Enlightenment Through Dollieh

[mica]

I asked the person who wrote this permission to post on my doll forum,
so here it is...
http://www.botgirl.com/2012/08/confession-of-faith.html

Quote- "She has saved me from a life of emptiness. I am truly one of the blessed"

[TatsuKitty]

Hmm it's kinda both of those, but it's also a good bit worrisome as the poster seems to believe that their doll is either a manifestestion of Deity or has absorbed Deity in some manner. Saving from a life of emptiness is well and good, because the hobby is a very fufilling one, but not looking anywhere else in life for Deity is a bit...I think isolated?

[Anderson'sAllPurpose]

Hmm it's kinda both of those, but it's also a good bit worrisome as the poster seems to believe that their doll is either a manifestestion of Deity or has absorbed Deity in some manner. Saving from a life of emptiness is well and good, because the hobby is a very fufilling one, but not looking anywhere else in life for Deity is a bit...I think isolated?

Well, the artist did tag the post "abnormal psychology" Also I think it's supposed to be her A.I. alter ego speaking? Maybe it's a perfectly healthy attitude for a bot!

[TatsuKitty]

It might be perfectly healthy for a bot, yeah. XD

[mica]

I know some who are quite lonely but for their dolls........
I feel mine are more than just a 'toy'

[magkelly]

I'm not of a particular religion but I have a sort of house altar where I put things that move me spiritually. There are dolls on there. They represent various archetypes that resonate with me. Dolls actually came about from religious activities. Everyone knows about the infamous Voodoo dolls that are a part of the practice of Voudun and but there are fetish dolls across many cultures and faiths. Find an ancient fetish doll and you're basically finding a little piece of someone's soul from back then.

Yes, dolls were used as children's toys too, but they were very important things in religious ceremonies too. I have both dolls that I play with and I have dolls that are spiritual objects for me. I've often thought that the reason some people get freaked out by dolls is because subconsciously there's this primal link between dolls and the darker side of our psyche. People that are more comfortable with exploring that part of the within I think as a general rule tend not to be quite so afraid of dolls.

My dolls, they're all over the place and I don't feel quite comfortable without them being around at this stage. It's like they are the guardian angels of my house. I don't see them as little tiny Gods, but I do see them as being spiritual objects of a sort and they definitely do provide me with solace and help me to get into the zen space in my mind sometimes. The act of creating for them, playing with them, it's very cathartic sometimes.

I'm an adult but I still have a strong need to "play" probably because I never really had much of a childhood. My "inner child" needs the dolls, needs the therapy of playtime. I'm so much the adult when it comes to the rest of my life. I have to take care of everyone else so much that it can be hard at times. It's nice to have that "me" time, to be able to play like kid sometimes. I do it far more as an adult than I ever did as a kid actually. I was pretty much a little grown up when I was a kid. So I guess it's pretty appropriate that now that I am officially one part of me is now able to actually be a kid. Through playing with dolls I get my childhood back. This has been a very healthy thing for me.

[Yanagi-sen]

I'm a practicing Druid (member of ADF) and as such I like to have representations of my patron deities on my home altar/shrine. The nice thing about 1/6 obitsu is that I can do face-up/body art, make the clothing, find the accessories... and they won't take up a lot of space. I think in many ways this is better than purchasing an already finished sculpture that is someone else's interpretation of that deity.

Currently I have the Morrighan finished, with blue woad body designs and a spear and am working on Mielikki. The true test will be Ganesha.

As for absorbing deity... many cultures and traditions believe inanimate/manmade objects can become imbued with spirits, Japanese Shinto for one. These dolls are so life like... why WOULDN'T something move in?

[Nelly19]

It does seem a little like idol worship, but I can understand where the author is coming from. Before my doll hobby I was a ticking time bomb. I was stressed breaking out and depressed ready to slit wrists if possible. I found out about the hobby and ordered my 25cm obi. It was
Ike a whole new therapy to me, I could go outside and face the whole day knowing that the end I could go home in my quiet place and tinker...finish this new person I was making. The fact that she was so small, made me focus. Things didn't seem so dark anymore and in my mind I had to live to finish her. It's not so bad anymore good friends and coworkers have made it a hobby and not a purpose, but she sure did carry me through a bleak time. I am more bubbly nd finding my way now. If I ever get in that Pitt I start a new doll project whether it's clothes making, or finding minatures which means I have to go out browsing.
So I could understand if the hobby 'saved' some people. Cause it saved me from myself

[mica]

It makes me happy that you guys can see the humor and the serious side of this post.
She wrote it to be "over the top" and yet not....
I am also an adult who didn't have dolls as a child but feel that everything around me has 'feelings'.
I also have been healed by having these little guys in my life of caregiving for my elderly parents.
Thinking of them being there, sewing for them, thinking of photos I could take is a great distraction for my brain.
Why not say that "I am blessed"