The Hedge Druid

On a cool early January morning Kal and I were on our way back from a networking session in North Wales. In preparation I had suggested that we might go out somewhere. For some reason this year I had dowsed that I was now able to do energy work in The Quiet Time! This was a radical change from previous years. It seems that the change has come about because I have reached a level of energy working and druidry where some work is now possible in this time when no supporting energies are available. I seem to have reached a level where I can utilise the appropriate energies without any detrimental effect on myself. This is great news as it extends the year even more now! It also gives me a bit of feedback that I have reached a certain level of competence. I hesitate to say “mastery” because I still feel like a student, yet this is what was indicated during my questioning.

So it was that we were heading to Alderley Edge, yet as we passed by the junction for Runcorn I felt impelled to mention Runcorn Hill. We both agreed this seemed a nicer and simpler prospect, especially as we were bathed in beautiful clear sunshine whereas the eastern regions looked dull and wet. As we came towards Runcorn from the Daresbury side I wondered whether we could also visit Norton Priory. We did so, but only to find that it was being renovated and nothing would be open until March 2015!

I did spot that they were running a tree pruning course at the end of January which I will be attending (see Norton Priory events). Onwards to the hill!

Hollow Hills – Kal prepares for action on Runcorn Hill

I remembered the right place to park, and somehow also the right route to walk, and suddenly we were on top of the hill and back where we had been many years ago [see previous post].

As we approached I felt both a pull of attracting energy and a repulsion from something unpleasant. It would seem that we were being called, but were likely to encounter some horrible energy, and so I put up protection quickly as we got closer.

On top of the hill I straight away knew that the area was suffering the same problem as last time we had visited – bad energy radiating from the electricity pylons. This time we felt we could fix it for good, rather than back in 2008 when we fixed it for a week!

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Kal at Runcorn Hill

What makes a great day? One that has a good mundane and esoteric component.This morning Chris and I attended a networking meeting called Pow-Wow! It was brilliant. A good bunch of folks and a nice couple of hours in which, I felt that we all got something useful.

Then upon the return journey we cast about for something to fill our sacred souls. Now, Alderley Edge and the Wizards wood had been whispering its call but we also felt a tug from Runcorn Hill. The Hill is a place we visited in our youth of Nature-Working (i.e. about 6 years ago) and did some amazing collaborative healing there. Even at that time we knew that it wouldn’t last for long so it was well overdue a visit.

We arrived in the quiet cold afternoon and wasn’t surprised to see/feel that all vestiges of our previous work had been eroded away. Such are the energies atop that hill. Not helped in any way by the electricity pylons – shudder.

Without collaboration we both went our own way in helping to shield the site from the heinous EMF. I found a place to prepare which also served as a place to create a barrier around me. The barrier of protection formed itself like a spiraling whirlwind which was odd because I’ve never envisioned such a protection before. After this I followed the dowsing rods to a place where I could bring forth my protective enchantment.

Standing facing away from th pylons I visualised bringing energy up from the Earth. As the flow increased I let Nature take a hand in its shaping and positioning. What it began to form was a vertical cocoon around the pylon. At first it was just one-sided and then it went into the ground and enveloped the pylon completely. Something rather strange happened then because the oval around the pylon began to stretch along the power lines so that more and more pylons were enclosed.

It looked amazing I have to say. But the glamour wasn’t complete. After stretching some miles in either direction (a feat that I could not have envisaged) the spiral of protection that surrounded me, unwrapped itself and wrapped around the protective barrier. It seemed that the spiral was powering the protection. I knew though that this would not last so a thought occurred to me. I looked up at the bright-white winter sun and connected its everlasting energy to the sparkling spiral. Like an alternator I thought. I felt that my job was done and broke of all connections.

As I did I glanced over at Chris and saw that he too was done. We took some pictures of the site and then shared our experiences. Talk about synchronistic! As before, it seems that unconsciously we had melded our solutions beautifully.

Taking a leaf from Kal’s book I will summarise my year in terms of the quests that I have been involved with. The year had many more facets than this, but I think the quests are the important factors, as they form a developmental framework for my druidry work. They show the progress of my spiritual quest. Ultimately, for me, that’s what this blog is about.

I will put the quests into a chronological order, but also show how they relate to the tarot reading that I did at the start of the year. I quickly lost sight of this as I began to work, but now I have re-visited it to see just how the reading relates to the activities of the year.

TAROT FOR THE YEAR

My tarot reading for the year was done using the Tree Angel Oracle deck. This seems appropriate, as the sacred trees of the druids match the lunar cycles. The cards were drawn to show either a sign or a challenge – something that would guide me onwards, or that I would have to overcome in order to progress.

Here are the cards listed against their positions in the Celtic Wheel of the Year:-

1. IMBOLC – Ivy (sign)
2. SPRING EQUINOX – Rowan (sign)
3. BELTANE – Blackthorn (sign)
4. SUMMER SOLSTICE – Almond (sign) + Elder (challenge)
5. LAMMAS – Hawthorn (sign)
6. AUTUMN EQUINOX – Elm (sign) + Lime (sign)
7. SAMHAIN – Juniper (challenge)
8. WINTER SOLSTICE – Birch (sign)

What follows is the detail of the year’s work. See whether it coincides with any of your own work this year – if it does, let us know!

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I want to start this roundup of the year by looking over the edge so to speak into next year. Let’s start with the Element Quest.

The Element Quest

Earlier this year I was set on a quest that had me collecting Four Elements. At first the quest seemed easy enough until I was told that each element had to be collected from another shore. This led to a trip to Brittany to collect the Earth Element. Then at Beltane we visited Ireland where I was able to collect the element of Water. A couple of weeks ago, I returned from Egypt with the element of Fire. What remains is the element of Water which I have come to understand will be collected in Florence, Italy.

The Wand Quest

Now we’re talking. This quest was given to me years ago in the Wizards Wood quite aptly. But since that time I have put it on the back burner because it seems a monumental task. It’s ingredients two of which I know are to be got from anywhere on the globe. In my trip to Egypt I was able to acquire one of them, Amber. Another ingredient, Sand, needs to be taken from Easter Island. Seriously! All other parts of this quest are hidden from me at the moment.

The Six Offerings Quest

As if it wasn’t enough to have the other quests on my plate. It seems that I have acquired another one on my visit to Egypt. This is about finding and offering six items. Now I know that the first of these is the Dress that I er…bought a couple of months ago. But I have no more knowledge about this quest than that.

Knights Tour

More of a left over from my Knights Quest of many years ago this seems to be a remnant that Ol’ Caileach wants done. So this is something that I want to get completed this coming year. When I say completed I mean it, because it has been started already at Rosslyn Chapel in Scotland.

Okay, so that kind of wraps up the activity oriented things that I am/will be up to. Here are some mysterious odds and ends that need to be puzzled out.

Ice Dragon

At Imbolc this year that wench tricked me into binding myself with an Ice Dragon. I don’t know what that means and how it will play on my life but there you have it. Without either of our intentions an Ice Dragon and I have been bound.

Gold Coin of the Fey

During my visit to Carnac in Brittany I was given a Gold Coin by the Fey (or rather a coin had been imbued by the Fey). Its powers are to give me the ability to see into other people’s hearts. I haven’t seriously used it yet. But am so curious to learn what it is and how it works.

The Queen and the Molten Lava

At the temple of Queen Hatshepsut, she rose out of the ground and filled my Solar chakra with what felt like a Golden liquid. I have no idea what that is about.

Round up

If you have been keeping up with our adventures you will know that each year we round up by saying that this year was the amazing ever. How can it get better than this and then the next year blows it out of the water. I have to reiterate that statement. This year has been amazing! Imbolc and the Ice Dragon, the Carnac engine and all of the Fey encounters, Ireland and the Elements quest, the courage to start the Wand quest and the experiences of Egypt.

I am so grateful for all of the mysteries that are set before me to explore and that enrich my life beyond any imagination could. I am open to the adventures that 2015 will bring.

Maidens Bower

Our final stop for this Winter Solstice was the Maidens Bower. The sun was dipping on the horizon and we clambered through the mud towards the hill we presumed was the bower of said maiden. It wasn’t or rather we felt it wasn’t. So we continued further along and came across a few other hills and they also felt wrong. It was then that I recalled that this place had something to do with a maze…hmmm.

Finally, we came to a hill that not only felt right but looked right too. It actually reminded me of the Stpe pyramid in Cairo which I had recently visited. I asked whether there was anything that needed to be done for this place, No. So I found an aligned place and sat down to enjoy the sunset. As my mind wandered over the days events a curious thought occurred to me.

• How come beings at certain places know about my quest?

It was a curious question and one that I should have asked many years ago. Here is the thing. I have these quests and I go to certain places and they help me to move forward on them. But how do they know what I am about and where I need to go? Surely the spirits or beings out there are not holding a “Kal’s Guide”?

I pondered this, whilst enjoying the peace of the Maidens Bower. No, it couldn’t be that they knew the intimates of my quests. What then? There was of course the Akashic Records idea. Was it that these beings had access to those records and were able to pull the information out?

As I thought about that a third option occurred to me. The only other constant in all these encounters was me. Maybe I carried the knowledge locked within me and they were able to unlock it, or some of it? Now that is interesting.

As I pondered this more, option 3 became my favourite. What didn’t occur to me was to ask the Rods which one was right. Maybe next time.

Our outing and day were done and had left me with an interesting question to ponder.

See you in 2015.

All the very best of fortunes to you and all whom you love,

Kal

We weren’t sure how to approach Maiden’s Bower - a turf maze in Yorkshire. Coming from Ripon, down the A1(M) once more, ending up in the village of Topcliffe. In the village we took Winn Lane, which goes back over the A1 road. On the other side there was just enough space to park the car, and then we followed the straight track until a stile took us across the farmland.

The first feature you encounter is Cock Lodge – a raised earthwork of substantial proportions. At first we thought this might be the thing we were looking for, but luckily I had seen a picture on Megalithic Portal of the place we were searching for – this wasn’t it.

I asked the dowsing rods to lead me to the correct place, and they took me alongside Cock Lodge earthwork and over a fence on the other side. Suddenly Maiden’s Bower turf maze was visible between some small hawthorn trees. Even in the fading evening light it was impressive and unusual.

Kal wasn’t far behind but I got started straight away – time was pressing. I felt like I needed to walk up the mound barefoot. In the depths of Winter? Was that sensible? No – but at least there wasn’t any snow on the ground! However, within a few steps my feet were almost numb with the cold dew. I ventured on, following the dowsing rods after asking for the correct path for me to climb the mound in order to meet with the Spirit of Place.

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In the fourth part of my Winter Solstice outing I provide an example of what can happen if you let yourself be intuitively guided when you are out and about. Fixed agendas are all very well, but when following an energetic spiritual path then fixing events can be counter-productive (to say the least).

We were hungry. We had been up since early morning, travelling to Yorkshire, and then moving around the Ripon area for several hours seeking adventure. I wondered whether the National Trust property of Fountains Abbey might have not only a cool holy well to visit, but also a good cafeteria where we could get some warming food. Turns out they have both, but we only got to sample the food. When I thought about the size of the estate and the amount of daylight we had left – it wasn’t feasible to traipse around Fountains Abbey estate in search of its treasures. That will have to wait until the summer.

We were about to leave, heading back to the car park after a hearty lunch, when we saw a wooden sign pointing to something called “St Mary’s Church“. Hmmm… we had visited a Michael church that morning – maybe we should balance it out by visiting a Mary church? Game on! We walked through the puddles and mud to get to the site – a good ten minute walk.

St Marys Church, Fountains Abbey

The first thing that strikes you about the church is that is near to a sandstone obelisk which is aligned with its front entrance. For energy workers and seekers such as ourselves this was too much to be ignored – was it a ley line alignment that was being signified here? Was the energy of the ley being concentrated and directed through the church?

I took a bearing in order to check the alignment on a map later….

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