Reflections from Bone:Dying into Life by Marion Woodman
“One thing I learned yet again is the power of nature to heal.” (Woodman, 2000, p. 141)
“The soul is not in the body, the body is in the soul. -Hildegard Bingen” (Woodman, 2000, p. 141)
“Nature was not there to enfold her children. Some of us did our best to greet their tender souls, but I saw how utterly the Great Mother does her job with grass and trees and water. We are too often unconscious of the great gift we are in.” (Woodman, 2000, p. 142)
*My Reflections: One of the hats I wear is that of an ecopsychologist (it is literally on my diploma!) so every time Marion talks about nature a little part of me sends up a cheer! I even finished my dissertation (an ecopscyhological study) defense with a quote by Marion.
Even though I sometimes feel that the idea the body is in soul is new and maybe even controversial (that tells us how far we have left that idea behind!) Marion reminds us of the writings of Hildegard, who was a Benedictine Abbess in the 12th century. She was already making this statement about the body being in soul centuries ago, but then the Age of Enlightenment happened between the 17th and 19th centuries and squelched this thought. Hildegard only became canonized and declared a “Doctor” of the Church in 2012! Now, here is Marion bringing her thought back to the fore.
Woodman, M. (2000). Bone: Dying into Life. Penguin Books.
*This reflection was first published in a Facebook Group entitled BodySoul Rhythms – Continuing the Legacy of Marion Woodman
Soul Tending 