Below are the 20 most recent journal entries recorded in The Story Teller's LiveJournal:

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Thursday, March 8th, 2007
12:39 pm	Middle Piller - The Self Hug The light spilt weightless from a milk jug into my brain and then became hands, holding my brain, bringing weightlessness to my being. Oh god, I just need a hug! I need to be held! More hugs I say! Anyway, the hands continued through my throat (becoming like the hands in labyrinth) and then the light arrived at my chest. My arms and body 'switched on' as though a light switch had been flicked and they too became shimmering weightless parts of myself. When the light moved to my womb it became an interior designed room! Complete with gleeming white chaisse lounge and fancy light fittings. How hilarious. The light moved down either leg on a gorgeous stepped pathway (also gleaming) and then at my knees it became a rope bridge over massive rainforest. It was raining and the bridge was rickety but I wasn't scared. The light kept moving and finally met at my feet where a strange little wooden gargoyle-type thing was sitting there in front of a cave/entrance. It had huge eyes and was hugging itself at the knees. Hugging again! Hugging oneself. I definately feel as though this middle piller was about the self-hug. (Comment on this)
2:36 am	Druidcraft Tarot Tarot Reading Five card spread: air, fire, water, earth & spirit. I did this spread and linked it into my sphere of protection ritual that I performed earlier today. Air: Princess of pentacles again! She certainly has been a feature. Now she is representing the intellectual realm. She is manifesting my essays and brings ideas out of my mind and onto 'paper'. The rock behind her is again making me wonder. It represents the hidden knowledge that I will unlock upon my journey. What a fortunate life I lead. Fire: Ace of wands, a buck stands proud on the edge of a cliff. Fire in fire. Initiation and beginnings. I have a good view from here of my intuitions and will. I can see the land before me and I am powerful within it. Some of my choices are ambitious, but those are the ones that will open up new lands if I only raise the courage. Water: Four of wands, A domestic scene with hut and fire surrounded by four stones. Four wands create a canopy over the fire place. I need to learn to forgive and be open to change within a domestic setting. Living with someone else is hard! But, not nearly as hard as living alone. I need to be less pushy, more genuinely open. I see the four wands made of wood and I worry that if my will is too great, the fire will burn it all up! Earth: The moon. A powerful card to represent the land. I have been concentrating on sacred places and spiral 7 (earth mysteries). This card is all about trancending the everyday through the earth and places of power. Spirit: A man looks out at his two children. Its funny because I have thought since I bought the deck that this card had a woman looking outside. As a woman she looks worried, anxious, almost jealous of the children's freedom and lack of cares outside. As soon as I noticed the man's nipple tonight and realized that she was a he, suddenly I interpreted the card very differently. Now it became a card of pride and joy in what the man had created. What an interesting view of gender I have. No wonder I find myself longing to be a man and to be free of feminine expectation. Confused little hermaphrodite me. Anyway, the card is about feeling a sense of accomplishment with the AODA, getting to the 2nd degree. I feel very strong in my spirituality and this path. N.B. One of the more amusing moments tonight is that I realized that I had set up our sacred space slightly wrong when placing elemental candles recently (we've just moved, hence the shuffle). I noticed that I had accidently put water in the north and fire in the west. What is hilarious about this is that when we first got here (before knowing officially where the directions were) Morgs and I put our incense, lighters and candles on the games cupboard. Tonight I realized that this spot is in the north! I was feeling funny about having the water candle amongst all those fire things! Of course, now that everything is in the right place it feels perfect, e.g. the blue candle is right near our kitchen sink, exactly the place for water! *happy sigh* (Comment on this)
1:23 am	Equinox Autumnal Equinox March 21 10.07 (Comment on this)
Wednesday, March 7th, 2007
11:19 pm	Middle Pillar Today I lay back in supta baddha konasana and did a middle pillar. The light from above rushed down into my head like a waterfall[1]. The light frothed as though it was filled with baking soda (non-toxic, but abrasive), as it gurgled down my throat, cleansing me alchemaically. At the top of my chest the light became part of a vast lake stretching out across my body. A full moon hung silently and reflected the otherworldly glow of the lake. At the other side of the lake was black braken[2], the light had to move carefully to navigate through towards my reproductive organs. However, once there a sacred stone circle was revealed. It was a joyous feeling of being home. The light moved onwards down my legs and met my feet at the bottom of my body. The two beams of light fused and electrified my entire body. [1] Tonight (many hours after the middle pillar) I was reading about the sacred Himalayas. The origin of the Ganges are described as a waterfall described as falling from Heaven. One of the most famous and important myths, which links mountains and rivers for the Hindus, is the descent of the Ganges from the heavens. [2] Reminds me of the path of the leader as written in the ADOA candidate ritual. (Comment on this)
Tuesday, February 27th, 2007
11:58 pm	Tarot Past: Princess of pentacles = questioning her coin, last week I thought the coin represented material weath (i.e. $$), but I think it actually meant publishing my podcast on itunes. Manifesting on the material plane has become more fluid with the advent of the internet. But, my work is manifesting as vibrations across the planet and so it definately works as on the physical level. Present: Eight of swords = a woman bound, surrounded by eight swords in the ground. The intellect terrified within hod. This could not be more accurate. I have an article due in 48hrs and I'm quiet terrified. Yet, when I look at this card from the outside, I can see that she could use the blade of one of the swords to help untie herself in order to step sideways away from the danger. Tomorrow I need to start work on untying myself first by chosing a single issue to work on with my article and getting that done. The light will increase almost entirely just by releasing myself from the blindfold. Future: The Hermit = Next week Morgs will be away in the USA for a conference and I will be alone for a week without him. It will be a good time for some introspection and ritual work I think. (Comment on this)
Thursday, February 22nd, 2007
9:36 am	Cloud Divination I have developed my own form of cloud divination based on a combination of the classification system invented by Luke Howard, local weather and skrying the clouds and I am still experimenting with it every day I see the clouds. Isn’t it interesting how people first communicate with each other by discussing the weather? I use these conversations to gauge the mental state of the people around me and predict the day’s events. The weather has a profound effect on psychology regardless of whether people realize it. By paying more attention to how individuals react to various conditions I can predict their moods and reactions to events and circumstances. Here is some of the other things I have learnt: - The speed of the wind dramatically influences the nature of the divination and should adjust one’s thinking accordingly. High wind indicate greater gwyar. Low wind or stillness is greater calas. - The time of day is influential. Cloud energies at dusk and dawn carry different significances than those during the day. - The phase of the moon also affects divination and can be combined with the cloud cover of the evening. - I currently have nine basic categories of clouds: 1/ Fair weather cumulus (=heap). These are the fluffy clouds children see dinosaurs and people in. Great for day-dreaming, discursive meditation, thinking of possibilities, lateral thought. Allow yourself to think of big goals without setting limitations. Divination, creativity, story-telling. These clouds have wonderful dimensionality and should encourage someone who witnesses them to enjoy their day with some extra symbology and significance. What do you see in your clouds today? Druidcraft tarot images: princess of wands justice, four of wands, the high priest, king of wands, five of cups, queen of swords, three wands, princess of wands, six of cups, the fool, ten of pentacles, the hanged man, the lady, two of wands, queen of wands 2/ Cumulonimbus. These are dark, stormy cumulus. They are very exciting, full of gwyar. They are full of energy and possibility. Good clouds to make a decision on something you’ve been ruminating on. Druidcraft tarot images: none of the deck feature these cards. 3/ Stratus (=stretched out). These clouds show patterns over a big area. How does your life have patterns and repeating tendencies? Are these habits good or bad or both? Should you develop more habits that are good for you (e.g. exercising regularly) and breaking bad habits (e.g. stopping smoking). What are the laws of nature? Druidcraft tarot images: king of swords, prince of swords, king of pentacles, ten of swords, princess of swords, the wheel, king of cups 4/ Stratocumulus. Thick clouds that cover the sky. Good for skrying, reflection, introspection. They can represent stillness, calas. Often found in winter. Druidcraft tarot images: strength, seven of wands, the fferyllt, the lovers, the lord, the five of wands, ace of wands, the sun, two of cups, the chariot, three of pentacles, nine of wands. 5/ Low-lying stratus (=fog). Fog is perfect for the otherworld. Think of Midsummer Night’s Dream and the use of fog machines to resemble the dreamy land of the fairies and otherkin. Materialize your dreams, but be careful what you wish for. Druidcraft tarot images: nine of pentacles, six of pentacles, seven of cups, seven of pentacles, five of pentacles, eight of swords, nine of pentacles 6/ Nimbostratus. These are stratus clouds which precipitate (e.g rain, snow). They indicate fertility, renewal, reactivation. Think of the energy of a snow day in the middle of winter. Or a rainstorm breaking in drought-stricken land. Druidcraft tarot images: none appear in the deck. 7/ Cirrus. (=curl). These are ice clouds high up in the atmosphere, away from the weather we experience on earth. These clouds are excellent for getting a different perspective, trying something that you don’t think is ‘you’. They also represent future outcomes, a big journey. Druidcraft tarot images: queen of cups, seven of swords, the moon, the hermit, two of pentacles, the magician, the high priestess, six of wands, five of swords, six of swords, ace of cups, the tower, eight of cups 8/ Blue skies. No clouds means strong nwyfre energies. Possibilities, freedom, existence, philosophy, spiritual growth. This is why desert climates can be so useful in spirit quests and inner work. It is also why the tops of mountains (or airplane trips) can be charged with spiritual energies. At night, clear skies allow divination via the stars. Druidcraft tarot images: the star, the world, four of cups, ten of cups, eight of wands, princess of cups, prince of pentacles, princess of pentacles, queen of pentacles. 9/’God’ Clouds. These are those amazing cumulus clouds where the suns rays seem to shine down from heaven. When they appear at sunset or sunrise they can take your breath away. These are very fortunate clouds and usually contain an important message. Druidcraft tarot images: none of the cards show this cloud type. Sometimes the sky has a variety of the above clouds or combination-cloud types. If it does so, then take your inspiration from combining elements of the above into insightful readings. E.g. cirrocumulus clouds are a great opportunity meditate about your own personal journey from a different perspective. A combination of cumulonimbus clouds and blue skies might signify a big change in spiritual direction. Druidcraft tarot images with combination clouds: ace of pentacles, four of swords, death, three of swords, prince of cups, ten of wands, ace of swords. N.B. Druidcraft tarot cards with no sky are: eight of pentacles, cernunnos, two of swords, nine of cups, four of pentacles, three of cups, rebirth, nine of swords, (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Tuesday, February 20th, 2007
11:15 pm	Tarot Druidcraft Tarot Past: The Fferyllt - a woman alchemist is changing physical substances but they glow etherically. In the distance is a mountainous island on a lake or sea with a rainbow over it (glastonbury tor). A stone is placed on top of the tor. This woman is powerful and capable of significant change. I am passing through a period of great change (i.e. moving countries, shifting jobs, getting married). Massive transformation is passing. Present: Two of coins - a woman juggles two coins. She is focussed. She stands protected on land whilst a storm rages in the distance and ship is in danger. I am currently focussing on balancing my physical existence, getting my own self in balance and keeping clear of other people's storms as much as possible. If I am not balanced, how can I rescue or help others? Future: Princess of coins - a girl about twelve years old examines a huge coin. Behind her is a cave with a sigil-covered rock. She is thinking of all the possibilities of this coin, how she can use it, how it can help her. Today I signed a letter post-dated into the future. The letter thanks the universe for getting me $25,000 via Planet Radio's fund-raising exercise in April. I do feel like a child at the prospect of such an enormous sum. But, only if I dream it, can it be so. (Comment on this)
7:11 am	Cernunnos It is interesting how daily LBRP's and rigorous exercise affects meditation. A few nights ago Sirona (air quadrant) showered me with ethereal mirror shards. I didn't understand them then. Then, last night Cernunnos (earth quadrant) had his usual dark appearance, but was embedded with jewels and precious minerals. He had ruby talons on his fingers and toes. He had Opals for eyes. Flashes of glinting metals and precious stones throughout his muscular body of hair and dirt. There was an alloy of titanium in his bones, giving him Wolverine-type strength. He creates an adrenalin rush like driving a racing car, but trustworthy, a protector, but someone to take you to the edge of your physicality. Desire, lust, addictive. (Comment on this)
Sunday, February 18th, 2007
1:13 pm	Tree-planting In May 2005, Morgs and I planted a Red Oak in NJ for our handfasting. We also helped other members of Red Oak Grove planting a real grove of trees at our camping ground. In August 2006, when Morgs and I got legally married, we planted many trees and shrubs with our family and friends as part of an Arbour Day effort to reforest devastated parts of the Australian landscape. At christmas we went back to the area and removed weeds from our growing trees and stroked the leaves of the tenacious plants. Tree-planting is a tradition that we should continue on our wedding anniversary every year. (Comment on this)
1:08 pm	NLP workbook Ch.2 Action Plan NLP Workbook 1) Ten Outcomes I want to achieve in the next week (i.e. by Sunday night 25-Feb-07): 1/ Complete lessons 5 & 6 in "Yoga: The Iyengar Way" book twice (i.e. four hours of yoga pracise) 2/ Either Walk 1 hr or swim 1km three times. 3/ LBRP every night 4/ Sent a draft of my encyclopedia article on imagination to reviewers. 5/ Make revisions to my imagination article based any feedback already received. 6/ Finish 30 news stories for Planet Radio 88FM 7/ Buy as many bookshelves as we can afford. 8/ Eat at least one piece of fruit every day. 9/ Be 152lbs 10/ Take moving boxes to the recycling. 2) Write down outcomes every six months for the following categories. By 18-Aug-07: Professional Life 1/ I will have finished my all my coursework (i.e. 'incompletes') for my PhD. 2/ I will have given a paper at both the AAP and Australian Cognitive Science Conference. Personal health 1/ My lower back and both my knees will be working well without pain. 2/ I will be fit and < 146lbs. 3/ I will be eating mostly fruit, nuts and 70% vegetarian food. Relationships 1/ I will take Morgs on a date/adventure once a week and listen to him and concentrate on how he is feeling. 2/ I will reply to emails from loved ones within three days. Money 1/ We will put $2,400 towards our credit card debt. 2/ We will save $1,200 towards a deposit on a house. Self-development 1/ I will have a guest on my radio show each week. 2/ I will be able to stay in shoulder balance for at least 5 minutes at a time. Spiritual 1/ I will have celebrated equinox, beltane, solstice, and lughnasadh. 2/ I will be able to meditate for > 15mins 3) Huge, unbelievably great goals (HUGGs) 1/ Publish a book. 2/ Have kids. 3/ Using 100% recycled power. (Comment on this)
Saturday, February 17th, 2007
1:33 am	Return Back into daily LBRPs and yoga lessons four times a week. After a year of change and five moves and three countries, life is starting to return to some normalcy. Tonight I lit four candles around my yoga space. I did an intensive, rigorous lesson and then finished with my LBRP. Each day my experience becomes more vivid, more concrete and tonight was no exception. I am still getting far too distracted during ritual, but the energies are developing. My 'angels' are: North, air = Sirona (gaul wind goddess, goddess of the stars) South, water = Bridget (Irish, UK goddess of healing, fertility and imbolc) East, fire = Math (welsh god of magic) West, earth = Cernunnos When I call Sirona she appears as a translucent, undulating star goddess. Her form is fluid like a magnificent sky cephalapod. If you've seen director's cut of The Abyss, it will make some sense. She is utterly feminine, gorgeous, but powerful, silent, thoughtful, emmense, she is like shelter, like Nut, hanging in the sky. But, she is dynamic, reacting to energy and situation. Tonight she released thousands of little diamond-shaped mirrors down from the cosmos. They fell like snow flakes and filled the surroundings with disco-ball filaments of light. I was awe-struck, yet didn't spend as much time engaging with them as I should have done. It was disrespectful of me and I think I missed out on something deeper, more significant because of this. However, the thought of mirrors, reflecting me and reflecting light has got me thinking. When I call on Bridget, she has recently taken the form of a little red-haired, freckled, girl. Her eyes twinkling mischeviously and a vessel of water in her hands and a river at her feet like the tarot card princess of cups from the Druidcraft Tarot. My Bridget also has a waterfall behind her. Tonight she was older with a hood on, an adolescent moving towards being the Queen. She looked a bit like the redhead in the two of cups, energized, full of life and cheek. When I call on Math, he has recently worn a luxuriant red cloak and dark hair and a beard. He faces towards me, sometimes with a staff and is earnest, upstanding, perhaps a bit aloof. Tonight he sat down on a log by a fire and I was compelled to sit down next to him, drink some mead and have a chat. Yet again, I didn't take the time to do that, instead I moved on, leaving him by the fire. I'm so silly! I guess I was a bit intimidated. He'll forgive me for that. When I call on Cernunnos, he appears out of the forest just like the Cernunnos card in the Druidcraft Tarot. Before I had got this deck, he had appeared just the same. I really do think it is a great impression painted by someone familiar with his hungary sexuality, dirt, smell and strength. (Comment on this)
Sunday, October 29th, 2006
6:34 am	Calan Gaeaf Tonight I went to a druid celebration of Calan Gaeaf (Welsh version of samhain) with Red Oak Grove. The weather was windy, cold and gloomy, yet the twilight clouds revealed burning oranges and reds in the sky. I call these sorts of clouds 'god clouds' because through the ominous darkness come fingers of sublime light down to earth. At the start of our journey I put Underworld on and we drove to the ceremony location. When sad_fountain and I arrived, I immediately wanted to stay outside for longer. I invited others to join me in some twilight meditation. We walked to a hidden grove and stood with our feet planted in the earth. I performed a yogic breathing meditation with an arboureal twist and then we went back inside. I helped to make some Halloween bingo boards and then won the bingo game! Then the ogham bobbing for apples began. Because I won bingo, I got the first apple and it was 'heather' for love and fertility. I feel fertile right now with my new life ahead. Then I used acrylic paints and a paintbrush to draw a combination of Horus and Death* make-up around my eyes just for fun. Other children present had the cutest face-paint. I wore my long-sleeved black top with the faded, shadowy skyline of Manhattan with the twin towers and a broken reflection of the American flag. I also had my green-man cernunnos bag with me and my muller-lyer illusion jeans on. It wasn't ceremonial garb, but felt seasonal nevertheless. I found a sickle whilst waiting for the main ritual to begin. I found the erotic sensation of the blade encircling my neck too interesting to leave alone. I used the blade against many people's necks and they all got a scary thrill. The ritual began we had quite a powerful opening of the gates and connection with the otherworld. We spoke of those who have lost their lives in the past year. There were many amazing stories, including a galapagus tortoise from Darwin's original journey who died recently. I sung a bit of 'I Still Call Australia Home' for Steve Irwin and cried a lot of my make-up off. The central channelling of Rhiannon and Math (welsh god of magic) was very intense. Rhiannon laughed at us for having images of skulls and things. She said that death was nothing like our cute decorations. Both energies were very strong during the night. * i.e. from Sandman. (Comment on this)
Sunday, May 29th, 2005
1:17 pm	MIDDLE PILLER The light was an elevator shaft transporting a regal king in a gleaming throne towards my head. He alighted from his seat in my skull and majestically moved about my mind. There were switches and computer consoles embedded in my skull, like aeroplane controls in the cockpit. He pushed various buttons and moved things around before decending down the grand stairway of my throat. His cloak spread light behind him as he moved. The king stepped silently across the missing stair at daath and proceeded across a beautiful white bridge of arches that crossed the abyss, like an elven aquaduct. On the bridge were many owls, all upon their own pedestal. The king nodded and occasionally patted them as he passed. Across the chasm was a huge citadel upon a mountain. The king marched through the city with serene love and joy. He came to the centre of the city where a great holy temple sat. He ventured into the temple and inside was nothing but an ancient well. The king knelt before it and offered himself utterly to her powers. His gratitude was emmense and the entire city seemed to purge itself of worry and harm because of his humility. After meditating and praying for a good time, the king left the temple and continued through the citidel. He reached the city gates and passed into mountainous terrain. This was the mountain path, like the silk road from India through the middle east. There were yaks and people of the hills as he walked through. The king used his septre to negotiate the journey. After a time he came across a monestary. The monks welcomed him and knew of his divine energies. They offered him a quiet place to rest and rice to sooth his hunger. The king remained there in peace for a long time. Then the energies were circulated and the heart enclosed in protection. (Comment on this)
Saturday, May 28th, 2005
2:08 pm	MIDDLE PILLER The stars released white threads of light like spider's silk. Sirona became a white, dancing female-formed flame and gathered the many strands into one rope of light, like bundling the strings of a parachute together. Then Sirona abseiled down the inky blackness of the sky and landed Mission Impossible style within my skull. She was graceful and wondrouslyl energetic, like a Disney flaming tinkerbell of light from Fantasia. Once my head was illuminated, she opened the door to my throat and abseiled down. Along the way were symbols on the walls. Geometric designs of triangles, almost like line-drawn houses and dots, like domino dots beside them. Sirona pushed on to daath, where the walls all disappeared and infinity took all form away. This did not disturb her in the slightest and she focussed on the great abyss before her. She began throwing out light like frisbees over to tiphareth, moving from left to right along the edge of the chasm. Each light ray solidified upon landing. Soon she had created a fiercly bright white hard surface, like an ice-skating rink. Indeed, she pushed herself out on the rink and I was her and she was me. We skated around the rink, doing all kinds of acrobatic manouvers that would normally cause physical me huge amounts of pain in my knees. Yet, for a moment I was free of pain. I was the light moving effortlessly across the abyss. I could see across to the other side, into my chest. There was a village there, with a bunch of people watching Sirona, as though they were watching a soccer game. She skated over to the edge and into tiphareth. There she rode a horse about the town, delighting the children and surveying the land. After a while, she got off the horse and proceeded to dance towards the edge of town. At the edge was a little hut, like a shaman's hut. She went inside to find a wise old herb woman beside a cauldron. In fact it was one of the Enochian guardians of the first aethyr who I met during Lon Milo Duquette's session. But, it was also Cerridwen, mysterious force of life and death. Sirona entered the cauldron of liquid and it was warm and womb-like. Baths are good for nurturing the cycles of life. At the bottom of the cauldron Sirona found a portal to another dimension, a worm hold opened up and strands of time and space stretched out like the temporal highways in Bill & Ted's. These ran down my legs and Sirona zoomed down them until she arrived at a strange planet. The planet was huge, bigger than the imagination and populated by giants. These giants were peacefully making something using massive blocks of metal. It was pretty warm, but not unpleasant. The giants paid no attention to the arrival of a little fairy of light amongst them. It was hard to reconcile this massive transdimensional existence with the materialism of my feet. But, nonetheless, Sirona gathered the cords of light together and created a center of energy at malkuth. She helped me circulate the light around my body and I felt it enormously. It felt like magnets re-polarizing all my cells. Like a restart or something. TAROT READING The Druid Craft Tarot Question: What should I do to help my knees? Fire: Seven Swords - The dilemma of inspiration versus getting it clearly explained. My mind went towards the sky and the moon through the window and left the complexities behind. I take this to mean I will do to continue meditating to balance the analytic work that I am doing. It is crucial to have this balance. Air: Hermit (reversed) - Again, the cresent moon in the background signals an intuitive shift from intellect and time for contemplation. Aristotle thought that contemplation was crucial for a virtuous life. The hermit is outside, in nature. I must meditate within the forests, by the water and seeking inspiration from the sky. Doing yoga outside is one suggestion. Water: Queen of Swords - This suggests either my mum or Leo to help temper my emotions. They are the right people right now. Clear-headed, yet loving and in my best interests. Earth: Two Swords (reversed) - Time to face conflict. There are two paths that I know and am afraid of. There is a third path by climbing the tree and seeing into the distance. This encourages me to be brave and try new remedies for my knees. I must make an appointment with the sports doctor (or get a referral) and probably buy some cosamin as soon as I can afford it. Spirit: Three Wands - Showing beginnings of success. I guess this card should give me faith to continue trying to solve this problem and not give up. With perserverence I can triumph. CONCLUSION: Use the warmth of the summer to be outside with fresh air, meditation and yoga. Keep to myself, don't get too involved in other people's dramas. Take regular baths and keep going, do not despair. Call my mum and Leo when things get rough. (Comment on this)
Tuesday, May 24th, 2005
2:53 pm	Spring in Montreal's Botanical Gardens Looking at the trees behind the ogham and I've noticed a fascinating thing. It is generally known that birch (beth) is the first tree to show new growth in spring, hence (some of) its connotations with birth and beginnings and indeed the beginning of the ogham alphabet. ( tree photos ) (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Wednesday, March 9th, 2005
4:46 pm	Middle Pillar Sirona winked at me and her light shone down laser-like from her eye into my third eye. The light fell down like a waterfall into my skull and began to fill up my head like a bathtub of energy. The energy dripped down into my throat and illuminated my neck in fairly viscous luminescence. In order to cross the Abyss the light formed criss-crossed mesh-work, like ants building a bridge across water. This net of light was like a cricus safety trampoline (again!) When the light arrived in my chest, it was the banquet hall of my youth. When I was a child I remember thinking that my food when into a great cauldren in my stomach where lots of little people ate my dinner. Well, the light arrived in this pub/banquet hall and filled everyone up with joy. The light became gaseous and drifted up the chimney. The chimney became a periscope and the light came out across the waters of yesod, the primal feminine. The light then solidified like ice paths across the waves, only warm. These paths divided down each leg and met again like parallel lines at infinity at my feet. There was a small island of matter with a huge quartz crystal on it that the light settled within. I passed this light around my body. When it travelled down my back, it was a great undercurrent in the sea, as it washed over my body, it was in waves, like a stormy ocean. When the light came up through the middle and exploding out of my head, it was like a blow-hole amongst cliffs. I finished with strong circling serpentine energies around my body. (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Tuesday, February 22nd, 2005
12:50 am	I've got a mentor! I'm very excited! I've finally got a mentor to help me on my druidic path. He sent me my first lesson tonight and I thought I should put the results up on my journal for reference: MY HEARTH CULTURE Your first lesson: A 'Hearth Culture' is a loose description of the linguistic/geographical culture that inspires the religious working of an individual or their Grove -- i.e. the Gods of their 'Hearth' or home. It usually determines the sub-set of Gods that they worship, the origin of most of the stories told about them and the language used to worship them. It might influence the kind of music most likely to be played, the style of clothing commonly worn, the kinds of food frequently served, etc. Notice the use of the word 'most' and other qualifiers in that definition. Ahh, excellent. So 'hearth' is a bit like the 'heart' of one's worship and/or spiritual community. So the Hearth Culture of ROG is Welsh. But in practice, Hearth Culture is not a rigid boundary. (As Captain Barbosa says in 'Pirates of the Caribbean', "The Code is more like 'Guidelines' than actual rules!") So we feel it's OK to include an Irish Goddess (Brigit) and a Gaulish God (Cernunnos) into our 'Hearth' and still call it 'Welsh'. *nods* that feels right to me. And for the purposes of the DP you can choose to answer the Hearth Culture questions using your own HC, ROG's or both. So your first assignment is to think about your own personal 'pantheon' of Gods. Who are They? What culture(s) do they come from? Okay, well my pantheon begins with ancient dreamtime of Australia. The beings that dwell in my land are like a combination of ancestors and nature spirits I think. At least, that has been my experience to date. Then my pantheon extends to my own Welsh and Irish ancestory. I initiated a communication with Ogma last summer and talked about magic and language with him. Then, I had a wonderful experience meeting Rhiannon on a moonlit night before calan gaeaf. Then speaking to her in person was incredibly powerful and emotional. Experiencing Math's energy was quite extraordinary too. My relationship with Math has helped me stay focussed on my magical goals. This year I had my first encounter with Brigid and it has been nothing short of miraculous. I have also set up four alters in my room, one to the east where Sirona resides, Math in the south, Briget in the west and the green man or pan in the north (I wish I knew the welsh god for this cheeky, fertile earth energy. I speak with each of these four every day when I do my grounding and cleansing ritual. I have also had personal experiences with a couple of the Egyptian pantheon, most recently Anubis and Nut. Although, they aren't the heart or hearth of my worship. Sometimes I just experience other entities in my travels, without necessarily really becoming involved with them (if that makes sense). Current Mood: excited (Comment on this)
Friday, February 18th, 2005
8:03 pm	The Cosmic Balance Two weeks ago, I sent a St. Brigid's cross to my sick step-father in Australia along with the strip of cloth that was blessed by Brigid at our Imbolc ceremony. When I spoke to my mum after posting the cross, she told me that he had suddenly begun to improve in health and no longer seemed to be suffering from the life-threatening pneumonia that had plagued him since last year. This seems completely miraculous. After three and a half months of getting sicker and sicker, he begins to heal. I have no doubts of Brigid's powers now. First my beloved's sickness was cured and now this. Yet, two days ago the most awful news came, that my beloved pusscat back in Australia had suddently died of septicemia. She was only four years old. While I was driving along the NJ turnpike last night, weeping and gurgling I felt like my baby had been taken from me as payment for helping the health of my beloved and my step-dad. I felt as though the cosmic balance of life and death had to be repaid. It was so sad and so illuminating at the same time. Just as I was thinking this, a truck pulled in front of me with a huge painted tree on the back that said 'Tree of Life' and a song came on the radio with the lyrics about being superstitious and reading the signs. I realized that whilst Brigid had healed, the death goddess takes away. I'm not sure if Sirona is part of this, but perhaps she is if we return to the light when we die. Sirona certainly knows the way there. I wonder whether Rhiannon is involved in this? I feel as though she might be. I sort of smiled through my tears and tried to comprehend the message I was getting. Clearly this is part of life. This terrible, aching sadness is part of life. But, golly it is hard to deal with. (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Tuesday, February 15th, 2005
11:39 pm	Yoga visuals Tonight I made an effort to let go of my intruding thoughts for meditation. I lay in supta baddha konasana and I found myself inside an orb of light, containing my whole body and extending a little beyond. It was an iridescent, gaseous sphere. I felt like an ethereal mermaid inside the aurora borealis. Each time a thought would enter my mind I would gently exhale it out of the sphere and the swirling, cleansing spirit would push it ashore like a gentle wave. I found myself much at peace in this way. Then, I moved to supported adho mukha virasana and I experienced an intriguing sense of watching the universe from overhead. This time my thoughts were directed to a ball of flame beneath my body and burnt to create cleansing stillness. It was quite powerful to have these opposing sensations. (Comment on this)
Monday, February 7th, 2005
1:18 pm	The Star and the Laser Beams MOON PATH =========== Since meeting Sirona, it's changed my grounding ritual (QC). Normally I stand and feel the earth beneath my feet and then stretch up through the ceiling, into the sky, into space and finally my head arrives at the centre of the universe. From here I receive the divine light and I bring this light down through my body. However, the past two nights I've had very personal experiences with Sirona. First of all she is with me as soon as my head pops out of the top of my house. She swirls about me and gently helps me up towards the ceiling of the earth. Then, when I begin to trave through space she is the great emptiness and the great wonder of the universe. I am travelling through her, within her. It feels so incredible. Two nights ago when I arrived at the centre of the universe she poured the light into my head, like The Star in the major arcana (always my favourite card, morganjaffit will attest to that). Then, last night her eyes glowed like a thousand stars and penetrated my skull like a laser beam. Amazing. (5 Comments |Comment on this)