World Superstitions

The Latin root of the word ‘superstition’ means ‘to stand over in awe’ and relates to irrational belief that defies a logical explanation. Many primitive beliefs date back a thousand years and more. They were created to try to overcome fear of the unknown and the loss of control over life and death events. Many people believed that the future was influenced by ordinary, everyday mistakes and that the future could be foretold by carefully watching simple actions of daily living. These odd ideas were deeply embedded in the minds of people across the globe. Once a belief becomes part of the tradition of a country, it is almost impossible to remove it. Education has eliminated many of these customs from our culture as we now live in a society that requires demonstration, proof, argument and understanding, for belief to survive.

Superstitions Part Two

The superstition about walking under a ladder is not because a pot of paint might fall on you. It is due to the shape that the ladder makes when placed against a wall. The triangle was a holy shape in times gone by, and when walking beneath the ladder, one ‘breaks the triangle’ – the symbol of the Christian Trinity.

In herbal folklore Solomon’s Seal will banish poisonous insects, a hazel tree branch that is gathered on Palm Sunday will keep lightening away, caraway seeds prevent poultry from wandering and fennel banishes witches.

Avalon Oracle of the Day!

THE LADY OF SHALOTT - LOVE - IDEALISM - ILLUSION - VICTIM.

"Look deeply into thine own eyes and allow yourself to fall into the beauty you see reflected". Who is the Lady of Shalott? She lives alone - downstream of Camelot - in a tower. She lives under the threat of a curse that she must never look out of her window but look only into her mirror where she sees life outside her tower reflected.

A lyrical ballad by the poet Alfred Tennyson is based on the medieval 'La Damigella di Scalot'. This lay tells the tragic story of Elaine of Astolat. She saw Sir Lancelot passing by the tower in her mirror and she couldn't resist looking out of her window. Then the mirror cracked! She decided to leave her lonely tower in pursuit of this beautiful knight. But she is rejected by him! The story tells us that she found a boat and climbed inside and sang mournfully as she sailed to her death! The curse was that she could never experience romantic love.

Words of Power

The Gospel of John begins: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God! This sets out the power of nouns which are naming words. The name of God was so powerful in the Jewish religion that it was not allowed to be spoken. A symbol or alternative word for God's name was used. The second Commandment states: Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord Thy God in vain! The name of God was sacred. In fact, everyone's name is sacred, yours, mine and others. Since earliest recorded time, it has been recognised that words have an intrinsic power. Abracadabra, Hocus Pocus, Heypresto, Opensaysme! All are words that conjure magic or call upon spirits. Words that name places, also carry power. Ask any Irish person about this. Many of their folk songs feature place names that have not only ancient meanings but also hold highly valued personal memories. Words are said at special times to bestow important meanings, 'Congratulations', 'I forgive you', 'You are fired', are examples of words that carry vital meaning. Words have power, to heal and to harm. This is the nature of the curse. An awareness of the power of words means that we understand that by using a word, we deliver that energetic vibration into the world.

Fourth Force Field Analysis

Why are you here? Do you believe in yourself? Can you take positive action to create a good life for yourself and others? Are you clear about how to have a good and healthy life and future. Do you take risks? How resilient are you? Are you open to new ideas? Can you commit fully to life, relationships, work, and health? Do you have a strong support network? Do you identify and analyse problems and provide solutions? Are you accountable for your life? Do you exercise good judgment? Do you make sound decisions? Do you enjoy success? What are the payoffs for your life? Do you have a winning script? What is its title?

What do you stand for? What were you born to achieve? What is your life purpose? Do you live a soul-led life? How will you birth your inner journey? 

This Year - A Poem

 This year I do not want the dark to leave me.

I need its wrap of silent stillness,

its cloak of long lasting embrace.

Too much light has pulled me away

from the chamber of gestation.

Let the dawns come late,

let the sunsets arrive early,

let the evenings extend themselves

while I lean into the abyss of my being.

Sacred Wild Woman Medicine - A Challenge!

Who are you becoming?

"I don’t care how spiritual you are. How long you can melt in the sweat lodge. How many peyote journeys that have blown your mind, or how well you can hold crow pose. Honestly. I don’t.

I don’t care what planets fall in what houses on your birth chart, how many crystals you have or how vegan your diet is.

I want to know how human you are. Can you sit at the feet of the dying despite the discomfort? Can you be with your grief, or mine, without trying to advise, fix or maintain it?   want to know that you can show up at the table no matter how shiny, chakra- aligned or complete you are- or not.

Can you hold loving space for your beloved in the depths of your own healing without trying to be big?

It doesn’t flatter me how many online healing trainings you have, that you live in the desert or in a log cabin, or that you’ve mastered the art of tantra.

Semiotics

Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.

Semiotics is the study of symbols. What are symbols? The word comes from the Greek, symbolon, which translates as 'to throw together’, and means an emblem, mark or token which connects to a larger body of information. Many people learn the meaning of symbols by rote rather than through true understanding. 

A mark, sign or word is just that, nothing more. However, like 'beauty' symbols 'lie in the eye of the beholder'. For instance U can be an accidental mark, but if it is a symbol, such as the letter of the alphabet, U, it carries a meaning. Just as the image can be a sign for a cup of coffee and, if outside a shop that sells hot drinks, it could mean coffee is available. For some, personal associations could mean a comfortable place to relax, make friends, and have an enjoyable experience. The connections to the mark are dependent on the person’s personal experience, and what meaning they place on the mark. Some  might have prejudices or judgments about that symbol or might not want a drink at that time. What might be a clear meaning for one person might confuse another, and what might attract one person, might not attract another. What might have one meaning in one country, might mean something entirely different in another, and what might have meaning in one era, might have a different meaning in another. Symbols are personal according to our knowledge, our past associations, and the meaning that it has acquired.

The Fortune Teller - A Story

Since ancient times, divination has been a treasured tradition in all cultures across the globe, and in today’s world, we have a huge selection to choose from. Anything can be used to make predictions! The flight of birds, the fall of dice, the shape of clouds – the list is endless!

Firstly, and most importantly, you need to think of a question which you would like to have answered and secondly, you need to be very discerning when receiving your answer.

Some people have lost their life’s savings after visiting a phony fortune teller who convinced them to invest their money in a bogus scheme, so beware, for this reason foretelling the future is no longer fashionable – and no longer legal! Especially seeking medical and legal advice is highly foolish! Many forms of divination offer something that is no more than chance average and no more relevant than the person performing the reading.

The Invocaction of the Graces

I bathe thy palms in showers of wine, in the lustral fire, in the seven elements, in the juice of the rasps, in the milk of honey, and I place the nine pure choice graces in thy fair fond face : the grace of form, the grace of voice, the grace of fortune, the grace of goodness, the grace of wisdom, the grace of charity, the grace of maidenliness, the grace of whole-souled loveliness, the grace of goodly speech.

Dark is yonder town, darker those therein, thou art the brown swan, going in among them. Their hearts are under thy control, their tongues are beneath thy soul, nor will they ever utter a word to give thee offence.

A shade art thou in the heat, a shelter art thou in the cold, eyes art thou to the blind, a staff art thou to the pilgrim, an island art thou at sea, a fortress art thou on land, a well art thou in the desert, health art thou to the ailing.

Thine is the skill of the fairy woman, thine is the virtue of Bride the calm, Thine is the faith of Mary the mild, thine is the tact of the women of Greece, thine is the beauty of Emyr the lovely, thine is the tenderness of Darthula delightful, thine is the courage of Maebh the strong, thine is the charm of Binne-bheul.

A Moveable Feast!

A Moveable Feast! 

Our word ‘Easter’ comes from the Old English word ‘Oestre’ which was the name of a pagan Goddess of fertility. Her feast was held on the 21^st day of March. This is the Vernal Equinox and the accepted first day of Spring. The female hormone ‘oestrogen’ is named after her. 

Our Easter is named after this pagan festival. Easter is a moveable feast which is celebrated on the first Sunday, after the first full moon (known as the Pascal moon) after the 21^st March. 

Wendy's Dream Column

Dream: I am riding on a man's cycle along dark country lanes. I am going to a place where children are hiding. One holds a lit cigarette so I can recognise a place to stop. I am to rescue many children - about eight at a time. I take them all on the bike and they climb on each other's shoulders. Over the years I have had this recurring dream, I must have carried hundreds to safety. 

Wendy's reply: This profound dream reminds me of those brave people who fought in the resistance during the war and put their own lives at risk to save others from jeopardy. I suspect you have done much charitable work in the world without any recognition and thereby are privy to a personal secret concerning your sacrifice for others. You may have experienced hardship as a child or you could have inherited a truly unselfish disposition. Meditate on how it would feel for you to be holding the lighted cigarette, for you to be rescued from danger and be held tight on the shoulders of a strong person who is deeply committed to your welfare. Use the affirmation: I am a radiant beacon to others to achieve satisfaction of a life richly lived for the welfare of others. I will bestow a special gift upon myself as thanks from those who are unable to thank me personally for my kindness. 

Dreams Part One

Dreams have been an inspiration to many people throughout the ages. Robert Louis Stevenson, Mary Shelley, Graham Greene and Stephen King used their dreams to provide the characters and plots for their fictional books. Barbara Cartland dreamed the story-lines to her novels - in fact, she believed God gave them to her in this way! Many artists have been inspired by dream images, especially Salvador Dali and those of the Surrealist Movement. The composer, Guiseppe Tartini dreamed the entire ‘Devil’s Sonata’, following a dream Edward Elgar wrote the first theme of his Cello Concerto and Igor Stravinski composed an entire octet whilst asleep. The music for Paul McCartney’s favourite and most successful record, ‘Yesterday’, was heard first in a dream.  

Palm - Passion Sunday

The name of ‘Jesus’ is an English derivation of his true name. His Hebrew name was ‘Joshua’. In those days, son followed father in work and in disposition and we know that Joshua assisted Moses and succeeded Moses as leader of the tribes in the Promised Land. In some ancient sects, reincarnation was a firm belief as, on so many occasions, there are parallels over generations. 

Jesus came into his ministry when he was baptised by his cousin John in the Jordan River. John’s mother was Elizabeth, a close relative of Mary, the mother of Jesus. John’s father was the High Priest of the Jerusalem Temple of which there was no higher religious authority and his son, John was a wandering ascetic, living on what he could find in the desert to eat and drink and wearing a garment of goat skin. He was extremely popular and bathed people in the river water and told them that their sins were forgiven. John was a radical preacher without thought of his own safety. He criticised the Roman governor for marrying his brother’s wife, and for that he was imprisoned. Within time, he was beheaded. Jesus began his teaching and healing ministry when he was around the age of 30 years old. He collected around him 12 men to represent, and to re-unite the twelve tribes that united the northern and southern provinces that had been torn apart during the Assyrian conquest 700 years previously. As Elisha was to Elijah, so Jesus was to John. 

Cornish May Song

 Shepherd of goats upon the wild hills way, lead they flock from darkness into the light of day, forgotten are the ways of sleep and of the ways of night, some seek for them, but their eyes have lost her sight, open the door to us, the door which hath no key, the door to dreams that you command whereby I come to thee.