As we cross into 2026, many of us sense the tremble of a new era. I spend a great deal of time with the subtle world, paying attention to the conversation between what is visible and what is hidden. Guidance often arrives there.
This year I will follow our path through the MARI Mandala. MARI stands for Mandala Assessment Research Instrument. It emerged from art making, symbol language, and trust in the quiet parts of our inner life. Art therapist Joan Kellogg created MARI and drew on the work of Carl Jung and Stanislav Grof and their explorations of expanded states of awareness.
MARI describes twelve to thirteen stages, which aligns gently with the twelve months of the year. January, our first month, carries the energy of the number one. One is the individual, the beginning, the spark that starts a journey. Picture a single acorn that contains the pattern of an oak. Small and humble, yet it holds a future much larger than itself.
Jung spoke of one as an archetype of unity. Philosophers have described the One as the essence of oneness. Psychologically, Jung believed we touch this unity in early infancy, before thinking, feeling, and sensing separate into distinct functions. We are held in a field of being. Ideally that early time is full of rest, safety, and love. Adults can taste it again through spiritual openings, profound connection, and great love.
Number one has another expression. It also points to a clear and focused sense of self. This is different from mystical union, yet just as necessary. A healthy ego sets boundaries, makes choices, and initiates action.
The mandala is a circle with a center, a picture of oneness. When we create mandalas, we contact unity, wholeness, and individuality at once. This is one reason mandala making feels so soothing. The image reflects back that we exist and that we contain many possibilities.
A gentle art invitation for January
- Draw a circle about the size of your palm.
- Place a single point or simple symbol in the center. A seed, an acorn, a candle flame, or a dot all work.
- Add shapes or colors that feel like beginnings. Keep it simple.
- Sit with your mandala for one minute. Breathe.
Questions to hold
- What in me wants to begin this year
- Where do I feel unity or a sense of being whole
- What boundary or choice will protect my new beginning
If you are tending the mother wound, let January be a soft start. Allow the circle to hold you. Let the center remind you that you are here and you are one. From that center, everything can grow.
Warm wishes for the New Year.
With care,
Mari Grande, LCAT, ATR BC
Mari Grande is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and a Creative Arts Psychotherapist in New York, New Jersey, California, and Florida with 20+ years of experience working with individuals and groups. She specializes in using creativity to help people heal from traumatic events.
