What are the Dolmens ...Silent About?

      SOL Magazine Issue # 6 Winter 2010.

      By Yuri Smirnov

A Journey to our culture's pristine origins.

         "Do not be afraid of death. Your soul is like a bird that escapes the cage of life."

For ten days in September of 2009, a small international group undertook a specially organized ten-day pilgrimage to the dolmens of the Gelendzhik region of Russia and returned with full hearts.

The eight intrepid travelers who participated successfully in the adventure (six women and two men) hailed from numerous countries: Latvia, England, Canada, the Netherlands and South Africa. The participants shared how deeply impressed they were by connecting with the dolmens, their visit at the Schetinin Kin's school, and even participating in a Vedruss Festival. An off-road drive along the Black Sea to the “City of Dolmens” also left unforgettable impressions. The group was guided by Victoria Ivchenko (Vita), a gifted dolmen channel and the author of a remarkable book about dolmens (On the Path of Eternity), with the help of Oleg, a Russian-English interpreter.

Victoria Ivchenko:  

It was a very interesting group and very fascinating trip. On the day of their arrival, we took time out to complete all organizational details as soon as possible so that we could promptly leave for the nearby dolmen.

And soon we were on our way, climbing uphill. I was sorting out my thoughts to give a detailed explanation about the dolmens as soon as we would get to the top of the hill. Suddenly, the group rushed up as if they felt that the dolmen was nearby. I had not even had a chance to say anything before they had found it, surrounded it and began to embrace it as if it was a loved one. “No words are needed now,” I realized right then and there.

Everyone connected with the dolmen as they would with their dearest friend. There was no simple curiosity in their eyes at the sight of these ancient stones, but one gazed with tenderness, another with attentiveness and concentration. And everybody welcomed it! And what a joy was flowing back from the essence of the dolmen, as if the sacred stone wished to embrace all of them. I could feel it myself. One of the women bowed to it and kissed the stones: “I have come to pay my tribute to that great civilization, which used to flourish here! And to bow to every single dolmen! To thank the spirit of the dolmen for their deed and love to all of us!”

And already, the work had begun. Yes, yes, a dolmen starts to work with the feelings of each person. Maybe, there were even the spirits of many other dolmens present right there as well. Tears welled up in someone’s eyes, while someone else took up a pen to write down their thoughts, and I channeled the words that came flowing from the dolmen for someone else. My friend, who had assisted me during the day, sat down and played on his flute while a gentle charming music wafted into the forest. Later he told me: “It was not me, it was the dolmen who played that melody along with me”. After all that we ventured further…

A tiny stream which was flowing from a rock into the icy mountain river seemed to be waiting for us ahead. The stones under the brook had formed a sort of bathing bowl that was about chest-deep. This is a special place where it is said that one should dive in, head and all, three times, because "it cures one's body and soul." Frankly, I thought that no-one in my group would do that with the excuse that the water in the river was too cold to bathe in at 12 degrees Celsius! But everybody was only all too happy to dive in three times in a row.

We all simply gave ourselves to this wood, to the mountains and to the river with all our hearts! We simply "revealed" ourselves to everything that surrounded us, rejoiced and gave joy back to the world!

On the second day we went for an off-road jeep-ride to the “City of Dolmens”, where there are more than 20 dolmens. That place appeared to be a very important one for one of our women. She felt her husband from one of her past lives who went into this dolmen many thousands of years ago. There were both tears and joy… Archeologists were working nearby, and we had a chance to communicate with them as well.

On the way back we took a detour through the forest where they recently had dug out five more dolmens. For all of us this place appeared to be utterly magical. As if we had returned home. Here one of our men had very strong sensations and intercommunication with a dolmen for the first time. Plus, when he photographed this dolmen, we could clearly see an orb on the photograph. It was like an instant proof, a physical kind of certification of his communication. Further down the way, our group divided up - some went back to the hotel, and others decided to get to a remote dolmen standing apart from the others. We decided to stay there for about 15 minutes and then return, as it was getting late.

Lyudmila (a group participant) shared: I realized that I would not like to leave this dolmen yet! It felt like I should stay here a bit longer and communicate with its essence. I had mentally expressed my wish to the dolmen but I hesitated to say it out loud to the group.

The driver of the jeep: As 15-20 minutes passed beyond our agreement, I went to start the car. And… nothing happened! It looked like the engine was dead! As though it was not even my car that started up easily just half an hour ago. Well, it was not my first time to drive people to the dolmens and I said to myself: “Everything happens the way it should.” I did not even try to peer into the engine trying to fix it. I simply stepped aside and sat on a stone nearby the dolmen. For some reason nobody asked why we were not leaving. Everyone just stayed completely immersed in their inner sensations and communication with the dolmen. After awhile, as another 10-15 minutes had passed, I felt an impulse inside that said: "That’s it, we can go now." I approached the car, and although I hardly believed that it would suddenly be fine ... it started up at the very first turn of the key! I did experience somewhat of a shock and thought that the dolmen may have somehow influenced it so that we would stay longer.  

In the evening when the driver told this strange story to everybody again and again, Lyudmila admitted that it was she who expressed to the dolmen her wish to stay a little longer. "Oh, that’s what it was all about!" We all had a good laugh.

I wish to share one more amazing event. We were at the dolmen which people call “the Teacher and the Disciple” and suddenly I heard a melody in my mind and a very strong desire arose to sing it out loud. I started to hum it. Also I felt an impulse to call everyone together to make a circle. Some group members said that they had had the same feeling, and so we created a circle. The melody was not long, we all stood in a circle shoulder to shoulder and began to sing it. And suddenly I felt a feeling that followed the sounds. In the beginning it was a feeling of loss, then came a feeling of hope, then – moving forward, a soul impulse: joy, happiness.... We kept singing the same melody, but each time and with every new feeling we sang it in a slightly different tone. We all felt the same sensations, the ones that the spirit of the dolmen shared with us. It was an amazing sense of unity and bonding. One participant shed some tears. So many feelings! The dolmen had awakened long forgotten feelings in us....

Some feedback from tour participants:

Nirmala Nair (South Africa):

The trip was magical with all the ups and downs as any tours go. I was fascinated by the countryside, the extent of the dolmen heritage and its influence on local people. Schetinin's school was outstanding. Spent an entire day with the children at the school. I am determined to go back to the school for a more extensive period.

Dr. Eva Chapman (United Kingdom):

1. What surprised/affected you most in Russia?

(1) Tekos School, even more amazing than I thought; and...

(2) the spiritual power of the Dolmens. I wrote a story set in the future based at the Tekos School. It turned out to be uncannily similar and far better than I imagined. The energy and creativity in the place was phenomenal.

2. Your meeting with dolmens. Any special, unusual feelings, sensations?

The grandfather Dolmen near Shapshuga. This was the one that I was attracted to in the Space of Love Magazine. Vita had a vision of me being fed by my mother by this Dolmen long ago. The grandfather was ecstatic that I had returned. I was given the message: Do not be afraid of death. Your soul is like a bird that escapes the cage of life.

3. Please describe your personal experience with a certain dolmen.

I lay down on a Dolmen in a forest near Pshada. There was a cool breeze and I was worried that I might get cold and wished that I had something warm to cover my chest. At the very moment of my wish, a large black kitten leapt out of nowhere, onto my chest, snuggled into me and kept me lovely and warm for the next hour!!!! I am not even a cat person but this cat and I were totally in love with each other. I felt very healed by it and its warmth and love is exactly what I needed.

The Journey photo-report on YouTube

Off-Road drive to the ”City of Dolmens” 

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