The Hedge Druid

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Thanks to everyone who reads this blog. On 30th January 2011 we passed the 100,000 views mark. We’re stunned.

Head bowed in humility at the awe-inducing moment

Both Kal and I will be working hard to keep up the regularity and the standards we have set ourselves. We hope you continue to enjoy our unique content.

Hail and well met, hedge drudes and dowsing dudes.

Gwas & Kal.

Friday 28th May – Baltinglass, County Wicklow

I got a bit carried away telling you about the good stuff and I forgot to tell you about the bad stuff, “Lesson #1″, or as we refer to it “The Leprechaun Incident“. Let me take you back in time to Friday 28th May. You may remember that we had just been on our first visit to the major sites along the Boyne River, namely Knowth and Newgrange. We had been having a wonderful time.

As we returned to the car from the Visitor’s Centre Kal reminded me about my ash staff. When should we go and see if it was still there? Well, as it was early afternoon I guess now would be a good time, less than 24 hours after I left it at the Castleruddery stone circle. Or at least, that’s where I hoped I had left it! Otherwise it was lost. I was utterly resigned to that idea. Remember, none of these material items is invaluable. None. All things come and go. Some things have their own path once inbued with sentience. Perhaps the staff and I had parted ways and someone else way now using it? It mattered little, yet I was willing to go back to the other side of Dublin, a good two hour drive, just in case it was still there. Hey – there were sites down the N81 that we hadn’t seen yet, so….nothing to lose, right?

When we arrived I vaulted the stile and raced to the Castleruddery circle – I could see the staff still propped up against the old ash tree that lined the circle’s embankment. Yeah, like I wasn’t bothered or anything? Right! I was relieved to have it back. We decided to see what else was in the area and for some reason we thought that a cluster of sites atop a hill in the nearby town of Baltinglass would be a good thing to go and see, even though there was no obvio9us way to access them. We entered the town of Baltinglass apprehensively and Kal was told off for using the toilets in a pub. Good start! There was an odd feel to this town, and no mistake. Both of us were on edge and flustered for some unknown reason.

We couldn’t find a good place to park or access the track or path that led up the hill to the ancient sites so we parked at the bottom of a lane that led to a farm. At every few turns of the track were signs warning us that we were on farm land, not a public highway or byway. Which we ignored. We checked the farmhouse for signs of life so that we could ask permission, but all was quiet, so we made our way quietly over a gate into a field populated with bulls, and then another with sheep. All the while we were climbing steadily up this steep slope, and the sun was getting hotter.

Conifer forest and steep slope above Baltinglass

We headed for a corner of the field away from the farmhouse – feeling guilty for not having obtained permission to cross the land. We reached a corner of a field where there was an unreasonably tall wall – some 8 feet high! We found what appeared to be a hole in the corner of the wall, and if we climbed and pushed ourselves through the gorse and bramble we could climb through and get into the safety of the forest where we wouldn’t be seen going up the hill.

The forest was made up of densely packed fir trees, old tall gorse bushes and old and thorny brambles. We tried to find and pick our way through a path through the plantation as best we could and about half way in we reached several dead ends and were forced to consider turning back. Despite sweating like crazy and being torn to shreds we pushed onwards – the GPS telling us how far we still had to go. It was the countdown to hell! After 30 minutes of fighting with the forest we broke free into the daylight again breathing sighs of relief and trying to cool down. We turned to each other saying things like “I never want to go through THAT again!”

At this point Kal realised he had lost his dowsing rods!!! The only pair he had brought with him on the trip. He was clearly gutted. We vowed to go find them if we could, but didn’t relish going back into the forest, and to retrace our steps was impossible. We oddly made the decision, in the heat of the middle of the day, to continue climbing UP the massively steep slope towards the top of the hill. After all, we were almost half way up!

What to see on Baltinglass Hill

Looking over Baltinglass, County Wicklow

We were on a really steep track like that up to Llandrillo, but made of mud not tarmac. As we finally reached the top, another half hour later – we found the hill fort ringed by a huge wide wall of boulder. After clambering somwewhat precariously inside we found the site littered, almost literally, with the remains of  some burial chambers – mostly damaged and strewn, and cluttered with water and pop bottles. Nice! We dowsed to see if there was anything useful up there – not a single thing. In fact, it was detrimental for us to remain there for any length of time so we were forced to leave rather quickly!

A curious altar within a chambered tomb atop Baltinglass

Solitary standing stone above Baltinglass

A Swift Return to Hell

On the way back down we found an abandoned small tent, like everything else around there it was randomly strewn around and in poor shape. Looked like someone had though that this hill might be good for camping, but had been disabused of that idea so quickly that they had to flee leaving the tent to its own fate! Another strange sign of destruction and a portent of doom that added to our growing unease. We headed down the back of the forest to see if we could connect with the point where we had entered it and see if Kal had dropped his rods right at the beginning;. A fruitless search began which yielded, as expected, nothing. As I sat ont he tal wall listening to Kal getting scratched and lashed a thought came to me – this was the work of a leprechaun. We had crossed into a leprechaun’s territory, and he had stolen Kal’s rods! Our story, as I played it back, was so filled with portent, so akin to the tales I had read in childhood of the activities of the Little People, so much a tale of woe and warning – what else could it be? I told Kal what I thought and he laughed, but not in a dismissive way, in a nervous way!

We moved through a field of bulls which woudl lead us back to the field through which we oculd reach the town again. Iwarned Kal not to stare at them or make a noise, but regardless of that the bulls began to charge us! We high-tailed it over the nearest low-point in the barbed-wire fence at a gap in the hawthorn trees, but were faced with the awful task of having to leap a six-foot a ditch which held three stinking rotting corpses of sheep and a cow – putrid with the sun’s activity, and making our nostrils reek of foul vapours! We almost retched but leapt over (just makign the five foot jump) and hurried down the hill for the corner and the gate to the trackway and freedom. We tried to climb quietly over the gate again past the farmhouse, but now the owner must have returned because three dogs set off barking and we had to run back to the car, sweating and panicky again.

This was the hell of our worst experience of dowsing ever. What lessons could we learn from this? Only one – when the warning signs are presented, and you have the option to heed them, be sensible and heed the advice! If Nature ways “turn back” then bloody well do it or face the awful consequences!!

Gwas.

Many moons ago (pardon the pun) I was posed a riddle by an oak tree. Sounds barmy, but it was in this tree’s presence that I received a vocalisation of a thought-form, and I realised that it was my long-term task to solve this riddle. As time does, it flowed along its course and I made several attempts to find an answer within my existing knowledge. I soon realised that I didn’t have the experience or learning to make this answer known to me.

Tonight I re-visited the riddle almost a year on. The answer was immediately clear. You can find my new interpretation on the Theories and Thoughts page.

Like the new look of the site? This lovely comglomeration of earthy colourings was concocted by my good friend Matt Harrison who works for NetOxide who are hosting our HedgeDruid site. They have a series of WordPress templates that you can buy for only £1! Why not re-vamp your blog for Spring?

Find examples of their work at:  NetOxide WordPress themes

Lovely people – lovely hosts – lovely themes.

Gwas

Following a style guide.

Runcorn Hill, Cheshire. September 14th 2008

To set the scene – it was a lovely crisp yet warm September weekend morning when we drove out to some sites that were fairly local. The weather was getting better all the time, and Kal and I headed for Runcorn Hill. After having to turn back to get a better map (!) we drove purposefully to the Visitor Centre on Runcorn Hill (which was closed of course) where we surveyed the manicured sports courts and lawns.

Wavy-line wooden sculpture

After admiring the wooden sculpture and distinctly pagan imagery decorating the small park, we headed out towards the hilltop. Neither of us having visited the place before it wasn’t long before we resorted to being led by the dowsing rods in search of the top of the hill. Within minutes we had found it exactly. And right in front of us was a tall buzzing electricity pylon!

We both prickled and shuddered with the foul energy this line of pylons were emitting, close as it was to the end of the small humped rise which forms Runcorn Hill’s highest point. Nearby were a couple of young birch trees, one behind us dividing the path to the hilltop, and the other to the right-hand side. We dowsed for ten minutes of so trying to locate energies and found a bewildering confusion of all sorts of lines, but nothing which made sense to us – nothing like we had seen elsewhere. These lines on the hillock seemed to be short, incomplete and weak.

The only clear good line emanated from a power centreA place where a person of a particular alignmentAlignment relates to the concept that humans have their own energy fields that are oriented or formed in a specific way such that the person is either suited better to one energy source of another. Some people have their energy fields empowered by the direct subtle energy force of The Sun, whilst others are empowered by the indirect subtle energy of The Moon. Due to the historical associations and symbolisation of The Sun with masculinity and The Moon with femininity we designate these alignments as either being ‘male’ or ‘female’ alignments accordingly. We interchangeable refer to people as being ‘sun-aligned’ or ‘male-aligned’ and similarly with the female alignment. (see ‘AlignmentAlignment relates to the concept that humans have their own energy fields that are oriented or formed in a specific way such that the person is either suited better to one energy source of another. Some people have their energy fields empowered by the direct subtle energy force of The Sun, whilst others are empowered by the indirect subtle energy of The Moon. Due to the historical associations and symbolisation of The Sun with masculinity and The Moon with femininity we designate these alignments as either being ‘male’ or ‘female’ alignments accordingly. We interchangeable refer to people as being ‘sun-aligned’ or ‘male-aligned’ and similarly with the female alignment.’) feels particularly comfortable and empowered. The place is an energetic centre where a particularly beneficial combination and formation of energies is formed into a pattern that is harmonic with the person for whom it can be called a power centre. on the hillock, down its left edge, round the end nearest the pylons, and came back through the birch tree at the rear of the site. Then it reconnected with the power centreA place where a person of a particular alignmentAlignment relates to the concept that humans have their own energy fields that are oriented or formed in a specific way such that the person is either suited better to one energy source of another. Some people have their energy fields empowered by the direct subtle energy force of The Sun, whilst others are empowered by the indirect subtle energy of The Moon. Due to the historical associations and symbolisation of The Sun with masculinity and The Moon with femininity we designate these alignments as either being ‘male’ or ‘female’ alignments accordingly. We interchangeable refer to people as being ‘sun-aligned’ or ‘male-aligned’ and similarly with the female alignment. (see ‘AlignmentAlignment relates to the concept that humans have their own energy fields that are oriented or formed in a specific way such that the person is either suited better to one energy source of another. Some people have their energy fields empowered by the direct subtle energy force of The Sun, whilst others are empowered by the indirect subtle energy of The Moon. Due to the historical associations and symbolisation of The Sun with masculinity and The Moon with femininity we designate these alignments as either being ‘male’ or ‘female’ alignments accordingly. We interchangeable refer to people as being ‘sun-aligned’ or ‘male-aligned’ and similarly with the female alignment.’) feels particularly comfortable and empowered. The place is an energetic centre where a particularly beneficial combination and formation of energies is formed into a pattern that is harmonic with the person for whom it can be called a power centre. again. This line also had swirls of male energy which branched off this circuit occasionally.

Fouling the fields

We decided that we should test for the qualities of the site as a whole, but our questions were met with responses which made us concerned for the welfare of the energies at the site:

• Firstly we asked whether there was an unhealthy link with the pylons – there was.
• Then we asked whether the link was having an effect further afield – the unhealthy energy was travelling into every home in the area we learned after more specific questioning
• We asked whether we could uncouple the site from the bad effects of the energies – no!
• Kal dowsed to see whether he could help in any way – yes, he could help.
• I dowsed to see whether I could prevent the bad energy coming into the site – not myself, but I could assist Kal’s work.

Those questions formed the basis of our next experiment: could we actually modify the dowsable framework of energies surrounding this site, and would that effect improve the stability of the energies?

We prepared ourselves without words for the task ahead – not any of which did we foresee or work out. For my part I went over to the birch tree and looked underneath its sparse canopy of branches. There I saw three stones, all hand-sized, and one caught my eye in particular so I picked it up. It was a small stone, the size of a palm, of the purest red sandstone rock that is typical of the geology of that area. For some reason, looking back now, I picked the “purest” stone. The others were mottled with lichen, other coloured stone, or some other impurity. I don’t know if that helped what was to follow, but now I think that perhaps that was helpful.

Kal sat down to tune into his Reiki powers, facing the birch tree at the end of the ridge. I did the same. The rods informed us which way we needed to face to get the best effects, of what – we didn’t actually know yet! The only parameters we had agreed upon was to form a kind of shield of energy around the site with the aim of blocking the harmful pylon energies, or at least reducing its impact. The idea of the energies dissipating in a relatively short time frame like 50-100 years made us agitated, and evoked our sense of welfare.

The top of the hill

Now, we have often questioned whether we should try to affect energy fields at sites. We don’t want to blunder into making the situation worse, but at the same time I strongly adhere to the notion that work entered into with the right intentions, and a good attitude, will lead to positive and successful results with little harm to ourselves. Our tools are not naivety, or wishful thinking, but strongly held hope. Turns out this was true on this occasion. Each occasion is a new question, though, and we will always ask before trying anything. That said, here’s what I did.

I sat down and tried to feel the edges of the birch tree’s nemeton – it’s outer edge of aura, or spirit, if you like – by closing off external noise and reaching out until I felt the tree.  I was trying to tune into the tree’s influence, basically. All the time I was sitting, holding my small rock by my root chakra point in cupped and linked hands.  I know of no significance to this, only that this position had felt comfortable for meditation on previous occasions, and holding the rock in that way allowed my intent to ‘fall into’ or ‘flow down to’ the stone. But at that moment nothing like that was happening!

As I sat I could hear a local football match in the distance, I could hear the birds twittering, and the traffic far below…..I actively switched them off. But no immediate connection – something was still distracting me, and I couldn’t work out what it was. At that moment a fly landed on my left temple. Hey! C’mon! That’s not helping, I protested to no-one in particular in my mind. The fly buzzed off and left me. Thank you! I settled back down to work again, trying to clear my thoughts. That fly landed again in exactly the same place – harder if that’s possible! Oi! Mother Nature! What the…..then I burst out laughing. She was sending me a sign, and I completely understood what it was, without the need to vocalise or put the thought into words. She was telling me that there was something I should do before I settle into this work. I took the hint.

I put the small stone on the power centreA place where a person of a particular alignmentAlignment relates to the concept that humans have their own energy fields that are oriented or formed in a specific way such that the person is either suited better to one energy source of another. Some people have their energy fields empowered by the direct subtle energy force of The Sun, whilst others are empowered by the indirect subtle energy of The Moon. Due to the historical associations and symbolisation of The Sun with masculinity and The Moon with femininity we designate these alignments as either being ‘male’ or ‘female’ alignments accordingly. We interchangeable refer to people as being ‘sun-aligned’ or ‘male-aligned’ and similarly with the female alignment. (see ‘AlignmentAlignment relates to the concept that humans have their own energy fields that are oriented or formed in a specific way such that the person is either suited better to one energy source of another. Some people have their energy fields empowered by the direct subtle energy force of The Sun, whilst others are empowered by the indirect subtle energy of The Moon. Due to the historical associations and symbolisation of The Sun with masculinity and The Moon with femininity we designate these alignments as either being ‘male’ or ‘female’ alignments accordingly. We interchangeable refer to people as being ‘sun-aligned’ or ‘male-aligned’ and similarly with the female alignment.’) feels particularly comfortable and empowered. The place is an energetic centre where a particularly beneficial combination and formation of energies is formed into a pattern that is harmonic with the person for whom it can be called a power centre., then got up and felt my way slowly towards the birch tree with the palm of my hands towards the tree, feeling for its nemeton – it’s outer edge. I needed to introduce myself to it, I half-admonished myself, how rude I was being just expecting things to flow without an introduction at the very least! About ten feet from the tree I felt it’s energetic edge – it’s spherical auric extent. It felt like gently pushing a soft pillow, like feeling a slightly warm breath of air pushing back at you, if you cared to notice. I did care, and I was noticing. I introduced myself politely, and asked the tree if it would kindly show me where to connect my energy to on this nemeton’s edge. Slightly further round its front edge I felt a flow, like the gentle breath of a dragonDragons are spirit or energetic beings that reside in sacred sites and have a particular location in them and also move throughout the day (and or season). They also leave the sacred site on occasion, which again differentiates them from Genius Loci which don’t., flowing outwards over the ridge. I felt it with my hands, now that I had a sense of what it felt like, and followed it back to where I had been sitting. So, it was flowing into this spot, it’s just that I hadn’t been tuned into it properly. Now I was, so I sat back down, and picked the small red rock up again.

Birch at the back

Immediately I could feel not only the flow of energy coming into me from the birch tree, but something else coming into my back – it was Kal! I really had opened myself up to the flow now! I allowed the energy to flow round for a short while, then I started to will it to enter into the red rock in my hands. When I felt it was full, and even overflowing – white threads of energy lines spilling out all around me, I wondered what to do to hold it all together. I needed something to stabilise this flow. I started a ‘root and branch’ druid meditation which consisted of imagining the energy sinking into the ground as seeking roots. Once this was established, I thought of silver energy branches flowing upwards above and around me like an umbrella. Together, the roots and branches slowly enclosed me in a sphere of shining silvery threads.

I revelled in this for a moment, then started to focus on the energy in the stone. I imagined a manifestation pattern the likes of which I had seen before – four petals extending in the four cardinal directions, growing with each out-breath until they touched an egg-shaped energy shape that I could see around the whole site. On the in-breath I drew more energy from the tree and the surrounding landscape into this process until I had ‘breathed’ or ‘puffed up’ the petals so that they were touching (supporting?) the energy structure that I felt was Kal’s barrier shell. When I was happy that it had stabilised and was solid, I opened my eyes to return back to consciousness and awakening.

I left the stone in the power centreA place where a person of a particular alignmentAlignment relates to the concept that humans have their own energy fields that are oriented or formed in a specific way such that the person is either suited better to one energy source of another. Some people have their energy fields empowered by the direct subtle energy force of The Sun, whilst others are empowered by the indirect subtle energy of The Moon. Due to the historical associations and symbolisation of The Sun with masculinity and The Moon with femininity we designate these alignments as either being ‘male’ or ‘female’ alignments accordingly. We interchangeable refer to people as being ‘sun-aligned’ or ‘male-aligned’ and similarly with the female alignment. (see ‘AlignmentAlignment relates to the concept that humans have their own energy fields that are oriented or formed in a specific way such that the person is either suited better to one energy source of another. Some people have their energy fields empowered by the direct subtle energy force of The Sun, whilst others are empowered by the indirect subtle energy of The Moon. Due to the historical associations and symbolisation of The Sun with masculinity and The Moon with femininity we designate these alignments as either being ‘male’ or ‘female’ alignments accordingly. We interchangeable refer to people as being ‘sun-aligned’ or ‘male-aligned’ and similarly with the female alignment.’) feels particularly comfortable and empowered. The place is an energetic centre where a particularly beneficial combination and formation of energies is formed into a pattern that is harmonic with the person for whom it can be called a power centre. I had been sitting in, and saw Kal rise up too. I felt the urge to slough off a snake’s skin, almost as if taking off or letting fall a pair of workman’s overalls!! It felt like I had taken off a used skin, but I felt it was necessary, and I knew that the work was done with that gesture – the energies were disconnected. There was no conscious thought in this act either – I just felt I had to do it, so I mentally played it out with belief.

As we finished our ‘cleansing’ routines we barely said a word, but exchanged smiles, glances and nods confirming that we thought we had done something. Now the test! We got the rods out and set off on the hunt for new energy lines, shapes and patterns. I found two things: firstly the manifestation of the petals was gone, but instead there was a circle connecting my energy centre to the one Kal had been sitting in! Secondly, as I dowsed down the hillock I found a new boundary. I dowsed for the width of this energy area – it was at least EIGHT FEET WIDE! Blimey! Much bigger than we could have imagined (or was it!).

I watched Kal dowsing the outer edge of the barrier we had created. It really was there. It really was something new. We had really been involved in creating it! But was it going to have any effect? Kal dowsed for the answer – he found that we had extended the life of the energies by up to a year more. Hardly massive on the scale of 50-100 years, but … well, we were both pleased and amazed. It had worked! And we had had no idea what we were doing, other than a good intention to help preserve the site’s energies.

We packed our stuff away, said our humble thanks for the experience, then practically skipped away back down the hill with delight. I was buzzing with ‘aliveness’ for hours afterwards. Whatever we had done, we had done something special, and we were rewarded for our efforts with the thrill of Nature’s touch.

Gwas

Follow your true path.

I had a strong daydream recently. It was so strong it actually felt like the events in the dream had been a real physical effort. It went like this. I was just thinking to myself as to how a druid could use his or her energy to regenerate a desecrated site, when a picture began to form in my third eye, and I moved into the picture, so that I was witnessing the scene in “full screen”, as it were.

I was standing, with my staff silhouetted on a tree-lined ridge, overlooking a recently disused quarry. No life had yet established itself on the quarry floor, but I saw some large trees stationed on the ridge around the quarry, one part of which I was standing upon.

Next to me was a large oak tree. On the opposite ridge I could see another. Further along, to my left, yet another. I knew somehow that these trees were important, and connected with the quarry, although they felt like their energies were ‘withdrawn’ from the site. I knew I had to try something to get life energised again.

I held my staff in both hands in front of me and imagined a sphere composed of strands of energy lines which I pushed out from me until it glowed ephemerally all above and below me, for a few feet in diameter. Then I spoke a plea to the tree next to me to become an anchor point. When it responded I pushed a bulge out from my sphere until it touched the nearest tree and attached to it.

With much mental effort I then did the same by pushing a bundle of connection threads across the quarry to the tree on the other side, again imploring it to respond and take hold of the line, which it did. Again I did the same with one final line and another tree, until I had a web of connections.

Standing upright, I imagined my energy pulsing through the connecting lines until the trees began to let the energy flow down their roots across the floor of the quarry.

My next step was to call upon the power of the trees to attract and condense rain to water the site. I imagined this happening after a short spell of darkening clouds. On a roll, I called to the winds to blow the rain and the seeds from the trees and flowers nearby over the whole site, and the sun to break through the clouds to begin the fertilisation process.

Then, exhausted with the effort, I loosened my connection until I was free, and bent over in exhaustion, clutching my staff.

It was pure fantasy, but I felt like I had opened a thought pathway which may give me a clue to how I might manifest my energies at any sites I visit next, that seem suitable for this kind of work. Nine Ladies stone circle has a quarry nearby…. hmmm….

Gwas Merddyn

Sundown, Thursday 10th July.

If you’ve been following these posts you’ll know that I have been tracing a straight ley lineThe term used by many British dowsers to describe an energy leyA straight line of neutral energy linking two or more sacred sites or other energetic centres. This is often confused with Alfred Watkins’ concept of the Ley Line. Strictly speaking a ley line does not necessarily mean a neutral energy line, only a sight alignmentAlignment relates to the concept that humans have their own energy fields that are oriented or formed in a specific way such that the person is either suited better to one energy source of another. Some people have their energy fields empowered by the direct subtle energy force of The Sun, whilst others are empowered by the indirect subtle energy of The Moon. Due to the historical associations and symbolisation of The Sun with masculinity and The Moon with femininity we designate these alignments as either being ‘male’ or ‘female’ alignments accordingly. We interchangeable refer to people as being ‘sun-aligned’ or ‘male-aligned’ and similarly with the female alignment. between notable places, whereas an energy ley is like a radial spoke in a wheel, with energy flowing outwards across the land in a straight line. It has sometimes been found that the energy ley can be diverted from its strict straight path by changes in the landscape or strong attractors that pull it away from its original course. Energy leys may have inter-twining streams of male and female energies weaving along them, as though the energy ley is an attractor, a pathway or a conduit for the male and female energies.. It is easily confused with ley and therefore its use is not recommended by dowsers. (one which aligns without deviation through several points of ‘ancient’ or ‘sacred’ significance) that I believe runs from at least Overton Hill in Frodsham to the field which sited the 2007 Welsh Eisteddfod just south-east of Mold in Clwydd.

Actually I suspect it runs much further, and may end at Honley in Yorkshire at its northern-most point, and a mountain overlooking Llyn Bodlyn, which is just inland from Cardigan Bay in west Wales. Hawarden (see earlier post) is also on this line. But more on those and other sites when I get the chance to dowse them.

This particular evening I decided to stay closer to home and look at the intersection points with easily accessible roads from the ley which I think runs stright through Helsby village, across the face of Helsby Hill, and then on to the monument on Overton Hill atop Frodsham in Cheshire.

I printed off a map with some rough estimates of crossing points and headed to dowse them to check whether they were where I thought, and to see whether I could actually sense the presence of the earth energy at those places I had plotted, or close by if my estimates were off.

Of course, I held open the possibility that I may get nothing at all too. Fair’s fair! The dowsing and I have to work together on this one – no tricks! It was a gentlemen’s agreement we had. I would ask sensible questions, where possible – the responses would be accurate and true, where possible. It had worked so far with very few exceptions, all of which could be put down to over-stretching the mark on my part, either with the line of questioning, the intention of those questions, or my stubborness to listen to the answer. All this must be worked out like learning to ride a bicycle again. It is humbling, but exciting. If you follow simple rules of humility, good intent and a willingness to engage – unusual stories are created for you. In many ways you truly become a ‘follower’ – following the paths, the energies, the beautiful landscapes, the occasional sign, leting the rods lead you on to places you wouldn’t normally go….you are a follower. Often it takes a while to catch on. I put that down to the social conditioning, and many people can teach you how to break those barriers down. Choose your teachers carefully and begin your own search for yourself!

Enough pontificating! Push onwards!

“Now is the Winter of our disconten…” – only kidding. Enough speeches.

I started in the village of Hapsford – embarrassingly close to the A56 – I still haven’t learned to relax about dowsing in front of people yet. Another lesson I’m learning as quickly as I can. I dowsed down the road into the village and asked for a powerful straight ley lineThe term used by many British dowsers to describe an energy leyA straight line of neutral energy linking two or more sacred sites or other energetic centres. This is often confused with Alfred Watkins’ concept of the Ley Line. Strictly speaking a ley line does not necessarily mean a neutral energy line, only a sight alignmentAlignment relates to the concept that humans have their own energy fields that are oriented or formed in a specific way such that the person is either suited better to one energy source of another. Some people have their energy fields empowered by the direct subtle energy force of The Sun, whilst others are empowered by the indirect subtle energy of The Moon. Due to the historical associations and symbolisation of The Sun with masculinity and The Moon with femininity we designate these alignments as either being ‘male’ or ‘female’ alignments accordingly. We interchangeable refer to people as being ‘sun-aligned’ or ‘male-aligned’ and similarly with the female alignment. between notable places, whereas an energy ley is like a radial spoke in a wheel, with energy flowing outwards across the land in a straight line. It has sometimes been found that the energy ley can be diverted from its strict straight path by changes in the landscape or strong attractors that pull it away from its original course. Energy leys may have inter-twining streams of male and female energies weaving along them, as though the energy ley is an attractor, a pathway or a conduit for the male and female energies.. It is easily confused with ley and therefore its use is not recommended by dowsers.. Just at the end of the row of houses the rods started to turn inwards. It was a slow process which spanned 12 or so feet in width, the crossing getting strongest at the middle and then ebbing away to an uncrossed position next to a Public Footpath sign. Next!

A quick hop to park at the bottom of Lower Robin Hood Lane (Robin Hood? You mean The Green Man?). At the corner of the park it crossed again. Then at a junction at the foot of the hill. Then again on Old Chester Road, just past the intersection. Regular. Strong. Repeatable. Straight. Dead straight.

I was drawn into the trees on the far side of Old Chester Road and found a path weaving in a long pulse left and right along the bottom of Helsby Hill. I asked to be shown the nearest power centreA place where a person of a particular alignmentAlignment relates to the concept that humans have their own energy fields that are oriented or formed in a specific way such that the person is either suited better to one energy source of another. Some people have their energy fields empowered by the direct subtle energy force of The Sun, whilst others are empowered by the indirect subtle energy of The Moon. Due to the historical associations and symbolisation of The Sun with masculinity and The Moon with femininity we designate these alignments as either being ‘male’ or ‘female’ alignments accordingly. We interchangeable refer to people as being ‘sun-aligned’ or ‘male-aligned’ and similarly with the female alignment. (see ‘AlignmentAlignment relates to the concept that humans have their own energy fields that are oriented or formed in a specific way such that the person is either suited better to one energy source of another. Some people have their energy fields empowered by the direct subtle energy force of The Sun, whilst others are empowered by the indirect subtle energy of The Moon. Due to the historical associations and symbolisation of The Sun with masculinity and The Moon with femininity we designate these alignments as either being ‘male’ or ‘female’ alignments accordingly. We interchangeable refer to people as being ‘sun-aligned’ or ‘male-aligned’ and similarly with the female alignment.’) feels particularly comfortable and empowered. The place is an energetic centre where a particularly beneficial combination and formation of energies is formed into a pattern that is harmonic with the person for whom it can be called a power centre. – a place where either lines cross, or energies begin to create a swirly, a vortex if you will, of concentric energy lines. Often we have seen these formations in the centre of stone circles, ancient or modern, and often being ‘fed’ or ‘transmitted’ by a large tree.

I soon came across a widening in the path – a bulge in roughly circular formation, and as I approached the centre of it, as the rods directed me to, they started twirling around in my hands – the indicator movement for finding what you asked for. In this case – a conjunction point. I looked around. To my right a path down the hill joined just on the edge of the power centreA place where a person of a particular alignmentAlignment relates to the concept that humans have their own energy fields that are oriented or formed in a specific way such that the person is either suited better to one energy source of another. Some people have their energy fields empowered by the direct subtle energy force of The Sun, whilst others are empowered by the indirect subtle energy of The Moon. Due to the historical associations and symbolisation of The Sun with masculinity and The Moon with femininity we designate these alignments as either being ‘male’ or ‘female’ alignments accordingly. We interchangeable refer to people as being ‘sun-aligned’ or ‘male-aligned’ and similarly with the female alignment. (see ‘AlignmentAlignment relates to the concept that humans have their own energy fields that are oriented or formed in a specific way such that the person is either suited better to one energy source of another. Some people have their energy fields empowered by the direct subtle energy force of The Sun, whilst others are empowered by the indirect subtle energy of The Moon. Due to the historical associations and symbolisation of The Sun with masculinity and The Moon with femininity we designate these alignments as either being ‘male’ or ‘female’ alignments accordingly. We interchangeable refer to people as being ‘sun-aligned’ or ‘male-aligned’ and similarly with the female alignment.’) feels particularly comfortable and empowered. The place is an energetic centre where a particularly beneficial combination and formation of energies is formed into a pattern that is harmonic with the person for whom it can be called a power centre. (which was slightly on an incline, just where it’s lush grass and ferns wouldn’t be disturbed by walkers on the path.

I pushed on. What else was there to find, I wondered to myself? I asked the rods to trace the path onwards, and I absent-mindedly followed the rods again (or one rod in this instance – a favourite method of mine). In the centre of the crossing of the lines was a stunted, spiral-branched half-alive birch tree. I rested my hand on it, and thought to myself – after what happened at Birchen Edge, I wonder if it would happen again? Was I about to get a rude awakening? Or an earthly delight?

I lowered my eyelids until I could only see flickers of light through the branches in the lowering sunlight of early evening. I relaxed and thought, “What are you got to tell me about today?”. Another thought followed as if in answer, “Follow the bird and see!”.

Not this “follow the bird” thing again! That’s what had happened at Birchen Edge. There it had led me to see a ring of trees on a distant hillside, which I interpreted as a Druid’s Grove. What now? The answer came immediately as I looked up – a bird flew from the road, through the tree, across the path not six feet in front of me!

I lowered the rods for a moment, and walked apace further along the path. Around the next corner I felt attuned to the direction of the energy I had been dowsing, enough to trust it was flowing beneath (and around) me. I looked up and saw the bird sitting on a horizontal birch tree branch, as if waiiting for me. By now, I was ready to notice a signal, and as I approached the tree the bird took flight again off up the hill.

I rested my hand on the trunk of the birch tree. Again, the light from the westward setting sun through the trees dappled the light so that it sparkled in my eyes. I relaxed.
“What is the nature of male and female energies?”, I asked.

An image formed in my mind of a ray of sunshine beaming in a straight line, and this was accompanied by the words, “Male energies are like the rays of the sun – they wish to be straight, force through, push on.” The image changed to in fade out the sun, and the round pale image of a moon over water began to come to the foreground.
“Female energies are like the tides of the moon – they swirl and weave, ebb and flow around.”
I saw a picture of the serpentine energies flowing around obstacles, oscillating along paths, and concluding their journey as swirls.
I tried to burn that image into my memory to think about later, and then asked another question. “How can I distinguish between the two energies?”
The answer came back as a thought, “You are in a good place here to find out.” came the response. I shook myself out of my reverie with the intention of trying it out straight away!

From the vision I saw that the two energies must be linked to the influences of the planetary bodies to which they were linked – male energies may be influenced by the position and strength of the Sun in terms of their oscillation rates, their strength and possibly their direction of flow? Female energies may be linked in a similar way to the Moon’s qualities?

I took my rods back to the energy centre back along the path. I asked to find ‘sun/male’ energy, and within a foot I had crossed rods, so I followed their direction. They oscillated gently between the outer edges of the path.

I went back to the centre again. I asked to find ‘moon/female’ energies this time, and within two steps I had a cross. This time the energy zig-zagged with higher, shorter waves around the line of the path, but then curved sharply left to swirl into the centre of a clump of ferns and some lush-looking grass. Wow! Different types of lines – different behaviour.

As a third experiment I asked to trace the route of the straight ley that ‘guided’ those sun and moon energies, and this time to rods went in a straight line from the energy centre, along the path, and into a large pine tree that stood at a kink in the trail. The path re-joined behind the tree.

Three types of energies. Each with its own characteristics. I felt I had been answered. I thanked the forces which had guided me, and I headed back to the car, pondering the nature of energy lines.

Seems you can have fun on your very own doorstep!
Gwas Myrddyn.

Follow your true path.