What is the knowing field?
The term knowing field is used to refer to a field of information experienced phenomenologically, whereby through participation in a constellation, participants and facilitator alike become conduits for information they would not normally have or know (Hellinger, 2003a).
The knowing field is a term first used by Albrecht Mahr (2004) to refer to the field of information that is perceived (or received) phenomenologically in a constellation through full embodied participation. Knowing or knowledge in this sense is participatory rather than cognitive (Baring, 2013; Hellinger, 2001; 2003a; Braud, 2006).
Systems such as family systems have an energy field associated with them that carries a representation of the interrelationships and the history of that system (Boulton, 2006).
Hellinger preferred to use the term soul rather than field to acknowledge that this field possesses consciousness. It follows orders, is in constant motion, and there is an intelligence and intentionality behind those movements. This guiding intelligence appears to work to unite opposites (Hellinger, 2003a; 2008). Hellinger termed this guiding intelligence the movements of the soul (Hellinger, 2008).
“Even more astounding that the information transmitted through participation, is the fact that this field of knowledge – I prefer to describe it as the knowing, guiding soul which transcends the individual – searches for and finds resolutions far beyond anything we could think up, and produces far-reaching effects that extend further than anything we could plan intentionally” (Hellinger, 2003a, p. 249).
Hellinger differentiated between different levels of the soul, which correspond to the three consciences – personal, collective and spiritual. He spoke about the greater soul (Hellinger, 2003b, 2010), or what Van Kampenhout (2008) calls the universal soul, as the level at which all paradox and polarities are transcended.
Van Kampenhout (2008) differentiates another level of soul, also a collective field, which he calls the tribal soul. He explains that these are collective fields which also influence our belonging and behaviour, and while bigger and stronger than the family soul, are differentiated from the greater or universal soul because they are still separated by boundaries.
If facilitator, client and representatives align with this knowing field without expectation or desire to control the outcome, this allows them to come into resonance with an intelligence in the knowing field that guides the system naturally towards a resolution (Cohen, 2009; Faust & Faust, 2005).
Conceptually, this field is hypothesized to correspond with Sheldrake‘s theory of morphogenetic fields (Sheldrake, 2011) and also the quantum field (Shelton, 2010) or Laszlo‘s integral theory of everything which hypothesizes a connecting field of in-formation (Laszlo, 2000; Rousopolous, 2006). Much of the literature on constellations work has discussed the overlap between the knowing field and Sheldrake‘s morphogenetic fields, in addition to other theories of interconnected, subtle, fields of influence (Cohen, 2009; Georgiadou, 2012; Thomas, 2010).
Rupert Sheldrake’s theory of morphogenetic fields: Because of their cumulative memory, through repetition the nature of thing become increasingly habitual. Therefore, new habits spread within a species and skills become progressively easier to learn. Memories are not stored in the brain but in morphic fields which organise the form of natural systems and organisms. Morphic fields are cumulative organising patterns of memory.
Thomas (2010) discusses constellations work in relation to new scientific theories that point to a unified pulsating, conscious, field of information underlying a holographic reality, and which she speculates could underlie the healing benefit of the therapeutic alliance in psychotherapy research. Others have speculated on the conceptual overlap with Jung‘s theory of the collective unconscious (Jirásek & Jirásková, 2015; Salters, 2013). Emerging scientific theory and research is beginning to support a paradigm of reality as an infinite web in which everything from the smallest atom and particle to solar systems and galaxies are connected. And that underpinning or pervading or encompassing all elements of existence, from plants to animals to human beings, is a universal consciousness (Bohm, 2005; Edwards, 2016a, 2016b; Laszlo, 2000; Lindhard, 2018b, 2020). 54 Boring (2013) likens the experience of the knowing field in a constellation with “the larger field of shared consciousness that deep ecology, shamanism, and consciousness research describe and also in their own ways explore” (p. 4).
What is neglected in the above is the pre-personal and personal fields/soul.
Ken Wilber proposed a spectrum of consciousness from preverbal/prepersonal to personal/rational to transpersonal.
The pre-personal field/soul
From 0-3 may be considered the pre-verbal/pre-rational and pre-personal developmental phase. This is the phase of existence before formal rational thought or language. During this phase, the sense of self begins in infancy as entirely merged with the universe, and psychic experience is archetypal. The Oneness experienced in the pre-personal realm should not be confused with the transpersonal realm and to do so constitutes a spiritual by-pass, as the ego/personal self is then identified with the transpersonal realm. Because psychic contents are images rather than thoughts and beliefs, there is less use for healing sentences unless they are extremely archaic and embodied. Experiences of trauma/fear/separation from the mother equals an experience of ‘annihilation’ or ‘not existing’.
This pure terror physiologically and psychologically. There is no symbolic or cognitive capacity to mediate experience in the absence of a containing other to provide an experience of connection to Life (archetypal). Archetypal imagery may be cosmic and include ‘falling into the void’ or ‘falling through space’.
During this phase connection to Mother/Primary Caregiver is biological and its psychic counterpart is archetypal. Therefore Mother (capital M, cosmic Mother) = Life(capital L) and connection is via the umbilical cord or close contact after birth. Resources may include the archetype of the Cosmic Mother to contain and support this experience. Healing may be experienced through imagery/visualisation or movement. Before 6 months, there is no sense of time or object permanence, and the infant who does not know that the caregiver is returning will shut down in response to experiences of disconnection. You might experience these shutdown states in the field and you will need to communicate with the infant that the caregiver is coming back (if indeed they did).
The next developmental phase is the attachment phase. The development of the self continues to move along a continuum of relative differentiation beginning with the experience of sensation. This differentiation is from the environment and from caregivers with increasing autonomy of will, and relies on a secure attachment experience. Experiences of insecurity during this attachment phase result in what Hellinger calls the ‘Interrupted reaching out movement’, and we will deal with this phase in more details when we do our class on “Inner parts”.
Depending on the relative development of ‘object permanence’ (achieved 6-8 months), the length and nature of periods of separation, and also the experience of the caregiver’s attunement to the needs and experiences of the developing infant (the infant’s biological attachment systems is programmed to notice very subtle disturbances in attunement), experiences of separation may bring about high levels of anxiety, followed by experiences of despair and hopelessness as the infant if the caregiver is experienced as absent and unavailable for connection. These experiences of separation and despair create an experience of abandonment. Psychic counterparts of trauma at this stage may be images of horror, like the feeling that comes out of a horror movie or the scary pictures that shadows make on the wall in the dark.
As caregivers start to become more relatable, they are still not whole. There are experiences of a good mother and a bad mother. Fairy tales often express the one dimensionality and dynamics of experience during this time.
The child should have arrived at a relatively differentiated and autonomous sense of self by 6 which heralds the beginning of the personal, cognitive, ego self. This is the time of the development of different identities through engagement in the world and relationships. Identity is formed by internalising these experiences of self-in relationship. Again, we will go further into this when understanding inner parts. Here we can begin identifying beliefs and also speak in sentences that connect with the developing cognition and rational thought. This becomes more abstract by adolescence.
Transrational experiences begin when the adult has a sufficiently strong sense of self/identity/ego to begin the disidentification process. Transrational experience as a defence mechanism risks spiritual by-passing personality wounds.
We will do a group exercise where we will visit each of these fields. This visiting of these fields attunes and entrains you to these fields so that through a felt sense, you recognise it when you are there in your client’s field. Repeated visits enhance this entrainment.
Instructions for group exercise:
Get 5 pieces of paper and a notepad and pen for jotting down your impressions and experiences.
On each paper, write the following:
Pre-personal field
Personal field
Family field
Ancestral/tribal field
Soul field
Draw arrows at the edge of the paper so that you know in what direction this paper is facing.
Hold each paper one at a time and, following your body, place it within the physical space in your room. So that these fields form a system in relation to one another.
Now stand on the paper for pre-personal field facing the direction of the arrows. Note down all your experiences. Write it down if possible so that you can provide feedback to the group.
Now we will come together again and compare your experiences.
Next we will stand on:
Personal field
Family field
Also Erik will be speaking about visiting the ancestral and soul fields in our next session, so we will keep those for then.