Traumatic Sanctity: A Necessary Myth for the Contemporary Transformative Ritual

Abstract

Within the field of psychology, it is commonplace to delineate therapeutic trauma work from non-trauma-focused therapy. This clinical divide portrays the theoretical position modern Western society takes on the incidence of psychological trauma, a position that assumes trauma is experienced only by a relative few. In recent decades, many theories have emerged suggesting psychological trauma is more widely experienced than previously thought. Utilizing an alchemical hermeneutic methodology, this study explores ancient mythology and Indigenous rituals and integrates them with contemporary attachment theory and trauma studies. The impetus to explore these phenomena was based on an inquiry into whether psychological trauma of today may serve as an unconscious replacement for Indigenous practices that were considered sacred. Indigenous rituals have incorporated traumatic elements for thousands of years and highlight an acceptance of symbolic death and rebirth as well as an appreciation for the sacred and ubiquitous nature of traumatic experiences in life. This work found that psychological trauma of today, rather than a replacement, is a continuation of the perennial repetition of the sacred and transformative aspects of life. Modern Western denial, psychological dissociation, a lack of mentalizing ability, introjection of the aggressor, and a lack of necessary modern myths obscure this sacred repetition and have allowed distorted perspectives to prevail regarding trauma in psychological practice, clinical theories, and societal beliefs.