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Saturday, 29 September 2007

Good System Shortens The Road To A Goal

Having an intelligent plan is your first step to success. With a plan, you know where you're going.

You'll know what progress you're making.
And you'll have a pretty good idea of when you can expect to arrive. Meticulous planning will enable everything you do to appear spontaneous to other people.

Your goals can only be reached through the vehicle of a plan.
One in which you fervently believe, and upon which you will vigorously act.

There is no other route to success. What do you want to achieve or avoid?
The answers to these questions are your objectives. How do you go about achieving your desired results? The answer to this will be your strategy. A good plan permits you to frame your life so that at some time in the future fact and your dreams will meet.

Success or failure is often determined on the drawing board.

Solsbury Hill

Peter Gabriel - Secret World Live (1994)




Emblem Glyphs of The Maya


Emblem glyphs have long been a focus of research in Maya studies and remain the primary means by which we attempt to penetrate and comprehend the political geography of the Classic Maya.

By now it is well known that each represents a royal title and describes the k’uhul ajaw or “holy lord” of an individually named polity or kingdom. Many of these compounds have succumbed to decipherment in recent years, unmasking the original names of these petty states. Slowly we are building an indigenous nominal landscape, a map of political identity that was rich in both topographic and conceptual symbolism.

Woman Locked Up for 70 Years After Being Falsely Accused of Stealing 13p

Short News.com Headline; says:'Two brothers who believed their sister was long dead have discovered her by chance in an institution. Their sister, Jean Gambell, was 'certified' and institutionalised in 1937 by a doctor who believed she had stolen 13p from his surgery.The money was later discovered but the decision to institutionalise the young woman was never reversed. When the brothers went to see her, now 85-years-old and deaf, she remembered them both by name and hugged them.

"They basically locked her up and threw away the key and she was stuck in the system. She just got moved from one institution to another. What a waste of a poor, innocent girl’s life," said her brother David.

Madeleine McCann's parents may face jail

Daily Telegraph report; says: 'Kate and Gerry McCann could face 12 months in prison if they speak out to defend themselves against a slur campaign in Portugal because of the country's strict secrecy laws, it is claimed. The couple have been the subject of allegations about their alleged role in their daughter's disappearance.

The latest claim is that Madeleine died in a "fatal and mysterious hour and a half" on the night she went missing and that her body may have been stored in a fridge.

Clarence Mitchell, the McCanns' spokesman, said: "Each and every one of these nonsensical allegations causes real pain and hurt for both Gerry and Kate. We just hope that everyone can see these ridiculous rumours for what they are."

Although the McCanns strenuously deny the allegations, as formal suspects they cannot talk about any aspect of the investigation.


IMO - In My Opinion
Kate & Gerry McCann are not allowed to defend themselves in other words. The Portuguese PJ can say whatever they want (and are doing) but there is no come back for their defamatory slurs. The PJ can put forward whatever they wish ... this is somewhat one sided is it not? The McCanns cannot say a word against the slurs ... is so petty ... it has become absurd.

Friday, 28 September 2007

Kundalini Sakti

The divine power,
Kundalini, shines
like the stem of a young lotus;
like a snake, coiled round upon herself
she holds her tail in her mouth
and lies resting half asleep
as the base of the body.

Kundalini Sakti, coiled and dormant 'feminine' energy, is the vast potential of psychic energy contained within us all. It is normally symbolized as a serpent coiled into three and a half circles, with its tail in its mouth, and spiralling around the central axis (sacrum or sacred bone) at the base of the spine. The awakening of this serpent and the manifestation of its powers is a primary aim of the practice of Kundalini Yoga.

The object of the practice of Kundalini Yoga is to awaken the serpent, Sakti. When she is ready to unfold, she ascends through the spinal chakras to unite above the crown of the head with Siva, the Pure Consciousness pervading the whole universe.

Osho Zen Card for the day: Breakthrough



Zen, or meditation, is the method which will help you to go through the chaos, through the dark night of the soul, balanced, disciplined, alert. The dawn is not far away, but before you can reach the dawn, the dark night has to be passed through. And as the dawn comes closer, the night will become darker.

The predominance of red in this card indicates at a glance that its subject is energy, power and strength. The brilliant glow emanates from the solar plexus, or center of power on the figure, and the posture is one of exuberance and determination.

All of us occasionally reach a point when "enough is enough." At such times it seems we must do something, anything, even if it later turns out to be a mistake, to throw off the burdens and restrictions that are limiting us. If we don't, they threaten to suffocate and cripple our very life energy itself.

If you are now feeling that "enough is enough," allow yourself to take the risk of shattering the old patterns and limitations that have kept your energy from flowing. In doing so you will be amazed at the vitality and empowerment this Breakthrough can bring to your life.

Hotel California

The Eagles Live ... in 1976



A bit of nostalgia with this classic track

In Response To An E-mail

I received this request via E-Mail this morning:

"Matthew are you deliberately trying to deceive people
with your "Spot the difference" photos of the Morrocan
woman and child.


If you haven't actually seen the original photo of the


Morrocan woman and child then here it is:


http://img.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2007/09_04/NotMaddyES_468x579.jpg

Notice how much different the version you put up on
your website. Please remove your article and admit
that you were wrong to put up that distorted photo.
I hope you do it soon, because most people in the
UK
have seen the original photo and won't be foole
d by
you picture.

I'll keep checking your website to see if you have
removed the offending article or not, I'm afraid if

it's not taken down then your deception will be put
out to every forum in the UK that has an interest in
the Madeleine case or pychics, perhaps even the
printed news media if I so desired.

Make no mistake I mean what I say, take down that
article with an explanation that you made a mistake,
and don't delay, I'm watching you."



For the record, this was the 'offending' photo I posted yesterday on The Same or Different? :

The photograph in the montage above, on the right, which I understand to be the offending photograph was actually taken from a Daily Mail article on 26th September 2007Girl in 'Madeleine in Morocco' photo is peasant farmer's daughter Bushra



Checking out previous posts on A Light in the Darkness, will 'illuminate' the fact that both versions of the photograph have been featured:

'How Convenient' and 'One And the Same or not?' for example

The original photograph from the Daily Mail post can be seen on the left. Its proportions may appear to have been changed when adding its image into the 'offending' montage.



The concept of 'spot the difference' was between the
photograph on the right of the montage in 'One and The Same or not?' and one on the right of the montage on 'The Same Or Different'. The two people do not appear to be the same ....both images had been released in press tabloids as being the person shown in the original photograph which is the left image in both montages.

Sigil

'A special message sent onto the astral plane'
Original Sigil Art by Matthew James

Daily Merlin Insight: Between the 10 and the 9


Transcript

Daily Merlin Insight (Using Servants of the Light tarot)
Friday 28th September 2007
10.00pm - 10:50pm
NZ

'Where is the trail leading to in the immediate future? What circumstances and situations can be anticipated?'

Clearly a solution can be found for this impasse. Some means to finalise the 'happy ending' symbolised by the 10 of Crescents. However, from these insights the timing is not particularly clear ... but something 'significant' takes place under the cloak of silence descending on the trail. Within the shadows ... something is seen to be evolving as Pandora's Box is seemingly closed on the box of tricks at someone somewhere's disposal. The Magician holds the rod of the Caduceus ... the symbol of the Medical profession. There is clearly something here appertaining to a routine or something methodical being undertaken. A process or a procedure being gone through. From this the trail leads to the negotiation of the Giver of Spheres ... all has been scrutinised and observed ... by the Hermit at the base of the spread. Thus the 'observation period' now seems to be over.

Within the crystal casting is my own pendulum stone and a blue stone of communication. I deduce this indicates that contact will be made. Perhaps with the custodians of Maddy? The abductor and the custodian are two seperate persons .. the abductor may never have beheld Madeleine apart from at intermittent periods ... certainly not for a while. For the abductor .... it is business and procedure ... means to an end. The abductor has its own worker bees to organise the situation. The abductor has merely sat back and observed. Permitted its minions to do what is instructed through the layers of the pyramid structure.

Madeleine has most definitely been well catered for. Looked after and kept in good health. Medical professionals have been close at hand ... not because she is ill or her health threatened. But because it appears those who have been around her are most surely linked to the Caduceus symbol perhaps in more ways than one.

Know the insights appear it is the 'abductor' itself who has decreed that the 'she's dead' and 'the parents are responsible' stories were surfaced in the media. A cruel move by this deceptive & clever business mind. Because the abductor knows for sure that Madeleine is indeed alive. Its minions provide the progress from all compartments that are needed.

It may well be that this figure of influence will never be publically linked to her 'abduction' ... its minions will ensure the line of suspicion stops well below the mysterious person's level of influence. Within the network quite close to the core of the campaign and the situation, are faces who act on behalf of the abductor. The abductor's eyes and ears. Ones who pull the strings and the influences that are decreed in accordance with the 'instruction'.

The 9 of Crescents & the 10 of Crescents appear to be significant ... between the 9 & the 10 is the Giver of Spheres passing significant instructions to 'the Jester' ... someone who is able to influence the direction of the trail.

For Kate & Gerry .. there appears not to be sorrow or misery at the end of this long and weary trail. Nothing is outlined here that denotes Madeleine isn't currently alive. The green heart stone appearing on the 10 of Crescents that marks the end of the trail ... is very much a living child. Madeleine McCann returned to her parents alive. However, the true circumstances of the trail may not be known to perhaps even to Kate & Gerry. From out of the shadows comes forth a communication. A contact. A place of meeting or a location to which one or both must venture. I do anticipate double crossing will have occurred. Someone having gone back on their word. Prolonging the time perhaps that Maddy should have been returned; the event taking longer than was anticipated or was planned. Someone betraying their promise ... turning the screw a little tighter to hurt Gerry & Kate even more .... more than they deserve, more than they anticipated. No wonder at times the pain has shown. Therefore ... it hasn't helped that the Media, the Ghouls and the PJ have construed that pain as evidence of 'guilt' ... someone most surely swings the Sword of Damocles over them ... someone extremely influential in the media & the business world. Someone well placed in the network of 'secret societies' ... within religion this respected figure may hide. Someone who's 'bone of contention' is the ethics and moral codes of Gerry & Kate. Someone who took it upon themselves to stir up the network which they can control ... and activate a chain of events to create this media sensation.

Guardian Spirit

The belief in guardian or guide spirits originated in tribal cultures. The spirit, usually in an animal form, protects, individuals, tribes, clans, or provides some sort of magical shamanic power.

The power possessed by the animal is generally believed to represent the collective power of the entire species or genus, giving the animal magical abilities to perform extraordinary feats, such as the wolf with the power to fight.

These spirits usually appear in animal form, but have the ability to assume human form too. In their animal form it is believed they can talk to humans. This belief in animal formed spirits is derived from a stronger belief that animals and humans were once related.

Beliefs concerning guardian spirits vary among the various tribal cultures. Many tribes believe every male child is born with a guardian spirit to protect him, otherwise he would never reach adulthood. Other tribes believe not every male successfully gets a guardian spirit; those who do not experience weakness and failure in their lives.

Most tribes assume that it is less important for girls to acquire guardian spirits because when reaching womanhood they do not become hunters and warriors. Although, some tribes do have minor rites for girls to acquire guardian spirits.

Totem guardian spirits are known among the Native North Americans, especially among the tribes along the Northwest Coast. These totem spirits can protect an entire tribe or clan with collective power or the individual power of the animal. The totem animal is sacred to that particular tribe. If, for example, a tribe's totem animal is a bear, no member of that tribe is permitted to kill a bear, but the tribe may eat flesh of a bear killed by another tribe.

In Shamanic cultures the shaman is required to have a guardian spirit. He cannot be a shaman without one. The guardian spirit empowers the shaman with its magical powers and serves as the shaman's "animal power" or his alter ego.

Within an altered state of consciousness, in which he performs his duties, the shaman assumes the form and power of the guardian spirit. He sees it, converses with it, and uses it to help him achieve his mission. The guardian is never harmful to the shaman but escorts him through the underworld or accompanies him on his mystical ascents into the sky.

The shaman can contact his guardian spirit regularly. This is called "dancing the animal." Although, one guardian spirit does not remain with the shaman throughout his life. The stays of the spirits are temporary, and new spirits replace them.

Guardian spirits are not the same as "spirit helpers" which have minor powers and specialized functions such as curing certain diseases and illnesses. A shaman may use spirit helpers collectively. And, guardian spirits are not to be confused with helper spirits. Neither are guardian spirits to be confused with the tonal, a spirit in animal form, which symbolizes the person's soul or birth date; nor are they familiars.

There are several ways of acquiring guardian spirits: seeking a solitary spirit quest or vision quest in the wilderness; spirits may come in dreams to some persons; many tribes require the acquisition of a guardian spirits during initiation rites into manhood. In some rites hallucinogenic drugs are used.

One way of communicating with one's guardian spirit is during ecstatic dancing when the person enters a trance state and assumes the form of the animal. The Zuni, for example, call this dance "Calling the Beasts."

From the tribal view point most Westerners still have guardian spirits, but are not aware of them throughout their lives. This is because of their lost contact with nature, and thus they rob themselves of this source of greater reinforcing power.

The Dogon Mystery

The Dogon people live in the Homburi Mountains near Timbuktu. At the center of their religious teachings is knowledge about a star that is invisible to the eye and so difficult to obsevrve -- even through a telescope -- that no photographs were taken of it until 1970. The Dogon say they received their knowledge by visitors to the earth from another star system.

The star they describe is Sirius B. Its existence was first suspected by Western astronomers in 1844, when irregularites were noticed in the movement of Sirius. It was supposed that Sirius must be affected by a second star, and in 1862 a faint companion star was finally detected. Sirius B is a white dwarf that, although small and faint, is extremely dense and heavy enough to exert an influence on Sirius A.

The Dogon name for Sirius B (Po Tolo) consists of the word for star (tolo) and "po," the name of the smallest seed known to them. By this name they describe the star's smallness -- it is, they say, "the smallest thing there is." They also claim that it is "the heaviest star," and white. The Dogon thus attribute to Sirius B its three principle properties as a white dwarf: small, heavy, white.

They go on to say that it has an is elliptical orbit, with Sirius A at one foci of the ellipse (as it is), that the orbital period is 50 years (the actual figure is 50.04 +/- 0.09 years), and that the star rotates on its own axis (it does). The Dogon also describe a third star in the Sirius system, called "Emme Ya" ("Sorghum Female"). In orbit around this star, they say, is a single satellite. To date, Emme Ya has not been identified by astronomers.

In addition to their knowledge of Sirius B, the Dogon mythology includes Saturn's rings, and Jupiter's four major moons. They have four calendars, for the Sun, Moon, Sirius, and Venus, and have long known that planets orbit the sun.

The Dogon say their astronomical knowledge was given to them by the Nommos, amphibious beings sent to earth from Sirius for the benefit of mankind. The name comes from a Dogon word meaning "to make one drink," and the Nommos are also called Masters of the Water, the Monitors, and the Teachers.

The Nommos were more fishlike than human, and had to live in water. They were saviors and spiritual guardians: "The Nommo divided his body among men to feed them; that is why it is also said that as the universe "had drunk of his body," the Nommo also made men drink. He gave all his life principles to human beings."

The Nommo was crucified and resurrected and in the future will again visit the earth, this time in human form. Later he will assume his amphibious form and will rule the world from the waters.

Dogon mythology is known only by a number of their priests, and is a complex system of knowledge. Such carefully guarded secrets would not be divulged to friendly strangers very easily. If the star Emme Ya is eventually discovered in the Sirius system, this would give considerably weight to the Dogon's story.

'Looking Into Nowhere'

'Looking Into Nowhere'
Original Artwork by Matthew James

The Same? Or Different ...?

Spot the difference in other words! The 'woman' on the right has a different 'shape' to the woman in an earlier photograph which appeared in A Light In The Darkness.

IMO ... in my opinion; the story of the journalist just happening to stumble upon this family in the wilds of Morocco is a 'little' suspicious to say the least. I bought some salt today ... a few pinches here and there once more won't go amiss.

Ego and Will

A curious misconception has arisen that the Ego is a barrier to magical development - that it is somehow to be taken down or destroyed before one can advance 'spiritually'.

To some, it seems that while 'Western development' builds up the ego, 'Eastern approaches' aim at ego-transcendence. There is much discussion of the 'higher self' which appears after the ego has been transcended - this is a common theme in so-called 'New Age' thought.

The psyche however, is not a static entity, and this kind of 'ego vs higher self' thinking is a carry-over of the rationalistic mind-body division. Attempts to get rid of the ego can easily result in one-sided development, fostering both self-importance and a 'holier-than-thou' attitude. Avoiding the so-called 'dark' aspect of human desire results in a shallow caricature of human potentiality, a blandness which avoids plumbing the depths of the psyche. Clarity of thought, insight, and struggle are glossed over with a sugar-coating of bliss.

To work with one's ego is to begin an inner alchemy, the aim of which is not to 'destroy' or 'transcend' it, but to move from a state of fixation (ego-centric) to a condition of mutability (Exo-centric), which is capable of constant revision and change. This is what is meant by the phrase 'letting go', and of dissolving the idea of mind as separate to the world. The Ego remains as a point of 'I-ness' which gives meaning to experience, yet the contents of the psyche become much more fluid.

In one sense, it is the ego which roots us in space-time - the psychic equivalent of having a sense of place, of occupying a particular set of co-ordinates. The majority of our experience of reality is at the level of objects, bodies and events that appear to be temporally separate. We experience ourselves as centres of will, perception, and ego.

In contrast to the ego, the will displays a vector quality, in that it has both direction and magnitude. The will is the wave to the ego's particle. Although we like to think of ourselves as centres of intentionality, much of our behaviour is a result of vector resonance - waves rippling through, appearing in our space-time universe as separate events and synchronous experiences. A key to the appropriate magical stance is given by Crowley in his novel, Moonchild:

"...the clever man, so-called, the man of talent, shuts out his genius by setting up his conscious will as a positive entity. The true man of genius deliberately subordinates himself, reduces himself to a negative and allows his genius to play through him as it will..."

The Thelemic concept of the realisation of the True Will necessitates an unfolding of awareness of the will as a vector quality. Will imposes organisation - order out of "the chaos of the normal" (Austin Osman Spare), and the realisation of True Will involves an 'obedience to awareness' of the evolutionary patterns which govern human development.

Will is an emergent property of our interaction with the total environment - it cannot be isolated to any one element. Will, perception and consciousness - we are immersed in them the way a fish is immersed in water. They are emergent properties of the total biosphere of Gaia.

So much for theory. How is this alchemy accomplished? The key word is integration - dissolving the mind-body, spirit-matter fragmentation. Enter into a 'being-in-the-now' dance, immersed in the body of Gaia, within the universe. Will on any level is the organising principle - kundalini-shakti coiled creates all forms. Therefore:

  1. Invoke Often, feeling all magical acts as a passage of Will through you.
  2. Attend to the continual reconstruction of your psychocosm through the examination of beliefs, desires and attitudes.
  3. Seek union with all that you have rejected.
  4. Practice magick as though your very survival depended on it!
  5. Forget everything you have been told about the world, assume nothing and develop your own path.
(Source: Chaosmatrix)

Love Will Keep Us Alive

By The Scorpions



From their new album 'Humanity Hour' .... this is a fantastic song. An instant favourite of mine .... which is no easy feat as I've been a fan of The Scorpions for over 30 years! But this song is a real gem .....

Police probe Kate and Gerry's 'suspicious' visit to Spain

Daily Mail Headline; says: 'Police searching for Madeleine McCann are studying CCTV showing where her parents drove their hire car in Spain, it was claimed yesterday. According to the newspaper Correio de Manha, Spanish police have given their Portuguese counterparts CCTV footage showing the Renault Scenic in places in Spain where there was "no reason" for the couple to be.

The development was dismissed by friends of Kate and Gerry McCann as yet more evidence of the police's desperation in their fast-crumbling case against the couple, who were made official suspects in the case on September 7.

On August 3, the McCanns drove their Renault rental car to the Spanish town of Huelva, just across the border from Portugal, as part of their campaign to raise awareness of their missing four-year-old. Police are intrigued by the date - it was three months after Madeleine's disappearance - and by what they claim were two hours "unaccounted for" during the trip.


Quick Insight

Wheel of Fortune
User of Weapons
Giver of Weapons

'The Wheel of Fortune' weighted heavy on the backs of the Bull & The Lion. There were issues here pertaining to Gerry & Kate which were personal & private matters. Nothing untoward. Commitments & agreements to be honoured. A meeting of some kind undertaken in association with the Giver of Weapons ... that elusive figure whom the knight knelt before to accept the undertaking. The User of Weapons is the significator for Gerry McCann. Something key to his 'undertaking' took place during this visit? But it is certainly NOT what the PJ wish the world to believe. On the contrary ... something that relates to Kate & Gerry discerning that someone is very much alive.

Meditative Practice

Meditation practice is undertaken with a threefold goal. The first is to discover and transform the limiting habits of mind that block our full potential. The second is to actively cultivate and bring more fully alive our potential for wisdom, creative intelligence, calm intensity, loving-kindness, and compassion. Third, when really taken to heart, we practice with the motivation not only to free ourselves from limitations and to awaken to our own true nature and potential, but in order to be more effective in helpings others realize their full potential as well.

After all, how much satisfaction will we find if we are free from our problems yet everyone else around us is still suffering? We work on ourselves because we understand that it will make us a better parent, a better friend, a more sensitive and creative human being contributing to our community. Our inner work is an offering to the world.

A person well versed in inner science traditions has access to a veritable apothecary of meditative antidotes to disturbing mind states, as well as to potent methods for enhancing and developing wholesome and helpful states of mind. Mastering our mind in these ways, we will inevitably develop mastery over our physical and verbal expressions and our relationship with the world.

There are thousands of meditation techniques from many different traditions, but all could be classified as belonging to either one or a combination of five categories:

1. Concentration Meditation
2. Mindfulness Meditation
3. Reflective Meditation
4. Creative Meditation
5. Heart-Centered Meditation

Concentration meditation is the foundation for all other kinds of meditation. Through the power of concentration we build our capacity to overcome distraction and to sustain mental focus. The power of a scattered mind is very limited. But like a stream of water that can be channeled to make it more forceful and produce hydroelectric power, we can make the mind a more powerful instrument by developing a small seed of one-pointed mindfulness into “concentration power.” In classical meditation texts, this one-pointedness of mind developed through the energy of concentration is called samadhi, which literally means “to establish, to make firm.”

The power of a concentrated mind can be focused effectively to enhance and deepen insight into other meditative themes or goals. To understand how this works, compare the illuminating capacity of the diffuse and scattered beam of a ten-watt incandescent lightbulb to the penetrating, diamond-like precision of a ten-watt laser beam. Such is the difference in illuminating power of the concentrated mind to the ordinary, scattered, and fragmentary flow of attention that most of us bring to everyday living. By learning how to bring the stream of our attention into a laser-like beam of one-pointed concentration, we can train the mind to become a highly useful instrument for penetrating into and investigating the nature of reality. A concentrated mind is also the precursor of great bliss and the prerequisite for the development of psychic abilities.

Whatever technique of meditation you are practicing, it is necessary to have the ability to place your attention on the object of meditation and hold it there without distraction. With patience and practice, your mind will become calmer, more powerful, and able to apply itself to any task with precision and understanding. Any object or activity can be used for the specific development of concentration. The same basic principle, however, always applies, no matter which form of meditation you are practicing: whenever your mind wanders, simply return it—again and again—to the object of your meditation.

Mindfulness meditation emphasises the cultivation of a receptive, choiceless quality of mindful attention toward whatever arises in the sphere of our experience. At those times in our lives when we were rapt in wonder gazing into the depths of the night sky, listening intently, marveling at the beauty of nature, or wholeheartedly listening for the answer to our heart’s prayer, we have naturally experienced this type of meditation. Traditionally, the practices of insight or vipassana meditation, zazen, dzogchen, Mahamudra, choiceless awareness, self-remembering, and prayer of the heart are associated with this category of meditation. Mindfulness meditation strengthens our sense of wonder and appreciation, enabling us to effortlessly, precisely, and carefully attend to the totality of our experience unfolding moment to moment.

The interplay of concentration and mindfulness meditation allows us to develop the capacity to examine and intuitively understand the deep forces within our ordinary experience. The penetrating insight that develops can then be systematically applied to investigating the very subtle interplay between the phenomena we perceive and the nature of our own mind as the perceiver. As we investigate our participation in the pervasive and dynamic interrelatedness of everything, we will come to sense ourselves as intimately related to and co-creative with the world of our experience.

The practice of reflective or analytical meditation is like disciplined thinking: choosing a theme, question, or topic of contemplation we focus our reflection, or analysis, upon it. When our attention wanders to other thoughts, we return to our chosen topic.

Traditionally, reflective meditation is employed to gain insight into the meaning of life, death, interrelationships, and social conscience, or to come to a conclusive insight regarding some key idea in science, philosophy, or scripture. Following our analysis through, we arrive at a conclusion. This, in turn, gives rise to a strong sense of faith or conviction.

In our day-to-day life and work, reflective meditation provides us with a powerful and effective tool for focusing our attention upon personal or professional questions in order to discover a creative solution or breakthrough insight. Reflective meditation also helps us to understand the issues or inner conflicts that may arise during the practice of other meditations.

Creative meditation enables us to consciously cultivate and strengthen specific qualities of mind. Patience, appreciation, sympathetic joy, gratitude, love, compassion, fearlessness, humility, tenderness, and other qualities associated with aspects of nature, Divinity, or the natural world are among the attributes that are most commonly cultivated. Creative meditations invite us to actively nurture these strengths of character by thinking, speaking, and acting “as though” these qualities are more fully alive within us.

Heart-centered meditation helps us to awaken the radiance of our loving-kindness and compassion. They deepen our empathy and forgiveness, and teach us to live in kinder ways. They begin first with ourselves, and then open the circle of our compassion to embrace all living beings. They draw inspiration from each of the other meditations: focus and the power of peace from concentration; deep listening and presence from mindfulness meditation; insight into the nature of suffering and a sense of interrelatedness from reflective meditation; imaginative resourcefulness and skill from creative meditation.

Properly understood, all of these approaches to meditation are interrelated and mutually enhancing. Many practices draw inspiration from a variety of meditation styles and could be included in several categories. While the intricacies of these interrelationships are beyond the scope of this book, it should be clear to you that the contemplative traditions offer us the inner technology necessary to fulfill virtually any developmental aspiration we may have. Meditation allows us to go beyond words and mental concepts in order to know the true nature and reality of ourselves and our world directly. (From "Luminous Mind: The Essential Guide to Meditation and Mind Fitness" by Joel Levey & Michelle Levey)

The Mirror of Our Consciousness ..

The Chiron paradigm in relation to Body and Mind asserts that our physiology is a perfect mirror of our consciousness. In short, in the same way that Chiron in the astrology chart mirrors our issues and Wounds, all our Wounds and issues can be seen upon our countenance in the form of various states of health and disease, in our tensions and relaxations, in our excesses and deficiencies and in our postures and expressions.

Such is the holographic nature of the Body/Mind. The Body/Mind, like the astrology chart, is a Mandala of consciousness. Lop-sided (unbalanced, Wounded) consciousness (in the form of exaggerations and minimizations in our perceptions of the experiences of our lives) creates lop-sided physiology (in the form of hypo- (inhibition) and hyper- (activation) reactions of the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems and the immune system in general). Conversely, as we Heal our consciousness—i.e. seek out the balancing sides of our Wounds and issues and bring unity to our consciousness—so this is reflected in the Healing of the Body. There is now ample medical and scientific evidence to support the connection between our emotional and mental states and our body’s health and disease.

Moreover, if we examine the extremes of mental and emotional disorders in our society, we can see our own predicament as in a mirror, as brought into sharp relief, as in a powerful microscope. We each have elements of every psychosis and neurosis ever discovered and labeled. Such are the elements of our Woundedness. Fragmented mental and emotional processes are the symptoms of fragmented consciousness—the dualistic consciousness of our lower nature, of our terrestrial nature, of the Woundedness of the horse half of Chiron the centaur.

As we bring our consciousness into greater unity—by seeking the balancing sides of our issues and Wounds—we reconnect with our higher human nature, with our celestial nature. Such Healing goes beyond the illusion of the physical (material) world of reality and reconnects us with the truth of the energetic (spiritual) world of Actuality. Again, there is physics to support this assertion.

The secret to Healing—whether physical, emotional, mental or spiritual—is thus to bring the Darknesses of our psyche into the Light. As we do so, we gradually awaken to the perfection of our lives and, thus, to the larger Plan and Purpose of existence.(Martin Lass)

Thursday, 27 September 2007

One and the same ... or not?

Egregores

An Egregore is a kind of group mind which is created when people consciously come together for a common purpose. Whenever people gather together to do something and egregore is formed, but unless an attempt is made to maintain it deliberately it will dissipate rather quickly. However if the people wish to maintain it and know the techniques of how to do so, the egregore will continue to grow in strength and can last for centuries.

An Egregore has the characteristic of having an effectiveness greater than the mere sum of its individual members. It continuously interacts with its members, influencing them and being influenced by them. The interaction works positively by stimulating and assisting its members but only as long as they behave and act in line with its original aim. It will stimulate both individually and collectively all those faculties in the group which will permit the realization of the objectives of its original program. If this process is continued a long time the Egregore will take on a kind of life of its own, and can become so strong that even if all its members should die, it would continue to exist on the inner dimensions and can be contacted even centuries later by a group of people prepared to live the lives of the original founders, particularly if they are willing to provide the initial input of energy to get it going again.

If the Egregore is concerned with spiritual or esoteric activities its influence will be even greater. People who discover the keys can tap in on a powerful Egregore representing, for example, a spiritual or esoteric tradition, will, if they follow the line described above by activating and maintaining such an Egregore, obtain access to the abilities, knowledge, and drive of all that has been accumulated in that Egregore since its beginnings. A group ororder which manages to do this can, with a clear conscience, claim to be an authentic order of the tradition represented by that Egregore. In my view this is the only yardstick by which a genuine Templar order should be measured."

Kether: The Infinite

Kether is The Infinite; its planet is Pluto. Divine ideal wisdom / Will / Inspiration / Spirit

Kether is the source of all, including the things as yet unmanifest. Stabilising consciousness at this sphere is the goal of human evolution.

Kether, or "The Infinite," is the crown of the tree, the peak of the spiritual realm, the assimilation of all spiritual work. It is the place where the pure energy first extends into the world and becomes recognizable as tangible reality. Kether-as-Emanation is described in the Zohar, in "P'Tach Eliahu," where, addressing the Creator, Eliahu the Prophet says: "...[You are the] Orach Atzilut, the Path of Spiritual Emanation, which irrigates the tree of the Sefirot with its arms and branches, like water that irrigates a tree causing it to grow thanks to that irrigation. Master of the Universe, You are the Primary Cause, and Producer of Results, Who irrigates the tree through the spring of prophecy. That spring is like the soul to the body, in that it gives life to the body."

Kether, forming a triad with Binah and Chockmah, balances three forces: Spiritual love and awareness (Binah), Spiritual will and purpose (Chockmah), and the infinite realized self (Kether). These three spheres could be compared to the 'Father, Son, and Holy Ghost' in the Christian pantheon.

Kether is Brahman - the impersonal, absolute existence, or Godhead, the all-pervading transcendental reality, the implicate and implicit order. Because of Maya (Key 2), Brahman is concealed from the Atman (Tiphareth).

Potentials of Kether: Solving the inner quest, revelation, divine inspiration, Samadhi, spiritual ecstasy, enlightenment, union with infinite merciful bliss. This is the completion of desire re-uniting with source. The realm of separating desire is among the lower Sephirot, having first divided out of Malkuth. Kether is called the "Crown," while Malkuth is Kingdom. Some Kabbalists envision multiple trees of life connected top to bottom, with Crown and Kingdom joined. This allows for infinitely more layers and distinctions within Creation. Concepts of Kingdom/King/Creator are explored in Malkuth.

Bluetongue found in fifth animal

BBC News Headline; says: 'A fifth animal in Suffolk has tested positive for bluetongue disease, government officials have said. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said the animal, at a farm near Burstall, east of Ipswich, will be culled. The strain, first detected on Saturday, is the same as one that has killed livestock in Europe. The virus, which is spread by midges, affects cattle, sheep, goats and deer. but the UK cases are yet not classed as an outbreak.

This latest case comes after vets confirmed bluetongue in a fourth animal on premises at Washbrook near Ipswich on Wednesday, and in a Holstein cow on a farm in Lound on Tuesday.

It was first detected in two animals on a rare breeds farm in Baylham, near Ipswich.

Neith

Neith is one of the oldest Egyptian goddesses. Early in Egyptian history she was honored throughout Egypt. Later on, she was mostly recognized in her cult center of Sais.

She was sometimes depicted as a woman wearing the crown of the north and holding either a sceptre or a bow and two arrows. At other times she was shown as a woman wearing a shuttle (a tool used in weaving) on her head.

It is believed that she was originally a goddess of war (due to the bow and arrows imagery) and may have become later a goddess of weaving (when wearing the shuttle). She was occasionally shown suckling a crocodile who represented her son, Sobek. She was self-produced and the Egyptians believed she was of both a masculine and feminine nature. It was said that Neith gave birth to Re while she was still in the waters of Nun. Neith was the protectoress of Duamutef, the guardian of the deceased's stomach.

During the dispute between Seth and Horus for the throne of Egypt, the gods could not decide how to resolve the issue. They sent a letter to Neith requesting her advice. She suggested that Horus be made king and Seth be given two Semetic goddesses as consolation. All the gods (but Seth) agreed with the wisdom of her solution.

Her largest temple, Sapi-meht, was located at Sais, the capital of the fifth nome of Lower Egypt. In Upper Egypt, she was portrayed with the head of a lioness. Here her husband was Khnemu, the ram-headed creation god of the First Cataract, and her son was Tutu. Tutu was a form of the god Shu. (Egyptian Myths)

Daily Merlin Insight: A Familiar Face?


Transcript

Daily Merlin Insight (Using Servants of the Light tarot)
Thursday 27th August 2007
9:40pm - 10:25pm
NZ

'Further insights into the recent Morocco "sighting" ... and all which the circumstances imply ...'

Clearly, we can see the significator 'The Empress' to the bottom right of the working. A crystal stands diagonally across this figure. Between the Empress and the Justice image ... we have the 9 of Weapons .. the praying figure before the flaming sword. With knives pointed at its back. Justice implies the scales of Justice ... for either the sign of Libra; the zodiac sign we have now ventured into ... or literally that justice will prevail for the victim in the 9 of Weapons? There is a single red stone on this image ... instinct is drawn to the numerology of the Justice card ... the #11 ... 11 days from now? 11th October? I'm extremely wary about putting a definite time on this event; but something relating to the persona in the 9 of Weapons standing between Kate McCann and justice prevailing. I glean Kate is the victim in the 9 of Weapons ... praying for the return of Maddy signified by the flaming sword. The knives in the back is the victimisation pointed towards her by the press and that someone somewhere in control of that monstrous machinery. Those wheels keep turning here ... have just turned again with the most recent claims. My instinct shouts 'absurd' ... 'preposterous ... it is SO obvious that you Mr Pinocchio have lied with the Moroccan photo and the 'convenient' lookalike girl laid on so readily. It appears truly to have been staged. But what is it covering up? Clearly it has caught the attention of the observer once more .... but why?

I see the horselike shape in the cast crystals ... but with a very long neck like a giraffe ... my instinct had been to shout out 'beware the trojan horse' but I am wary here. So wary. There are crucial clues in the staging of the Moroccan photograph. It has come and gone in a single day. The photograph released at one end of the day ... then the news story to deflate all hopes raised in the next.

I hear inward senses pleading to 'look again. Don't dismiss it so readily. There is more to this than meets the eye. It is too easy to accept the press report of convenience. Those claimed to be in the first photograph do not match those who have been "found". But neither do they feel like the captors of Maddy either. So there is something cunning and foxlike here ...'

We have the green 'wounded' heart stone and the granite of 'illness' between the 4 of Staves and the 7 of Crescents ... there is something so very wrong here with this situation .... something hasty undertaken. Some clear mistake. Not mistaken identity I am sure; the 4 of Staves is the most positive and beneficial of all the cards in the Servants of the Light pack (in my considered opinion) so I am not concerned with regard to the wellbeing of Madeleine McCann. On the contrary; I read this latest 'sighting' as something positive and beneficial to the The Empress card ... the reason why the significator has appeared ... the link of the network to Kate and perhaps something revealed which is not to be revealed. A reason for the sudden release of the 'found the girl in the picture' story ....

The Wheel of Fortune and the Lovers ... a harmonising of the wheel that turns .. easing of the burdens of the recent carousel. That is the best way perhaps to describe the journey ahead. The Lime Green stone which has fallen on the Keeper of Spheres .... linking the Keeper indirectly to The Empress. This relates to news or communication ... away from the public ears and the baying wolves sent by those who oppose the McCanns. Truly a trojan horse ... but for positive and beneficial reasons.

Was the girl in the photograph ... the little girl it is now claimed to be .... instinct is extremely uneasy to accept that it is ... intuition senses strongly I would be too complacent if I was to accept it too readily. Was the original photograph that of Madeleine McCann ... I recall last night's transcript and the appearance of The Star ... I'm not convinced that the journalist's story of convenience is not another smokescreen written into the script by agents of the Pied Piper or even by Pinocchio himself ... the press release does not feel right ....

The Rivers of Belief

Song by Enigma



One of my personal Enigma favourites.

Glastonbury Town

Cymatic Sound Therapy

Cymatic therapy is a form of sound therapy developed by Sir Peter Guy Manners, MD, DO, PhD from England in the 1960s. It is based on the work of Hans Jenny, who coined the term "cymatics" in the mid-twentieth century. Cymatics refers to the effect of sound waves on matter, and cymatic therapy presumes that sound can have similar effects on the body.

According to practitioners, illness appears when the rhythms of the heart, brain, and other organs are not working harmoniously. During treatment, computerized instruments are used to transmit sound waves through the skin, either directed toward the diseased organ or transmitted along the acupuncture meridians. The selected frequencies are related to those that are normally emitted by the healthy body part. The signals passed through these cymatic devices are supposed to restore synchronous rhythms and boost the body's regulatory and immunologic systems. In some of the newer cymatic devices, a magnetic field has been added to oscillate along with the sound waves.

Practitioners of cymatic therapy believe that sound waves can rearrange molecules in the body. Although the sound waves do not directly heal, proponents say that the waves promote a healing environment for the body's cells.

Tawa Kachina

Tawa or sun kachina seen here is a symbol of life, growth, strength of spirit, and abundance. The likeness of this spirit is donned during the solstice ceremony to beckon the sun's return, and begin the growing season.

To understand kachina properties, we must first have a foundation of the endlessly creative and strongly spiritual Hopi people.

Hopi, or Hopitu-shinumu, means Peaceful People. They are expert craftspeople, and possessed uncommon agricultural skills. The Hopi connection with the land, cultivating, and harvesting is truly superior. Specifically, their ability to skillfully coax yielding corn from the desert sands is to be commended.

As artisans, they incorporated their Hopi symbols into an array of dazzlingly beautiful baskets and pottery. Further, their natural artistic abilities are found in the well-crafted kachina masks donned during ceremonies.

Kachina are supernatural beings who inhabit the realms of mist and magic. They are not worshipped by the Hopi as deities – rather, they are regarded as allies, and as connections to the forces of nature.

Kachina properties become clearer when we realize they are invoked for purposes of fertile crops, and abundant living conditions. As Hopi symbols, they are harbingers of life-giving rain, and serve the Hopi in their needs.

Drombohilly Stone Circle

Drombohilly stands on a hillside terrace with marvelous views over the Kenmare river valley. A multi-stone Irish recumbent, we counted nine stones standing and one fallen, there were obvious gaps at the SSW and NW, suggesting an original stone count of eleven. The fallen stone may have been the recumbent as it was small and lying inside the circle close to the recumbent's probable position.

The portal stones at the NNE are the tallest in the circle at 2m, and are placed radially, there was no trace of a boulder burial. The remains of a field wall run close to the circle and can be seen in the foreground of the photo above..

A Flight of Birds ..


"Migrating birds are credited with the discovery of dozens of islands in the Pacific Ocean, including Hawaii. Looking up at a flight of birds, the observers reasoned, 'There must be a new land in that direction.' That is what men and women need – the sensing of a new direction, inspired by an upward gaze. "

Chaos Theory

Chaos is the field that underlies all things which exist. In the beginning there was Chaos. Before the big bang all order was bound into the monoblock, a point smaller than an electron. All else was Chaos. After the big bang the various dimensions of order were spontaneously created by the inherent symmetry of the original matrix.

These dimensions continue to expand through the continuum, but still the underlying Chaos remains active and potent. The nature of the Chaos field is dimly understood. Is it the complete absence of order, or does it correspond to an order not comprehended by Man? Fundamentally it is the uncoordinated source of creation. From Chaos does creation rise, to be formed by other forces.

The Greeks called this the Cornucopia; a twisted tube within which is nothingness, but from the mouth of which spews all manner of things. This is interestingly similar to modern theories concerning black holes. Physicists, such as Stephen Hawking, postulate that the structure of black holes may be that of a twisted tube, (called a "wormhole"), within which is a chaos without any predictable physical laws, (called a "singularity"). Further it is stated that these wormholes may have a terminus in another spatial/ temporal/dimensional location, (called a "white hole").

It is a matter of form passing through chaos becoming form again in another aspect. Here is a quality of the Chao s field, that it serves to reprocess matter/energy, breaking them down into components so that it may be reused in the various dimensional matrixes. In these matrixes, our universe for instance, the energy matrixes that form planets, stars, bodies, minds, etc, cannot be entirely broken apart, they retain some similarity. For example, the energy matrix of a body, upon deactivation of the governing principle, goes on to combine with similar matrixes. The corpse feeds the tree and the worm. It reshapes the consumed matrix into simil ar organic constructions. If this combining is delayed, say by isolation within volcanic rock, than the matrix will combine with the less energetic rock, the process of fossilization.

With sentient creatures there are actually two matrixes working in combination, the physical matrix and the mental matrix. What has been said about physical matrixes generally applies to the mental, with this difference; that where the physical is usually recombined, except when the matrix is very weak or more energy is required to maintain equilibrium in the Chaos field, the mental rarely recombines, (this is termed possession when it combines with an already functioning matrix and called reincarnation when it uses a latent matrix ), instead it usually enters the Chaos field, wherein various things may occur. A special set of circumstances applies to mental matrixes in Chaos. These may be generalized in three ways:

  1. It may be reprocessed; When this occurs the individual matrix is broken down completely. This is dissolution.
  2. It may be partially reprocessed; It sometimes happens that mental matrixes enter Chaos, but the primal will to exist is strong enough to prevent it from being completely reprocessed. in these cases the intellectual qualities do not survive, but the remainder retains some integrity. These are just machines of a sort, what Qabalahists refer to as Qliphoths, (shells).
  3. It may preserve its integrity; It may be that the individuals mental matrix is possessed of not only a strong will to exist, but also of a powerfully focused intellectual fixation. the individual matrix can preserve its discreetness if it can maintain clarity, a very difficult thing to do during conditions of discorporation. Managing this feat will raise another question, "what now?"

The individual cannot retain itself in the Chaos field indefinitely, it would inevitably break apart. Therefore the mind must travel. This raises another quality of Chaos. The chaos field has no dimensions, no time, no distance, at least in our mode of thinking.

Basic laws that apply in the dimensional matrixes do not apply in Chaos. Different objects can occupy the same space at the same time, effect can proceed cause, and every point in every location is congruent. Everything is everywhere, always. One can enter Chaos from any particular location, and exit it at any other particular dimensional location, assuming integrity is preserved. The major difficulty in this mode of travel is navigation. A very nearly infinite number of choices is presented, no easy task sorting this out, and once one makes his exit, his individual matrix will adapt itself to local conditions, perhaps forgetting himself entirely. Most people have no idea where it is they want to be, in fact many do not even know where they are. They would become lost. There is a method for successful navigation. This method is possible because it is not required to die in order to enter the Chaos field.

Travelling the Chaos is referred to by the vulgar as "astral travel". Few understand the nature of this. They use it as a sort of mental vacationing, talking to cretinous shells and gawking at illusions. The inhabitants of Chaos are generally useless to the individual, exceptions perhaps being other more experienced travellers (not always human), who might provide some insight. There, as here, you must always be on the lookout for charlatans.

The use of travelling chaos before death is that it is much easier to keep individual integrity while possessing a body. The individuals body acts as a beacon to draw back the wandering mind. If the individual wants to use the Chaos field to plot his after life travel plans, it is required that the person know his true Will, for this will tell him where it would be best for him to ma nifest. Without this the individual can not go to where he should be, for he would not know what, or where, this is. But knowing ones true will in this area will raise sympathies which will lead one to his particular "portal of becoming".

It is important to avoid fascination, or the individual may find himself getting exactly what he thinks he wants, which may be hideously inappropriate. The chaos field is not in itself horrible, although it contains some horrors. Chaos is not hell, although it is inhabited by some types of demons. It is potential, the realm where possibility is born. It is the Apsu, the abyss of the Babylonians. The place of naked, formless creation. It becomes existent when given form by Enki, which is Wisdom and Intellect. (Source)

Libra: September 23rd - October 22nd

A balance weighs and measures; and so do Libra natives. Librans seek equality, harmony, and balance. The scales are also a symbol of justice.

Libra's symbol is the only symbol in the zodiac that is inanimate (it is not represented by an animal or person).

Where is Libra in your chart? This is the area in life where you strive for balance and equilibrium. If this part of your life seems unbalanced, you seek to change that. It is in this sphere of your life that you strive to be fair and just.

The glyph, or symbol, of Libra represents the setting sun. It also resembles an "equal" sign, though it more accurately reflects an "approximately equal to" symbol. Again, Libra's drive to compare and balance is represented in its glyph.

Libra natives are generally thought to be sociable, somewhat intellectual souls. They have an almost innocent way about them that makes them very approachable. Generally quite eager to cooperate, Librans spend a lot of their time trying not to rock the boat.

In theory, Libras are peace-loving. In practice, they can quietly stir up all sorts of trouble with their ways. Because Libra enjoys balance in their lives, they seek the middle ground. In the process, they may end up trying to be everything to everyone. This is where their reputation for untruthfulness comes from. Generally, their untruths spring from a true desire for peace and fairness--although they may not be comfortable with direct and malicious trickery, they feel totally justified when they lie in order to avoid making waves. Peace at any price! In this sense, they seem harmless. But, what can result is quite a ruckus! People involved with Libras may crib about their lack of directness and their apparent inability to take a stand. Librans are experts at avoiding being the one to blame. When confronted, they'll (calmly and reasonably) say, "What, me? No, I just want peace."

"On the fence", "middle ground", "middle road" -- these are all expressions that we can safely associate with Libra.

Some more powerful signs may consider Libra a little on the weak side. This is all a matter of opinion, however! Without Libra, life simply wouldn't be as fair.

Librans are known for comparing and thinking in relative terms, instead of in absolutes. This weekend is not just a good weekend, it's better than last weekend. These people are always looking for the "best" way or the "right" way to live. Harmony is the ultimate goal, but their idealism and high expectations can mean plenty of discontent. Since life presents all of us with an extraordinary amount of choices, if Libra doesn't learn to live in the moment at least some of the time, they'll be in a constant state of unrest.

Society needs rules, and these rules attempt to bring justice, equality, and fairness. On an individual level, Libra represents these laws of civilization. Libra comes across as very civilized and rather refined.