Holy Grail Part Three

A chivalric exponent wrote 3 books about the Chivilric code in the hope of reviving French knighthood. In the ‘Book of Chivilry’, keeping peace was paramount, and it says any knight who failed in his duties “deserves to have his teeth pulled out one by one”! 

Tournaments carried the oriflamme banner, the royal standard at the Battle of Poitiers where Geoffrey de Charny (1300-1356) died. 

What was dubbing? It was an accolade of knighthood. It involved giving a blow with the hand or a strike with the flat of the sword in church. The knight would confess his sins to the priest, take a bath and spent the night in vigil. 

Mystics, Scholars and Poets! Ireland - A Visit

I bet you didn’t know that King Dagobert spent time in Ireland! Ireland was once known as “the land of mystics, scholars and poets” and County Mayo, on Ireland’s West coast, is highly charged with spiritual energies. It’s a wild, rugged and desolate landscape has attractions for the holiday visitor with coastal and countryside walking, mountain climbing, golfing and bird watching. The Atlantic coast is atmospheric, there is also sea, lake and river fishing for those who enjoy the great outdoors. It is an area rich in wonderful, historical sites, such as stone circles and cairns, round towers and monastic ruins. Throughout the summer there are many festivals of food, music, art and song. 

This area is steeped in Ireland’s famous connections to the spiritual world. For instance, this is a well documented event. On the evening of August 21, 1879, Margaret Beirne was

Leisure - A Poem

Leisure by W H Davies

I am choosing poems I remember from my childhood...

What is this life if, full of care,

We have no time to stand and stare.

No time to stand beneath the boughs

And stare as long as sheep or cows.

No time to see, when woods we pass,

Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass.

No time to see, in broad daylight,

Streams full of stars, like skies at night.

No time to turn at Beauty's glance,

And watch her feet, how they can dance.

No time to wait till her mouth can

Enrich that smile her eyes began.

A poor life this if, full of care,

We have no time to stand and stare.

If - A Poem

If I can stop one heart from breaking, I shall not live in vain. If I can ease one life the aching, or cool one pain, or help one fainting robin unto its nest again, I shall not live in vain. (Alternative words) or help a lonely person into happiness again. 

Emily Dickinson

Frank Kafka - A Story

When Franz Kafka was 40 years of age (He lived from 1883 to 1924), though he never married and had no children, he was walking through the park in Berlin when he met a girl who was crying. She had lost her favourite doll and they searched for it unsuccessfully.

Kafka told her to meet him the next day to return to look for the doll.
The next day, when they had not yet found it, Kafka gave the girl a letter "written" by the doll saying "please don't cry. I took a trip to see the world. I will write to you about my adventures."

This began a story which continued until the end of Kafka's life.

Getting to Know the Goddess Course 3.1

The Goddess-Pages Online Course. Visit: goddess-pages.co.uk
I had not viewed the name Inanna as being related to the name 'nanny' but I am thinking it could also be related to the name Anna, which is reputed to be the name of the mother of Mary, grandmother of Jesus. Anne was my mother's name and it is scary how her character was very like Inanna. I am in my later years, so I have time to spare and share with others what I have built up over my life. I have worked hard to gain wisdom and wealth. I have an autoimmune illness, Giant Cell Arteritis, and Polymyalgia Rheumatica, which develop over the age of 50, most often in women. It is noticeable how this illness is ignored by professionals, and not much is known about it. Far more studies could be conducted. I think many could have this illness, undiagnosed. As women growing older, we are unseen. Men I think are far less attractive, but women are expected to always be attractive, be a capitalist and materialistic. It is a controlling society that expects women to always be an entertainment, always looking pretty, and not allow them to get old, or be unwell or disabled. 

The City of Revelation! London by Chris Street

There have been several attempts to re-build London as ‘The New Jerusalem’. The first was by the Knights Templar. In 1185, they modelled their Temple Church in Holborn on the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem and sited the building exactly the same distance from the old St. Pauls Cathedral as the Holy Sepulchre is sited from the Dome of the Rock. Clearly they saw a connection, or wanted to create one! 

Cathars

Cathars existed in France, especially Orleans, Provence and Languedoc areas and in Northern Italy and honoured the Gospel of St John. Raymond VI of Toulouse was especially lenient towards religious people and there was a medical school at Narbonne where Jews taught and practiced. These liberal values allowed women to own property in their own right. Cathars were ascetics, often holding high positions, such as artisans and tradespeople, within the community, especially the priesthood (the Parfaits). They were vegetarian - though ate fish, and were non violent. They regularly fasted and believed in sexual chastity, they also believed in reincarnation, and were dualists where the world was based on good and evil. They believed that the god of the Old Testament, Jehovah, created the world, but he was an evil god and the world was an evil place. Women were liberated and able to become priests. Many great philosophers of the distant past, followers of Mithras (who practiced in secret in the Languedoc caves) and the Persian Zoroasterians had many similar dualistic beliefs to Cathars. Manes (Manichaeism) persecuted in the same area was flayed alive for his Dualist beliefs. 9th century Paulicians, who followed St Paul’s writing were outlawed and sent to Bulgaria and Macedonia, and were the forerunners of Bogomils. 

Lourdes - A Visit!

Lourdes is a tiny riverside town that lies in the foothills of the magnificent French Pyrenees. Two thousand years ago, it was a Roman military base, and a Gothic castle stands in the centre of the town affording wonderful views. It is floodlit in the evenings. But this is more than just another historic town. It was a place of refuge during the Inquisition for fleeing Cathars and also for Templar Knights, and it provided sanctuary for Jews fleeing Nazi persecution in World War II. Franz Werfel was one of these Jews and he pledged to write the life story of Bernadette Soubirous if he and his wife survived the journey over the Pyrenees mountains to safety in Spain. His book was titled the ‘Song of Bernadette’ which was written when he reached safety and this book was made into a film of the same name. This town feels like sacred ground to many who come here and it is where a fourteen year old peasant girl had an incredible experience.