7.2 Mandala Assessment Research Instrument (MARI) & Archetypal Symbolism

Jungian Analytical Roots and Transpersonal Art Therapy

The Mandala Assessment Research Instrument (MARI) is a comprehensive, transpersonal assessment tool developed in 1978 and refined throughout the 1980s and 1990s by art therapist Joan Kellogg. The theoretical architecture of the MARI is rooted directly in the analytical psychology of Carl Gustav Jung, who recognized the mandala—derived from the Sanskrit word for "sacred circle" or "center"—as the supreme archetypal symbol of the Self, psychological wholeness, and the individuation process.

Jung observed that during periods of intense psychological disorientation, acute psychosis, or profound life transition, patients spontaneously produced circular drawings. He discovered that creating imagery within a circular boundary acts as a temenos—a sacred, protected precinct that provides:

• Psychic Containment: The perimeter boundary holds and contains volatile unconscious material, preventing emotional flooding and ego fragmentation.
• Centering and Integration: The radial geometry organizes conflicting internal polarities (conscious vs. unconscious, masculine vs. feminine, light vs. shadow) around a stabilizing central axis.
• Self-Healing Trajectory: The mandala mirrors the psyche's innate striving toward self-regulation, coherence, and developmental synthesis.

While working at the Maryland Psychiatric Research Center, Joan Kellogg conducted extensive empirical research analyzing thousands of spontaneous mandalas created by psychiatric inpatients, terminally ill patients, and healthy individuals. Kellogg made the groundbreaking discovery that mandalas do not exhibit arbitrary, random configurations; rather, they systematically reflect a universal, cyclical progression of psychic states. Kellogg codified this evolutionary cycle as The Great Round of the Mandala, establishing a standardized clinical instrument that bridges projective art therapy, transpersonal psychology, and objective diagnostic assessment.

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Standardized MARI Administration Protocol and Card-Sorting Methodology

Administration of the MARI is structured into two distinct, sequential clinical phases: the expressive drawing phase followed by the archetypal card-sorting procedure.

Required Assessment Materials

• Pre-Drawn Circle: A standardized sheet of white drawing paper (typically 11" x 14" or 12" x 12") featuring a finely printed or penciled circle exactly 10 to 12 inches in diameter centered on the page.
• Drawing Media: A standard artist-grade set of oil pastels (typically 24 to 36 colors). Oil pastels are mandated because their rich, buttery, tactile consistency facilitates visceral sensory engagement, deep color saturation, and immediate emotional expression without the cognitive control demanded by pencils or markers.
• MARI Testing Kit: A proprietary assessment kit containing:
  • Exactly 39 transparent plastic symbol cards, each imprinted with an archetypal graphic form corresponding to specific stages on the Great Round.
  • Exactly 39 color cards, encompassing primary and secondary hues, varying values and tints, and neutral tones (including black, white, gray, gold, and silver).
  • The standardized Great Round of the Mandala scoring chart.

Phase 1: The Intuitive Mandala Drawing

The clinician presents the paper with the pre-drawn circle and the oil pastels, instructing the client:

"Take a few moments to center yourself, breathe, and when you feel ready, create a picture inside the circle using any lines, shapes, and colors you feel drawn to."

• The client is instructed that they may draw representational imagery, abstract designs, or pure color fields, but are requested to work primarily within the circular boundary.
• The task is untimed, typically requiring 15 to 30 minutes. The clinician unobtrusively tracks color selection order, motor pressure, starting point, and direction of movement.

Phase 2: The Archetypal Card-Sorting Procedure

Immediately following the drawing, the clinician removes the pastels and introduces the 39 transparent symbol cards laid out in front of the client in a neutral grid:

1. Symbol Selection: The client is instructed to look over all 39 symbols and select six symbols that they are most attracted to, drawn toward, or like the best.
2. Rejected Symbol: The client is then asked to select one symbol that they most dislike, reject, or find unpleasant (identifying conscious defenses, repressed shadow elements, or avoided developmental tasks).
3. Color Pairing: The client is presented with the 39 color cards and asked to select the single color that belongs with each of their seven chosen symbol cards (the 6 preferred + 1 rejected).
4. Mapping and Dialectical Inquiry: The clinician records the chosen symbol-color combinations and maps them onto the 12-stage Great Round diagram. The clinician then guides an open-ended dialogue: "What drew you to this symbol? What does this color mean to you here?"

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The Great Round of the Mandala: The 12 Archetypal Stages (+ Stage 0)

The cornerstone of Kellogg's MARI is the Great Round of the Mandala, an archetypal developmental wheel comprising 12 universal stages of consciousness plus Stage 0 (Clear Light). The Great Round maps the perpetual human cycle of birth, ego differentiation, struggle, manifestation, surrender, dissolution, and rebirth.

                         Stage 0: Clear Light (Transcendent Source)
                                         ▲
                                         │
               [CONSCIOUS MANIFESTATION & SOCIAL INTEGRATION]
                   Stage 7: Square ────► Stage 8: Functioning Ego
                  (Integration)                 (5-Pointed Star)
                         ▲                             │
                         │                             ▼
             Stage 6: Dragon Fight              Stage 9: Crystallization
             (Conflict / Ambivalence)             (Harvest / Rosette)
                         ▲                             │
                         │                             ▼
             Stage 5: Target                    Stage 10: Gates of Death
             (Ego Will / Boundary)                (Surrender / Aging)
                         ▲                             │
                         │                             ▼
             Stage 4: Beginning                 Stage 11: Fragmentation
             (Incarnation / Seed)                 (Chaos / Breakdown)
                         ▲                             │
                         │                             ▼
                   Stage 3: Energy Path ───► Stage 12: Regeneration
                   (Awakening / Spiral)          (Cosmic Egg / Rebirth)
                                         ▲
                                         │
                    Stage 2: Bliss ◄─────┴─────► Stage 1: The Void
                 (Symbiosis / Mother)          (Unconscious / Deep Rest)

Detailed Analysis of the 12 Stages (+ Stage 0)

Stage 0: Clear Light (The Transcendent Source)

• Archetypal Theme: The unmanifest, formless spiritual essence preceding creation. Pure, unconditioned awareness beyond dualistic tension.
• Graphic Manifestation: Often left entirely uncolored white paper, delicate luminous halos, or radiant metallic gold accents.
• Psychological Correlate: Transpersonal awakening, mystical peak experiences, or profound spiritual surrender.

Stage 1: The Void (Unconscious / Chaos / Deep Rest)

• Archetypal Theme: The primal womb, pre-creation darkness, the deep unconscious, or the fertile void.
• Graphic Manifestation: Heavy applications of black, dark indigo, or dense charcoal; forms submerged in darkness; empty centers.
• Psychological Correlate: Deep physical rest, meditation, depression, emotional withdrawal, or the necessary period of fallowness preceding psychic transformation.

Stage 2: Bliss (Oceanic Oneness / Primal Mother)

• Archetypal Theme: Symbiotic union with the maternal matrix; infantile paradise; the ocean of being.
• Graphic Manifestation: Soft, fluid, floating circular forms; soft pastel washes; concentric rings without sharp edges; oceanic blues, magentas, and soft pinks.
• Psychological Correlate: Feelings of deep security, passive contentment, or conversely, regressive dependency, addiction, and lack of ego boundaries.

Stage 3: Energy Path / The Labyrinth (Awakening / Movement)

• Archetypal Theme: The stirring of instinctual life force; awakening libido; searching for direction; movement through the labyrinth.
• Graphic Manifestation: Spirals, meandering currents, labyrinthine pathways, serpentine coils, dynamic vortexes.
• Psychological Correlate: Emerging psychic energy, restlessness, seeking a path forward, curiosity, or navigating internal confusion.

Stage 4: Beginning / The Seed (Incarnation / Dawn)

• Archetypal Theme: The germinating seed; the rising sun; physical birth; emergence into conscious physical reality.
• Graphic Manifestation: A point, dot, or seed at the bottom of the circle; a small shoot pushing upward; sunrise imagery; warm yellows and pale greens.
• Psychological Correlate: Starting a new life phase, pregnancy, launching a creative project, fragile hope, vulnerability of initial beginnings.

Stage 5: Target / Ego Struggle (Will / Boundary / Focus)

• Archetypal Theme: Establishing personal identity; erecting protective boundaries; willful assertion; focused intentionality.
• Graphic Manifestation: Concentric target rings, bullseye configurations, fortified perimeters, aggressive directional rays; saturated reds and primary colors.
• Psychological Correlate: Boundary defense, adolescent individuation, assertive self-determination, oppositional defiance, or obsessive defense against vulnerability.

Stage 6: The Dragon Fight / Conflict (The Hero's Battle)

• Archetypal Theme: Confronting the shadow; internal ambivalence; moral dilemma; the hero wrestling with inner demons or external oppressors.
• Graphic Manifestation: Divided circles, split halves, clashing discordant colors, jagged lightning bolts, zig-zag lines, violent oppositions.
• Psychological Correlate: Acute internal conflict, cognitive dissonance, wrestling with traumatic memories, moral crisis, active therapeutic confrontation.

Stage 7: The Square / Integration (Squaring the Circle / Order)

• Archetypal Theme: Consolidation, structural stability, balance, grounding, and moral integrity. The union of earthly reality (the square) with spiritual wholeness (the circle).
• Graphic Manifestation: A four-sided square, cross, diamond, or four-part quadrant nested symmetrically inside the circle; balanced earth tones, blues, and greens.
• Psychological Correlate: Emotional stability, firm ego structure, integration of conflicting drives, establishing ethical clarity, grounding after crisis.

Stage 8: Functioning Ego / The Five-Pointed Star (Autonomy / Mastery)

• Archetypal Theme: The human microcosm; autonomous selfhood; individual mastery; active participation in the social and professional world.
• Graphic Manifestation: A five-pointed star, five-petaled flower, pentagon, or human figure dominating the center; vibrant, balanced colors.
• Psychological Correlate: Self-actualization, executive functioning, professional success, healthy autonomy, productive engagement with society.

Stage 9: Crystallization / The Harvest (Fulfillment / Culmination)

• Archetypal Theme: The ripe harvest; mature realization; enjoying the fruits of labor; cosmic symmetry and radiant perfection.
• Graphic Manifestation: Elaborate rosettes, wheel spokes, multifaceted mandalas, eight-fold paths, rich warm golds, oranges, and deep purples.
• Psychological Correlate: Completion of major life goals, retirement, artistic accomplishment, mature satisfaction, feelings of spiritual fullness.

Stage 10: Gates of Death / Surrender (Aging / Letting Go)

• Archetypal Theme: The autumn of life; twilight; letting go of control; confronting mortality; inevitable surrender of outworn ego structures.
• Graphic Manifestation: Hourglass forms, descending energy, gates, arches, dark brown, burnt orange, ochre, or slate gray tones; imagery moving downward.
• Psychological Correlate: Grief, bereavement, divorce, physical aging, chronic illness, letting go of obsolete identities, facing existential limits.

Stage 11: Fragmentation / Transformation (Dismemberment / Chaos)

• Archetypal Theme: Alchemical nigredo; the shattering of the ego; dismemberment before renewal; creative destruction.
• Graphic Manifestation: Shattered geometric forms, disconnected fragments, exploding particles, jagged fissures, scattered confetti-like marks.
• Psychological Correlate: Acute crisis, panic, trauma processing, psychotic decompensation, or the necessary psychological breakdown that precedes breakthrough.

Stage 12: Regeneration / The Cosmic Egg (Wholeness Restored / Rebirth)

• Archetypal Theme: Transcendence; the cosmic egg; new life gestating within a sacred vessel; renewal of the evolutionary spiral.
• Graphic Manifestation: An oval or egg nestled within the center, gentle spirals ascending, soft pastels combined with radiant center light.
• Psychological Correlate: Spiritual rebirth, recovery from trauma, renewed sense of purpose, emergence into a higher level of conscious integration.

Spatial Topography, Directional Movement, and Color Symbolism

Beyond the specific archetypal stage, the MARI evaluates how the client organizes imagery within the circular container:

Spatial Quadrants of the Mandala

Kellogg mapped the circle into four primary quadrants intersecting at the central axis (axis mundi):

• Upper-Right Quadrant: Represents future orientation, external agency, father/authority archetypes, and conscious striving. Imagery concentrated here indicates ambition, goal focus, or defensive intellectual escape into future planning.
• Upper-Left Quadrant: Represents the past, maternal heritage, intuitive wisdom, and internalized childhood introjects. Concentration here signifies contemplation, nostalgia, or fixation on past traumatic experiences.
• Lower-Left Quadrant: Represents somatic instincts, the physical body, archaic unconscious memories, and biological survival. Imagery anchored here reflects visceral physical concerns, trauma stored in the body, or deep instinctual grounding.
• Lower-Right Quadrant: Represents practical manifestation, concrete interpersonal relationships, and tangible action in the physical world. Focus here reflects execution, hands-on labor, and daily relational living.
• The Center: Represents the core Self, spiritual epicenter, and personal identity. An open, radiant center indicates access to inner resources; a heavily fortified or blocked center indicates intense defense around core vulnerability; a black hole or void at the center reflects inner emptiness or depersonalization.

Directionality and Movement

• Clockwise Movement (Sunwise / Deosil): Represents natural developmental progression, outward engagement, forward movement through time, and conscious evolution.
• Counter-Clockwise Movement (Widdershins): Represents psychological regression, introspection, return to unresolved past trauma, involution, or reclaiming disowned instinctual material.

Archetypal Color Symbolism in the MARI

Color choices paired with symbols provide vital diagnostic indicators regarding affective regulation and energy distribution:

• Red: Physical vitality, instinctual drive, passion, anger, survival energy, or acute stress.
• Yellow: Intellectual consciousness, clarity, optimism, expansiveness, or manic flight.
• Blue: Tranquility, emotional peace, communication, maternal nurturance, or depressive withdrawal.
• Green: Growth, healing, biological balance, physical health, or envy/poison.
• Orange: Creative fertility, sensuality, social warmth, or restless excitation.
• Purple / Violet: Spiritual aspiration, royal authority, mystical intuition, or grief and mourning.
• Black: The unconscious void, shadow, mystery, protection, boundary defense, or severe depression.
• White: Purity, transcendent spirit, new potential, or shock, numbness, and emotional vacancy.
• Gray: Ambivalence, neutralization, cognitive indecision, detachment, or psychological exhaustion.

Comprehensive Matrix: The Great Round of the Mandala

The following clinical matrix details the 12 stages (+ Stage 0) of the Great Round, summarizing archetypal symbols, graphic features, and diagnostic relevance:

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Clinical Application in Art Therapy Assessment and Treatment

Assessment of Life Crises and Developmental Transitions

The MARI is uniquely valuable in clinical settings because it does not pathologize distress. Instead of diagnosing an individual at Stage 10 (Gates of Death) or Stage 11 (Fragmentation) with a static depressive or anxiety disorder, the MARI contextualizes their suffering within a natural, archetypal cycle of transformation. A client mourning the death of a spouse or navigating divorce is naturally located at Stage 10 (letting go) or Stage 11 (dissolution); the therapeutic task is not to suppress these symptoms, but to support the psyche through the cycle toward Stage 12 (regeneration) and a renewed cycle of life.

The Rejected Card: Unveiling the Shadow

The card that the client actively rejects during Phase 2 provides profound clinical insight into the Jungian shadow:

• Rejecting a Stage 5 (Target) card often reveals an inability or refusal to set boundaries, fear of anger, or deep-seated people-pleasing defenses.
• Rejecting a Stage 10 (Gates of Death) card indicates intense death anxiety, terror of aging, or stubborn denial of grief.
• Rejecting a Stage 2 (Bliss) card may indicate severe attachment trauma, where intimacy and closeness are experienced as dangerous and suffocation-inducing.

Ethical and Diagnostic Boundaries on the ATR-BC Exam

• No Reductionist Labeling: Art therapists must never use the MARI as a rigid, cookbook typing system. The Great Round represents dynamic psychic movement; an individual's state may evolve across multiple stages within weeks or months.
• Dialectical Collaboration: The therapist never imposes archetypal meanings onto the client. Interpretation must always emerge through the client's own subjective associations with their chosen symbol-color pairings.