Towards the Archetypes
Voice Dialogue advanced 2013, Crete
Recommendation by Erna Berghuizen (Netherlands):
‘A wonderful deep inner journey on a special location that contributes to the power of the journey, with respectful facilitators. You get all the space you need to welcome what presents itself! And that is quite a lot!’
Towards the Archetypes
Voice Dialogue advanced 2013, Crete
Personal experience of Diana Scambler (Australia):
‘I thought the overall program was extremely good. It seemed to me to be very well structured, e.g. the structure of the days: – the big group in the morning which provided holding, and a safe space to explore dreams and report in; and then a theory session, or activity, followed by lunch and then the chance for individual sessions + the opportunity for working in the atelier. Followed by a lovely dinner together. A great way to structure the days.
I found observing both you, Robert, and Maria, enormously useful and instructive, and of course also the facilitations you both gave me to be very powerful and skilled. I am still processing the material which emerged for me. And I greatly appreciated Maria’s session outdoors, the meditation in nature. Maria led this with skill and sensitivity – it had a big impact on me.
I found the excursions a brilliant way to experience the archetypes embedded in the Cretan landscape and in Greek history and mythology. And, I loved the way they followed each other: the first excursion down into the dark of the cave; then walking up through the fields of Enagron past the necropolis to Axos and into those Byzantine churches and then up to the Minoan ruins on the acropolis, seeing ancient remains of buildings, and writings even, of people from Homer’s time; next walking with the donkeys to the monastery, experiencing some of the rhythms of present Cretan life, and also the still-present history of the religious life there, and how the Greek Orthodox religion celebrates the Sacred; and finally the hike up to the heights where the shepherd’s hut was, with the sheep and goats, and in sight of the snow-capped mountains, the highest in Crete, up with the clouds and the eagles and vultures! Not quite Olympus but certainly rather similar, I felt, with ambrosial wine and food as well.’
Towards the Archetypes
Voice Dialogue advanced 2013, Crete
A personal experience by Elmer Goudsmit (Luxembourg)
“What makes this workshop so special, is the fact that the participants are all very experienced trainers, coaches and therapists, who have a pretty good idea of what they are looking for and don’t need much direction. With a group like that, Robert and Maria are at their best. They offer a loosely knitted program around a number of well-organized highlights. Their way of working is extremely flexible and adaptable to individual needs, enabling both a stimulating group process and highly individualized self exploration and development. That, together with the incredibly friendly and welcoming atmosphere in the Enagron resort, the stunningly beautiful landscape around Axos, the wonderful group dinners and a glimpse of the greek soul during what started as a musical evening and ended as a celebration of life itself, makes this a truly nourishing experience. In my line of work (psychiatrist/psychotherapist, but I imagine it is not much different for trainers and coaches), this is a great way to take care of ones own emotional, spiritual and worldly needs. I am surprised by the insights (and some completely new questions), which I took home from this workshop. They will feed me for a long time to come. A big thank you, also to Fernanda Abiuso, for providing a reliable bridge between the psychological work and greek mythology”
‘Towards the Archetypes’
Voice Dialogue advanced 2013, Crete
A personal experience by Thomas Kunzfeld (Germany):
The one-week-seminar „Towards the Archetypes“ with Robert Stamboliev, Maria Daniels and Fernanda Abiuso in Crete was great! Teachings, facilitations, artwork. Wonderful excursions into a huge cave, visiting an impressive priest/hermit in a one-man monastery (we didn´t have to carry our stuff – we used donkeys!), spending time with a shephard on a beautiful high plane and a long walk through the area with explanations about history and culture from a native. Great food (and lots of it in variety and quantity). A very nice group. It was a fantastic combination of deep process and holiday – if they ever offer it again I really recommend it !
‘Towards the Archetypes’
Voice Dialogue advanced 2011, Crete
A personal experience by Beatrice Cavallucci (Italy)
“I love Crete, for me it is certainly a sacred spot, perhaps the most sacred on the planet. That’s why I went again from Italy to Robert Stamboliev’s training on archetypes, at the age of 45, looking for the mysteries of my deeper nature. There you can walk the labyrinth, go down inside the cave and then go up to the mountains, vibrating with the energy of the earth and of the myth.
“Robert Stamboliev does remarkable work; he is able to lead people into a direct experience of the archetypes and, perhaps, even into other dimensions”, as Sidra Stone says. And I can add that he can easily help you to expand your consciousness while drinking ouzo, dancing sirtaki and even arguing with a donkey! My experience with him inviting in the energy of the Organizing Intelligence of the Universe has been powerful and deep. When you work at this level the less spoken the better. I’m definitely happy to have shared this experience with him and my journey towards the archetypes is something sacred for me to treasure and to keep with me forever.”
Beatrice Cavallucci
Counselor Relazionale & Coach
‘Towards the Archetypes’
Voice Dialogue advanced, 2010, Crete
On the Crete experience by Robert Wolfe (Netherlands)
“Crete was an amazing experience. Not just because the island, the mountain village and the history are truly amazing… but mainly because of the transformational work we did. Four months later I can still feel the effects of it. What happens when a group of experienced Voice Dialogue coaches join forces for a week in a spectacular place, both in terms of views and of energy…? Well first of all the energies and minds of all these people create a collective consciousness that is like a mixing bowl for the ingredients that will help the particular transformational process you wish to focus on in this period. It is more than a backdrop or a sounding board, it becomes a platform to start from and a source of the polarities and support you may need to progress further in your private process. With the ancient powers of the Cretan earth and the archetypes together with the skill and insights of the people there, the odds of you making serious steps along whatever path is yours are certainly in your favour. Add to that the fantastic place and warm embrace of the people there, and you will, like myself, most certainly be back again.”
‘Towards the Archetypes’
Voice Dialogue advanced, 2008, Crete
A personal experience by Fernanda Abiuso (Italy)
“The title sounded interesting, and so does the location: Greece, the real mythological place, where Gods and Goddesses were generated and where – in a cave in Crete – they say Juppiter was born. So the proposal stimulated my curiosity and was attractive to me. And there I went.
I was already familiar with Jean S: Bolen’s works about Goddesses and Gods , and Carol S. Pearson’s hero inside us. The books from the bibliography have added consistency and continuity to myths, historical tales and autobiographies. I have enjoyed them all, finding common elements among all the stories created by man in different times, places and religions. All this has been enriched by a deeper exploration of levels of meaning of the myths, which possess an enormous potential to investigate, which might widen mental knowledge and personal experience.
The resort tells the story of its inhabitants through its buildings, furniture, agricultural products, food. Here we were welcomed by the spontaneity and complicity of the people running the place and working there, who fed us with the rich tastes of their land, we gratefully honoured. We were in international group of participants and teachers. The last day feedback allowed all the emotions, sometimes strong ones, to come out. And , as it always happens at the end, we realized we went through a certain number of body and psyche changes triggered by the work, the place, the circumstances, the group of people we were there with.
We explored the land: from the clay we have then given back, to nature, countryside and olive trees, to the depth of a cave, and to a still buried archeological site and temple to Venus. And, overlooked by a tiny monastery on top of the hill, we created a stone labyrinth for our meditations. Also we practised with archetypes inside us. The small village nearby has not less than 30 churches! Small Orthodox ones. I believe the place must have a great energy in itself, which was definitely perceived by those who, in the past have built them. We tried to feel this connection with this creative and nurturing land. And we also found out that the rooms of the resort had mythological names that had some correspondence with what we have experienced there!
My trip started from the idea of ” essence” . Through a contact with my own death, I moved to a vital energy eager to explore further potentials, to complete my task here. Death and life, then, simplify and see clear, an the need of a legacy to leave , pointed out by my archetypal teacher. Though Crete is more than a month away, I still reap the benefit of your program. I connected with a deep, grounding energy that serves me well when I am in doubts about myself. I would like to thank you for the great program – I enjoy the rythm – although in someways open and relaxed in other ways quite intense and allowing for deep work. I enjoyed the variety of approaches – the visits to the sites – the dance – the labyrinth, the energy work and stretching in VD and not to forget the art work and masks. They allowed us to get in touch with ourselves in a variety of ways.”
‘Towards the Archetypes’
Advanced Voice Dialogue Intensive, September 2008, Crete
A personal experience by Liesbeth Halbertsma (Netherlands)
“The group consisted of people from various countries with their own languages and cultures. We talked to each other in English, but that does not mean that there was immediate understanding…
It was very interesting to experience how talking and listening to each other with awareness, really added depth to the group. What is she saying now? What do I hear?
This concentration on ‘conversation’ made us become more fundamentally close as a group, in a ‘being together’ where there was room for everybody and room for the outside world as well. It was amazing to watch the development of this group!”
‘Towards the Archetypes’
Advanced Voice Dialogue Intensive, September 2008 on Crete
Feedback by Catherine Wuillaume (USA)
”Dear Robert,
I appreciate also your style of leadership – taking the lead at times when necessary to be the focal point and allowing the rest of the time spaces for anyone else to come in, very in tuned with the environmental energy of the group. Thank you also for all the preparation work – websites of Crete, venues, readings, negotiation of hotel prices etc which allowed me to prepare well in advance and get into the feeling of the place well ahead.
Thank you also to Maria, Franca and Margreet – each of their contribution and “beings” were rooted and very special. Back in the US I am still working on what to do next !! Not easy to still feel in the labyrinth – but in the meantime I am learning a lot about myself.”
