Reflections on Another Self - Season 2

The first season of Another Self had a lot of success and although it never explicitly said , "This is Family Constellation work by Bert Hellinger," it was clear that that was the baseline for the series and what so much of the script revolved around.

This first season had a lot of success so not long after its release, we heard news of a second and third season. This week - July 11, 2024 - Season 2 was launched. I've been under the weather myself and it was a good excuse to watch it... all. Yes I watched it all in a few days! In this season, the name Constellations wasn't hidden nor was the name Bert Hellinger, who was quoted two times. Originally in Turkish and translated as "Expansion Circles," I think this is a great translation for what we do in Constellation work, look for expansion instead of contraction, which is where the trauma stays tangled up and repeats and impacts our lives. By expanding, we are untangling. We are creating more space for Life, and especially for one's authentic Life, which means freedom from the influences of the past.

I wanted to reflect about a few things in Season 2, mostly the style of Constellations that are portrayed in the series. Constellation work has evolved a lot from its earlier versions. Additionally, each facilitator has the freedom to find and express their own styles. Considering this, it's important to know that there isn't just one form of Constellation work. There are some foundational principles for Constellations, such as the Orders of Love, which are the systemic laws that govern the work; however, the way of doing a Constellation varies a lot from one facilitator to the next.

Taking all of that into consideration, the style of Constellations shown in the series can appear like "magic" to someone who has never seen this. "Stand and you'll know what you represent," says the facilitator Zaman in the series. The representative chosen stands and connects to the role and sure enough begins to react or even seen images that connect to a story of the seeker. There is no interview, nor any dialog on the purpose for doing the Constellation, yet it's related to the issue the character is living in their life each time.

From my experience, this is much closer to the final work of Bert Hellinger, the Spirit Mind Constellations, than any other form or evolution of Constellation work. Few representatives around chosen, resources aren't used, and the trust is given entirely to the Field to show what is most needed for the seeker and their family system. This does sound like magic, for how does the Field know what to bring us to?

The Field we work with in Constellation work is the greatest mystery of all. The work of the representatives, those who connect to the Field, is incomprehensible truly unless you experience it for yourself. This is why Constellation work is experiential. To explain the phenomena, one can refer to the Field as a Morphic Field, if you prefer the scientific explanations, or as a Quantum Field, which holds all the information for what we have lived and what those before us lived. As Constellations is truly an approach that works in Service to Life, the images shown are related to those that are troubling the characters lives most in the moment, and this is what the series portrays.

This type of Constellation work does exist, and according to Hellinger in the end, it was the way and the Constellations before it were less relevant, even "dead." This is a bold statement for his own work, and it's proven to be very controversial in the larger Constellation community. Many didn't follow him to this final work, which is why many don't practice this type of Constellation today. There are many considerations to be made if you practice this type of Constellation. For one, working with an experienced group, experienced representatives, is essential in my opinion and that isn't always the case in Circles when newcomers attend.

For anyone watching the series and captivated by what happens, this is true and can happen in any form of Constellation practiced. Working another way with some talking beforehand and intention setting can bring equally surprising results in the Field. Working phenomenologically is part of Constellation work, which means we use and value any phenomena that shows up in the moment, whether it's something a representative says/experiences or something from the outside world, like the weather or animal sounds that might happen in the moment.

Season 2 touches on the skepticism around Constellation work too, which isn't a method proven scientifically. Ada, the medical doctor who herself was greatly skeptical in Season 1, gets a lot of judgment and criticism from her medical profession for believing in these "unorthodox ways." I appreciate the series for addressing this real issue. How do you prove healing like this? Only the seeker, the Issue Holder, can be the judge of that. I also appreciate the series for being realistic when it comes to health matters. It was implied in Season 1 that Sevgi, the character with cancer, was cured due to Constellation work and this is not what the show was saying. It gives caution and realism in fact to the seriousness of health, and that work like this can be complementary but not the cure for all things.

Season 2 also brings more attention to Zaman, the facilitator, and his own life. For having a troubled relationship with his son, he is later judged for not having his own "waters" clear before working with others' waters (family systems). Any facilitator drawn to lead this work has had their own stories to work through, and continue to work through. For anyone looking for a saviour, they may look to Zaman and think they've found it but he is a man, a human, like all the others in the Circles with him. No one is bigger than the great force of Life. A facilitator is one who is some steps ahead, with more experience working int he Field, and more experience working through (and continuing to work through) their own trauma.

Constellation work in its essence is about us and our connection to Life. If we are working in Service to Life, it's about building trust that Life can meet us in the ways we most need. Facilitators and therapists are there to guide, to guide you back to your own Life. Life is the real teacher. Season 2: I thought it was wonderful and look forward to Season 3. It was entertaining yet quite factual for the wonderful work of Family & Systemic Constellations.