Gravity and Grace: A Depth Psychological Response to Ecological Grief

Abstract

Using a hermeneutic phenomenological research methodology, this dissertation rests on the foundational facts of environmental loss. The experience of ecological loss is related to feelings of grief and bereavement. Grief is explored, with particular emphasis on the grieving process through the lens of depth psychology. This includes a study of mindfulness and consciousness that examines the holistic nature of consciousness itself. It also goes into a heartfelt relationship with the natural world, as illustrated by indigenous voices. Along with the indigenous perspective, the interrelatedness of life and consciousness is explored through the lens of diverse mystics, including scientists, religious teachers, and philosophers. Ecological grief is recognized as existing in the collective unconscious, or the shadow. Poetry is also used to highlight the poignant experience of connection with the natural world, as well as the heartbreak that ensues after environmental loss. Finally, this dissertation proposes a clinical response to ecological grief that is somatic in nature, where awareness of the body as connected to the body of the earth is explored. This clinical response is put forth as a vital response to the conscious or unconscious heartbreak that is felt in response to environmental loss.