Sichuan Earthquake:

Members of China's two Developing Groups are working to provide psychological help and service in the earthquake area. See photos.

You can make a donation to the relief efforts in China by following the Donation link to the Foundation C. G. Jung Institutes for Alumni, Supporters, and Friends, a tax exempt organization. You can make a donation online via PayPal or by mailing a check or faxing your credit card details to the Foundation.

October 9, 2008 : Heyong Shen wrote, “I just came back from Sichuan the day before yesterday. As you know, Luigi Zoja and Eva Pattis came, and we worked together for 10 days. We have been working there since the first week of the earthquake. I will send you more information later but for now will include an update of the situation and our work."

His update on the relief work follows:

On the first day of the “512 Sichuan Earthquake”, Lei Da, the leader of our Jung Group at Chengdu, with the other two members of the Chinese Association of Analytical Psychology, started the work to help the people and survivors.

We, our Chinese Association of Analytical Psychology, set up three “Garden of the Heart-Soul”, our Jungian style psychological support work stations at the earthquake area in the first week of the “512 earthquake”. Gao Lan and I, with our CAAP members, stayed in tents for the first two months, and we now live at the temporary shelter rooms. The reported victims from the earthquake number 45 million. Most of them will have to spend three years in tents and temporary shelter rooms.

Many psychologists and psychological groups went to Sichuan after the earthquake, but after the first month, 50% withdrew, and after the second month, 80% withdrew, and after three months, 90% withdrew. We are one of the very few professional groups still working there.

At the middle of last June and at the end of the last September, there were two “Peak-Meetings” at Beijing for the psychological work at Sichuan. I was invited to give presentations at both of the meetings and presented the way of Jungian psychological work with grief and trauma and the model of our “Garden of the Heart-Soul”. At the following WCP, next week at Beijing, the 5th World Congress of Psychotherapy, I am invited to give a special presentation of our work at Sichuan.

Now we have extended the “Garden of the Heart-Soul”, our Jungian style psychological support work stations. Besides the three work stations at Beichuan school (Beichuan experienced the most severe damage from the earthquake), at Deyang Tianyuan and Deyang Nanbin, and we have a new work station at Wen Chuan Shuimo school (Wen Chuan is the central area of the earthquake), a new one at Du-Jiang-Yan center of psychological consultation, and a new one at Qingyuan Relief Station.

Most of the people we are working are Qiang People, a very special people in China. Their history goes back to the legend of Yan Emperor, earlier than Fuxi (related to the creation of the trigrams of I Ching). They worship sheep or goat and are famous for their Qiang flute.

During the Han Dynasty, the Qiang people numbered about 10 million, but now, they just have 300 thousand, and almost all of them live at Bei Chuan and Wen Chuan, the center of the ”512 earthquake” area.

Just last week, the local newspaper reported the first (or first reported) suicide at Beichuan city. A local officer who lost his child, a 9 year boy, at the earthquake, killed himself at home. After four months of the earthquake, the PTSD and suicide behaviors may increase. We are still facing very difficult tasks.

Many thanks for IAAP support to our work in China. Hester Solomon, Joe Cambray, Tom Kelly and many Jungian friends sent letters to us, expressed their concerns and support. Thomas Kirsch and Jean Kirsch, Murray Stein and Jan Stein, have supported our work with their donations. Luigi and Eva came, spent 10 days with us. They worked with the children and students directly, gave lectures and supervision.

We will continue our work, and we are very proud of the support from IAAP and our Jungian colleagues.

With our heartfelt thanks.

Heyong Shen

May 19, 2008

E-mail received by the IAAP Secretariat from Heyong Shen following the tragic earthquake in Sichuan, China: "We got letters from IAAP and ISST members expressing their regret and concern for the earthquake in Sichuan, China. We are grateful for all of the support. Gao Lan and I, with 10 students of analytical psychology, are working at the Sichuan earthquake area (Mianzhu and Han Wang) to provide psychological help and service. We will also work for the International SOS at Chengdu for a group of foreigners who experienced and were influenced by the quake."

Our second group, members of the IAAP Developing Group, the Chinese Association of Analytical Psychology, are ready to join us in a week.

After these few days of emergency work we will set up our “Jungian Depth Therapy and Sandplay Therapy” office there to continue the work and service. Also, we will add another 5 rooms for Jungian sandplay therapy (called the “Garden of the Heart and Soul”) with expressive materials and the equipment for sandplay to be used with orphans at the area.

We started the project last year and plan to set up 100 "Garden of the Heart and Soul" locations with equipment for Jungian sandplay in the mainland of China.

We are writing just to let you know briefly about our work and to tell you that we are safe.

With our best wishes,
Heyong and Gao Lan

The following are photographs of the relief work being done with earthquake survivors in Sichuan at the site of school that was destroyed in the quake. Pictured in the photographs are young students, Heyong Shen, Gao Lan, Eva Pattis Zoja, Luigi Zoja and psychology students participating in the work. Click on any thumbnail image to see the full photograph.