DANCING THE ARCHETYPES

Story and Photos by Raydiance Joy Grace

A Moveable Feast:

The Pavilion at HAAS 

Saturday, August 30th 

Dancing the Archetypes workshop is a tour de force in understanding the work of Carl Jung, exploring how the Cardinal Archetypes show up in our culture and in our daily lives. Are we really living the hero/heroine’s journey, or are we constantly acting out from our shadow side of saboteur/victim?  William Shakespeare said in his play As You Like It! :

“All the world’s a stage,

And all the men and women merely players;

They have their exits and their entrances.

And one man in his time plays many parts.”

What actor/actress shows up in your life as one of the Cardinal Archetypes? Are you a Lover, Warrior, Magician, or Sovereign? Michael Bonahan is a masterful facilitator of the exploration of the Cardinal Archetypes. Jungian archetypes are a concept from psychology that refers to a universal, inherited idea, pattern of thought, or image that is present in the collective unconscious of all human beings.

CARL JUNG’S CHARTS: THE ARCHETYPAL BALANCE OF THE MAGICIAN, THE WARRIOR THE SOVEREIGN,AND THE LOVER.

Robert Golden’s introduction connected the theme of the Moveable Feast to today’s presentation. “Puna Rising envisions itself as a 21st-century commons that engages and uplifts all members of the community.” Puna Rising has been a virtual commons. We want to create a physical common: Puna Ola: A Community Resource Hub. Ola means wellspring in Hawaiian. The Moveable Feast Presentations is the first step to that objective — of taking over the old Malama Market building. We have been stirring the creative pot of Puna with over 30 events. We are an incubator for Puna, helping individuals and organizations uplift their dreams. We are creating a community, bringing residents together in new configurations.”

In the “Dancing the Archetypes” workshop, Michael gave an overview of the Universal Archetypes, mainly exploring the Four Cardinal Archetypes and their Shadows. The workshop was a balance between verbal explanation and experiential learning. Michael introduced Shadow Work as a Healing Modality, demonstrating  Shadow Work in the Archetypal Range. We got to then act out the “Reclaiming Yourself Process” with guided instructions from Michael as we became our 3 selves, including our original self, our wounded self, and our defended self. The exercises included standing in the center of the room and acting out through movement or body posture the qualities of the “Archetypes”!

This workshop is ideal for anyone interested in knowing more about the subconscious Archetypes that run your reactions to life and the way we behave in our daily lives. The combination of verbal explanation and experiential learning kept each participant alert to moving through the actions requested by Michael and his assistant. I highly recommend finding out when the next “Dancing The Archetypes” workshop is going to be presented by contacting Michael Bonahan at wisdomwindfall.com.

Michael was the founding national board chair of Boys to Men USA and is a Certified Leader Trainer for the ManKind Project. He is a certified business coach and group facilitator for transformational processes, including Gestalt, in-utero regression, transpersonal connection, and systemic constellation therapies. Michael has been the managing partner of more than a dozen successful companies. He is a co-author and a Lead-Facilitator of “Power, Privilege, and Difference in the Workplace” (PPDW). 

The following is an interview I conducted with Michael Bonahan. The bold designates questions asked by Raydiance Joy Grace of Michael Bonahan.

1. How did you first discover Carl Jung’s archetypes? “I first discovered Carl Jung’s archetypes when I was studying Jungian Dreamwork and shadow work around 2002.”

2. What inspired you to start teaching Dancing the Archetypes as a workshop? “I realised that universal archetypes were valuable tools for personal self-discovery. If we were only aware of the universal patterns and energy that exist in all beings, especially ourselves, we could become more aware of our shadows and the impact of our behaviors.”

3. How did you pick the 4 Cardinal Archetypes from the 12 Jungian Archetypes? “Those are archetypes that are commonly used and associated with the Mankind Project. I started teaching the archetypes at MKP, but I didn’t realize the opportunity of supporting people in their personal discoveries until I became a certified leader and trainer in the Mankind Project.”

4. What exercise from the workshop can you recommend doing as a regular practice? “I can’t really emphasize enough to remember that 3 parts of ourselves, the 3 selves, including your original self, your wounded self, and your defended self, are often merged into one. So many times we get distracted and think of ourselves as only oneself when there are actually 3 different parts of us.”

5. Would you recommend doing that through self-inquiry? “Yeah, I’ve been essentially just reflecting on the qualities that exist naturally in those 3 selves, so you could do it as a meditation, or a guided meditation, or you could do it by journaling. Keep a journal about what’s coming up for you.”

6. Is there an overall message that participants can take home that you would like to share? “I think the main message is that it is important to remember our shadows lie in the archetypical range and that we primarily are either too much one of these archetypes or not enough of various subconscious archetypical energies, and the goal is to stay in balance.”

7. Are you available for private sessions? “Yes, we do coaching and purpose management. Executive coaching has a lot of personal coaching and that’s what we focus on.” 

8. What is the best way to contact you?

Michael at wisdomwindfall.com