Blue Door Retreat - Articles / Links

Sunset reminds that darkness is not an absence of God...but rather another form of presence...one that our ego mind often finds hard to grasp — Alexander Shaia, PhD


.....	Cretan or Goddess Labyrinthe. Imagery from Caerdroia — the journal of Mazes and Labyrinths, labyrinthos.net Just stay at the center of the circle, and let all things take their course. — Lao Tzu Some nights, stay up til dawn, as the moon sometimes does for the sun. Be a full bucket pulled up the dark way of a well, then lifted out into the light. Rumi

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....	The article, "Sandplay’s Unitive View" published in the Journal of Sandplay Therapy may be viewed online: www.sandplay.org/shaia.pdf Alexander’s Books www.quadratos.com HarperOne Alexander’s Family www.shaias.com Santa Fe City & Weather www.VisitSantaFe.com Santa Fe Arts/Museums www.collectorsguide.com www.santafeopera.org www.cavehorseart.com Santa Fe Events Calendar www.nmculturenet.org/calendar/ Santa Fe Colleges/Institutes St. John’s College www.sjcsf.edu College of Santa Fe www.csf.edu Southwestern College www.swc.edu Santa Fe Institute www.santafe.edu Labyrinths www.labyrinthos.net www.gracecathedral.org Lectio Divina Meditation www.osb.org/lectio/ Sandplay www.sandplay.org Boomers TV Christian Spirituality/New Mexico www.ghostranch.org www.christdesert.org Spiritual Direction www.sdiworld.org Depth Christianity www.quadratos.com Web Design www.neekdesign.com

On this page are links to two of Alexander’s articles, a bibliography of his writings, and a description of three manuscripts-in-progress. Along the right side are his favorite links including ones about cultural events in Santa Fe, the labyrinth, lectio divina meditation, sandplay and depth Christian spirituality. Relax, take a deep breath and enjoy!

"Sandplay in Spiritual Direction, Beyond Insight or Centering"

This article explores Sandplay as a spiritual practice that combines elements from the kataphatic and apophatic prayer traditions. In Sandplay one is witnessed while creating a picture, with or without using miniatures, in a shallow, rectangular sandtray. This contemporary use has returned to western practice through depth psychology. Various approaches to sand imagery exist in both spiritual direction and psychotherapy. Sandplay is a specific approach that synthesizes Western and Eastern spiritual practices with the theories of C. G. Jung. This approach originated with the work of Swiss Jungian analyst, Dora M. Kalff.

See Dr. Shaia practice Sandplay therapy on PBS series, Boomers

Alexander's Book Released 2010
The Hidden Power of the Gospels
Quadratos is the ancient truth of the four-fold nature of reality and all spiritual journeys. The traditional four gospels in their ancient reading order is the Christian telling of quadratos. This book walks the reader through the four gospels, revealing how they are a pragmatic truth to a more complete life. Many traditions today - religious, spiritual and psychological - truncate the journey to three parts. This limitation leads to the deep divisions and abuse of power we find in our lives, our families, our communities and nations. We need the practice of quadratos, and we need it now.

Journal Articles

by Alexander J. Shaia, Ph.D. 2001

Sandplay and Spirit. Presence: The Journal of Spiritual Directors International, Vol. IX, Number 2, June 2002.

Sandplay’s Unitive View. Journal of Sandplay Therapy, Vol. X, Number 2, 2001.

Jungian Theory for Sandplay Therapists. Northern California Sandplay Society Newsletter, Winter 1997.

A Change in Season: The Renewed Masculine. Journal of Sandplay Therapy, Vol. IV, Number 1, Winter 1994.

Beyond Words: Soul Making in the Sand. Recovering Life, Vol. V, No.7, Palm Desert, California, July 1994.

Soul Making, Power and The Sand. Power and Love: Articles from the Fourth Annual Professional Conference for New Directions in Male Psychology, Spring 1994.

You Have Already Volunteered. (Baptismal Spirituality) Credence Cassettes, Kansas City, MO, Fall 1992.

The Cry of Lent, Make Us One. (Spirituality of the Great 100 Days), Credence Cassettes, Kansas City, MO, Fall 1992.

The Masculine Arising? Northern California Sandplay Society Newsletter, Summer 1992.

When Men Are Missing. Northern California Sandplay Society Newsletter, Spring 1992.

Images in the Sand: The Initial Sandworlds of Men Molested as Children. Dissertation. California Institute of Integral Studies, 1991.

Triduum Retreat. Today’s Parish. January, 1988.

Breaking Open The Word of God, Cycle B. Paulist Press, 1987. Contributing Author.

Once Upon a Lent. Christian Initiation Resources, Vol. 1. Sadlier Publishers, 1981.