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Whilst Rudolf Steiner had much wonderful insight to share
in relation to the importance of The Doll for all children and subsequently the culture/society and ultimately world we all live
in (which if interested you can read for yourself as it is just all too big for here) I stumbled across the following recently
in Women Who Run With The Wolves by Clarissa Pinkola Estes which resonated with me strongly and which,I thought, may also
be of interest to some.
As I also work with dreams, symbolism and am a
Holistic Healing Practitioner (and have been for a very long time) and as, in the making of whatever my creative drive
and intuition forms from cloth and other materials, I could very much relate to what Ms. Estes has
to say about Dolls. The following comes from her analysis of the story of Vasalisa.
"Dolls are one of the symbolic treasures of the instinctual
nature. In Vasalisa's case, the doll represents vidacita, the little instinctual life force that
is both fierce and enduring. No matter what mess we are in, it lives out a life hidden within us.
For centuries humans have felt that dolls
emanate both a holiness and mana - an awesome and compelling presence which
acts upon persons, changing them spiritually. Dolls are believed to be infused with life by their makers.
The Doll is the symbolic homunculi, little
life. It is the symbol of what lies buried in humans that is numinous. It is a small and glowing facsimile of
the original Self. Superficially, it is just a doll. But inversely, there is a little piece of soul that carries
all the knowledge of the larger soul-Self.
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The Doll is related to the symbols of leprechaun, elf,
pixie, fairy, and dwarf. In fairy tales these represent a deep throb of wisdom within the culture of the psyche.
They are those creatures which go on with the canny and interior work, who are tireless. In this way the doll represents
the inner spirit of women; the voice of inner reason, inner knowing, and inner consciousness. The doll is like the little
bird in fairy tales who comes and whispers in the heroine's ear, the one who reveals the hidden enemy and what to do about
it all. This is the wisdom of homunculus, the small being within. It is our helper which is not
seeable, but which is always accessible.
The dolls serve as talismans. Talismans are reminders
of what is felt but not seen, what is so, but is not immediately obvious. The talismanic numen of the doll is that it
reminds us, tells us, sees ahead for us. This intuitive function belongs to all women. It is a massive and fundamental
receptivity. Not receptivity as once touted in classical psychology, that is as a passive vessel. But receptivity
as in possessing immediate access to a profound wisdom that reaches to women's very bones."
What I am finding very interesting to observe
as my home has become a workplace for making these dolls and other items and as my dining room area is becoming filled to
overflowing with materials and works in progress, is that absolutely every single thing I make, my son wants one too and his
face lights up with excitement as he witnesses each new creation. There truly is something
very special, beautiful and magical that occurs in the realm of doll/toy making, that is not seeable, that is not measurable
in terms of logic, that contains a feeling that is truly beyond words, not just for me the maker, but more importantly
for those who receive them.
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