tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-861954312536630502024-02-21T22:37:48.220-08:00mythic musingA look at life from a liminal perspective. Both my medical condition (myalgic encephalomyalitis) and my intuitive abilities are examples of liminal conditions. Liminality is the realm of tricksters, ambiguity, "betwixt and between"(ala Victor Turner). My body is not fully alive and my psyche has awareness of more than one realm. Though this is a subjective view, my hope is that it can benefit others by being placed in a larger perspective such as mythic, Jungian, transformative, or spiritual.d pagehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995942283966564206noreply@blogger.comBlogger56125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86195431253663050.post-91171820511081998072011-05-05T13:28:00.000-07:002011-05-05T14:01:48.430-07:00Hiatus Due to the condition of my health, I am forced to stop doing almost everything... except manage my illness. I am very upset about this, but I can do nothing but surrender to the truth. The truth is that the daily maintenance of my body in it's current condition is a full time job. This means I will be taking a break from blogging both here and on <a href="http://lifeinneverwell.blogspot.com/">Life in Neverwell</a>.<br />
I am going to try to work a little on<a href="http://quintessiasjourney.blogspot.com/"> Quintessia's Journey</a>, if I can.<br />
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During the course of my 30 year oddessy with this amalgamation of immune disorder(s), ME/CFS, etc. (see my other blog, <a href="http://lifeinneverwell.blogspot.com/2009/12/it-all-began.html">Life in Neverwell</a> for clarification), I have tried everything to change my condition. I've done all the New Age "think yourself well" programs (which lead to me ignoring symptoms in an effort to will myself healthy. Silly of me. And dangerous.) I had extensive counseling and analysis, which showed this was not a psycho-somatic in origin. I've participated in experimental drug trials. I have spent $10,000's at an environmental clinic, purifying my body. I have met with authentic shamans, psychics, and gifted healers. I also became a Reiki Master in 2000. I have tried supplements, herbs and peculiar diets (I am NOT allergic to gluten). I have tried almost everything (within reason) to bring my body to wellness.<br />
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I feel it's important for people to realize that being chronically ill is not a failure on the part of the sick person. The idea that there is "something out there, but you just haven't found it" is also useless. No one wants to be this debilitated, to live a half-life. All of us with chronic illness are doing the best we can with what we have.<br />
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So.... in the spirit of living the truth, I am admitting that I need to withdraw from putting my attention <i>anywhere</i>, but on the needs of my poor sick body. It's the least I can do for it.<br />
If I should improve or have a reprieve, I be back at this blog.<br />
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I want thank everyone for the good wishes, prayers and healing rituals. Those efforts are not lost in the bigger picture. Compassion never is lost, even if we don't see the result of our actions.d pagehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995942283966564206noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86195431253663050.post-44813028436473920722011-04-14T13:26:00.000-07:002011-04-14T13:26:14.171-07:00Planetary Empaths & Reindeer People<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV9J2LCD49420TdzWUfYq5W2rdHozTmmx95tKmaKHfT-6LOGKFksERcC2wsVYJwR6V74W5o1LhreleDCDJM50qyu1otmghkyN7Rd6Xq8dgHjh6uRhOryK1nHjNO66tUSPhxKzp7k8emgs/s1600/reindeerpeople.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV9J2LCD49420TdzWUfYq5W2rdHozTmmx95tKmaKHfT-6LOGKFksERcC2wsVYJwR6V74W5o1LhreleDCDJM50qyu1otmghkyN7Rd6Xq8dgHjh6uRhOryK1nHjNO66tUSPhxKzp7k8emgs/s1600/reindeerpeople.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Susan Seddon Boulet</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
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Although I was born intuitive and empathetic, nothing prepared me for how those qualities would progress through life. It was in early 1990’s that I began to notice that my intuitive flashes were expanding to include world events. The curious thing about this was that it was translated into body symptoms. Occasionally, a dream or a dream or vision (like watching a movie) would accompany the symptoms, but this was not the norm. I would feel a strong grief & heartache days prior to a world event. This would be almost crippling. I kept wondering: “What is wrong with me?” Then I began to notice a pattern. The grief episodes would precede and event, and disappear when the event happened: Princess Diana’s death, the beginning of the Gulf war, the Columbine school shootings, the Virginia Tech school shootings and the housing market debacle. <br />
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In 2004 there was an abrupt change in these abilities (To read about this event click here.) I started hearing a range of tones in my left ear, accompanied by a range of symptoms: dizziness, vertigo, headaches, bleeding in the ears, heart palpitations, strong feelings of foreboding, pressure in the head. I did go to my Dr. and had everything checked out. There was no explanation. A pattern emerged: approximately 1-4 days prior to an earthquake or volcanic eruption, the left ear would ring. Then came the other symptoms. The symptoms would disappear after the event- unless there was more to come. My other symptoms remained: I was bedridden the day prior, and the day of the Easter Quake (2010 Baja California) which also caused the ground beneath my home to move. I lived three months after that with the feeling of living on water, like standing on a dock with constant rocking. This event was also preceded by bleeding in my ears. (I went straight to the doctors with this. After a full exam they could offer no explanation. “Yes, we see the blood, but there doesn’t seem to be a source. You don’t have brain tumor.”) I received warning about the cataclysm in Japan , without knowing where it would happen. This scenario has not finished playing out. Though I didn’t have inner ear symptoms, I did have a lucid dream and body symptoms preceding the Gulf Oil Spill. This is another event that hasn’t completed it’s cycle.<br />
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It was through Trish and Rob MacGregor’s blog <i>Synchronicity </i>(now called<a href="http://www.synchrosecrets.com/synchrosecrets/"> Synchroscrets</a>) that I found others like me. Trish and Rob coined the term “<a href="http://www.synchrosecrets.com/synchrosecrets/?p=461">Planetary Empaths</a>” on March 11, 2010 to describe the group of us that were having similar symptoms prior to cataclysmic events. From then on I have been looking at theories to explain what an planetary empath is. What are the empaths connected to? Why is it happening? Is it evolutionary? A few of the empaths have asked this question repeatedly “ <i>Why are we given enough details to know something horrific is to occur, but not enough information to doing anything about it?</i>” I have often noticed that I didn’t know what the meaning of the dream or vision was until the actual event was unfolding. Why? What is the use of this?<br />
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Though I have always been somewhat psychic, I equate my empathic abilities (in so far as they are connected to the earth) with the arrival of an image I called <a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/03/reindeer-goddess-axis-mundi-axis-shifts.html">Reindeer Woman</a>. (I have blogged about my search to uncover who or what this image is, to read the fist in the sequence, click here.) This is how I came to be recently re-reading a book by author <a href="http://www.spri.cam.ac.uk/people/vitebsky/">Peter Vitebsky</a>, <i><u>The Reindeer People: Living with Animals and Spirits in Siberia</u></i>. It has been full of synchronistic insights for me, both in regards to Reindeer Woman, and the work of a planetary empath.<br />
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Vitebsky documents his conversations with the Eveny, “The Reindeer People“. They show him how important the nightly dreams of the tribe or group are to their survival. The dreams warn them about changes in the environment, or about death and illness. The dreams tell them when they are out of balance with the “spirit of the place”, or with their reindeer herds. Yet, notes Vitebsky, the dreams themselves “<i>put up impenetrable barriers to any understanding before it’s fulfillment</i>.” (Vitebsky/2005,pg 298) And “<i>the meaning of the dream revealed itself with shocking clarity when it was fulfilled. It was as if the dream was taunting the dreamer with her helplessness.</i>” (IBID) The tribe’s answer this conundrum, through time, has been to develop systems of divination that clarifies the dream. The tribe also has group dreams, shared between 2 or more members. They explained to Vitebsky that while there existed group or conventional dream symbols, each dreamer has symbols that mean certain things specifically to that dreamer. Some members of the tribe will have bodily symptoms preceding specific events. When the camp had an encounter with a hungry wolf, Vitebsky reported , “Later I found out Granny had felt a twitch the previous day in her <i>left cheek , on the side that indicated something bad will happen</i>.” (Vitebsky/2005 pg 344) (Italics mine: myself and other empaths have report a particular tone or ringing in the <i>left </i>ear only prior to a quake, or volcanic eruption.) The camp's pets and herds also gave warning prior to important events. Even the arrival of strangers is preceded days in advance by animals of the tribe.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqHPwu1Dk9F1HbU8gt6J7IIQxDhgZg-ukAGQ-6z4NO-aV5LFkI-KkEW7yaMP9S82ohXPwn5FXiNV92L6dsuHsKWWB5bhhCU1kbWRkdboBU62MAaaX2UsI9QZUFJypouXZwXjfb3o6cFFc/s1600/reindeer-people-siberia_306x199.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqHPwu1Dk9F1HbU8gt6J7IIQxDhgZg-ukAGQ-6z4NO-aV5LFkI-KkEW7yaMP9S82ohXPwn5FXiNV92L6dsuHsKWWB5bhhCU1kbWRkdboBU62MAaaX2UsI9QZUFJypouXZwXjfb3o6cFFc/s1600/reindeer-people-siberia_306x199.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">From the cover of <i><u>The Reindeer People</u></i>, by Vitebsky</td></tr>
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In an attempt to "civilize" the nomadic Eveny people during the Russian Revolution of the 1920‘s, the shamans of the tribe were removed. Most were never seen again. Yet, the living field (described as spirits of the land, animals, trees, creatures and ancestors) that the Eveny people communicate with is still talking to them, through dreams, their pets and herds, and through their bodies. Vitebsky’s wife came to visit him at the Eveny camps Sally, a psychologist from England “<i>came to feel that the land had sent her dreams even while she was still in England</i>.” (IBID). <br />
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For me, this example- the Eveny people - gives a possible explanation of what the phenomena of being an earth empath may be and how it may work. It seems that there is no future if humans completely cut themselves off from this "living field”. Traditionally, this living field<i> calls</i> the few it will communicate with. These individuals don’t have a choice: they have to listen. Since we no longer have a place for the traditional role of the shaman in our culture, it will be interesting to witness how this relationship between the unseen living field and the humans it chooses to interact with will continue to develop. It would also appear that for our postmodern planetary empaths, the field has expanded: we are dreaming the world's events, not just our own locale.<br />
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A very ancient path being fused to the post-modern world…..d pagehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995942283966564206noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86195431253663050.post-52059951915390593872011-03-13T14:37:00.000-07:002011-03-13T14:37:15.945-07:00A Healing Experience with "The Grays"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqZVnbKYXK0vQPt8LLdwBGPP9Ydn_uFBWDl1dk5OhLxuDDV09xyHW0jcij1drTU2Tjlng8V_Sok0ThrZ6o-41fAVGPzFHJAP2Krf2cX2h0HQbHt-OHTqcnUu7vhCqaIGoDYrgA9D1tpdE/s1600/butterflynebula.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqZVnbKYXK0vQPt8LLdwBGPP9Ydn_uFBWDl1dk5OhLxuDDV09xyHW0jcij1drTU2Tjlng8V_Sok0ThrZ6o-41fAVGPzFHJAP2Krf2cX2h0HQbHt-OHTqcnUu7vhCqaIGoDYrgA9D1tpdE/s320/butterflynebula.jpg" width="265" /></a></div><br />
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During my life, I have had what has come to labeled abduction experiences. I wasn't always happy to have the experiences. I hesitate to share these experiences- I'm not sure why. I have decided that they are a part of my journey, and they should be shared. <br />
Lama Gyatso once spoke to the sangha, briefly, about these types of experiences. He said "There are myriad beings in the universe." He went on to explain they often want our attention. He then said that we are not obligated to respond to them. My last experience with them, I told them to never contact me again. They haven't.<br />
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During the time frame of my experiences, I would suddenly wake up in their presence. There were three, with a taller one in the middle. I always felt that there was busyness going on all around us, so I felt like there were many. But I only saw 3 at a time. I once witnessed a small one shapeshifting into a human form. I also felt their minds were all connected telepathically.<br />
One particular experience stands out for me: At the time, I was working at a lighthouse with many stairs to climb. My left knee was giving me a very hard time. I was going to make an appointment to see a Dr. about it. One night, I woke up in a brightly lighted room with the 3 grays. They were operating on my knee. I was a little startled, but decided not to panic. I was diagnosed with an auto-immune disorder 13 years before this. I said to them " Since you are fixing my knee, why don't you cure my disease?" The tall one answered me telepathically: "This (the knee) is a mechanical problem. The disease is karmic. We can't change karma." Then I passed out.<br />
I awoke the next morning and looked at my knee. There were 2 tiny almost healed cuts and a little bruising. I went to work that day, walking up the long flights of stairs. My knee never bothered me again from that day. I did show my boss the knee. She had always been fascinated by my dreams & experiences. We laughed about it.<br />
To be honest, I never saw any evidence that these beings are extraterrestrial in nature. I did witness shape shifting, telepathy & healing. To this day I don't know who they are, or what they are. I don't feel they are evil, though I did spend a period of time being angry at their intrusiveness. I did notice they seemed fascinated with human emotions. They are very tricky beings, so it's hard to come to solid conclusions regarding them. I think they come from inner space.<br />
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Note: Butterfly Nebula photo source: <a href="http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://assets.nydailynews.com/img/2009/09/10/gal_hubble_space_06.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.nydailynews.com/news/galleries/hubbles_most_amazing_images_in_2008/hubbles_most_amazing_images_in_2008.html&usg=__24gQ8NMgQiSMhJNEpeiBesLtYT8=&h=575&w=481&sz=65&hl=en&start=9&sig2=9JZYZ8kGXlR5Yz1dKiJnTA&zoom=1&tbnid=eTXxLXd0InHcHM:&tbnh=136&tbnw=103&ei=xTZ9TYhKxL22B7WP2NIF&prev=/images%3Fq%3Douter%2Bspace%2Bhubble%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DG%26rlz%3D1B3GGLL_en___US377%26biw%3D1088%26bih%3D456%26tbs%3Disch:10%2C319&um=1&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=257&vpy=104&dur=1107&hovh=246&hovw=205&tx=102&ty=133&oei=tzZ9TbeDLIKa0QGW1czeAw&page=2&ndsp=11&ved=1t:429,r:1,s:9&biw=1088&bih=456">Hubble</a> .</span>d pagehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995942283966564206noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86195431253663050.post-22361143333750892342011-02-20T15:50:00.000-08:002011-02-20T15:50:32.757-08:00Lessons in Becoming a Ma (Goddess)<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEismSbMNRGrB2Yn6VPypSJHpRAU40A3cPlWM-mxvuAHTwI3iZUV97SD-AZH9ARkOB80JnmEZ7g1PqURx1kI2CnbC7EfWLrN59UttsZoa_Y7HICkhE-5DZw643nS4WHrIjAC1j8BuCFS-D0/s1600/pruna+das+%2526+debra.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEismSbMNRGrB2Yn6VPypSJHpRAU40A3cPlWM-mxvuAHTwI3iZUV97SD-AZH9ARkOB80JnmEZ7g1PqURx1kI2CnbC7EfWLrN59UttsZoa_Y7HICkhE-5DZw643nS4WHrIjAC1j8BuCFS-D0/s320/pruna+das+%2526+debra.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">On the road with Purna das Baul</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</tbody></table> While I was writing about Mother Mirra on my blog about alchemical women, <i><a href="http://quintessiasjourney.blogspot.com/2011/02/bringing-down-light-mirra-alfassa.html">Quintessia's Journey</a></i>, I was reminded of some of my most precious memories. It was while reading of Mirra's Alfassa's (The Mother) time with Rabindranath Tagore in Japan, that I was pulled back to a very magical time in my life: the time I spent with Purna Das Baul whom we lovingly called Baba.<br />
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The Bauls of Bengal are a lineage of minstrels - gypsies- Sufis that travel the world singing love songs to the Divine. Purna Das Baul's lineage goes back nine generations. As a child he traveled with his father Nabani Das Baul throughout India. Nabani Das Baul was a close friend of Tagore's. Nabani was often asked to compose songs for him. It was the writings of Tagore that brought the Bauls into the global village. The Nobel Prize winning poet , who lived from 1861-1941, is often referred to as the "Greatest of Bauls". Baba, in turn, is great friends with a modern poet-musician: Bob Dylan. Baba was on the cover of Dylan's <i><u>John Wesley Harding</u></i> album.<br />
Among the people of India, Baba is a holy being, a sacred incarnation of deity. When he is in the United States, people flock to him for blessings, which he freely gives. He also gives them prasad (blessed food) and he prays for their well being.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQLEyzx3g0ea3hnIxEtyJArsnoSiVUQWwyWgEhQPJidJDvCD3V_k5UkAOMRPN4-aEvceOedHFicZGrm3-fnvNzqio0cFl2oNEr9lH7wWK3R1JQagtU9DShugly45lxJ0Ffq2ABRqroxbs/s1600/PurnaDas%2526Dylan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQLEyzx3g0ea3hnIxEtyJArsnoSiVUQWwyWgEhQPJidJDvCD3V_k5UkAOMRPN4-aEvceOedHFicZGrm3-fnvNzqio0cFl2oNEr9lH7wWK3R1JQagtU9DShugly45lxJ0Ffq2ABRqroxbs/s320/PurnaDas%2526Dylan.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Purna Das Baul (far right)</td></tr>
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During 2003-2005 I was blessed with being asked to accompany the Purna Das Baul and his son Chotton as they traveled through the Southwestern United States performing. I had no prior training or context for this opportunity. I was working in a bookstore (which sold 2 books about Bauls) in San Diego one afternoon, when I felt a breeze in the room- <i>prior</i> to the door opening. As I looked up a beautiful woman (named Siai) in a brightly colored Sari was opening the door, with fliers in her arms. I asked "Are you a Baul?" From that moment I was pulled into the story.<br />
When Siai told hime about meeting me, Purna Das Baul asked to meet this woman who recognized this energy. Later I heard them sing a line repeatedly "<i>Do you know the wind</i>?" The wind in this context was the movement of the body's subtle channels in yoga. It was this I felt preceding the presence of Siai and the Bauls. <br />
From the moment of meeting him, he called me "Ma", not Debra, or Mrs. Page. I became Ma. Of course, I had no understanding what this meant at the time. This my was first direct experience with Eastern philosophies and religion. I loved Baba instantly, and I had no problem saying "yes" to the call to be with him. While I was with him, all my needs were taken care of. I was given beautiful Indian clothing, saris, jewelry, food, lodging- all needs were met. My rock musician husband, Larry, was given place in the band with them. There are so many wonderful stories about this time in our lives. However, this post is about being a "Ma".<br />
Baba has an ongoing dialogue with the Divine Mother. He talks to her during the day as he goes about doing Baul things. He sings to to her, praises her, thanks her. I watched him interact with Her. I came to see through his devotion, that she was the very force animating matter. There would be times when something needed to be done, tea prepared, prasad (blessed food) needed preparing,etc. and he would look at me and say "Ma?" I quickly learned in those moments, I was Mother answering his prayers. I assumed that all women were a "Ma", but that was not the case. According to Baul philosophy (which is a form of Tantra), all women are an aspect of The Mother. Yet, only certain women were an aspect of the prayer answering shakti. The definition of shakti is; 1) <i>The active manifest power that creates the universe</i>, and 2) <i>The consort of the male expression of the divine, especially the god Shiva</i>. (source: <a href="http://www.answers.com/topic/shakti">Answers.com</a>)<br />
During my life, I had longingly searched for the Divine Feminine, the lost counterpart to our Christian concept of God. My heart ached to know Her. Baba was teaching me that <i>She lived within me</i>. She wasn't to be found out <i>there</i> somewhere, or in a temple on the other side of the world. She was right <i>here</i>, every moment. He was showing me that everyday life was a prayer to Her, and a dance with Her. He did not have to verbally tell me how to do the many new things I was introduced to. There was a part of me that innately knew these things already. I am not claiming I was full of grace, or didn't make mistakes. Baba is an infinitely patient being. My neurotic mind was always afraid that the 6 yards of my sari would come unraveled!<br />
One afternoon, I was alone with him, which was a very rare occasion. We were sitting in a beautiful home overlooking a busy valley in San Diego. The afternoon sun was streaming in the room, making everything luminous. There was a beautiful fluid feeling of peace. I had a text of sayings by Anandamayi Ma (an Indian Avatar, or Incarnation of the Goddess). Baba was reading the same text in Bengali.<br />
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"Baba, what does it take for a woman to become a "Ma" (an incarnation of the goddess)? " I asked. <br />
"Complete and total sacrifice," he responded. <br />
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The ego, in terms of self-cherishing in a selfish way, has to be sacrificed (to make sacred). If any human aspires to the divinisation of the the body to incarnate the The Divine, they have to surrender the ego to the higher force.<br />
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Purna Das Baul lives this way every moment.<br />
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d pagehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995942283966564206noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86195431253663050.post-70152160456387471372011-02-08T16:37:00.000-08:002011-02-09T17:00:31.211-08:00Mary Sidney Herbert: Alchemist Extraordinaire<span style="font-size: 18pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_JDGoTRE_EGUBoz4gDHyyLuF8SsZOim0LsxJB_rYh1r6FqFv6PsOZHiqHwN2E-qivVG6iVejM9GdvVenG_NnWo_CKJZIgO9BXXPUD36CRtgufiTaWlVVpRDp1xWnlNHvVCBw5Nf94N6M/s1600/alchemy-workshop.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_JDGoTRE_EGUBoz4gDHyyLuF8SsZOim0LsxJB_rYh1r6FqFv6PsOZHiqHwN2E-qivVG6iVejM9GdvVenG_NnWo_CKJZIgO9BXXPUD36CRtgufiTaWlVVpRDp1xWnlNHvVCBw5Nf94N6M/s320/alchemy-workshop.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-size: 18pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">UPDATE:After writing the post below,I created a new blog on woman & alchemy called <a href="http://quintessiasjourney.blogspot.com/">Quintessia's Journey</a> (click to visit).</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">The blossoming of spiritual alchemy (Natural Philosophy) in a given culture or society is a reflection of the peoples dialogue with the Imaginal Realm. This is the realm of the muse, myth, dreams, inspiration, and archetypes. This is why we see a flourishing of the arts and humanitarian efforts surrounding successful alchemists throughout the ages. In my personal commitment to following the image of <a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/03/reindeer-goddess-axis-mundi-axis-shifts.html">Reindeer Woman</a> through my blogging process, I came to realize the importance of the Imaginal Realm for all of humanity. It is the interface of human consciousness with the Imaginal Realm that leads us towards a truly beneficial relationship with all life.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"> After coming to understand recent events of my life through the lens of spiritual alchemy, I became intrigued by women alchemists. I have always looked for the feminine practitioners of every spiritual tradition and, sadly, their importance has been often overlooked. Even though alchemy is one of the most publicized subjects in the book market<span style="font-size: xx-small;"> (1)</span>, there is <i><u>not a single book dedicated to the history of female alchemists</u></i>!</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"> I pulled out my texts, searched through Google books, search library databases, & read what other women who walked before me posted on their blogs and websites. I found mention of many women alchemists, but very little documentation. I found them in all periods of history and in almost every culture.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"> For the sake of this essay I am going to focus on one extraordinary woman: Mary Sydney Herbert: Countess of Pembroke, who lived in England from 1561-1621. I don’t feel I can give the amount of space needed in this essay to fully recount her influence on culture. I will try to show you what an amazing woman she was, especially during the historical period in which she lived.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"> Mary Sidney was betrothed at 13 and married at 15 to Henry Herbert, 2<sup>nd</sup> Earl of Pembroke. She became Lady Sidney, one of Elisabeth I’s most trusted ladies-in-waiting. She and her brother Sir Phillip Sidney were very close. Together they created the most influential literary circle in England, <i>The Wilton Circle </i><span style="font-size: xx-small;">(2)</span>. Named for Mary’s estate, The Wilton House, their mission was to create great works of English literature. Her brother Phillip died when she was 27, and she proceeded to manage the Wilton Circle herself. The Wilton Circle inseparably linked to the legacy of Shakespeare. Many of Shakespeare’s works contain alchemical allegory<span style="font-size: xx-small;"> (3)</span>. </span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSx8WWZUJxLaGMCfQJr4D7D4uV_PixAUXqF2ePRsOiU5Pox31v5xNW0WpFGDmc7rVl6t7joDUO9x9isDbHp9GVOjlyoc3rAvmDVebnOlO8AeeM1X1BpAkV9bUVdfc6Cf_BxR4l8ys__5E/s1600/Wilton-House.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSx8WWZUJxLaGMCfQJr4D7D4uV_PixAUXqF2ePRsOiU5Pox31v5xNW0WpFGDmc7rVl6t7joDUO9x9isDbHp9GVOjlyoc3rAvmDVebnOlO8AeeM1X1BpAkV9bUVdfc6Cf_BxR4l8ys__5E/s320/Wilton-House.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"> It was also at the Wilton Estate that Lady Sidney had her alchemical laboratory. Her lab assistant was Adrian Gilbert, Sir Walter Raleigh’s half brother. Sir Walter Raleigh was instrumental in founding the colony of Virginia, named after the Virgin Queen, Elizabeth I. Gilbert was also responsible for designing and maintaining the elaborate gardens at Wilton. He used the principles of geometry to create a harmonious atmosphere.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"> Other alchemists in her chemistry circle included: </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"> *Dr. John Dee (Elizabeth I’s own spy: the original 007, court astrologer, polymath and navigator)</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"> *<i>Giordano Bruno</i> (Bruno’s work <i><u>Spaccio</u></i> was dedicated to Sir Phillip Sidney<span style="font-size: xx-small;"> (4)</span> )</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"> *<i>Sir Francis Bacon</i> (statesman, scientist, author)</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"> *<i>Thomas Digges</i> (Knight of the Garter, astronomer, inventor)</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"> *<i>Sir Edward Dyer</i> (Knight of the Garter, courtier, poet)</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"> *<i>Sir Thomas Smith </i>(Elizabeth I’s Secretary of State, Chancellor of the Order of the Garter)</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"> *<i>Lady Mary Wroth</i> (Mary’s niece, poetess. Ben Johnson dedicated his play “The Alchemist” to her)</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"> There were many others who moved through the Wilton Literary Circle that also were alchemists. I am only using names I can find direct sources for. I wish there had been more documentation of the woman in this circle, but execution for witchcraft made keeping such records dangerous in the England of Elizabeth I and James I.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"> Mary Sidney's alchemical interests were focused toward philosophy, the creation of medicinal tinctures and the search for “Universal Medicine” to help elevate and transform humanity to its highest potential. The alchemical philosophy involved the training of the mind to transmute negative circumstances and thoughts into creative growth. The laboratory wasn’t just used to create medicine, it was used to reflect back or mirror the alchemist’s mental state. An understanding of astrology and natural cycles were also important.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"> Along with her alchemical interests here are some other fascinating facts regarding Mary Sydney Herbert:</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"> *She was fluent in French, Italian and Latin.<span style="font-size: xx-small;"> (5)</span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"> *She had the most extensive library in England (followed by Dr. John Dee).</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"> *She was a writer in her own right.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"> *She was the most powerful woman in England at the time, except for Queen Elisabeth.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"> *She financed New World exploration and was a founding member of The Virginia Company.<span style="font-size: xx-small;"> (6) </span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"> *She is one of 7 contenders for the authorship of the works of Shakespeare…. but that is a tale for another day! <span style="font-size: xx-small;">(7)</span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
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</div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Some Sources:</span></span></div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><br />
</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://alchemipedia.blogspot.com/2009/11/alchemy-medieval-chemistry-and.html">Photo 1</a> : Alchemedia</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://www.fromoldbooks.org/Morris-PicturesqueViews/pages/09-Wilton-House/885x589-q85.html">Photo 2</a> : Sketch by F.O. Morris</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><br />
</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><u><span style="line-height: 115%;">Mary Sidney & Alchemy:</span></u></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.wondersandmarvels.com/2010/11/alchemy.html"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">http://www.wondersandmarvels.com/2010/11/alchemy.html</span></span></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><u><span style="line-height: 115%;">Mary Sidney & the Authorship Question:</span></u></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://shakespeareauthorship.weebly.com/"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">http://shakespeareauthorship.weebly.com/</span></span></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.marysidney.com/pages/williams.php"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">http://www.marysidney.com/pages/williams.php</span></span></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><u><span style="line-height: 115%;">Women in Alchemy:</span></u></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.womenalchemists.com/"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><u><span style="line-height: 115%;">http://www.womenalchemists.com/</span></u></span></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.levity.com/alchemy/female.html"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><u><span style="line-height: 115%;">http://www.levity.com/alchemy/female.html</span></u></span></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Notes:</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">(1)<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><u><span style="line-height: 115%;">The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Alchemy</span></u><span style="line-height: 115%;">, Dennis William Hauck/2008</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">(2)<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><u><span style="line-height: 115%;">Sweet Swan of Avon: Did a Woman Write Shakespeare?</span></u><span style="line-height: 115%;">, Robin P. Williams 2006/page 30</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">(3)<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><u><span style="line-height: 115%;">Chemical Theatre</span></u><span style="line-height: 115%;">, Charles Nicholl/1997</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">(4)<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><u><span style="line-height: 115%;">Giordano Bruno and the Hermetic Tradition</span></u><span style="line-height: 115%;">, by Frances A. Yates 1991/page 219</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">(5)<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><u><span style="line-height: 115%;">Sweet Swan of Avon: Did a woman write Shakespeare?</span></u><span style="line-height: 115%;">, Robin P. Williams 2006/page 98</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">(6)<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><span style="line-height: 115%;">IBID, page 103 </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">(7) IBID, whole text</span></span></div><u><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;"></span></u>d pagehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995942283966564206noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86195431253663050.post-3705490592812050772011-02-04T16:23:00.000-08:002011-02-04T16:23:06.623-08:00A Suprising Turn of Events<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP9lSgJ2UhtWKL8TGMMscFm41VsJDZJdj1PWBF_nWBiQ8V2Ywa0213NTd_93V8uWhRB7-o8M2rwAW_h80pwdJu0dHP9KJvILZYPF0I8aEPgPHhGltU92AMhotPt7EdJYB1Pa-IZM-19Ws/s1600/bridge.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP9lSgJ2UhtWKL8TGMMscFm41VsJDZJdj1PWBF_nWBiQ8V2Ywa0213NTd_93V8uWhRB7-o8M2rwAW_h80pwdJu0dHP9KJvILZYPF0I8aEPgPHhGltU92AMhotPt7EdJYB1Pa-IZM-19Ws/s320/bridge.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> After the dissolution described in my 12/31/2010 <a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/12/alchemically-speaking-past-two-months.html">post</a> , I physically crashed. Living with an auto immune disorder is difficult. Living with one in times of unusual stress always leads to me collapsing. This is why it's been so quiet in these parts.<br />
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A month ago, my daughter (25 yrs) called to tell me she was making a life-changing decision. She needed a roommate & place to stay within 2 weeks. Days went by, with no apparent options. Then she called me to tell me that Suzie, a girl she known in highschool, had just gotten a 2 bedroom apartment in a different part of San Diego (they both had been living near the beach). Suzie asked Desiree if she'd be willing to move in with her and her young son. Desiree was very excited and relieved. She didn't know were the place was exactly, other than it was somewhere in the unincorporated town where I live (which has 2 zip codes and isn't very small).<br />
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As things turned out, the aparment was on the property directly adjacent to our condo complex. We share a property line and a parking area. My husband and I went to the appointment with Suzie and Desiree. We were talking with the property manager about our mutual property concerns (my husband is on our Home Owner's Association). The manager asked my husband where he works, and Larry told her he was a manager at a health food store.<br />
It was then that <span style="font-size: large;"><i> it</i></span> happened.<br />
I did what I call an intuitive " blurt". What came of my mouth was not thought out before I said it. It just spilled out me.<br />
<br />
<br />
"He also has a California state certified guard card," I blurted, while questioning myself as to why I even said it. It didn't appear relevant.<br />
<br />
"But I need a security guard!" , the property manager replied.<br />
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To make a long story short.... My husband starts his 2nd job next week, and our daughter and her friend live next door. How this all fell together is pretty amazing to all of us.d pagehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995942283966564206noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86195431253663050.post-63746037706833164982011-01-06T15:39:00.000-08:002011-01-06T15:40:40.117-08:00I've written a new article...<div style="color: #990000;">entitled : <u><i>Elemental Haunting: An Overview for the Paranormal Researcher</i></u>.</div><div style="color: #990000;"><br />
</div><div style="color: #990000;"> It's just been posted on the Pacific Paranormal Investigations website:</div><div style="color: #990000;">click <a href="http://www.pacificparanormal.com/joomla/content/view/86/15/"><i>here</i></a>. </div><div style="color: #990000;"><br />
</div><div style="color: #990000;">Let me know what you think. </div><a href="http://www.pacificparanormal.com/forums/index.php?topic=3258.new#new" target="_blank"><br />
</a>d pagehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995942283966564206noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86195431253663050.post-47953245803858789472010-12-31T21:29:00.000-08:002010-12-31T21:29:35.534-08:00Alchemically Speaking: The Past Two Months<div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1WdjvkPj9Naw0h9kMZ0qUtpRH8TJZ_AlmPhvf_judx9hySIJPb8n28snXVNtCc_S8gdFg_b1CoSnfv_D9fiJ1jB6qPY-n-SDXFCjbplscI79a0rAywA7ysL_u3o9OGMoSdlQCeCniNMI/s1600/dissolution.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1WdjvkPj9Naw0h9kMZ0qUtpRH8TJZ_AlmPhvf_judx9hySIJPb8n28snXVNtCc_S8gdFg_b1CoSnfv_D9fiJ1jB6qPY-n-SDXFCjbplscI79a0rAywA7ysL_u3o9OGMoSdlQCeCniNMI/s1600/dissolution.jpg" /></a></div> <span style="color: #660000; font-size: small;"><i>"Chaos should be regarded as extremely good news."</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"> </span><span style="color: #660000; font-size: small;"><i>-Chogyam Trungpa</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"> The past two months have been very strange for my husband and I. In October, I was battling my second round of bronchitis. On the 28th, the hot water pipes exploded in our shower while I was standing there. Within 45 minutes, our home was flooded. Within 8 hours, we were evacuated to a hotel 10 miles away. Then things became even stranger: the very day the work on our home was to be completed, the hot water heater exploded on the man who was finishing the tile work in the kitchen. (I am grateful he was not hurt.) This created a second flood which covered area of the new floor and walls just completed. It also flooded the only space that wasn't flooded in the previous incident. Also curious: no personal items (furniture, books, clothes, guitars, computers etc.) were destroyed by the flooding itself. When the work was finally done on our home on December 16, we moved back in. The adventure didn't end there.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> As this drama was unfolding, I was asking myself "What does this<i> mean</i>?" <a href="http://ofscarabs.blogspot.com/">Trish MacGregor</a> reminded me to analyze it like it was a dream....and I finally had a "light bulb" moment. All of it can be explained through the language of alchemy. In particular, the stage of <i>dissolution</i>! Jung wrote several books on the language of alchemy as a metaphor for the individuation process. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> Some of symbols representing the alchemical dissolution process include: whale, fish, toad, dragon, a stag in a forest, flooding, breaking apart, rivers, streams, tears, pools, warm bath, baptism, dissection, dissembling, dismemberment, the near death experience, mid-life crisis, lungs, the color blue, the metal tin. The first alchemical apparatus for use in experiments with water & dissolution were invented by a Jewish alchemist named Maria Prophetissa, sometime before 100 B. C E. Maria Prophetissa is considered a female Hermes (Hauck/1999). Hermes is the mercurial trickster force behind the alchemical process. The alchemical bath has since been called the <i>bain-marie</i> (French for Mary's bath)<i>. </i>This process can be repeated- <i>solve et coagula</i>: dissolve and solidify -- several times before it's done.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br />
</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> Prior to the flooding, I was battling bronchitis: a<i style="color: black;"> lung</i> disorder. I have several problems with my immune systems as well as ME/CFS, so any illness can create complications.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> The first person on the scene to help me after the<i style="color: #351c75;"> <span style="color: black;">hot water</span></i> pipes exploded was a woman named <i style="color: black;">Mary</i>.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> When my husband and I first walked into the lobby of the hotel that would be our refuge from the <i style="color: black;">flood</i>, the first thing we encountered was a giant <i style="color: #351c75;"><span style="color: black;">whale</span> </i>sculpture. The lobby was also decorated for Halloween with pumpkins, <i style="color: black;">skeletons</i>, and <i style="color: black;">skulls</i>. During the first 3 weeks of our stay, the maid assigned to our room was named <i style="color: black;">Maria</i>. The room was decorated in <i style="color: black;">blue</i>. The view outside the window was a of a surrounded courtyard with 3 <i style="color: black;">heated pools</i>. During this period of time I read <u>The Millennium Trilogy</u>, by Steig Larsson. The main character in this trilogy is Lisbeth Salandar, aka "the girl with the <i style="color: black;">dragon</i> tattoo".</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> During this time I had 3 dreams about shamans. In one dream I was traveling over <i style="color: black;">water</i> on a boat in the Florida everglades . (See Trish & Rob MacGregor's blog, <a href="http://ofscarabs.blogspot.com/2010/11/dreams-and-shamans-in-florida.html"><i>Synchronicity</i></a>, for more about this dream.) I had 3 dreams that involved structures<i><span style="color: #351c75;"> <span style="color: black;">dissembling</span></span></i>. I also had 3 dreams where I was communicating with <i style="color: black;">people who have died.</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">During the 3rd week of reconstruction, the <i style="color: black;">hot water</i> heater exploded, creating more <i style="color: black;">flooding</i>. At this point, we can say that the 2nd process of alchemical dissolution had begun. The day after Thanksgiving, we went down to the lobby. The <i style="color: black;">whale</i> in the lobby now had <i style="color: black;">antlers</i> and a sweater, decorated for Christmas.</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoGib6NuG7US2ZfZQ40K75XEUcK9E0CC5OV1jAR4e97czup2SfCeZY-jPrqGFug1YmFHhr14m8glGzz1m4jqIsZ8PjHhhGwz0RL9pBnXULCrHeTnfKJx86wN9lpfanCui8IFI4QxQlB2I/s1600/Antlered+Whale.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoGib6NuG7US2ZfZQ40K75XEUcK9E0CC5OV1jAR4e97czup2SfCeZY-jPrqGFug1YmFHhr14m8glGzz1m4jqIsZ8PjHhhGwz0RL9pBnXULCrHeTnfKJx86wN9lpfanCui8IFI4QxQlB2I/s320/Antlered+Whale.JPG" width="213" /></a></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKAfGUMB7g9JA9BcE4ZmpW7HIN8Hkw-XZJF6_rQHWExve50MwUGhhJrAkQcp-ubMlObMXa5hFxB5wUvYWX1ZFcyCdTIZKLCDjo2sMVLqYwDAWsgVX-VcGAQiGVyomlTz5715-ZLOiYVjk/s1600/Antlered+Whale.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Our alchemical<i style="color: #351c75;"> <span style="color: black;">whale</span></i> had become a reindeer/<i style="color: black;">stag</i>. The following weekend, we we moved to the fifth floor, into another blue themed room. This time our view was of a steep, <i style="color: black;">forested</i> hill. It was in this room a celebrated a <i style="color: black;">mid-life</i> birthday. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"> During a dissolution phase of psychological alchemy, one finds oneself in a position of having no control over one's life passage. When my husband & I entered the hotel, we no longer had our own identities. For 6 weeks, we became anonymous. Even the account at the hotel was done by a third party. We became Mr. & Mrs. Page, the displaced couple. We had none of our usual props in our daily lives. Very little belonged to us. We didn't have our usual daily routines. We were living amongst a sea of anonymous, transient people. Even though we had computers, the hotel had very limited internet contact. The TV had very few channels (unless you paid extra). Larry's job was the only thing that remained constant, but even that was effected by the dissolution process. On one particular day, he went work to find corporate personnel in the office. Several of his co-workers were gone, either transferred or let go. There was no warning for this incident.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"> We were going through the dissolution <i>together as a single body</i>: the Sun/Moon, or King/Queen. (Larry & I have a natal (his)Sun/Moon (mine) conjunction in astrological charts.) We were removed from our collective body, our home, and taken to an anonymous bardo, or transition state, while our body (home) was dismembered and reconstructed. This is similar to a shamanic dismemberment & initiation. The point of this whole process is to learn to live in the moment. </span><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Just this... Now.</span></div><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> We were finally able to move back in to our home on Dec 16. The alchemist would ask at this point: "<i>Will the newly constructed vessel be able to contain without leaking?</i>"</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> On December 21st, there was rare eclipse (sun/moon, or king/queen)-- last seen in 1378. On Dec. 22nd, San Diego was hit by a storm that would bring record rainfall and flooding. On Dec. 23rd, we awoke to standing water-- up to 8 inches -- surrounding 3 outer walls of our condo. This had never happened before. The men who had just spent 6 weeks working on our home happened to be on the grounds already, so we were able to work fast on preventing damage to the interior of our newly remodeled home. </span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSYxDTtmL6Q8oInnKXem3j1nBY33eZLow9_z6vXadYCbMTXYXaGTGi7VufjQDKjYtFfsMGplGRXASy6_5Qh1M4CEfPd5GyI0GFow14vvQpw4PwSRl08m3yoWO17xObTK90JNMlZMRnSIA/s1600/Golden+Stag.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSYxDTtmL6Q8oInnKXem3j1nBY33eZLow9_z6vXadYCbMTXYXaGTGi7VufjQDKjYtFfsMGplGRXASy6_5Qh1M4CEfPd5GyI0GFow14vvQpw4PwSRl08m3yoWO17xObTK90JNMlZMRnSIA/s320/Golden+Stag.JPG" width="315" /></a></div><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Christmas Day was celebrated with family and friends. I received a beautiful <i style="color: black;">golden bronze stag</i> as a gift from my friend Teresa. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"> On the morning of December 28th, I pulled back the curtains to find many doves sitting outside my front picture window, looking inward at me. Usually there is only one or two, not several. The dove is prominent above the heads of the King and Queen in alchemical imagery-- after the dissolution was complete. At this moment I knew all was exactly as it should be. The storm on Dec. 29th did not cause any further flooding. The work of this phase of the alchemical process was complete. I hope we don't need to repeat it.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGvm-rOJFqBul77RL6a-asaieASHRWaeY4wcsrO41Xr9Z49BXXrpcy2Ov6vopep-EcwE8JTqlNXp0CLFoK2jWa9pY_wfI3ho5o9AtoD2gPxOxGPD6Bg6W_WnhCzLoxmmPu5A0_Oko_jU4/s1600/rosarium2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGvm-rOJFqBul77RL6a-asaieASHRWaeY4wcsrO41Xr9Z49BXXrpcy2Ov6vopep-EcwE8JTqlNXp0CLFoK2jWa9pY_wfI3ho5o9AtoD2gPxOxGPD6Bg6W_WnhCzLoxmmPu5A0_Oko_jU4/s1600/rosarium2.jpg" /></a></div><br />
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</div>d pagehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995942283966564206noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86195431253663050.post-42404303250334142182010-11-17T15:53:00.000-08:002010-11-17T15:53:09.612-08:00Following Reindeer Woman: Pazyryk Priestess & Deer Artifacts<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU9v5i3SP-N6reTr8uRr6piJdKePWseOlu42TNU1SqWBAFuPtnbFJ689vzC3enGk7HUV-zYhK2Rut0j3cmlf4jERX_hj_2n6kX-wp1vC1ieblwkvmVLg41Dl8iU8PblQMljVIt-KSKyg8/s1600/tatoo+Ice+maden.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU9v5i3SP-N6reTr8uRr6piJdKePWseOlu42TNU1SqWBAFuPtnbFJ689vzC3enGk7HUV-zYhK2Rut0j3cmlf4jERX_hj_2n6kX-wp1vC1ieblwkvmVLg41Dl8iU8PblQMljVIt-KSKyg8/s1600/tatoo+Ice+maden.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pazyryk mummy tattoo</td></tr>
</tbody></table>In my post "<a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/03/reindeer-goddess-axis-mundi-axis-shifts.html">Reindeer Goddess, Axis Mundi, & Axis Shifts</a>" I began my journey to blog my findings regarding a reindeer goddess. Since then, I have come across reports of amazing finds throughout the EurAsian Steppes.<br />
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The first picture on this page is a copy of a tattoo on the shoulder of a well preserved female mummy found by archeologist Natalia Polos'mak in a kurgan in Pazyryk. Discovered in 1995, 7,500 feet above sea level, the mummy was named the Ice Princess or The Lady. (This same tattoo design has been found on other mummies, both men and women in the Ukok Palteau.)<br />
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The kurgan and it's contents are at least 2,400 years old. The Lady was buried in a coffin carved from a larch tree trunk. The exterior of the coffin was appliqued with a leather deer design, the antlers moving back like the ones in the tattoo above. The chamber of this full burial was 7.5 feet by 11 feet and contained everything The Lady would need to continue her life in the Otherworld: clothing, food and furniture. Astoundingly, buried around the chamber were 5 horses, <i>each ornamented with reindeer antlers and elaborate deer embossed bridles</i>. Quoting an article posted Mary Lynn E. Turner : <a href="http://ariets.wordpress.com/2009/07/24/a-culture-on-the-hoof-kurgan-woman-of-the-pazyryk/"><i>Culture on the Hoof: Kurgan Woman of the Pazyryk</i></a>: "<i>It is thought, though, that although the horses were symbols of the sun, the antlered headdress were a kind of throwback reminder to the the days before herding horses, back when people of the Steppe herded reindeer instead</i>."<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://depts.washington.edu/silkroad/museums/shm/shmpazyryk.html" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="205" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuYNtACKbl8xeB93EJN4IWoJMOcMn-0TOHT0_FuvPjN7LKqyN417ZD2Yk4MqQMFkT6BQ41qYSw4fkOOcvf3eCXqrIbn-L2WZ6jEzchkvLW_wTd8J4fZsHI9yZhtFxXMbOZfSlf7-fw9DY/s320/hermitagepazyryk34a.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pazyryk Horse/Deer Headdress</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</tbody></table> These photos came from an exhibit in the State Hermitage Museum. To visit the site click <a href="http://depts.washington.edu/silkroad/museums/shm/shmpazyryk.html">here</a>.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ3lNGvHaZfEoIrf_AAk2DDEeLzWmcC7NuvYGaf8tCErKGHJ2VR1v9SuXQF-hHqWTLdBTdgsjxmxGMM4qVpCUEpJ-UufCc9O7TNG8OQ0nDFr_GQDOKjBxpcbhDpwcTqASkAyCgvjSc6Hw/s1600/hermitagealtai8aPazyrykMirror.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="307" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ3lNGvHaZfEoIrf_AAk2DDEeLzWmcC7NuvYGaf8tCErKGHJ2VR1v9SuXQF-hHqWTLdBTdgsjxmxGMM4qVpCUEpJ-UufCc9O7TNG8OQ0nDFr_GQDOKjBxpcbhDpwcTqASkAyCgvjSc6Hw/s320/hermitagealtai8aPazyrykMirror.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pazyryk bronze mirror backing</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: left;">In her book, <i><u>The Deer Goddess of Ancient Siberia</u></i>, art historian Esther Jacobson traces the progression of the ancient Neolithic reindeer rock art images through to the the Bronze age, and into modern era. This progession of images also paralells the transformation of the the Reindeer Goddess as Animal Mother of a culture of matrilineal descent into the male dominated form of shamanism that we read about today. (For more information on the roots shamanism in ancient women's mysteries, read <u><i>The Woman in the the Shaman's Body</i></u> by anthropologist Barbara Tedlock, PH.D.) In Jacobson work, she repeatedly finds the deer antlers representing the Tree of Life. The Lady was buried in a tree trunk, ornamented with antlers. She was also buried in a 3-foot-tall pointed hat with gold foil images of branches, trees and cats. Was The Lady a priestess of the deer goddess as tree of life, a wisdom keeper? Is this hat the origin of the pointed "witches hat"?<br />
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The bronze mirror above was found in another Pazyryk kurgan on the Ukok Plateau. The Lady's coffin also had a similar deer decorated bronze mirror. In fact, these type of mirrors were found all through the EurAsian Steppes in Scythian, Pazyryk, Samaritan and Saka burials. (The Amazon women of myth and legend were also Samaritan. And, Buddha himself was a Saka prince.) Reindeer images were also found on fabric and carpets. Other images include griffins, panthers, lemurs, house cats & birds. These images are also created as combined, morphing hybrids. <br />
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Interestingly, or tellingly, is what The Lady is <i>not</i> called. A male mummy nearby, with a less ornamented burial, is called a "tribal chieftain". The Lady is called "unknown woman". Writer Vicki Noble (2003) calls her a "priestess shaman" and noted the parallels between The Lady's artifacts and those found in stories of Tibetan dakinis and yoginis. I agree.<br />
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When I had my first dream/vision of <a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/03/reindeer-goddess-axis-mundi-axis-shifts.html"> reindeer woman</a>, she was showing me that there was going to be a pole shift & a severe earthquake. At that time, I had no knowledge of a "reindeer goddess" image. Through research I found that she is a ancient , pre-shamanic deity that is associated with a warning to humanity: if we stray from balance in our relationship to the earth, <a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/05/following-reindeer-goddess-inner.html">she will cause the earth to quake</a>. Coincidentally (or should I say, sychronistically?) I recently discovered a <a href="http://nauka.izvestia.ru/english/article40985/print.html">curious news story about The Lady</a>. When her tomb was disturbed, and her body moved to a museum, the local Altai desendants of The Lady were very upset. After she was removed from the tomb, there were frequent quakes in the local area 2-3 times a week. The people warned the government that her removal from the tomb was the cause of the quaking. They felt that if she was placed back in her kurgan the quakes would stop. So far, the government has refused to take her home.<br />
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Symbolically, The Lady's tomb and other tombs like hers represent the North Pole, or the spiritual orientation of the clans & tribes. This idea is found throughout EurAsia, Mongolia& Tibet. Disturbing the tombs is a metaphor for the loss of Spiritual North. Though I can't say that moving The Lady has caused the earth to quake, I can say that the people of earth have collectively lost their North Star & their spiritual orientation. All is not lost , though. There still remain <i>Those Who point The Way</i>.<br />
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</div>d pagehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995942283966564206noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86195431253663050.post-12806022137900817912010-10-31T12:37:00.000-07:002010-11-01T15:30:36.851-07:00Halloween, My Grandmother's Birthday & Her Spirit<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH9RER4ug8XddI-m1nLkR7BT46GpZL2v2V1pbVL5XDbpqLaGcJTMvTUkhV7eEslJ1g115LdqVlj3mMzD6XLfEyTUbV6RPIRfqorM6P6vmhyescUzRal_uEWjeN02KhrkCY5HKXFVlwyC0/s1600/still+death.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH9RER4ug8XddI-m1nLkR7BT46GpZL2v2V1pbVL5XDbpqLaGcJTMvTUkhV7eEslJ1g115LdqVlj3mMzD6XLfEyTUbV6RPIRfqorM6P6vmhyescUzRal_uEWjeN02KhrkCY5HKXFVlwyC0/s200/still+death.JPG" width="158" /></a></div> Halloween was my grandmother Mary's birthday, so it became my favorite childhood holiday. It was a birthday she'd share with her best friend for life - Emily.<br />
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We were very close when she died in my late 20's (late 1980's). We had made an agreement, and renewed the agreement many times: whoever died first would contact the other. The week before she died she called me (in San Diego) from her home in Toronto, Canada. "Debra, I want you to promise me that if I die, and you have made plans to be somewhere, or do something, don't cancel the plans. And don't bother sending flowers. I won't be there to see them anyway." (She had always felt that flower arrangements were a terrible waste of money.) I was a little perplexed as to why she said these things, but I gave her my word. With her, if you gave your word you had to carry it through!<br />
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The next weekend, my husband and I had reservations to attend a Medieval Times event in Los Angeles on Saturday. On the Friday night before , my father called and said "Your grandmother is dead." No details... nothing. I was in a terrible state of grief. I told my husband about my conversation with her the week before, and we agreed to attend the event, as I promised her.<br />
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That night I fell into a fitful sleep. <i>Suddenly, I found my self in a lucid dreaming state, and my grandmother was standing there. Don't ask me why, but I blurted out "Gram, why are you in a hospital gown?</i><br />
<i>" "Because I died in the hospital," she replied in a matter of fact way. At this point it was clear that our relationship was exactly the same... nothing had changed due to her new "condition". She waved her arm and was shown real-time scenes of my Aunt, Uncle and cousins in her condo in Toronto, Canada. They were sorting things things into boxes to keep, or give to the Salvation Army. Then the scene changed, and we were on a boat crossing a river. There was a beautiful glass or crystal city on an island in the distance.</i> <i>Halfway across the river, she said (in her no nonsense way); "This is as far as you can come with me." I started crying as she enfolded me in her arms.</i> I woke up in my room, smelling her rose perfume.<br />
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We did go to Medieval Times, which is something my grandmother would have loved. She was very into all things British, especially the Queens. It was very hard for me to go through with that day. I kept crying. On Sunday, my cousin, whom I had seen in the vision, called to give me the Memorial details. I told her I wouldn't be attending. I also told her about my grandmother's visit and what I had seen her and her family doing in the vision. She gasped, and said that it was true... and they did give boxes of stuff to the Salvation Army.<br />
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Time passed. Then, I started having repeated visits from my grandmother. She kept showing me the same scene: <i>In a dresser drawer there were many envelopes and small boxes. She urgently wanted me to see something.</i><br />
This was repeated periodically for over 11 years. I had no way of knowing where this dresser was. I knew it wasn't something my cousins or my father knew anything about. The only remaining relative in Canada was an uncle who was somewhat reclusive, and I had no way of contacting him.<br />
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On February 29, 2000 (leap day), a small package arrived via US mail. It was postmarked Toronto, Canada. Inside was a small blue box containing silver medallion of Queen Elizabeth, commemorating the 1976 Montreal Olympics. There was a very sweet note from my elusive uncle. "<i>You grandmother always wanted you to have this. You were loved very much.</i>" I knew this would be the end of the repeated dream episodes of urgently searching through the drawer.<br />
Though those epidodes were over, Mary still visits me. I can feel her loving presence and smell her rose perfume.<br />
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*<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i>The above painting was done by myself. Oil and acrylic on canvas</i></span>.<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i> It was done tongue in cheek pointing out the tradition of La Mort</i><i> in still-life painting.</i></span><i><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> Very Halloweeny and Day of the Dead!</span></i>d pagehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995942283966564206noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86195431253663050.post-66640165893368462922010-09-20T12:30:00.000-07:002010-09-20T16:53:47.432-07:00The Ordinary : Connecting with Nature From Your Own DoorstepI feel it is so important to connect with nature, especially in your own neighborhood. Each neighborhood is it's own ecosystem, whether it's in the country, or in the city. I live in a densely populated urban area. I am constantly amazed by what appears... often literally on my front doorstep.<br />
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I also strongly feel that visionaries, artist, poets and people who study shamanism and archetypal psychology need to interact with Earth and nature. This helps to ground the mind in reality: <i>as it is</i>. It's very important not to be caught in the ideal of something (for example an "animal spirit messenger") without having practical knowledge of it's real nature. Often, messages from other dimensions or the spirit realm come to us in the ordinary setting of our everyday lives.<br />
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Here are some photos of the visitors to my own home area. (All photos copyright Debra L. Page.)<br />
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Yesterday, just past noon. I sat in my love seat near our front windowed wall which borders our partially enclosed patio. There is a roof that slopes down and 3 walls surrounding the patio. You can only come onto the patio from one direction. I was sitting down to finish a book: <i>The Portal; An Initiate's Journey into the Secret of Rennes-le-Chateau</i> , by Patrice Chaplin. ( I was drawn to this book because of my interest in the Reindeer Goddess. See my prior post <a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/07/reindeer-queens-crowns-part-ii.html">here</a>.) Before I could open the book, I was startled. A hawk had swooped under the roof over-hang, and landed on the back of patio chair. S/he sat there calmly staring at me through the wall length window. It was no more than 4 feet from me and level with my face. I was stunned. Then it turned, lifted off carefully, and glided down & out of our small patio space. I have not seen large birds on this patio before. It is very small, 9" by 9". The hawk definitely knew what it was doing: it didn't appear to be startled upon landing.<br />
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I wonder if what I was reading was part of the bigger picture in this encounter? Later that afternoon I read this passage in the book: <br />
"I talked about a french composer, Oliver Messiaen, and his music celebrating birds, his understanding of their existence as being partly in the realm of spirit." (page 312)<br />
Also, the book is about ancient inter-dimensional doorways. I was sitting in a liminal space, inside looking outside. <br />
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Or could be part of the sequence of bird encounters I've had? In the past, this patio has been used for hummingbird rescue and triage (see<a href="http://lifeinneverwell.blogspot.com/2010/01/virtue-of-small-things.html"> here</a>) . The dove we drove to the wildlife rescue center was briefly on the patio table nestled in clean linens.<br />
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Does anyone have ideas what this encounter means?<br />
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*Above painting by Susan Seddon Boulet*d pagehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995942283966564206noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86195431253663050.post-63710086439875237672010-07-27T16:49:00.000-07:002013-01-17T18:07:46.041-08:00Reindeer, Queens & Crowns, Part II<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_wDa7VgEJr0iOn4mQpROQetKZ-A8qLP9T7phzsI0acr5EHOD74O-yTTaWlbyKkVGmNGb7WTbv9Ziu1J-a9F-VJ7UfOAe-NLIHLf7PncnJvPzR1UyueLyfb3FbW2CO84Hm6yG_7r2MBXA/s1600/swimmingreindeerBritishMuseum.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_wDa7VgEJr0iOn4mQpROQetKZ-A8qLP9T7phzsI0acr5EHOD74O-yTTaWlbyKkVGmNGb7WTbv9Ziu1J-a9F-VJ7UfOAe-NLIHLf7PncnJvPzR1UyueLyfb3FbW2CO84Hm6yG_7r2MBXA/s320/swimmingreindeerBritishMuseum.jpg" /></a></div>
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This is a carving of 2 swimming reindeer, in Ivory. It is 13,000 years old. It was found in a cave shelter in Montastruc, Tar et Garoone, France. It is currently in the <a href="http://www.britishmuseum.org/explore/highlights/highlight_image.aspx?image=swimmingreindeer.jpg&retpage=21244">British Museum</a>.<br />
Ont he British Museum's site, they speculate: <br />
"<i>Was the sculpture a group totem, a shaman’s wand or the focal point of a story based on a journey in or between real and supernatural worlds?</i>"<br />
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It's been awhile since I posted <a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/07/reindeer-queens-crowns-part-1.html">Part I</a> of this article. I have been very sick and it's been a difficult struggle. I thought I knew exactly what Part II of this post would say, but I had an uplifting dream recently that changed everything:<br />
<i> Larry (my husband) and I moved into a beautiful cabin, which we had purchased from the prior owner. The cabin was made of beautiful , highly polished wood, and was filled with luminous light. The master bed was on low wooded pedestal. I found little drawers all around the pedestal. I opened one, and discovered a wonderful secret: the women who lived here before was a gifted writer, and she had left me some tiny rolled scrolls. I pick one up, and I see that it has "Rennes-le-Chateau written on it. I unroll the scroll. The author tells a story about a very precious friend of hers, a female reindeer. I feel filled with joy when I read about this secret." </i>Then I awaken and write the dream down<i>.</i><br />
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<i> </i>Rennes-le-Chateau is a notorious place in France, filled with many mysteries and surrounded by myriad legends. The name is very curious: it literally translates from French into English as "Castle of the Reindeer<i>".</i> Historically, the Magdalenian Period (approximately 16,000-10,000 BC) was also refereed to as the "Reindeer Age". The land that later became France had reindeer herders since before the Magdalenian Period. There have been ancient reindeer artifacts (reindeer bones, and art depicting reindeer) found throughout France.<br />
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Rennes-le-Chateau was made famous in recent times by <i>Holy Blood Holy Grail</i>, and the <i>Da Vinci Code </i>, which both indicate a hidden Goddess tradition. Near Rennes-le-Chateau is Rennes-les-Bains (the Baths of the Reindeer), known for it's healing hot springs and legends of appearances of the Goddess. Often Rennes-le-Chateau is called the "Queen's Castle" and Rennes-le-Bains is called the "Queens Bath". "Queen" in French is "La Reine". How did "le rennes" and "la reine" become interchangeable? And is it a coincidence that a modern mystery regarding the return of the sacred feminine involves a place called Rennes-le-Chateau-, or Castle of the Reindeer? Quoting Elisabeth Van Buren in her curious volume on Renne-le-Chateau, <b>Refuge of the Apolcalypse</b> (page 177)<b> </b>:<br />
"<i>Rennes is the Goddess. Why is she portrayed as a reindeer?</i>"<br />
Very good question, and one that is not directly answered in her book. <br />
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I find clues to the answer to this question in many sources regarding the presence of an old reindeer/deer cult in Old Europe:<br />
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"The relationship between Finn Mac Cumail, his family, and the Irish Fiana, with the cervidae (antlered animals) is yet more proof that this very old clan was heir to the prehistoric occupants of Ireland from the era of the reindeer hunters." (Markale/1995)<br />
Markale also repeatedly points out that the Druids and the Merlin tales come from the same tradition of the reindeer hunters. (Markale/1999).<br />
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Clarissa Pinkola Estes points out that: "In the sacrifice of the doe we see more of the hem of the old religion. The sacrifice of the deer was as ancient rite meant to release the deer's gentle yet bounding energy." (Estes/1992)<br />
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The myths of the Calleach (wise old hag) in Scotland are also found to be connected to an old deer goddess tradition (O Crualoich/2007, McHardy/2003). One of the oldest cultures in Scotland is the Picts, and they have reindeer artifacts, both art and bones. Reindeer were herded in ancient Scotland as well.<br />
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I've already quoted the works of Esther Jacobson and Linda Scherise Leonard in prior posts showing the Siberian clan connection to the Reindeer Goddess. I also talked about the possible connections of the Scythian, the Pazyrk, and the Bonpo to the ancient reindeer/deer cults. (click <a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/03/reindeer-goddess-axis-mundi-axis-shifts.html">here</a>, <a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/05/following-reindeer-goddess-inner.html">here</a>,<a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/05/incubating-reindeeer-goddess.html"> here</a>, & <a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/06/reindeer-goddess-imaginal-realm.html">here</a>)<br />
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For me, the above mentioned dream confirms the path I'm on. Perhaps the writer who gifts me is my own ancestor. My genetic family has ties to the Scottish Tribe of Mar, Pictish descendants . My genetic family are also descendants of the French duchy of Anjou.<br />
I have more work to do, more digging to do.... and more dreaming to do.<br />
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To see Part I of this post, click <a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/07/reindeer-queens-crowns-part-1.html">here</a>.<br />
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Sources:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i>Women Who Run With the Wolves</i>, by Clarissa Pinkola Estes: page 443 </span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i>The Quest for the Nine Maidens</i>, by Stuart McHardy, page153</span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i>Merlin, Priest of Nature</i>, by Jean Markale, page 162</span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i>Women of the Celts</i>, by Jean Markale, pages 103-111</span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i>The Book of the Cailleach</i> , by Gearoid O Crualaoich, pages 124-125</span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i>Refuge of the Apocalypse: Doorway to Other Dimensions, Rennes-les-Chateau, The Key</i>, by Elizabeth Van Buren , page 177</span><br />
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d pagehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995942283966564206noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86195431253663050.post-49430490441854621002010-07-02T16:27:00.000-07:002013-01-17T18:06:35.860-08:00Reindeer, Queens & Crowns: Part 1<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjovdyLbo2uS-sHDHl2E5VDy2Et9mMgJfNkiurRiSEoTfzkiaxv7L7tVaY3IGbkDaqUZs2BRoJSn1qZyRKoXNY6V_Wu6mR1Si7iyEpHaa744nBXwXYsJ0DhJCqEtykfR5AkxoRPJswIO2w/s1600/SarmatianCrown.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjovdyLbo2uS-sHDHl2E5VDy2Et9mMgJfNkiurRiSEoTfzkiaxv7L7tVaY3IGbkDaqUZs2BRoJSn1qZyRKoXNY6V_Wu6mR1Si7iyEpHaa744nBXwXYsJ0DhJCqEtykfR5AkxoRPJswIO2w/s320/SarmatianCrown.jpg" /></a></div>
<a href="http://www.hermitagemuseum.org/html_En/03/hm3_2_9c.html" style="color: blue;">This crown is in Russia's State Hermitage Museum.</a> (click to view the page about it.)<br />
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This crown is a beautiful 1st Century BCE artifact from Khokhlach Burial Mound, near Novocherkassk. The web page (see above) states that it was ritual piece used for fertility rites.<br />
In my search for information about the Reindeer Goddess after my personal experiences (See links below) with the image of a Reindeer Woman, I came across many beautiful images from archeology and art of Siberia, Mongolia, and Europe. This crown is one of the most stunning pieces I have seen yet. It contains many symbols of an ancient tradition.<br />
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The crowned queen/goddess has a tree growing from her crown chakra. The tree represents Cosmic Tree/Axis Mundi the gives the empowered shamaness/priestess access to the other realms and dimensions. This same cosmic tree is found even today on the Evenk shaman's drum. Jacobson/1992) The Evenk rhythmic drumming mimics the sound of the running reindeer. The reindeer is the Evnek magical steed that flies the shaman/shamanka to other dimensions (Leonard/1995). The Saami also believe that the female reindeer antlers (the largest of the herd) are one with the Cosmic Tree's branches (Leonard/1995). Here, we see the correlation of the reindeer antlers with the cosmic Tree and Otherworld journeys. The Cosmic Tree is also a symbol for subtle body anatomy: the spine is the trunk of the tree with the branches symbolizing the brain.<br />
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A gold crown is symbolic of the luminosity of illumination. In the old religions, the "Illumined Ones" were the "Wise Ones", or the "Ones Who Knew". In art history we see a golden orb painted around the head of the Enlightened Ones to represent their spiritual attainment- also called their "glory". The first physical crown created by man has been speculated to be a crown of antlers to represent the sage's illumination and access to the Cosmic World Tree. After mankind developed metallurgy, the crown was made of gold. We see similar symbolism in the Kabbalah. After the destruction of Solomon's Temple, the "glory" no longer illuminated inner sanctum of the temple. Gradually, the Ark of the Covenant became dark, no longer communicating with the people. In the Kabbalistic teachings, the Sheckinah <i>is</i> the Glory. The Sacred Feminine, or the Shekinah Glory is in exile from the people and the land. Illumined living cannot return until the temple is rebuilt. The people MUST reconnect with the heart of wisdom (communicate with the Imaginal Realm). The ruler of the people cannot truly wear the Crown of Glory (Wisdom) until the Shekinah Glory returns.<br />
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Part II with show us the connection between the sacred feminine, the queen (reine) and reindeer (renne).<br />
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*<b>Synchronicity</b>: As I was writing this blog post, my mail arrived. There was a package from my paperback swap book order, containing 2 books. <i>Witness to the Fire: Creativity & the Veil of Addiction</i> by Linda Schierese Leonard, whom I quote in the above blog post. In this book is the original purchase receipt from Moe's Bookstore on Telegraph in Berkeley for 4-30-1992. I was working in Berkeley in 1992 for a professor who lived just above Telegraph, and I was often in Moe's Bookstore. The second book is , <i>Six Myths of Our Time</i>, <i>Little Angels, Little Monsters, Beautiful Beasts and More</i> by Marina Warner. I had never seen a copy of the book before. On the cover is a woman laying on the ground in a forest <i>with antlers coming from her head.</i><br />
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Links to my other pasts on this subject:<br />
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/03/reindeer-goddess-axis-mundi-axis-shifts.html">Reindeer Goddess, Axis Mundi & Axis Shifts</a></span> </h3>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/05/following-reindeer-goddess-inner.html">Following Reindeer Goddess: an Inner Journey</a></span></h3>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/05/incubating-reindeeer-goddess.html">Incubating Reindeer Goddess & Baby Blue</a></span> </h3>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/06/reindeer-goddess-imaginal-realm.html">Reindeer Goddess & the Imaginal Realm</a></span></h3>
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d pagehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995942283966564206noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86195431253663050.post-63805755719578307752010-06-22T15:57:00.000-07:002010-06-22T15:57:25.641-07:00Becoming the Bridge<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_CXDOhzgWO_s0jPt-uWwFlzKdpQ-x2GbpcOVtnDox7sW_NbE6NTH9KZhJXqzl064s6LbEpXM-xfX95u8-Ge6xMLjS3sU1eC5GS8-BQ_frkhUH5p38pkfp8IQRXe4UPGAUvP8OhMr-yHI/s1600/bridge.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_CXDOhzgWO_s0jPt-uWwFlzKdpQ-x2GbpcOVtnDox7sW_NbE6NTH9KZhJXqzl064s6LbEpXM-xfX95u8-Ge6xMLjS3sU1eC5GS8-BQ_frkhUH5p38pkfp8IQRXe4UPGAUvP8OhMr-yHI/s320/bridge.JPG" /></a>"<i>If you're after gettin' the honey, don't go killin' all the bees </i>.." - Joe Strummer<br />
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Indigenous peoples, artists, visionaries, poets, musicians, have been informing us (for quite some time now) our current cultural values indicate a<i> loss of soul.</i> This idea is made even more apparent by seeing (with the heart) the images of the devastation caused by the Gulf Oil Disaster. For me, these images instill a sense of urgency within. How can we (whose hearts ache) do anything to help? Besides the obvious: raising money, calling government officials, raising awareness, we can take this opportunity to become the bridge. We can commit to entering a <i>soulful life</i>. A soulful life is one that views all manifestation as part of a living energy field. In his book <i>The Spell of the Sensuous</i>, David Abram calls this process "reinhabitation". People "<i>have begun to apprentice themselves to their particular places, to the ecological regions they inhabit</i>." (pg 271) This may sound simple. It is simple, but it is not easy. Apprenticeship means having to work. This work is nothing less than altering the collective consciousness through deliberate action. We will be moving against the stream of materialism, consumerism, and the stream of our own culture.<br />
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In my mind, I see that if we all start at home, in our own place, and reconnect with the living energy field around us, we could create miracles. If whole communities were living this way, from an organic movement (not contrived), it would naturally follow that events like the Gulf Oil Disaster wouldn't happen. Our values would be different, so our consumer habits would change. The living energy field is the Imaginal Realm (the world of Psyche) I've talked about in past posts. (see below) According to Abram: "<i>By acknowledging such links between the inner, psychological world and the perceptual terrain that surrounds us, we begin to turn inside-out, loosening the psyche from it's confinement within a strictly human sphere,freeing sentience to return to the sensible world that contains us. Intelligence is no longer ours alone but it is a property of the earth; we are in it. of it, immersed in it's depths. And indeed each terrain,each ecology, seems to have it's own particular intelligence, it's unique vernacular of soil and leaf and sky</i>." (pg 262)<br />
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In making a commitment to become the bridge between our current exiled (from the heart) state and the Imaginal Realm, we become a conduit for healing. Communion with our own place in the "Now" creates<i> community, </i>in the truest sense of the word. Start at home, honoring the soul of the home: the local Spiritus Loci (spirit of the place). Offer up just one flower in a bud vase... and next? The world.<br />
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Past blog posts regarding these matters:<br />
<h3 class="post-title entry-title" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/03/reindeer-goddess-axis-mundi-axis-shifts.html">Reindeer Goddess, Axis Mundi & Axis Shifts</a></span></h3><h3 class="post-title entry-title" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/03/liminal-living-borderlanders.html">Liminal Living- Borderlanders</a></span> </h3><h3 class="post-title entry-title" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/05/nature-world-soul-gulf-oil-spill.html">Nature, World Soul & Gulf Oil Spill</a></span></h3><h3 class="post-title entry-title" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/06/what-dark-alchemy-is-this.html">What Dark Alchemy is This?</a></span></h3><h3 class="post-title entry-title" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/06/reindeer-goddess-imaginal-realm.html">Reindeer Goddess & the Imaginal Realm</a></span></h3>d pagehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995942283966564206noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86195431253663050.post-17727116640397165532010-06-10T15:47:00.000-07:002013-01-17T18:18:51.913-08:00Reindeer Goddess & the Imaginal Realm<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: purple;">Communicating with the anima mundi, Psyche, the Soul of the World--- whatever you call her, requires a different perception than our everyday way of seeing. To quote human ecologist <a href="http://tomcheetham.blogspot.com/">Tom Cheetham</a>; "<i>To keep our internals open, we have to learn to read or write ourselves out of ourselves, and uncurl ourselves back into the world.</i>" (1) </span></div>
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<span style="color: purple;">He also talks about "<i>reading the world</i>" (2), as the Sufi's have in their dialogue with Khidir- the Green Man, the Angel of the Earth. Khidr, says Cheetham, is a "<i>messenger from far beyond</i>". (3) This realm, this "beyond", is the Imaginal Realm or mundus imaginalis. "<i>If we recognize the realm of the imaginal as the mediating world between the purely physical and the purely spiritual, the schism between them can begin to heal</i>".(4) The outward manifestation of the this schism manifests in the battle between technology and nature. (There isn't a clearer example of this schism than the current situation in the Gulf of Mexico. Man's titanic egoism (man acting as a god) has destroyed an ecosystem crucial to the Atlantic Ocean, perhaps crucial to the World, by building a proverbial Tower of Babylon.(5))</span></div>
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<span style="color: purple;"> My own experiences with the Reindeer Goddess seem to reflect Tom Cheetham's ideas. She is from the Imaginal Realm. She is an aspect of the World Psyche which is the matrix for our own reality. We humans don't <i>"have</i> a psyche" (she is not a "thing"), we are immersed in Psyche. This is an living energy field. The modern world is in danger of losing it's very lifeline by disconnecting itself from our very source and matrix. This is what the prophecies (6) that the Reindeer Goddess left with the people of Lapland were warning us about. In those communications from the Reindeer Goddess, it is clearly stated that she is the "<i>heartbeat of the world</i>".(7) </span></div>
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<span style="color: purple;">An ancient , primordial deity has reached out to modern humanity to help them help themselves. I am not the only person she has contacted, and she is not the only primordial deity to contact the modern world. Anyone who hears the messages, and listens, enters upon journey of the heart. They become an alchemist, a poet, a visionary, a prophet, an ecologist, an artist, a musician -- one who speaks, and hears, the language of the heart. The journey of the heart is a path to authentic living, being real. This is not at the same as being literal. Literalism is materialism. Materialism is the worship of man as god: the worship <i>of man-created things. </i> </span></div>
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<span style="color: purple;">I choose HEART. </span></div>
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<span style="color: purple;">Notes:</span><br />
<span style="color: purple;">Painting of Deer Woman by Susan Seddon Boulet </span></div>
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<span style="color: purple;">(1) <b><i>Green Man, Earth Angel</i></b>, by Tom Cheetham, page 113</span></div>
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<span style="color: purple;">(2) IBID, page 114</span></div>
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<span style="color: purple;">(3) IBID, page109</span></div>
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<span style="color: purple;">(4) IBID, page113</span></div>
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<span style="color: purple;">(5) my blog post<b> <a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/06/what-dark-alchemy-is-this.html">here</a></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: purple;">(6) my blog post <a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/05/following-reindeer-goddess-inner.html"><b>here</b></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: purple;">(7) IBID </span></div>
d pagehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995942283966564206noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86195431253663050.post-28853185370338233772010-06-05T17:46:00.000-07:002010-06-05T17:46:31.700-07:00What Dark Alchemy is This?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyhcif4G6xQPT6QZjOHQkyHpptXPTGt_Fj_95o8_87MCLvmIu25hF7D9fE7LFdxCXwsGfD0P6N53nVk-jDF0Cesi2IUmMFzFDbcqU9GT0132R6VnuVaiJ_HFZd9hpVAzXIKfKFA0bktLc/s1600/mylius_9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyhcif4G6xQPT6QZjOHQkyHpptXPTGt_Fj_95o8_87MCLvmIu25hF7D9fE7LFdxCXwsGfD0P6N53nVk-jDF0Cesi2IUmMFzFDbcqU9GT0132R6VnuVaiJ_HFZd9hpVAzXIKfKFA0bktLc/s320/mylius_9.jpg" /></a></div><br />
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<i>"Nature be your guide; follow with your art willingly, closely."</i>- Maier: Atalanta Fugiens<br />
<i>..the alchemist is advised to co-operate with nature.."</i> (1)<br />
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Alchemy is the ancient art of turning base materials into gold. In spiritual alchemy, we transform our every day consciousness into the gold of illumination. The Deep Water Horizon Oil Catastrophe seems to be an act of the darkest type of alchemy. In the process of extracting black gold (oil) out of the <i>prima materia</i> (the ocean) for the sole purpose of self-gain, BP had managed to sacrifice many lives (human and otherwise) to the dark god of greed. Somewhere in the morass of their twisted thinking, they had the right to take these lives for the cause of the almighty dollar. They even had lawyers calculating figures on the appropriate amount of collateral damage they could allow before their agenda was affected. From what I can extract from various journals and analysis, that figure has not been met yet. This means that BP has not fully felt the consequences of their folly. Obviously they are oblivious to the signs all around them. <br />
The photos of the poor , suffering creatures in the ocean and along the Gulf Coast tells a very sad story. In alchemy the <i>pelican</i> is depicted piercing her breast to feed her young. This symbolizes abundance as the alchemical process reaches it's culmination. (2) The current state of the <i>pelican</i> in the gulf tells us that the "experiment" is a complete failure. The <i>alligator</i> (3) represents the mercurial sun of wisdom in the alchemical process. The current state of the alligator smothering in oily mud shows us that the "experiment" has no light.<br />
The color<i> black</i> (4) in alchemy represents the process of <i>putrefication</i> (5): the break down of the old body to make a vehicle for the new body. Yet, BP's reverse alchemy has resulted in the purification of the the "womb of life"... the result being an environment where no transformation, or new life is possible. In alchemy, <i>angels</i> represent the movement of air or breath which is the spiritualised product of the alchemical process. With BP's resultant smothering dark ooze, no breath can be taken... no beautiful wing can take flight.....<br />
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Dare we even label this catastrophe an act of the Dark Alchemy?<br />
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(1)A Dictionary of Alchemical Imagery, by Lyndy Abraham, page 11<br />
(2)Ibid, page 143<br />
(3)Ibid, page 48<br />
(4)Ibid, page 26<br />
(5)Ibid, page 26<br />
(6)Ibid, page 7d pagehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995942283966564206noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86195431253663050.post-56843776155837693372010-05-29T17:08:00.000-07:002010-05-29T19:23:21.972-07:00Nature, World Soul & Gulf Oil Spill<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzhhyphenhyphenyE-Jixt2LuCEGmd0FI_Qd8GpyXMgZHPJBtnM9voOyvXeFpefTy2Xpt-d8RsPq93fya_Y0JitoVC_DrqG9tNKDoZJpkAST9zwesAnum1H7jozQ1A_kEHNNR7ijA1phRCi2a8_rJb4/s1600/knighting.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 114px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzhhyphenhyphenyE-Jixt2LuCEGmd0FI_Qd8GpyXMgZHPJBtnM9voOyvXeFpefTy2Xpt-d8RsPq93fya_Y0JitoVC_DrqG9tNKDoZJpkAST9zwesAnum1H7jozQ1A_kEHNNR7ijA1phRCi2a8_rJb4/s200/knighting.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5476882922655791282" /></a><br /><br />“<span style="font-style:italic;">Only as the written text began to speak would the voices of the forest, and of the river, begin to fade. And only then would language loosen its ancient association with the invisible breath, the spirit sever itself from the wind, the psyche dissociate itself from the environing air.</span>” <br />page 254 The <span style="font-weight:bold;">Spell of the Sensuous<span style="font-style:italic;"></span></span> by David Abram/1997<br /><br /> I find myself , at this point in the journey, at a loss for words to embody the fullness of what I feel. I'm not talking about emotions. I am talking about the deep felt experience of an inner world.<br /> Just before the Gulf of Mexico was poisoned through acts of human error (motivated by unadulterated greed). I had realized that the image of Reindeer Goddess as she presented herself to me in 2004, was an encapsulated teaching regarding the Anima Mundi or World Soul (<a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/03/reindeer-goddess-axis-mundi-axis-shifts.html">part 1</a>, <a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/05/following-reindeer-goddess-inner.html">part 2</a>, <a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/05/incubating-reindeeer-goddess.html">part 3</a>). Her image is one of the oldest images we have representing man's communion with nature. Art historian Esther Jacobson has outlined the progression of the deer goddess image in Siberian, Russian, Mongolian and European history. (Jacobson/1993) As I research through the labyrinth of art, anthropology, history and religion, I am excavating through the collective unconscious.<br />This is one point where words seem to fail completely.... This inner realm is so rich, so vast and so alive with Psyche's language of symbols and archetypes. I will try to say more about this in a future posting.<br /><br /> The environment where the the remnants of the neolithic clans who revered the Reindeer Goddess are in the modern Arctic, Alaska & Siberia. The politics of these environs are ruled entirely by the oil industry. The reindeer, caribou and their habitat are endangered by Big Oil. This brings me to the second thing where words escape me: The Gulf Oil Disaster. Having been touched by an aspect of the World Soul in her form as Reindeer Goddess/Animal Mother has put me in a very sensitive spiritual space.<br /><br />Prior to the Gulf Oil Spill, I had a nightmare from which I awoke grieving horribly.<br /> <span style="font-style:italic;">There are flashing red lights, an emergency.Suddenly a group of people run towards me from a crowd that is watching an unfolding crisis. They grab my hands and my arms, pulling toward the area that is down a slight incline that I know is at the water's edge. But I still cannot see what the tragedy is. They pull me, urgently, toward the drama. "One whose marriage you are a party in is mortally wounded!", one man says while pulling me down the hill. I KNOW that someone I am deeply connected to is dying, but it hasn't been revealed to me WHO. The crowd parts to let me through while flashing red emergency lights move through the vista. Just as they are about to bring to a clear view of the situation, I awaken.</span><br /><br /> I sit up in the night crying, not knowing which deeply loved being is so wounded. My self-centered thinking was limited to individual people in my life. It was days later that I realized the mortally wounded being was Nature and the critical incident was the Gulf Spill. Now, one doesn't usually go around thinking "I am married to Nature". I had never thought of my relationship with nature this way. Looking back through the years to my <a href="http://lifeinneverwell.blogspot.com/2010/05/beauty-in-nature.html">childhood</a>, I can say it is true. The thing is: <span style="font-style:italic;">it should be true for every human being</span>.<br />We are a part of nature. Yet, having an element of conscious and the ability to communicate makes us the guardians of nature. Historically, the concept of ruler-ship (Kings, Queens, & Presidents) was based on a <span style="font-style:italic;">marriage to the land</span>. Sovereignty is a goddess of the land that the ruler has to protect and cherish. The crown upon the ruler's head is the <span style="font-style:italic;">Glory</span>, the <span style="font-style:italic;">Light of Wisdom</span>, the deep knowing that only communion with the World Soul can bring.<br />So what can be done now? How does humanity restore divinity?<br /><br /> Nature as mother is the World Soul. The womb for all life on our planet is the ocean.She is mortally wounded. Now is the time to remember who we really are. We need to hear the voice of the forest, the cries of the ocean, the pleas of all creatures.d pagehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995942283966564206noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86195431253663050.post-74021416469327765722010-05-18T13:37:00.000-07:002010-05-18T14:16:13.267-07:00Daughters of the SunBelow is a beautiful meditation of the nature on reality written by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parmenides">Parmenides</a> (5th Century BCE). <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Kingsley_%28scholar%29">Peter Kingsley</a> translated this piece in his book <span style="font-style:italic;"><span style="font-weight:bold;">Reality</span><span style="font-weight:bold;"></span></span>. No matter where I go in my inner journey, I always come back to Peter's writings. It clarifies so much for me... reminds me of how tricky our perceptions are.... reminds me that "mind" and "matter" are not separate. Clarifies, with each reading, the teaching of the Goddess whose veil we wear while we are in our bodies... for this is her world. In her world, Wisdom is what is required to skillfully navigate the sea of our illusions. (In Parmenides day, they called it <span style="font-style:italic;">metis</span> and it means so much more than our English word "wisdom".) No matter where I get carried away to, I come back to Parmenides & Peter Kingley's <span style="font-weight:bold;">Reality<span style="font-style:italic;"></span></span>.<br /><br />This time, I returned to the daughters of the sun while following the reindeer. Before the mares that carried Parmenides, the reindeer carried the wisdom holder while her antlers carried the sun that illuminated the darkness. The reindeer was the first domesticated animal, and mankind's first "chariot" on both the inner and outer journeys. And no matter where mankind goes, the Wisdom Teachings remain the same.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">"The mares that carry me as far as longing can reach<br />rode on, once they had come and fetched me onto the legendary<br />road of the divinity that carries the man who knows<br />through the vast and dark unknown. And on I was carried<br />as the mares, aware just where to go, kept carrying me<br />straining at the chariot; and the young woman led the way.<br />And the axle in the hubs let out the sound of a pipe<br />blazing from the pressure of the two well-rounded wheels<br />at either side, as they rapidly led on: young women, girls,<br />daughters of the Sun who had left the mansions of Night<br />for the light and pushed back the veils from their faces<br />with their hands.<br /><br />These are the gates of the pathways of Night and Day,<br />held fast in place between the lintel above and a threshold of stone;<br />and they reach up into the heavens, filled with gigantic doors.<br />And the keys — that now open, now lock — are held fast by<br />Justice: she who always demands exact returns. And with<br />soft seductive words the girls cunningly persuaded her to<br />push back immediately, just for them, the bar that bolts<br />the gates. And as the doors flew open, making the bronze<br />axles with their pegs and nails spin — now one, now the other —<br />in their pipes, they created a gaping chasm. Straight through and<br />on the girls held fast their course for the chariot and horses,<br />straight down the road.<br /><br />And the goddess welcomed me kindly, and took<br />my right hand in hers and spoke these words as she addressed me:<br />'Welcome young man, partnered by immortal charioteers,<br />reaching our home with the mares that carry you. For it was<br />no hard fate that sent you travelling this road — so far away<br />from the beaten track of humans — but Rightness, and Justice.<br />And what's needed is for you to learn all things: both the unshaken<br />heart of persuasive Truth and the opinions of mortals,<br />in which there's nothing that can truthfully be trusted at all.<br />But even so, this too you will learn — how beliefs based on<br />appearance ought to be believable as they travel all through<br />all there is."</span> ---Paramenides, translated by <a href="http://www.peterkingsley.org/">Peter Kingsley</a><br />from <span style="font-weight:bold;">Reality<span style="font-style:italic;"></span></span> pages 26-27 2003 Golden Sufi Center<br /><br /><iframe src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=mythicmusing-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&m=amazon&f=ifr&md=10FE9736YVPPT7A0FBG2&asins=1890350095" style="width:120px;height:240px;" scrolling="no" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" frameborder="0"></iframe>d pagehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995942283966564206noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86195431253663050.post-24387007704062196252010-05-15T17:06:00.000-07:002010-05-15T20:22:23.057-07:00Incubating Reindeer Goddess & Baby Blue<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjodNdX38_FSqUx5QxUWlnM1p6iI0D8Zcb08_o12Vxz2eU8u541l9llY2YcKLpMG7EADlZsy-M8KX2teJCWqBNFLkgOY4qerMJM6B-orZyONtUL3_cbF2C7QacM86U7wHVYrW5Z_znFBxk/s1600/Reindeer__716126a.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 120px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjodNdX38_FSqUx5QxUWlnM1p6iI0D8Zcb08_o12Vxz2eU8u541l9llY2YcKLpMG7EADlZsy-M8KX2teJCWqBNFLkgOY4qerMJM6B-orZyONtUL3_cbF2C7QacM86U7wHVYrW5Z_znFBxk/s200/Reindeer__716126a.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5471699417104739010" /></a><br /><br />This is Blue. He is the first wild reindeer born in England since the ice age! He was born on May Day (May 1, 2010). See his story <a href="http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/environment/article7123304.ece">here.</a> <br />Photograph: Adam Gerrard/SWNS<br /><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLCIyL-iaBK3TjK5QpCKYW6qdhuO07mymNkH91sMT0-XbnM-HcYcJFJ4MechNLD3rcRiiSDTHDqUZvDTCj7VLN2GdYQJKPbetwJ0uZ14X8DsECSBhxOSj-cq6zX5Lv5GMGIi_SOoCEzOo/s1600/flying+reindeer+stone.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 209px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLCIyL-iaBK3TjK5QpCKYW6qdhuO07mymNkH91sMT0-XbnM-HcYcJFJ4MechNLD3rcRiiSDTHDqUZvDTCj7VLN2GdYQJKPbetwJ0uZ14X8DsECSBhxOSj-cq6zX5Lv5GMGIi_SOoCEzOo/s320/flying+reindeer+stone.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5471652664259935314" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://community-2.webtv.net/Taimm/FLYINGREINDEERSNACK/">"Reindeer Stone with Flying Reindeer Over the Moon"</a><br /><br />Click <a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/03/reindeer-goddess-axis-mundi-axis-shifts.html">here</a> to see part 1 and <a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/05/following-reindeer-goddess-inner.html">here</a> to see part 2 of this story.<br /><br /> I apologize for not posting sooner. It seems that following the Reindeer Goddess is nothing less a task than going to the moon. I have been digging through academic texts, mythology, the internet. I have traveled to the Arctic, Alaska, Mongolia, the Russian Steppes, Scotland--- mentally, of course. The story of the Reindeer Goddess is at least 18000 years old. This means the stories are not spelled out for us. We have to perform nothing less than an excavation of the mind stream of the human race. Indeed, during this process I have dreamt of rich earth incubating life in a "mind/mine shaft". (Psyche loves puns and riddles!)<br /><br />I have tried active imagination, engaging the image that came to me before the 2004 Sumatra Quake and resulting axis shift. "Keep digging." she says. "Incubate, <span style="font-style:italic;">grow</span> this image." she replies.<br />I have found very little said about this mythic image. In desperation, I turned to words like "stag", "hind", "deer" and "antlered" in texts on myth, religion, Jungian Psychology, art history, and archetypes. The Scythians had an abundance reindeer/stag images on petroglyphs, clothing, gold crowns, gold pins & golden statues. But why?, I ask. <br /><br />I have found that Christianity has not been kind to the Reindeer Goddess. Theories about her are not popular among academics. I do know that what little evidence there is regarding her existance shows that reindeer people of all countries were originally matriarchal. Whatever practices her priestesses had were taken over by the males shamans. (Shamanism as we know it originated in Siberia.) We have alot of writing about shamanism these days... I want to know more about what came <span style="font-style:italic;">before </span>shamanism. Hints are left to us in the Nordic myth of Freya: she was the source of <span style="font-style:italic;">seidr</span> - the powerful tradition of Norse magic. She gave the teachings to Odin.<br /> <br />There are clues to this ancient deer goddess tradition in Tibetan Bonpo teachings. From the Indus Valley we find remnants of an ancient priestess-hood that left us images of the horned goddess as tree of life. These images show us the roots of vedic alchemy, as well. Priestesses called yoginis, dakinis, and yakshas gave the sages the secrets of herbal medicine, and teachings of human transformation. After the Brahmins (a male dominated system that denigrates woman to this day) took over, these wise women were called witches, untouchables & whores. I am grateful to have encountered some of these ancient teachings in the Nyingma (Ancient Ones) texts that my own lama gave me. Of course,at the time I received the teachings and the empowerments (formal ritual of receiving) for the teachings, I had no idea where they would lead me!<br /><br /> In a<a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/05/following-reindeer-goddess-inner.html"> prior post</a>, I quoted a prophecy from Lapland. Reindeer Goddess gave humanity a warning: not being in harmony with nature will lead to our destruction. In spite of her fierce warning, there is also also the promise of regeneration. The antlers... they bear the tidings of new birth. I will talk about this more in a future post, after I incubate.d pagehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995942283966564206noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86195431253663050.post-38028668256815222622010-05-07T22:33:00.000-07:002010-05-07T22:36:27.715-07:00We Are PPI 2010.mpg<span style="font-family: arial;">Watch carefully in the sequence with the four poster bed.<br />When PPI Jason leaves the room,<br />the flashlight turns on by itself.<br />This is in my home.<br />PPI was able to talk the "spirits" into doing this<br /></span><span style="font-family: arial;">on camera on four separate occasions</span><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/E-oLw9L5E-Y&hl=en_US&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/E-oLw9L5E-Y&hl=en_US&fs=1" allowscriptaccess="never" allowfullscreen="true" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" height="344" width="425"></embed></object>d pagehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995942283966564206noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86195431253663050.post-10628544656601668052010-05-02T16:29:00.000-07:002013-01-17T18:13:30.404-08:00Following Reindeer Goddess: an Inner Journey<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ-DT5zA2shlw0C3Ssa9ieHZocsLKK2T6porbIYIAgZwZc1uGEHF9FGrcWrnpxTKQ5KGsJqlqu1F6mudHl9NZHVeooeGe0423k4QGVoW6SRtKzLpb4Zxrx1qCGk3_2aMuN38x0-AOh5V8/s1600/scythian_golden_deer.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5466819140130965954" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ-DT5zA2shlw0C3Ssa9ieHZocsLKK2T6porbIYIAgZwZc1uGEHF9FGrcWrnpxTKQ5KGsJqlqu1F6mudHl9NZHVeooeGe0423k4QGVoW6SRtKzLpb4Zxrx1qCGk3_2aMuN38x0-AOh5V8/s320/scythian_golden_deer.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 139px; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
(This is an image of a Scythian reindeer from <a href="http://www.hungary-tourist-guide.com/history-of-hungary.html">5th century B.C.E.</a>)<br />
On March 25, 2010, I wrote a blog post about my experience with "reindeer woman".<br />
To read that story click <a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/03/reindeer-goddess-axis-mundi-axis-shifts.html">here</a>.<br />
Since posting that story, I've had a few synchronicities involving the reindeer motif. One happened when I was at a nearby Borders store in the anthropology section (which is very small). I picked up a book up at random. The title was <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Inside the Neolithic Mind</span> by Davis Lewis-Williams & David Pearce. I opened to a page at random and I was very suprised to see the heading on the page that the book opened to (pg 161): <span style="font-style: italic;">Inside the Cave of the Reindeer Woman</span>! It is a Samoyed story of the initiatory journey of a shaman. The axis mundi/tree of life was inside this cave, along with many numinous beings. In his relationship with the imaginal realm (inner world), the shaman was able to develop powers (siddhis) that enabled him to serve his community. After the initiation, he returns to the cave of the reindeer women in times of need, to access the imaginal realm an find ways to restore balance to his people.<br />
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Also through synchronicity, I discovered another connection to the reindeer goddess and the earthquakes that I wrote about in my <a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/03/reindeer-goddess-axis-mundi-axis-shifts.html">former posting</a>. I found the Lapp people's story about the creation of Earth in the writing of Linda Scheriese Leonard. (<span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Creation's Heartbeat: Following the Reindeer Spirit</span>).</span> In this story from Lapland, the creator uses the body of his favorite creature, the reindeer doe, to create the world. He hid her still-beating heart in the centermost depths of the Earth. Here I will quote from Ms. Leonard's book:<br />
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"<span style="font-style: italic;">The vaja's (reindeer doe) heart would be the heartbeat</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">for the earth, so that when peace and love reigned the reindeer doe's heart would beat with joy. But if hatred and greed disrupted the earth's harmony, her heart would convulse in pain and tremors would shake the earth from top to bottom.</span>" [page 30]<br />
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It seems that the reindeer goddess speaks to some of our current worldly issues. Besides the mythic connection with earthquakes, the reindeer's natural habitat is being destroyed through weather changes and the oil industry.<br />
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A very dear and close friend brought me a special gift last week, when I was too weak to leave my home: it was a handmade bracelet of reindeer antler, made by the Saami people. It has Saami runes on it. Since I've had such a powerful set of encounters with the reindeer goddess, I have decided to follow her on an inner journey and see where she may lead me. I am too physically incapacitated to travel in the outer world to follow the reindeer. Perhaps my illness is part of what enables me to mine the inner world for riches. I hope that what I may find serves others as well.d pagehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995942283966564206noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86195431253663050.post-87664035499074760552010-04-25T11:57:00.001-07:002013-01-17T17:50:46.830-08:00Naga Encounter<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjMqEbxPjzJYZ_FDRCeZp4BdH5539INaGcXU4FOebFkk5zRh-AR3GYLgSu9Tfj5GoasMmNjU1CNJjiqIuSH1lBtAhhb4zzTr_-izyAVXLY_TyXcZH2p8pSxFgKsMfHn3NJoiepK0ykG48/s1600/naga-princess-kanya.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5464151449777140722" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjMqEbxPjzJYZ_FDRCeZp4BdH5539INaGcXU4FOebFkk5zRh-AR3GYLgSu9Tfj5GoasMmNjU1CNJjiqIuSH1lBtAhhb4zzTr_-izyAVXLY_TyXcZH2p8pSxFgKsMfHn3NJoiepK0ykG48/s320/naga-princess-kanya.jpg" style="float: left; height: 320px; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; width: 232px;" /></a><br />
(This image came from www.cranedance.net)<br />
I grew up on the American-Canadian border, in the St. Lawrence river valley. My child hood was very isolated, and I spent most of my time alone with nature, the woods, and the river.<br />
My very first experience with otherworldly beings happened when I was less than 2 years old. One night, I woke up in the arms of an immensely muscular being. He was cradling me as he, and others like him, were gliding through the field towards the woods behind my home. I remember how hard his arm and chest muscles were, yet I also knew I was safe. I dosed off briefly, and awakened to a luminously glowing room that seemed to be in a cave, or under the ground. That is when I saw that the beings I was with were half human and half serpent. In my child mind I called them the dinosaur people. I had no other context for what they were. They were tending to my battered and bruised body after an incident of severe abuse. One of them said to me "This is going to be a very difficult life for you. But- you do not have to repeat the behavior that you witness." I knew he meant for me not to hurt others the way I was being hurt. I also knew that this life was an assignment that I had to complete. I felt very precious in the presence of these beings, like I was a jewel. I did not feel that way among my birth family. I awoke the next morning and tried to explain to my mother that the dinosaur people had visited me. I told the story to my beloved grandmother as well. They both thought I had a vivid imagination!<br />
Life was very hard for me, but I never forgot what these beings had told me. I never saw them again face-to-face, but I felt them near me often. It wasn't until I was 35 that I finally found the name for what these beings were: Nagas and Naginis. I discovered a beautiful <a href="http://www.khandro.net/mysterious_nagini.htm">tale</a> about and 8 year old Naga Princess who had attained enlightenment under the tutelage of the Bodhisattva Manjurshri. There were many years of naga synchronicity following my discovery that my dinosaur people were nagas. (That is another story for another day.) d pagehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995942283966564206noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86195431253663050.post-55173591293261369572010-04-04T19:01:00.000-07:002010-04-04T19:45:55.488-07:007.2 and a Cluster of QuakesLast night I started having dizziness, headaches and a feeling of malaise. My ears felt plugged. I had a disturbing night, and felt terrible when I woke up. I told my husband that something was very wrong with me, but I didn't know what it was. I even felt disconnected from my body. We agreed that if it got any worse we would go to urgent care. Then I did something I rarely do: I went back to bed. I couldn't function! I dozed in and out all afternoon. I had earplugs in so I didn't have hear the neighborhood noises. Late in the afternoon I was alerted by a sound that was similar to wind chimes. I knew there are none nearby, so I ignored the sound. Then the bed started to shake. I realized we were having a quake, but this one wouldn't stop. I got out of bed and opened the bedroom door. My husband wasn't home... he had gone to the store. I heard the whole building CRACK. I ran outside to find all my neighbors outside as well. The shaking kept going on. When the ground stopped moving we all went back inside.<br /> This quake was 130 miles away and it was a 7.2. We're still having aftershocks with different epicenters up and down the fault line that the original quake was on. This is the worst quake I've experienced and the first major quake in my local area since I became sensitive to quakes. To read more about these experiences click <a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/02/quakes-visions-dharma-practice.html">here</a> and <a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/03/reindeer-goddess-axis-mundi-axis-shifts.html">here</a>. Trish & Rob MacGregor have written about others who are sensitive to earthquakes on their SYNCHRONICITY blog: click <a href="http://ofscarabs.blogspot.com/2010/03/planetary-empaths.html">here</a> and <a href="http://ofscarabs.blogspot.com/2010/03/premonitions-of-disaster.html">here</a>.<br /> Damage assessment is still in progress, and reports from the epicenter in Mexicali are just starting to come in.<br /> I didn't see <a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/03/reindeer-goddess-axis-mundi-axis-shifts.html">Reindeer Woman</a> (which may signify an axis shift)-- unless you count the book <span style="font-style:italic;">Creations Heartbeat: Following the Reindeer Spirit</span>, by Linda Schierse Leonard. It was in may mailbox late yesterday afternoon...d pagehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995942283966564206noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86195431253663050.post-42717196110544621012010-03-25T19:09:00.000-07:002010-03-25T19:41:58.300-07:00Liminal Living- BorderlandersIn my search for an explaination to unusual phenomena such as the <a href="http://mythicmusing.blogspot.com/2010/02/quakes-visions-dharma-practice.html">premonitions</a> I have before some natural disasters, I read a lot of material. Below is a quote from a fascinating book by a Jungian analyst who spent many years among the Navajo, <span style="font-style:italic;">just listening</span>. <a href="http://www.borderlanders.com/">Living in the Borderland</a>, by Jerome S. Bernstein.<br /><br /> "Borderland people <span style="font-style:italic;">personally</span> experience, and must live out, the split from nature on which the western ego, as we know it has been built. They feel (not feel <span style="font-style:italic;">about</span>) the extinction of species; they feel (not feel <span style="font-style:italic;">about</span>) the plight of animals that are no longer permitted to live by their own instincts, and which survive only in domesticated states to be used as pets or food. Such people are highly intuitive. Many, if not most, are psychic to some degree, whether they know it or not. They are deeply feeling, sometimes to such a degree that they find themselves in profound feeling states that seem irrational to them. Virtually all of them are highly sensitive on a bodily level. They experience the rape of the land in their bodies, they psychically , and sometimes physically, gasp at the poisoning of the atmosphere. Often they suffer from "environmental illness". This psychic identity with the animate and inanimate objects of nature is a phenomenon that anthropologist Lucien Levy-Bruhl (Levy-Bruhl, 1966) recognized among native cultures, and which he called <span style="font-style:italic;">participation mystique</span>. It is a psychic identification from which , up until recently, westerners have been totally alienated." -Jerome S.Berstein <span style="font-style:italic;">Living in the Borderland</span> (page 9)d pagehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01995942283966564206noreply@blogger.com3