Another Clandestine Communion

The night is still; cloudless; safe
Eyes scan the great star nation with solemn respect
An ancient prayer; a symbol of protection in the sand
The Shaman washes in the cool lake waters
Knowing the ancestors stand close by
Silent witnesses soon to another clandestine communion

Tribal lands lie many days behind him
The shore line unexplored; unknown by his peoples
However discovery was not by chance
Alien voices; separate his own thoughts fill his mind
Comfort since an early age
Their instructions kindly and benevolent

Mental communion secret; hidden
The Shaman respected by the league of nations
A group of distant lights like falling stars
Close to the furthest horizon
Above the tops of the trees
He sees and understands

From the lake shore he walks
To the clearing ahead
Lit by the great star nation
Later, in that sacred light he sits cross legged
Awaiting the arrival of the star brethren once more
Visitors from distant lands

Observers of the earth
Guardians to the races there
Ambassadors of the skies
Amid their glory he sits then
At one with them
Like they are to him

Sharing telepathically their views and their ways
Pleased by his own gentleness and his own forgiveness
For a plague of white rapes and pillages the red skin lands
But he refuses to fight
Visions since an early age revealed
He realises he is powerless to prevent eventuality ...

Immortality his philosophy too
Kept from his people
For it contradicts; fearful they would kill him ...
Presently they leave him
Tears fall
But then stillness

He is ready for the next communion
For they will soon return ....

A Bundle Of Quotes

Forgive the indulgence, but I just could not choose just one; they were all gems. However, much deliberation I did choose only one after all ... one bundle ...


"All things will be produced in superior quantity and quality, and with greater ease, when each man works at a single occupation, in accordance with his natural gifts, and at the right moment, without meddling with anything else. "


"Attention to health is life greatest hindrance."


"Dictatorship naturally arises out of democracy, and the most aggravated form of tyranny and slavery out of the most extreme liberty. "


"How can you prove whether at this moment we are sleeping, and all our thoughts are a dream; or whether we are awake, and talking to one another in the waking state? "


"When the tyrant has disposed of foreign enemies by conquest or treaty, and there is nothing more to fear from them, then he is always stirring up some war or other, in order that the people may require a leader. "

Plato

Another One

Anybody can become angry - that is easy,

but to be angry with the right person;
and to the right degree;
and at the right time,
and for the right purpose,
and in the right way -

that is not within everybody's power and is not easy.



Aristotle

AOTEAROA

Aotearoa is the Maori name for New Zealand, though it seems at first to have been used for the North Island only. Many meanings have been given for the name but with Maori names the true meaning can often be found only in a mythological story or in historical fiction illustrating either how the name was given or something of the ideas which prompted it. Aotearoa is made up of either two or three words, Aotea and roa or Ao tea and roa. Aotea could be the name of one of the canoes of the great migration, the great magellan cloud near the bright star Canopus in summer, a bird or even food; ao is a cloud, dawn, daytime, or world; tea white or clear, perhaps bright, while roa means long or tall.

The most popular and authoritative meaning usually given is “long white cloud”, and there are two stories current to illustrate this. It seems the voyagers to New Zealand were guided during the day by a long white cloud and at night by a long oright cloud. The more usual one tells how, when Kupe was nearing land after his long voyage, the first sign of land was the peculiar cloud hanging over it. Kupe drew attention to it and said “Surely is a point of land”. His wife, Hine-te-aparangi, called out “He ao! He ao!” (a cloud! a cloud!) Later Kupe decided to call the land after his wife's greeting to it, and the cloud which welcomed them. The name Aotea was given both to the Great Barrier and to the North Island, but the latter became Aotearoa, presumably because of its length.

According to certain authorities, the other meanings are: big glaring light (Hochstetter); continuously clear light, or land of abiding day (Stowell); long white world (Wilson); long bright world, long daylight, long lingering day, or long bright land (Cowan); and long bright day (Tregear). A good case could probably be made out for the land of abiding day, or similar names. Maui, who is closely connected with New Zealand in mythology, once snared the sun and beat him to make him travel more slowly across the sky. Perhaps Maui achieved the same end when he sailed south to fish up New Zealand where there is longer day with long twilight, particularly in the south.

Images For Contemplation 1

New Zealand is reknowned throughout the world for its fantastic scenery. Over the last five years we've visited many of the wonderful places which New Zealand has to offer; we've also accumulated thousands of digital images of this wonderful land; Aotearoa - 'The Long White Cloud.

The following selection are personal favourite images for contemplation and meditation:

QUEENSTOWN AT DUSK

QUEENSTOWN MAGIC

WAI-O-TAPU WONDERLAND
SUNSET OVER TAURANGA

BLISS AT TAUPO

Meditation to Relax

This meditation is to allow the mind to relax
To relax the mind we need to let go of stress that is causing friction within

As we begin to relax the mind try to visualize that you are sitting on the banks of a stream
And I am a peaceful observer
And the stream is flowing with the thoughts in my mind
Some positive some negative
Some necessary some unnecessary
But I relax
And just watch the thoughts flow byLike a stream
I watch these thoughts
And I realize that I am separate from them
And I am relaxed knowing that I just let them flow by
And do not get attached to the thoughts

Sitting on the bank of the river
Like an observer I can experience a deep relaxation
For I do not need to worry about each and every thought in my mind
I let the negative thoughts pass and enjoy the positive ones

And I am the observer of my mind
And as I am the observer I choose to relax with positive feelings
And the more these relaxed feelings in my heart I notice the gradual change of thoughts
The change from the polluted negative stream to a clear flowing stream of positive thoughts
Thoughts such as that I am relaxed and peaceful
No matter what thoughts are in my mind
Or in the mind of the others

For I am a relaxed peaceful observer
Calm concentrated detached

Be a light to others and you wont stumble on your own path. Practice meditation for one minute every hour will enhance the quality of your life and those around you.

Source: http://www.freemeditations.com

Back To Basics

In order to move forwards, sometimes; often; it is necessary to take steps backwards. Right to the beginning. To contemplate square one again. To embrace the fundamentals. The basic building blocks of our belief structure; the basis of our own psyche. In this way we are able to re-adopt old ways of thinking and permit the consciousness to flow in ways it has forgotten. This is necessary as a 'spiritual detox' or recleansing; it is so easy to adopt or attract new ways of thinking and new methods of cognition. These new methods can prevent the old and more established thought processes from functioning adequately.

The back to basics approach was first contemplated by myself in the early days when I accepted the philosophy of 'transitions and quantum leaps'. When I sought to assimilate all the knowledge I had taken in to move forwards. More high tech thought patterns crept into my consciousness in the last decade and all these old and antiquated ways of thinking were disregarded. So much so I feel like the ship without the rudder or the canoe without the paddle. Consciousness is floundering in the astral ocean. Perhaps this cyclic motion is as a result of discarding old thought patterns established in the early days when 'many step forward but few are chosen' or 'it is fun at first opening pandora's box; the first few steps can be retraced; but soon it is not possible to shut the box or retrace the steps'

Therefore it is time to review the basic building blocks. The early days were illuminated with meditation and mantras. It is my intention to review these wonders over the next few weeks.

Back in those early days ... some 20 years ago ... I had little access to the internet; research comprised the local 'biased' and 'occult fearing' libraries and a few New Age Bookshops. Therefore reference material was limited but 'new age wannabes' and 'new age teachers' were numerous. Twenty years ago was the 'awakening' time. Many many souls had woken from their slumber and found the 'gifts' to play with. There were numerous souls to step forward and 'play with the plastic tea service'; however as the years passed these numbes dwindled as 'few were chosen' to work with the 'priceless china tea service'.

Therefore my sources of reliable information became fewer and fewer. The numbers of sceptics and critics increased and the need for secrecy became more and more paramount. Also the bitchiness and competitiveness which became part and parcel of the 'new age' and 'spiritual' movements increased. Thus around 10 years ago it became my time to go underground; relying totally on guidance from dimensional sources only.

The few times I received information from physical plane sources proved to be collaboratory with the information I had unearthed in realms many would call the Akashic Records.

It is therefore time for me to retrace steps back to the Akashic Records and learn the basics once more.

Over the coming weeks, many sources of information on meditations; meditation techniques; mantras and the like will be reviewed in A Light In The Darkness. All cultures and viewpoints will be embraced. I will neither criticise or condone the research sources. It is not my intention. I am merely sifting through the different facets of information. Through this process the basic building blocks will be reshaped and then tempered into a more malleable shape.

Raja Yoga meditation

Try to experience the stillness of mind of being a peaceful soul as other thoughts emerge in the mind do not judge or focus on them but repeat ............ I am a peaceful soul ............. I am a peaceful soul ............ My mind is filled with peace .............. I radiate peace to the world ............... I feel the gentle waves of peace flowing across my mind ........... As these peaceful thoughts emerge in my mind I feel the stillness and silence envelopes my mind ................. I am the peaceful soul ...... I am a peaceful loving soul ............ My mind feels light and free from worries ........... I realize my real nature is peace .......... Peaceful thoughts flow through the mind and I feel the self becoming light ...................... I am a being of light shining like a star ....................... I radiate peace and light to the world ...................... The light and peace envelopes me and the waves of peace and light shine like a lighthouse............................................. This is the wonderful journey of self discovery.

Raja Yoga Meditation philosophy
The basis for attaining an experience in raja yoga meditation in to understand the self and the mind. The human mind is the most creative, powerful and wonderful "instrument" we possess.

Using this energy called mind we have been able to search the deepest oceans, send humans to the moon and scan the molecular fabric of the building blocks of nature. But have we found our true self? We have become the most educated and civilized society in our history, but are we civil towards each other?

The soul has three main faculties; the mind or consciousness, the intellect and the subconscious.

Thoughts flow from the sub conscious mind to the conscious mind. Feelings and emotions form in accordance with the montage of thoughts flowing in the mind. Therefore our state of mind at any given moment is determined by the thoughts in our consciousness, and also with the feelings that we associate with those thoughts. Since our sub consciousness contains all our previous thoughts and experiences, it is necessary to selectively control the flow of thoughts that emerges from the sub conscious mind.

The intellect is the controller which is used to discriminate so that only positive and benevolent thoughts flow into our mind. With meditation or deep contemplation, the individual is able to strengthen and sharpen the intellect. The end result is a constant state of well being. If we are able to understand the self as the source of energy that creates our feelings, then the following will become our aims.

Become aware of our state of mind and of the thoughts that flows into the mind from our subconscious. Strengthen the intellect so that the individual can discriminate and thereby only allow positive and peaceful thoughts to flow into the mind. Through this process of self development the individual develops more control over the mind.

Feature: 'Meditation'

The world is not a peaceful place and within every soul there is some form of tension and stress.

It is therefore essential to create positive and peaceful thoughts to bring peace to our mind. Meditation is one of the best methods to bring about transformation and nurture the natural qualities within.

The best way that we can create that change is to change our thoughts from being negative to positive. The positive discovery about meditation is that we are focusing within our self and becoming free of negativity.

Meditation techniques simply involve a process of transforming yourself, your thoughts, and recognizing the negative thoughts, and changing them into positive and peaceful thoughts.

The best attitude towards meditation is to be very patient as the mind does not always want to focus. Having a sense of expectation towards positive results can create uncomfortable pressure and thus take away the enjoyment of the experience. By practicing meditation regularly, the person whom meditates gains a wonderful sense of the self. Meditation is a self healing process, any form of stress is a sign of our negative thinking and Dis ease within our mind. If we dont attend to dis ease in the mind we may find that chronic stress can lead to disease of the body.

Source: http://www.freemeditations.com/

Don't Quote Me

A life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable,

but more useful than a life spent doing nothing.

George Bernard Shaw

More on 'Mantra'

MAN + TRA - Mantra is a Sanskrit word made up of two verbs, Man & Tra which in sanskrit "Mananat Trayate", just by chanting one can save himself in the universe that is achieve the ultimate in this material world.

ACHIEVING SAMADHI (through rotation of consciousness) - When you chant Mantra, you are repeating the particular combination of words, which is rotating your awareness around the combination, this particular repetitive action leads to awakening powerful inner force, if controlled properly this can lead to ultimate salvation or union with super consciousness. One can compare example of concentrated sun beams in Convex lens, the rays / beams can burn a paper if lens is used, similarly the consciousness / awareness can be made concentrated and powerful by repetitive chanting of Mantra.

MANTRA - GROUPING OF SOUND VIBRATIONS (affect mental & psychological plane) Mantra is nothing but a combination or grouping of various alphabets / "Akshar" as is called in Sanskrit. The combined effect of sound vibrations on physical plane can be observed, specially on brain, or on EEG (Electro Encephala Graph) one can see the brain wave emission patterns affected with Omkar chanting, Gayatri Mantra chanting. A alpha activity in brain can be seen during the Mantra Chanting. Also Mantra affects subconscious mind, it has different impressions on sub conscious, thinking patterns are affected, negative impressions can be removed from subconscious such as fear, anger, jealousy etc. also positive impressions can be programmed in the subconscious. Practice of Mantra increases concentration, memory, logical thinking. Mantra Chanting has soothing effect on Nervous System, helps relax the muscles, can be effectively used to reduce stress and its effects.

State of consciousness in Mantra
Relaxed and concentrated state of mind - Due to withdrawal from the material thoughts, distractions, focusing of mind only on Mantra, mind is relaxed and becomes concentrated. Research shows the presence of alpha wave / rhythm of brain.

Rotation of consciousness around Mantra - Awareness is revolved round the mantra, its pronunciation, yantra (psychic shape) and its meaning, which builds up psychic energy which can then be used for spiritual purposes.

"Sakshi Bhav" - Attitude of unconcerned observer, this particular attitude is very important as it allows bypassing or witnessing disturbances arising in the conscious & sub conscious mind. Thoughts are generally very difficult to negotiate, this approach of "Sakshi Bhav" allows to overcome this problem.

Lost awareness of outside world - When practitioner goes deep in to the meditation states while chanting mantra, there is absolutely no awareness about happenings in surrounding environment.

Only Mantra awareness remains - Even there is no self, the mantra & its awareness is present when practitioner reaches higher states.

Methods of Chanting Mantra

Baikhari (Audible) - By chanting a loud which can be heard easily is called "Baikhari" Chanting. Advantages of Baikhari Chanting- Removes thoughts- Easy conceptualization of thoughts- Makes meditation easy

Upanshu (whispering) - Chanting of mantra in low voice, or just whispering so that only practitioner can understand is called "Upanshu" Chanting.Advantages of "Upanshu"- Long duration chanting (8 to 10 hours)- Purposeful Mantra repetition (example: for wealth, health, land acquisition, happiness etc.)- Destiny Errors can be corrected with this type of chanting

Manasik (Mental) - without chanting a loud or whispering, mantra is repeated in mind, this type of mantra chanting is difficult and can be learnt only with practice.

Advantages of Mental Chanting-
Subtle form of chanting-
Commonly used by advance practitioners-
Leads to higher states of awareness

Effects of Mantra
On personal level-
Mantra impacts on mental & psychological plane in a positive way.
- Stirs up emotions (desires, fears, jealousy from subconscious mind to conscious level as thoughts.) for removing negative tendencies of mind and re programming the thinking process
- Creates potential energy reservoir

On surroundings-
Deeper, subtle & astral spheres-
Impacts on macro cosmos & micro cosmos-
Purification of collective conscious mind

Source: http://www.yogapoint.com/tantrayoga/mantrayoga.htm

Immortality

There's a world in every drop of rain

Embracing oceans sweep us home again

Come along with me, come along with me

Seek the truth, you shall not find another lie

They say for every living thing

There's a guide up in the sky

That helps you pass from world to world

So you never really die

Richie Sambora

Where Is 'Home'?

If the 'heaven' and the 'spirit world' of cultures and belief systems both 'exist' within the captured densities of this virtual reality universe, what lies beyond the computer generated matrix?

What is beyond the illusion that we humans call 'life'?

In the coming months we will attempt to answer these profound and controversial questions. All of us KNOW the answers to these questions. All of us have merely been programmed to forget. It's the old idiom ' what's the point of taking an exam if you know the answers?' We deliberately volunteer to 'forget' in order to permit the 'full flavour' of the experiences to be absorbed.

However, it seems this level of the virtual reality universe has been infected by a computer virus and somewhere in the software programming a flaw or bug exists. This appears to have manifested itself on this density level as the ruling elite and their alien counterparts. Thus the over-riding urge to totally seperate us from the outside of the virtual reality (our true home) has to be instigated by a form of awareness that exists within the virtual reality. It's very 'existence' is threatened by the possibility all consciousness can leave this virtual reality 'game zone'. Without consciousness it has no energy to sustain itself.

This and other concepts will be discussed in the coming months ...

Today's Review: "Mantra"

A mantra (Devanagari मन्त्र) is a religious or mystical syllable or poem, typically from the Sanskrit language. Their use varies according to the school and philosophy associated with the mantra. They are primarily used as spiritual conduits, words or vibrations that instill one-pointed concentration in the devotee. Other purposes have included religious ceremonies to accumulate wealth, avoid danger, or eliminate enemies.

Mantras originated in the Vedic religion of India, later becoming an essential part of the Hindu tradition and a customary practice within Buddhism, Sikhism and Jainism. The use of mantras is now widespread throughout various spiritual movements which are based on, or off-shoots of, the practices in the earlier Eastern religions.

Mantras are interpreted to be effective as sound (vibration), to the effect that great emphasis is put on correct pronunciation (resulting in an early development of a science of phonetics in India). They are intended to deliver the mind from illusion and material inclinations. Chanting is the process of repeating a mantra.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page

Hollywood Black

Came to the sunset scene
To find out who's inside of me
Some lies I've never seen
But this one lies on the silver screen
In between real and dream
Like a scream


Hollywood black
I'm caught in the middle
Hollywood black

Same story, different eyes
Here's where the hero never, never dies
Can't you tell
That all the wishes you've made
Have filled up the well

Hollywood black
Caught in the middle
Hollywood black
Oh, Hollywood black
Right in the middle

Too late to little
Back to the street again
Or was that yesterday
Another yesterday's gone, gone
Back in the jungle
Running with the animals
Howling at the sign of the spotlight

Those dreams are made of glass
You throw just one stone
And then there goes your last window
Can't you tell
That every wish that you made
Filled up the well

Hollywood black
Caught in the middle
Hollywood black
Hollywood black
Right in the middle

Hollywood black
Hollywood black
Caught in the middle
Too late to little
And only the fools come back

'Cause Hollywood is black

HOLLYWOOD BLACK Lyrics
By Dio

Appetite For Destruction

"It'll be the hat-trick soon GWB ... "

INTERLUDE: Think Mode

I'm currently on 'think mode' having putting so many illustrations; semantic pieces and self writings into the melting pot. Not to mention the self-philosophical writings which adorn this blog space.

I am contemplating an 'upgrade' in some way to improve A Light In The Darkness; to somehow give it a genre all of its own.This may take some time. So in the meantime I will keep piling the blog entries into A Light In The Darkness. Pieces which have no seeming order, but are all relevant to the overall entity which is A Light In The Darkness. Revised archiving is necessary plus an upgrade of the current labelling of the posts. All of this will be managed eventually. Life is entering a very hectic and critical stage, so the frequency of postings is likely to decrease over the coming weeks. My concerns will be elsewhere. However, I will be extending this 'thinking mode' to how to attract more viewings. It would be a real godsend if I was to receive comments to this post indicating what blog themes I could perhaps discard; what themes I should emphasise more; what other themes I could incorporate. This is after all like most 'living and breathing' entities on this thought form realm. It can evolve. It can improve.

April the 6th a sneak attack by US forces against Iran planned, Russian military sources warn

By Webster G. Tarpley
Source: www.uncensored.co.nz

WASHINGTON DC, — The long awaited US military attack on Iran is now on track for the first week of April, specifically for 4 am on April 6, the Good Friday opening of Easter weekend, writes the well-known Russian journalist Andrei Uglanov in the Moscow weekly “Argumenty Nedeli.” Uglanov cites Russian military experts close to the Russian General Staff for his account.

(more…)

Appreciate The Mystery

"The mystery of life is not a problem to be solved but a reality to be experienced."

-- Aart Van Der Leeuw

"I believe there is no source of deception in the investigation of nature which can compare with a fixed belief that certain kinds of phenomena are impossible."

-- William James

"Your theory is crazy, but it's not crazy enough to be true."

-- Niels Bohr

"To know that we know what we know, and to know that we do not know what we do not know, that is true knowledge."

-- Copernicus

"Curiouser and curiouser!"

-- Lewis Carroll

Sugar-powered batteries developed

Scientists in America have developed a battery that can run off soft drinks.
One of the first uses for the fuel cell battery, powered by almost any type of sugar, could be as a portable mobile phone charger.

The device would contain special cartridges filled with a sugar solution which could be replaced when they were empty.

Researchers at Saint Louis University in Missouri believe their idea could eventually replace lithium in batteries in many portable electronic applications, including computers.
The biodegradable battery contains enzymes that convert fuel - in this case from sugar - into electricity, leaving behind water as a main by-product.

The team has run it off glucose, flat fizzy drinks, sweetened drink mixes and tree sap.
Carbonated beverages appeared to weaken the fuel cell, and the best fuel source they have found so far is table sugar dissolved in water.

Study leader Shelley Minteer has used a postage stamp-sized prototype to successfully run a handheld calculator.

She estimates the battery could be ready for consumers in three to five years, but the American military is interested in using the device to charge portable electronic equipment on the battlefield and in emergency situations where access to electricity is limited.

The US Department of Defence funded the study.


This is 'what they tell you about'. The tip of the iceberg. Be interesting to know what sparked off the idea of using sugar in this way; also to know what technology they have 'in the pipeline' both overt and covert which they don't tell you about!

Expectation Comes Before Achievement

Your aspirations are your possibilities.
If you want to be big, you have to think big.
Your only limits are those of vision.
The more you can dream, the more you can be.

Don't ever stop dreaming.
For when you cease dreaming,
you cease living.

Cherish your dreams for they are the blueprints
to your ultimate success.
If you don't have a dream,
how are you going to make it come true?

The greatest achievements always take place
in the framework of great expectations.
Big thinking will always come before big achievement.

TEENAGE SONS-THE MANUAL

When you hit the teenage years, you must immediately forget how to communicate in intelligible language.

When being spoken to by your parents, remember only to reply in Neanderthal-like grunts or anything that makes you sound like a constipated pig. When conversing with your peers, call each other by endearing names such as Gorm, Duffer, Twonk, Bonehead, Oik, Geek or Dweeb, use terminology that adults don't understand and greet everyone with "Safe!"

Always act as though you're terminally miserable. Skulk around with hunched shoulders, shuffle along barely lifting your heels from the floor and sport an expression like a bloodhound that's had its bone stolen.

Scowl at anyone who looks at you and, if you find something amusing, (which isn't often), smirk with a lopsided and scathing curl of the upper lip.

When in public with your parents, adhere to the following rules: 1. Never acknowledge that you are related to them in any way, shape or form. 2. Trudge along ten paces behind them, gazing at your feet or grimacing at passing strangers. 3. If your parents dare to speak to you, glare at them as though they're psychotic individuals who must have escaped from the psychiatric wing of a local hospice.

When at home with your parents, repeat points one and three above.

When in public with a group of four or more of your mates, loll around monuments, escalators, clock towers or benches in shopping centres, or 'hang out' in your terms. Act as though you have two brain cells between you and intimidate passers-by with a simple stare.

Let out multi-syllabic belches and fart as noisily as possible, laughing aloud following each bout of flatulence.

Remember that personal hygiene is an alien concept, until the discovery of the opposite sex necessitates a brief affiliation with soap, water and hair gel. Until such time, however, treat grooming as an unnecessary preparation reserved only for wimpish mummies' boys.

Do everything possible to avoid contact with soap, shower gel or shampoo more regularly than once a fortnight. Extract the dirt from between your toenails with your fingers, roll into a ball and flick it across the room, aiming at any objective that emits a satisfying click when hit by the offending missile.

Do the same with any interesting finds that you locate in various orifices of your body.

Don't use rubbish bins. Simply, stuff empty M&M packets, half-eaten sandwiches and savoury pie wrappers underneath your mattress or, alternatively, on the floor between the side of your bed and the wall against which it is positioned. Leave these there until such time as the smell of decaying food alerts your mother to the putrefying garbage heap beneath your bed.

Don't make use of laundry baskets. Leave dirty linen discarded around your room, until the next time you decide to wear the items and then, simply pluck them from the crusty heap on the floor.

Once an article of clothing becomes too disgusting even for you to wear, complain to your mother because she didn't have the forethought to peel it from your carpet between her thumb and forefinger and place in the washing machine on a heavy duty cycle.

Everything you wear must be at least five sizes' too big or should at least have room to accommodate both you and several of your mates at the same time. This applies to combat trousers, jeans, jogging bottoms, T-shirts and sweatshirts. The complete ensemble should look like a second-hand bargain from a charity shop, but should cost as much as a Caribbean cruise.

Tell your parents, at regular intervals, that you hate them and, when castigated, remember the one-for-all-occasions saying, "Well, I never asked to be born, did I?"

When accused of anything, deny everything with an incredulous how-could-you-possibly-accuse-me-of-that expression on your face. Drop your jaw open so far that your chin hits your chest, widen your eyes so that the area of white exceeds that of the iris and then emit a gasp in reverse.

If, after this convincing display of innocence, you are still deemed to be guilty, bellow some blasphemous expletive and stomp off, thumping anything that happens to invade your personal space, whether it be an inanimate object such as a door, or an unsuspecting victim such as a younger brother or the family cat.

There is only one occasion upon which you should attempt to exchange a few civil words with your parents, and that is, when you need some money. Adopt a similar style with the eyes as highlighted above to convey the cute, childlike look, but in an attempt to look dejected and needy, enough to melt even the hardest heart. And, ultimately to get you what you want. If this fails to achieve the desired effect, repeat the entire scenario described two paragraphs above.

If, horror of horrors, your parents decide to ground you or send you to your room, re-enact a scene from a 70's rock concert.

Stamp up and down in a Rumplestiltskin-like rage, roar unpleasant and capricious remarks, and hurl any object within your reach across the room, the heavier the article, the better.

Whatever the situation, wherever the place and whatever the accusation, what you will quickly realise is that when you behave like a rhino that's been provoked, your parents will nearly always give in to you for the sake of a quiet life and to prevent voluntary admission to a rehabilitation unit...

Aahhhhh my lovely wonderful teen son is leaving home this week....but not before one final blackmail of "I can't leave until I have a car, I NEED a car"......LOL

PM warns Iran over Navy captives

Efforts to secure the release of 15 Royal Navy personnel held by Iran will enter a "different phase" if diplomatic moves fail, Tony Blair has said.

Downing Street said the UK could end up releasing evidence proving the group had not ventured into Iranian waters.

Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett has called for their "speedy return".

One of the 15, Faye Turney told the BBC last week: "Sometimes you may be called upon, and when you do you've just got to deal with it and get on with it".

Meanwhile, the family of Ms Turney, from Shrewsbury, Shropshire, has said this is a "very distressing time" for them.

The BBC has been told the group are being held at an Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps base in Tehran.

Iran says they were trespassing in Iranian waters when they were seized on Friday - but the prime minister said the group were in Iraqi waters under a UN mandate.

Mr Blair said the most important thing was the welfare of the eight sailors and seven marines from HMS Cornwall and securing their release.

The prime minister's official spokesman said Mr Blair's remarks about a "different phase" did not refer to any extreme diplomatic action, such as expelling Iranian diplomats from Britain or military action.

"We have been clearly stating that we are utterly certain that the personnel were in Iraqi waters.

"We so far have not made explicit why we know that, because we don't want to escalate this."

READ MORE: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6498611.stm

Meeting Kundrie

Extract Taken from 'THE FUGUE': a novel by Matthew James

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

He went for a drive along the early morning roads of the Somerset countryside. He had much to contemplate, and could think of no better way of passing the time. He could have sat below Magog, but somehow the prospects of a trudge along the sodden paths within the Albert Memorial park did not seem one bit appealing to him on this particular occasion. No, he knew, even before he'd set off, that the gently rolling countryside would offer him more solace than any man made counterpart.

Daniel had found it impossible to get back to sleep once he'd woken. The bedside clock had registered 5.23 - and his hands had been burning with kundalini fire; a side effect of his healing work the night before. He'd been so exhausted, at the time, that he'd forgone his usual closing down ritual; sleep had been too appealing a prospect to delay any further.

His dreams had been stunning. Presenting him with many a thinking point to muse over as the miles passed him by. In one particularly memorable dream he'd been once more the Elf, Elund, and he'd found himself not surprisingly inside of Glastonbury Tor. Within a massive cavern he'd discovered the legendary Faerie city of Caer Siddi! Yet, during the dream, he'd taken the discovery in his stride, walking surefootedly along well familiar streets without so much as a second thought.

With the dream still forefront in his mind, he'd wandered clumsily into the front room and over to his multi-media system; calling up a fresh file in which he'd quickly recorded the experience in poetry form - his photographic memory abling him to recount it's narration as he took in the road sign for Cheddar with one quick automative glance, and instinctively steered Lisa's car to the right to negotiate the turning.

He caught his reflection in the rear view mirror and smiled, Caer Siddi had been his first poetic effort in over three years, and was possibly one of the best he'd ever written. Another quick glance to the left revealed a lay by; on an impulse he changed down a gear and manoeuvred the car off the road and into the lay by, pulling on the handbrake then reaching over to the glove compartment.

Moments later he'd retrieved the pen and note pad he'd hurriedly flung into the glove compartment earlier and felt himself sufficiently inspired to attempt another verse. He felt the suddenly tingling flow of energies course through his finger tips as the inspiration grew in power; his eyes witnessing the uncomputed lines that passed directly through his mind without any recollection - his fingers being effectively controlled by a seeming outside source; a source that he knew was in truth a higher aspect of himself:

I battled through the deception; the false trails; the smoke screens
coming upon Ines Witrinyesterday with a burning in my heart
for it be truly the place I know so well
back whence I walked its shining streets with another's feet
seeing with another's eyes.

It would do.
He knew from memory that he could do better, much better. But, he was bound to be rusty - The Poet had been exiled from his conscious mind ever since his last night with Bets Gordon; which had in fact been the last time he'd ever seen her alive. He shivered, taking in the still frame image of her as she'd wandered into her living room wearing the grey Stewart tweed shawl that had been her trademark in the six months Daniel had been privileged to know her. It was ironic that it had been nearly eighteen months since her passing, and for nearly seven of them Bets had been in contact with him - Daniel knowing her longer now in spirit form than he had when she was alive and in body.
It had been on that night that they'd devised together the identity that had been christened Marcus Brady; the same identity which had ventured the very next day back down south from Glencoe to Preston and had closed down Daniel Stevens's business account; the same identity that had somehow been able to ignore the hostile looks from the red headed cashier who'd so obviously recognised the name and the face upon his arrival at the desk. Quite coolly, he'd announced to the girl that the request had been made the day before, and if she would care to check up she would find it so. Twenty five minutes later, after being referred to her supervisor and subjected to a stringent security check, he'd walked out of the bank with a banker's draft tucked safely away in his wallet.
It'd been at that point he'd closed his lower self off from his extended awareness, and all that went with it. Daniel Stevens had been relegated to the dark recesses of his sub-conscious.
On his return back to his car in, the Avenham Centre multi-storey car park, he'd randomly chosen a place name from out of the index pages of the Bartholemew Road Map that had sat on the passenger seat of the clapped out D reg Ford Escort he'd had at the time.
Farmborough - that had been it! Strange how he was suddenly remembering the event. How come then he'd ended up in Bath?

He tensed as his mind went momentarily blank, the amnesia causing panic to build inexplicably then fade as the recollection returned to his conscious mind. It was almost as if some presence was placing the memories in his mind, like a cassette being added into a cassette player; or a floppy disc loaded into a computer memory.
What the ...? It truly was weird. His then fear of recognition obliged him with it's timely resurgence through his still numbed senses. Warning bells began to ring and he became aware of his lurker-on-the-threshold looming defensively in the back of his mind.
No wonder!

Had he not been spotted by a particularly offensive looking coloured lady as he'd ventured nervously out of Barclays Bank and onto Fishergate? He had, it was true. He'd shit himself when she'd shouted out his name and drawn the attention of her friend to the fact; at the same time bringing all eyes in the immediate vicinity bearing onto him. He'd still been in the headlines at the time; the Police still in the throws of debating whether or not to charge him with the manslaughter of Katherine.

Why was it all coming back to him at that particular moment - what the fuck was happening to him?

'You asked for this.'
'What?' he cried out aloud, partly in reaction to the unfamiliarity of the clearly female voice that had broken his train of thought, and partly in shock.
'You want to remember it all. So be it!' The stranger's voice obliging him with a prompt reply to his question. He chanced a trepidatory glance in his rear view mirror as he'd immediately become aware of a chilling presence over his shoulder. He was alone in Lisa's car. He heaved a sigh and gazed up at the clock and immediately brought to mind the image of his wife still sleeping obliviously to his albeit improvised adventure. 7.06 - give her another hour and he'd ring her to explain his absence.
Why had he gone for a drive? He attempted to string together an explanation to satisfy his wife's curiosity. She'd first want to know why he'd ventured out in the freezing cold first light, and then would demand his return in her next breath. He would have to come up with something but what?

'You seek the Holy Grail, brave knight!' The same female voice sounded loud in his ear, disturbing his thoughts; causing a shiver to travel the full length of his spine.
'Who are you!'
'Kundrie!'
'Who?'
'Kundrie, The Grail Messenger.'
'What? Forgive me. I do not understand.' Daniel voiced his concern aloud, hoping the contact would follow suit and make its presence known to him in the physical.
It was true - he did not know of the name.
Daniel became quickly aware of a powerful pulling in the centre of his forehead - his third eye was activating. A series of swift images began to wander before his eyes; his eyes stinging painfully due to his senses heightening and reacting alarmingly to the bright sunlight filtering into the car.
He closed his eyes.
Before him stood an ugly and misshapen Old Hag - Kundrie. Behind her, he perceived further hags, though their images were insubstantial - being surrounded by a grey and menacing mist. They were the Black Hags, reflections of The Black Goddess. His sentience had flared, bringing with it access to his higher modes of realisation.
He stood once more in the sphere of Geburah!

'Young man!' The Old Hag Kundrie coughed and wheezed in a deliberate attempt to draw his attention back to her dread countenance.
He gazed back round at her and perceived almost instantaneously there was a further image beyond the personification she chose to present to him - in the tradition of all inner plane contacts, within her lay the stunning beauty that represented the contrast to the harsh energy that was being presented to him.
Pass the test and he would gain the wisdom from her.
'Young man!' Once more her guttural vociferation stung his senses.
'What?' He said officiously, choosing not to give any ground or any respect to the archetype that stood before him. If the hag was hiding it's true nature from him, then he too would hide his true identity from it. In similar meetings, in the past, this reaction Daniel knew usually proved to be the best - gaining from the wraith what was being offered
'Young man, I demand you give me the respect I am due!' Kundrie began to walk slowly towards him, her grizzled and clawing fingers reaching out to him. He froze - had he not had this apparition bearing down on him once before?
He knew instinctively he had but where?

'I know you!' He caught himself shouting triumphantly. 'Why have I returned to this place? I passed this test - or have you forgotten?'
'Oh you have, have you?' Kundrie roared then, resuming once more her slow and steady passage toward him.
Daniel felt anger surge through him and permitted himself to go with the instinct, 'show your true self. I am no longer in the mood for silly games!' He seethed, walking slowly and fearlessly toward her; his fists clenching and unclenching in an act of brash defiance.
She stopped in her tracks; pure contempt inflamed her eyes, the manner vaguely familiar to him; her voice then metamorphising itself into something recognisable; 'okay clever clogs! Tell me who I am and you can move on!'

A kaleidoscope of images flashed before him: a mad woman hellbent on his destruction relentlessly pursuing him through a mental institution; a shadow darting into the undergrowth of Albert Memorial Park; a line of aromatherapy bottles on a bedside cabinet; a hammer bearing down on an anvil; the mighty Thor raising his trusty hammer, Mjóllnir; the entrance reception of Bath Royal United Hospital; a blue denim shirt with its top three buttons undone; the associated feelings of arousal the image generated.
Gaining an impulsive insight, Daniel brought the last image once more to mind and skilfully expanded the image - forcing his eyes to travel upwards along the perfect soft skin of a neckline toward the equally perfectly sculptured cheek bone; then the full red lips and finely boned nose of a visage he knew so well. Until his exploration came to rest on the disconcerting gaze that had first captivated him all those months before.

The live wire blue eyes of Trainee Nurse Sara Turnball!

More Distruption Again Today

Today's meditation sojourn was disrupted as are most. However, the manner of the disruption was different than other times.

My mind was cleared. I focussed on meditation music by 'Zanni' to take me down into Theta state. With ease I drifted into the stillness of 'nothing' and 'nowhere' only to begin witnessing something or someone throwing clear 'orbs' of energy. I watched as one followed a trajectory into the 'air'; its ark leading the orb closer and closer to the point where I was observing from. As it loomed nearer to me I could see hints of colours in the walls of the orb. Then it reached me and I actually felt it descend into my lap. I saw it on the dimension or frequency I was projecting too. It disrupted my meditative state and brought me back to this material plane. Simultaneously I felt its impact with my physical senses.

'The orb had penetrated my awareness and my consciousness permitted me to accept that the thought form was real. So I felt its impact.' These thought patterns surfaced in my mind moments after its impact.

Unperturbed, I settled back into a meditative state and moments later I felt something clearly push me away. The intelligence came in from my left. I caught sight of an entity similar to 'the beings with many eyes' I'd seen on occasions over the recent weeks. I felt its intention and knew telepathically it wanted me to change my projection and not journey to the dimension forming in my awareness.

Moments before I was due to return to this awareness, I became aware of a slight disturbance in the dimension to my right. A portal was forming. Beside me then I perceived a humanoid face. It was not Terra Human ... the eyes were white and oval shaped. The eyes were also slightly 'cross eyed'.

A little while later, after I'd successfully made the projection to 'wherever' ... I found myself in some kind of tent or marquee looking through a doorway into a garden. Ahead of me was an intelligence playing some kind of ball game. Behind the intelligence was a shoreline .... I was disturbed once more by 'the being with many eyes'. This time I felt it was almost standing over me as both my legs were brushed simultaneously by something in front of me.

Blair: Iran must free naval prisoners in days

'Britain has continued to pressure Iran to release the 15 arrested Navy personnel as the UK's ambassador to Teheran met officials there for the second time in two days. Teheran is not planning to swap the 15 Britons for the five Iranians arrested in northern Iraq, a spokesman for Mehzi Mostafavi, the deputy foreign minister of Iran, said today on Iranian television.'

Read more ...

Former Military Officer Comes out for 9/11 Truth

'As a former General Electric Turbine engineering specialist and manager and then CEO of a turbine engineering company, I can guarantee that none of the high tech, high temperature alloy engines on any of the four planes that crashed on 9/11 would be completely destroyed, burned, shattered or melted in any crash or fire. Wrecked, yes, but not destroyed. Where are all of those engines, particularly at the Pentagon? If jet powered aircraft crashed on 9/11, those engines, plus wings and tail assembly, would be there.

Additionally, in my experience as an officer in NORAD as a Tactical Director for the Chicago-Milwaukee Air Defense and as a current private pilot, there is no way that an aircraft on instrument flight plans (all commercial flights are IFR) would not be intercepted when they deviate from their flight plan, turn off their transponders, or stop communication with Air Traffic Control. No way! With very bad luck, perhaps one could slip by, but no there's no way all four of them could!'

Read more ...

Lucky Escape

Twenty minutes into my drive into work this morning, I received a clear voice facsimile on my left side warning me 'you're life is about to change! Slow down.' My immediate reaction was to apply the brakes and slow down. Almost immediately, certainly within two minutes of hearing the facsimile, I felt a bump from the rear left side of the car and heard an audible 'bang'.

Immediately I felt the control of the car change; the rear end wishing to slide at the next bend I encountered. I could feel the tell tale vibrations through the car; I knew the tyre was now flat.

A few minutes later I pulled over and checked the rear passenger tyre. My suspicions were confirmed. It was not only flat, but I could clearly see I'd sustained a blow out.

Without that voice; without the strong intuitive urge to drive a different way to work; the situation could have been far worse.

I'd set out with the intention to drive along the main Highway 1 to work; but because I saw there was a long line of traffic in that direction close to home, I had the intuition to choose the alternative route this morning; which takes me along quieter country lanes. Taking my intended route would not have placed me behind that line of traffic when the tyre blew. I would probably have been travelling at the legal speed limit of 100km/h (110!) at the time if I'd been on the main highway.

It isn't worth dwelling on. It is merely the latest episode in a long line of 'lucky escapes' which have taken place throughout my life. It is a comfort to have this 'watching over me' in instances like this.

It was only later, when I spoke to Kristine, that she reminded me that 27th March 2007 was a date which had been spoken of by me, a month or so ago, as a 'dangerous day'.

Heal Duality

"Beware of the fury of the patient man."

-- John Dryden

Our minds perceive and give relative value - positive and negative - to the different sides of a duality. We usually shun the negative.





It's important to know that you cannot eliminate the negative by focusing exclusively on the positive. Energetically, both opposites must remain in balance. Increase one and its opposite will also increase. Try to be only positive and the negative within you will raise its ugly head.

We work with dualities by remembering that each is part of the whole. We must acknowledge and accept all aspects of life, because they all exist within us. And so, if we seek to be honest, we do so by acknowledging our potential to be dishonest. We can also bring in love and compassion when we catch ourselves acting out the negative.

Power arises out of integrating the positive and negatives within us. From the tension that exists between the two, we develop awareness and become more conscious and compassionate.

"Any fool can run towards the light. It takes a master with courage to turn and face the darkness and shine his own light there."

-- Leslie Fieger - author of the Delfin Knowledge System

SKALD

Every leaf, every tree has a tale to tell
An epic adventure to conjure
to share around brave-heart's fire
While the mystical weave their smells and smokes
and The Norns take stock of our place on the web.

My friend come rest your weary bones
and let this company take away your woes
You are safe here, deep within this gentle land
No harm shall befall you in this glade
Certainly not while you have your tale to tell.

And though the darkness closes in
with its emissaries hearing your every word
Know they shall come no closer
For the voice of mighty Odin rings LOUD in their ears
and his magic shall keep them at bay.

Skald!
'Tis time you told your tale
The warriors are gathered
they have thunder-brew in their bellies
and demand you stand before them.

Fear not, speak and weave your tale
Their minds are ready and they be like a Childs'
Fill their hearts with dread I compel you
so they'll go to their beds truly satisfied
Skald, open your mouth now and tell your tale.

IN THE EYE OF THE STORM

Across the battlefield hangs a deadly still
Clear blue skies barely hide the anticipation
The two forces locked in attrition discover rest
Glad of the respite, singing praise to the eye of the storm
Chance surely to gain sanity before the next onslaught.

And in the no-mans-land the hangman's noose has been taken down
The smell of death has drifted away to another shore
for now seeds are sown and promise grows in the meadow
but for how long, current fibres a temporary halt, surely?

Neither side can claim victory nor a permanent home.
The carousel to turn again, the web to be blown by the wind once more
The unholy to play another weighted hand, claiming to have the gods on their side
And the blighted will surely rise again out of the trenches
for to have survived the furies for so long surely means immunity

Perhaps its time The Fool played his gathered hand?
To burn away the thorns and the hedgerows of constriction
to break the shackles which tie the mystic down
and blow away the poisoned air of the living dead
whos fury of self dictates the drum-beat to which their clan marches
It's time now for their emissaries to lay down their arms and admit defeat.

Most surely the checkmate has been reviewed
The few moves remaining lead to that one certainty
Both kings secured in safety
With neither side risking their queen
Knight's defeated; pawns depleted
Rooks taken to flight
This is most surely not the final battle

Through the clammy mists of stubborn resolve
The blocks and the bricks are built for another cul-de-sac
Another passage through despair; anxiety
With andrenalin coursing through material veins
As the hangman watches from afar through portal panes
Laughing as the humans take sides once more
Another battle, another war
Always another war ................

Golden Home

Mighty thunder rents suddenly the air
and The Knight steps back onto the safety of the shore
drops to his knees and forms runes of protection in the sand
A fragranced breeze glances his cheek and hints of homely purpose
The Knight stands and gazes far to the horizon
and remembers himself and all that had been his life.


Close beside him the spectral piper makes his presence felt
and his song melts away forever the icy chill of guilt
The Knight smiles another simple smile and raises a laugh
Ahead of him strands of gold lift magically out of the shimmering floe
and form themselves into the hilt and blade of a mighty sword
the piper's song impelling The Knight to drop to his knees once more.

Iran ‘to try Britons for espionage’

Uzi Mahnaimi, Michael Smith and David Cracknell
London Times Sunday, March 25, 2007

FIFTEEN British sailors and marines arrested by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards off the coast of Iraq may be charged with spying.

A website run by associates of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Iranian president, reported last night that the Britons would be put before a court and indicted.

Referring to them as “insurgents”, the site concluded: “If it is proven that they deliberately entered Iranian territory, they will be charged with espionage. If that is proven, they can expect a very serious penalty since according to Iranian law, espionage is one of the most serious offences.”

The warning followed claims by Iranian officials that the British navy personnel had been taken to Tehran, the capital, to explain their “aggressive action” in entering Iranian waters. British officials insist the servicemen were in Iraqi waters when they were held.

The penalty for espionage in Iran is death. However, similar accusations of spying were made when eight British servicemen were detained in the same area in 2004. They were paraded blindfolded on television but did not appear in court and were freed after three nights in detention.

Iranian student groups called yesterday for the 15 detainees to be held until US forces released five Revolutionary Guards captured in Iraq earlier this year.

Al-Sharq al-Awsat, a Saudi-owned newspaper based in London, quoted an Iranian military source as saying that the aim was to trade the Royal Marines and sailors for these Guards.
The claim was backed by other sources in Tehran. “As soon as the corps’s five members are released, the Britons can go home,” said one source close to the Guards.

He said the tactic had been approved by Ayatollah Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader, who warned last week that Tehran would take “illegal actions” if necessary to maintain its right to develop a nuclear programme.

Iran denounced a tightening of sanctions which the United Nations security council was expected to agree last night in protest at Tehran’s insistence on enriching uranium that could be used for nuclear weapons.

Lord Triesman, the Foreign Office minister, met the Iranian ambassador in London yesterday to demand that consular staff be allowed access to the Britons, one of whom is a woman. His intervention came as a senior Iranian general alleged that the Britons had confessed under interrogation to “aggression into Iran’s waters”.

Intelligence sources said any advance order for the arrests was likely to have come from Major-General Yahya Rahim Safavi, the commander of the Revolutionary Guards.
Subhi Sadek, the Guards’ weekly newspaper, warned last weekend that the force had “the ability to capture a bunch of blue-eyed blond-haired officers and feed them to our fighting cocks”.

Safavi is known to be furious about the recent defections to the West of three senior Guards officers, including a general, and the effect of UN sanctions on his own finances.

A senior Iraqi officer appeared to back Tehran’s claim that the British had entered Iranian waters. “We were informed by Iraqi fishermen after they had returned from sea that there were British gunboats in an area that is out of Iraqi control,” said Brigadier-General Hakim Jassim, who is in charge of Iraq’s territorial waters. “We don’t know why they were there.”

Admiral Sir Alan West, the former head of the Royal Navy, dismissed suggestions that the British boats might have been in Iranian waters. West, who was first sea lord when the previous arrests took place in June 2004, said satellite tracking systems had shown then that the Iranians were lying and the same was certain to be true now.