The Knowing Field Issue 30

I am writing this editorial and publishing issue 30 amidst great turbulence on a wider global level, but also within my personal field, with a close family member approaching death and all that that brings with it, some of which is, of course, an enormous gift. The same can be true for global events: I can see that the rise of Donald Trump might be exactly what is needed to make the ‘ordinary’ person on the street sit up and take action, rather than being apathetic or despairing about the state of the world.

Indeed, I was in Romania a few months ago, where the people did exactly that: thousands emerged onto the streets every night for more than a week to ‘persuade’ the government at the time to retract a bill about to be made law that would permit the release of criminals charged during the time of communism. Having lived through the oppression of communism, these people are no longer willing to tolerate the mass hypocrisy and secrecy that underpins any extremist form of government.

Here in Britain, the vote for us to leave the European Union has also shaken many people out of their complacency.

So, to this issue. This cover design feels like a good antidote to all the turbulence around us. It has a calming effect on me, depicting as it does two different creatures who illustrate so clearly for us, the power of field phenomena – birds and horses.

I now have general permission from Bert Hellinger to take extracts from his books and other writings to publicize something of his in each issue of the journal. I am pleased about this. As this issue includes some writing about the question of ethics and criticism, it felt appropriate to reproduce a piece of Bert’s writing on guilt, taken from his book Living Transcendence.

Diana Claire Douglas, who regularly contributes on the subject of large-group constellations, has found another interviewee for the Spotlight section, Francesca Mason Boring. With her deep interest in Nature and Community Constellations, it seems very appropriate for Francesca to be interviewed on this theme. She talks about the risks of grandiosity with large-group constellations and the difference between those where you set out to make them large group and others which emerge from a personal constellation, with some useful tips on what to look out for and relative cautions in the work.

An article from another regular contributor, Anngwyn St. Just, is included in the History section this time, as she writes about the all-important issue of the attire of those from different religious groups and the reactivity coming from different cultures. She identifies this as a further demonstration of social trauma from the past and how it impacts our fears and prejudices in the present day.

Moving on to the Personal Reflections section, Harrison Snow continues the theme of individual and collective trauma and the way our unintegrated past catches up with us and continues to be acted out until we become aware of it. When this happens on a collective level, it is more difficult to bring it into conscious awareness and it can therefore be re-enacted on a massive scale. He points towards the North American Systemic Constellations Conference taking place in October as a gathering place for looking at some of these issues.

The theme of abortion continues to raise its head within this journal: it is an issue that operates on such a massive scale worldwide and generates extreme views in either direction. Gwladys Jousselme writes for the first time in The Knowing Field from an emotional standpoint, about the deep pain experienced by women who go through this process, whatever the reasons or judgments around it.

We hear from Francesca Mason Boring again in this section, this time addressing the all-important issue of representation. Writing from her standpoint as a facilitator and trainer, but also as someone deeply connected to the knowing field as experienced by indigenous tradition, she offers an interesting perspective with teachings for those providing training, as well as for facilitators.

Christopher Beattie is offering us a series of reflections under the title of Supporting Movement of the Soul: Walking Paths that Diverge and Converge. He starts in this issue by writing about his experience of working with couples and how he sees psychotherapy and constellations coming together to assist those who are struggling. He draws on Hellinger’s words about reciprocity in relationships and describes what he has learned about the need to help couples de-escalate when in conflict. This contrasts with how he used to think about this subject, coming as he does from a body-psychotherapy orientation and belief in the need for full expression of feeling as a path to a more fulfilling way of relating.

The next two articles are in response to a long and heated recent discussion that took place on the international email discussion group, Constellation Talk, that followed the publicizing of a film about an interaction between Bert and Sophie Hellinger and a client in a group held in Russia. Too many views were expressed in the CT discussion to do justice to them within the scope of this issue. Instead, I have drawn on two articles about the emerging themes of ethics and field phenomena and the interplay between them.

Steve Vinay Gunther discusses the difficulty of imposing ethical codes within organizations, which can lead to exclusion and the negative use of power. At the same time, he illustrates how self-regulation can bring its own problems. Bruce Nayowith puts a different angle on the discussion by highlighting the need for both insight and action. He considers that knowing what needs to be done and finding the necessary skills to take action are important aspects of being a facilitator.

We end the Personal Reflections section with a contribution from an anonymous author who passionately expresses the counter-argument to in-depth discussion about any issue involving Bert Hellinger. The author asserts that this is disrespectful and filled with projections from our own personal histories and a reenactment of the unresolved family dynamic, whereby we remain as children perceiving our ‘parent’ as lacking in some way and thinking we can do better.

In the Constellations section, Richard Griffin, who will be presenting at the upcoming North American Conference, offers us his experience of working with horses, a theme which seems to be increasingly present in The Knowing Field. He once again demonstrates how horses have an uncanny ability to tune into the unconscious of the client and how helpful this can be for clients.

Also in this section, ISCA chairman, Max Dauskardt, reveals a moving constellation taking place in Bad Reichenhall, Germany, in which Bert Hellinger invited him to choose a representative for Bert himself. In this constellation, Bert’s representative made a deep bow before those representing the clients. Max describes this constellation to illustrate Bert’s absolute trust in the field. He also asserts that in order to continue to thrive as a collective, we need to honor Bert’s insights and achievements and to feel our gratitude for the incredible gift of constellation work that has come through him.

We have two book reviews this time, both addressing the corporate field. The first is by Chris Walsh, who offers a critique of Harrison Snow’s book Confessions of a Corporate Shaman. Summarizing what is covered, Chris describes how Harrison manages to bring together his experience in other areas of life and integrate it with constellation work. With little to criticize, Chris endorses it as a book to add to the reading lists for trainings. The second comes from Jane James, who reviews the second edition of John Whittington’s book Systemic Coaching and Constellations. She offers a summary of what is and is not covered in the book and concludes that its practical guidelines, case studies, and self-reflections from the author make it a valuable contribution to the field and an excellent introduction for coaches new to constellation work.

We have a number of poems this time, so I have given them a separate section. They provide a wonderful bridge between our left-brain thinking and the very necessary right-brain experience of constellation work.

My thanks to all contributors and editors, and to Lubosh Cech, the graphic designer, for bringing everything together for this issue.

Barbara Morgan
Editor