workshop, during a world transit of Uranus square Pluto.
Holotropic Breathwork session. “Surrender” Anne Høivik (Pluto square natal Jupiter-Mars, Jupiter trine Pluto, and Uranus-Neptune opposition Sun). An image of crucifixion and transcendence of boundaries in a perinatal session of a Norwegian participant.
“No Fear” Alejandra Scigliano. A deep feeling of protection and transcendence of fear in a Holotropic Breathwork session of an Argentinean participant, during a world transit of Jupiter conjunct Neptune.
An experience related to the "no exit" stage of birth. “Landscape of Everlasting Pain” Taino Leinonen (Saturn square natal Sun, and a world transit of Sun opposition Saturn). Holotropic Breathwork session of a Finnish participant in which he identified with an old woman wandering in a landscape of everlasting pain and loneliness.
“Energy” An experience of dramatic energetic opening in a Holotropic Breathwork session of a Russian participant, during a world transit of Uranus square Pluto.
“Out of the Darkness” Amina Re (Uranus conjunct natal Mars, and Pluto conjunct natal Moon). A powerful experience of being born and giving birth to a new self in a Holotropic Breathwork session of an American participant. www.aminare.com
Katia Soliani (Neptune conjunct natal Jupiter). In this dream inspired by a Holotropic Breathwork session of an Italian artist, we can see elements of paradisean and aquatic serenity related to Neptune, and a sense of grand spaciousness and abundance, associated with Jupiter.
A perinatal sequence from an internalized, therapeutic psychedelic session, undertaken with Saturn opposition natal Sun, and Pluto conjunct Neptune (“late 1950s”). “The incipient uterine contractions are experienced as an attack by a monstrous octopus.”
“Hyperventilation Armor” Mojca Studen (with Mars square natal Saturn, and Saturn square natal Mars). This Holotropic Breathwork session of a Slovenian participant illustrates one of the major Mars-Saturn themes of machinelike tension and constriction. After surrendering to this pressure, the armor and darkness began to melt away and she felt newly liberated, with a sense of pleasant physical freedom and movement in her body.
Holotropic Breathwork experience. “The Cauldron of Transformation” John Ablett (Pluto conjunct natal Moon, and Pluto square natal Pluto). Time stands still in a moment between life and death. Three crones—a Wise Woman, a Witch, and Kali—stir a cauldron of transformation. https://sites.google.com/site/holotropicmandalas/
Ayahuasca session of a female subject. “To live, you must die.” (Pluto conjunct natal Sun, Sun opposition natal Pluto, and Uranus conjunct natal Moon). “It had to do with the terror and anguish of the unknown I was going through in my life. A white horse with the ‘parca’ (Death figure) came up and said the words: ‘To live, you must die.’ I couldn’t decide what to do but finally got up behind Death. We galloped towards a furnace so hot it was white. And there, my flesh melted away until I was only bones and then these were burned too. Death and the horse disappeared, and I arrived at a calm and fresh oceanic place where, mysteriously, I came back together with a reborn sense of myself.”
Perinatal Art
And here is some evocative art from my new book The Astrology of Love and Relationships - beginning with four beautiful perinatal depictions created by the Jungian psychotherapist and artist, Olena Provencher.
