The Archetype of INITIATION
Seminar Series
A paradigm shifting model: The Childbearing Year as Initiation
for all birth story listeners, midwives, doulas, therapists, and mothers
INITIATION MEANS "TO BEGIN." We unwittingly begin when Something within us is suddenly set into motion, or when we find ourselves in the Belly of the Whale. A seemingly unfortunate, unfair situation can allow us to reach a new understanding and come to Self-Love. We have all participated in social ceremonies, such as weddings or graduations. But, when Grace or Fate creates a situation that cracks us open and brings us to our knees, we experience the full transformative power of Initiation. Once the initiation is complete, we can reflect on it as a milestone in our lives. We might say, "Before [that] happened, I was ____, or I believed ____. But that experience profoundly changed me; I now know Something I could not have known otherwise."
Colorful, ancient symbolic language
describes and maps the Archetype of Initiation
and stirs your imagination
into envisioning what is possible
and brings about a shift in your consciousness
that will allow you to participate in the
childbearing year as a Journey of Initiation
(as the initiate or the mentor).
"In the Belly of the Whale" Watercolor by Pam England, ©2023
When we find ourselves "in the belly of a whale,"--it means there is nothing more we can do but completely surrender, enter the still point, and experience a profound metamorphosis.
Over the decades, we have all listened to countless parents struggle to name Something they felt was missing in their childbearing experience. Despite studying hard, they didn't find the kind of inner knowledge they sought in their frantic search for medical information. In their misguided positive intentions to "trust birth," they entered the unknown naively, unprepared to participate in or understand childbirth as an initiatory experience.
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Phases of initiation
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Archetypal Guardian and Thresholds
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On sacred, ritual space and liminality
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When trauma becomes initiation
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Initiatory myths, poetry, and symbolism
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The psycho-spiritual map of an initiatory process or journey
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Alchemical transfiguration: the gift of Initiation
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Finding meaning in the unavoidable tragic triad of life
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Imagine the archetype of Initiation being the foundation of birth preparation.
"We are not human beings having a spiritual experience.
We are spiritual beings having a human experience."​
' Pierre Teilhard de Chardin
Seven Paradigm Shifting Seminars
Wednesdays, February 5 to March 12, 2025
10:00 am to 11:30 am PST
$123.60
