As we tried to navigate our way through the back roads of Anglesey we realised that the signs on the island were only there for the amusement of the locals. No sane person could navigate their way to their destination using them! Luckily, Mike and I have been developing our intuitive senses for quite some time now and disregarding our reason and the direction of the signs we “somehow” managed to arrive at exactly the correct place to park for the Presaddfed Chamber. A surly weather-torn local walking a dog gave us a deep stare of distrust as we emerged from the car. By now the wind was picking up even more than previously, and the good weather was quickly being obscured by scudding and darkening clouds.

Perhaps it was the change in weather that led us to immediately proclaim that there was a problem the moment we got out of the car. We both stood there looking at each other, trying to assess the feeling. Mike said, “This place doesn’t feel very nice.” A masterful understatement. My intestines were curling up on themselves in a knot of disgust as though trying to hide themselves from the waves of bad energy that were sweeping across us as quickly as the wind itself. “No, there’s something not right.” I retorted in a typical English humour.

Presaddfed Chamber [LL65 3UE]

Mike and I walked towards the brown tourist sign that pointed through a pair of stone pillars denoting the entranceway to Presaddfed Hall. The former Gate House bore a sign saying that we were entering the grounds of the Anglesey Shooting Club. The sign seemed to compound as well as explain the feelings we were having. We nodded in agreement to each other. Let’s see whether our suspicions would turn out to be correct.

As the tree-lined track opened out to reveal both sides we first saw the firing range and then the chamber on the opposite side. The firing range was directly opposite the chamber, and we had no need for dowsing rods to feel the malevolent, no, the “unwholesome” energy that was flowing from the shooting area across the road and towards the ancient sacred site. We walked into the field containing the chamber some hundred yards away from us. There was a ready-made trail towards the site, but we both immediately felt that we should not walk that path. Instead, I got the dowsing rods out and found us an alternative path to take that would preserve out energies from the contamination of the black streamA flow of subtle energy emerging from a source. The source is usually imbued with some negative qualities, for example, it may be a source of geopathic stress where geology is under pressure, or toxic gases are emitted. Alternatively, the source may be imbued with negative emotions such as anger, fear or hatred left there by the intent of a human being. The result is a toxic dispersal of flows of “black” energy. These flows can cause disruption to everything in their path, such as accident blackspots if they cross roads, or polluted streams if they contact water. flooding across the field from the firing range.

"Please do not walk straight up to Presaddfed Chamber"

After forming a wide sweeping arc away from the straight path my new path locked into an animal track and soon it was swaying side to side with the usual signature of a healthy energy flow. Following this trail we approached the Presaddfed Chamber cautiously to inspect the two remaining structures of this ancient sacred place. The chamber is actually two chambers. One of the structures is a wonderfully preserved (or should I say ‘reconstructed’) example of a dolmen. It is practically large enough to stand up in (for a giant such as myself) and there is a good six-feet square of space inside the chamber. From the footprints I would say that cows love it too.

Our first discussion was about what effect the Shooting Club was having on the energy field of the chambers. Although we didn’t feel that the chambers were too badly affected, we did feel that there was a drip-feed effect of negative energies coming from across the way from the shooting range. We could feel that this energy would in time overwhelm the natural balance of the site, although we were unaware of what work other people may have done at this place in the past to protect the site. I dowsed that it would be impossible for us to prevent the negative energy from flowing towards the chamber because any work we would do would be gradually undone. Still, with my dowsing rods, I confirmed that it was appropriate for us to do some work to protect the site from this unhelpful energetic influencing force, if only for as long as we possibly could. Mike’s psychic impressions were the same – it would be OK for us to work here and to try to do good.

The two chambers at Presaddfed

Protecting the chamber

As Mike prepared himself for his part in the process, I set about dowsing where to put my protection crystal set around the site. Crystals were placed at specific point in and around the site with the slanting rock of the fallen chamber being the most energetic place where my focal crystal went. Both Mike and I climbed this rock to stand on top of it at some point during our preparations. We worked apart, and without paying any attention to what the other was doing, often hidden from each other by the size of the massive chamber stones. Mike didn’t realise that the slanting rock was where I had placed my focal point crystal, and when I asked him why he had chosen to stand on that spot he answered that it was because it was the most energetic place and that he felt best there. I invited him to look down and see that my crystal was hidden in one of the rock’s many folder layers, and we laughed. This kind of synchronicity often happened when we worked together.

With the crystals in place and both feeling as though we were cleansed and charged with energy we briefly formulated a strategy. We would put a shell of energy up around the chambers, imagining a force field in our respective protective colours (Mike’s was white, whereas mine was pale blue). In my mind , as we worked, I saw an intricate weave of glistening strands of energy come together in a protective blanket of energy that eventually covered the chambers like some kind of glass dome, so seamless and reflective was the field.

Satisfied with our work, and having dowsed that the work would stand the test of time, at least for the next six months, we left by the same route that we had entered. Even though we were blocking and re-directing the terminus point of the negative energy from the shooting range, there was still a slow flow trickling constantly along the entrance path that most visitors would take to the site. This was not something that we could alter ourselves – this might take many more people involved to permanently fix such a strong and embedded energy flow. If only the range would close! We both felt that it was the energies and intentions of the visitors to the shooting range that was causing the continuous flow of negative energy.

The remaining intact chamber at Presaddfed

Barclodiad Y Gawres [map]

After we had felt so good about the work we had done at Presaddfed it was with high spirits that we made our way along the sandy coastal path at Trecastell Bay in a very fierce and powerful wind that had developed since we left the chamber. Here at the seaside the surfers were struggling to make any headway in their pointless quest to reach the furthest peaks of the crashing waves that punished the dark rocks that lined the bay. Speaking was nigh impossible above the din and we were glad to reach the dome on the headland and find that the chamber’s entrance offered welcome respite from the wind. I couldn’t hear myself think. I couldn’t hear the voices that were telling me about the site I was about to visit. I pushed against the wind with fierce determination. I WOULD visit this new site!

We already knew that we couldn’t get into the Barclodiad chamber because, having stopped at the Wayside Stores at Llanfaelog to pick up some lunch, we knew that the chamber was only open for tourists at weekends and Bank Holidays. That was fine by us because on arrival we very quickly knew that there was nothing here for us to explore. The site was completely energetically dead! Whatever reconstruction had been done here – the concrete roof, possibly some removed or moved stones, or the iron gates – something had sapped the site of any vitality, and the subtle energyA form of energy that has so far eluded scientific definition. It is neither electric, magenetic, nor electro-magnetic, so far as our current technical equipment can measure. It does, however, exhibit many of the characteristics of magnetism and electricity in terms of its effects and properties. It may be a form of either or both of those energies that we have not yet identified. had long since been dissipated. Perhaps this was what had attracted the rampant vandalism that had been the excuse to close the chamber off completely from the public except under weekend supervision?

Information about Barclodiad Y Gawres

We read the information signs and then dowsed to see whether anything, anything at all, retained some energy. One stone. One stone in the entrance hall still had traces of subtle energyA form of energy that has so far eluded scientific definition. It is neither electric, magenetic, nor electro-magnetic, so far as our current technical equipment can measure. It does, however, exhibit many of the characteristics of magnetism and electricity in terms of its effects and properties. It may be a form of either or both of those energies that we have not yet identified.. We were thankful for something to investigate, and I traced the energy from the base of the stone to a female spiral near to the end of the corridor.

I did my usual check of the information presented to us by the local experts. Was this construction originally built as a burial chamber? NO, said the rods. Emphatically. Yet again, the opinion of the source of information that I am in connection with when I dowse it at odds with the archaeologists and social historians. What can I do about that? It keeps happening!

The entrance passage to the Barclodiad chamber

We had lunch watching the waves smashing onto the western shores of Anglesey, and then we left somewhat disappointed. This had promised to be a large reconstructed site that should have been an exciting weave of subtle energies that would reveal something about the way these sites had been used by our ancient ancestors. Instead it was a garish testimony to the disconnection that modern re-constructionists have concerning their relationship with these sacred sites. However, I knew a remedy for this – a visit to the last site of the day, Bryn Celli Ddu. Now, THERE was a sympathetically preserved site if ever there was one. I knew that Bryn Celli Ddu was still very active energetically, and I was eager to get Mike’s impressions of the place. As it turned out, I was right to think it would not disappoint us. But that’s for the final part of the story.

Gwas

We parked at the entrance to the field with the sign pointing towards the Tinkinswood Chamber [map]. We had only gone slightly out of our way – entering the edge of Cardiff itself – before we realised our mistake and doubled back. Once we had our bearings finding the chamber was relatively easy, with some helpful brown tourist signs along the way near to the village of St Nicholas. Tinkinswood chamber itself was also easy to get to with a short walk down into a shallow valley and back up into the next field. As you rise up into the field the chamber hoves into view like some neolithic battleship.

The site is beautiful, surrounded by trees (although they had been severely cut back when were visited, which made us wince a little). The only other blight is the nearby electricity pylons, but they don’t seem to be affecting the power and quality of the energies at this site. Possibly they are just far enough away not to affect it. There really does not seem to be any geographical reason why the pylons were brought anywhere near to the site, but that’s the way it is.

Side view of Tinkinswood chamber

The sun was beginning to near the horizon as we arrived, and the early evening light lent the scene a mystical quality that backlit the chamber in a fascinating way, and made the sun twinkle through the trees around the site. As we approached the chamber neither Kal nor I felt any need to go into the chamber itself even though it was incredibly open and inviting. For some reason we both completely avoided going into it throughout the whole visit. Possibly we do not need the initiatory energies that lie inside it?

The Entrance Revealed

I felt the need to find the entrance to the site. I could see the entrance that an initiate would taker to enter the chamber – that was obvious – it was the slit on the right-hand side of the front of the chamber. That wasn’t the entrance I was looking for. I was looking for something else, but I didn’t yet know what. All I knew was that there was another entrance and I had to find it.

I began to dowse from the obvious initiate’s entrance and asked the rods to find me another entrance to the site. They took me around the edge of the chambered cairn to the western edge, and half way along that edge the rods turned in to point to a place where the stones that formed the outer wall were angled. This was clearly a portal or inlet of some variety, even though it had subsequently been filled in with blocks of stone to hide it.

The Masters and the Pit

The information sign at the entrance to the chamber site says that archaeologists have discovered at pit in the chambers’ mound to which they cannot assign any purpose. As I entered through the new-found entrance I found myself inside this pit. The pit is L-shaped, like a square with one corner cut out. The pit is only shallow, and the suggestion is that there was much material above the current level. Having been led to the pit I thought it would be rude of my not to bother trying to find out what this place was used for, even if that was going to be difficult.

I have had some experience of the way that initiation chambers work. When Kal and I went to Newgrange in the Boyne Valley in Ireland we spent quite a lot of the time at the back of the site in a small tower. This proved to be one of the most interesting aspects of the Newgrange site, because there we learned that the initiate – the person who was going to be invested into the shamanic understanding, introduced or induced into the world of magickal thinking – was prepared for this in the outer tower before being allowed into the initiation chamber itself. The procedure was slightly different here at Tinkinswood, but the common factor was that there were several other people involved in this ritual in addition to The Initiate.

What I dowsed was that there were four people who were involved in addition to The Initiate. The student sat in the chamber, at the back of it, in 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.. There were four other people sitting in the L-shaped pit room. Actually, it turned out that only three of them actually sat IN the room, and one other sat elsewhere, but I’ll come to that in a minute.

The Elemental Masters' room at Tinkinswood chamber

There were four “Masters” as I will call them, who would help The Initiate. These Masters were each aligned to, or drew their energy from, one specific element. In other words there was an Air Master, a Fire Master, a Water Master and an Earth Master. Three of the four sat in the pit room. I dowsed that the Water was in the West, Earth to the South, Fire in the East and Air was in the entrance portal in the North. My definition of where these elements are aligned is based upon dowsing for them as they pertain to me as a druid, and so I believed these to be particular to me.

As I stood back to assess this I realised that these associations between elements and cardinal positions was exactly the same as my own particular associations! This made me think that perhaps I was making this up, and that I had simply pulled this association from my subconscious instead of objectively dowsing it. I made a note to ask Kal to check it for me soon. Normally the association is Earth=North, Fire=South, Air=East, Water=West (see the Gardnerian definition here).

I asked Kal to confirm my findings. I told him only that there were four positions to find, and that they were aligned to elements, but that was as much information as I divulged. I even turned away so that my observing him would not influence any of the dowsing that he did. Within two minutes Kal had found every single position I had, and named the same elements in those positions. Yet he was to go one step further. Not only did he identify that the Masters sat in the three corners, but he also got all of the positions correct in terms of the respective elements. As a final confirmation for me he also identified that the Air Master had gone out through the door. He didn’t stop his dowsing there, however, and continued outside and then up onto the mound to what we dowsed later would have been the highest point on the structure. This was the position of the Air Master – outside, in the winds, close to the air!

Initiate's entrance at Tinkinswood chamber

The Air Master served a dual role in this complex play. He was seemingly an energy generator, as the others were, but he was also the Door Keeper, and from his lofty position he could ensure that none of the other Masters were disturbed during their invocations. That’s all very well, I hear you say, but what exactly were these Four Elemental Masters doing? That is the question to which we turned our attention next.

Vortices and Initiates

I began to ask the rods about the energies that these Masters were generating. I took my cue once more from the information we had learned at Newgrange, where we had discovered that six Masters (three men and three women) all fed energies into The Initiate. Was something similar going on here, I wondered? I asked the rods whether there was any energy being generated by these Masters? YES. Then take me to the place where the energy was being generated, I asked. The rods stayed inside the pit and swirled around indicating a spiral of male energy that went into the ground in the centre of the pit room. Perhaps the room may once have had a corbelled roof to facilitate the formation and shape of this energy vortex - we can’t be sure.

I then traced that the energy that was being directed into the ground in the Pit Room was travelling to the larger Initiate Chamber. It arose exactly at the point where we had identified that The Initiate would sit during their meditation. It was all fitting together nicely. When the energy arose for The Initiate it was coming back up as a female spiral around him or her.

Well, that was so beyond anything that an archeologist would be prepared to entertain that there isn’t much point in mentioning it to any of them. It goes to add to our understanding of how these chambers were used. It seems as though the exact circumstances of the ceremonies may have been particular to the geography and structure of the site itself, and perhaps also to the people involved at any particular time. Yet there are a great deal of common elements to these rituals that we have identified:-

1. There is a single Initiate, or a person who is going to undergo a spiritual transformation of some kind
2. The Initiate sits in the sensory-deprived chamber after entering it using the official entrance, which is then sealed
3. The Initiate sits on 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. that has been created within the site, or over which the site has been built
4. The Elemental Masters sit away from The Initiate, in a separate space, and there they generate energy from their respective elements
5. Elemental energy is then fed to The Initiate during the transformation process, possibly to protect or project The Initiate further – we don’t really know
6. Once the transformation process has concluded The Initiate emerges through a V-shaped hole in the opposite end of the chamber to the entrance, and is symbolically “re-born”

The Purple Glow

One final note of interest from this lovely site that I enjoyed hugely. The day before I visited this site my wife had said to me that she could see my aura, and that it was currently a radiant lilac or purple colour. She is not prone to saying these things, by the way, it was an unusual outburst that made me really take notice. I thought nothing more of it, except that it was interesting that it was purple or lilac, and I wondered whether that meant I was particularly spiritual at that time. The next day we visited these South Wales sites, and before we left Tinkinswood I was quite insistent that Kal take my photograph. I don’t normally bother with pictures of myself, but I made him take about ten this day! He complained that he couldn’t really see the outcome of the pictures because the sun was at a funny angle. Keep taking them please, I insisted, not knowing why.

The purple energy was all around Gwas this day

When I got home I downloaded the pictures, expecting them to be all useless because of what Kal had said. Instead, they seem to have produced a strange purple/lilac glow around me! How odd. And they say that such things are artefacts of the photography process and the camera. Hmmm, yes, of course they are.

Gwas.

So we pointed a random finger at the map and with only a name to follow and the promise that something worthwhile may be there we headed towards Parkmill village just beyond Swansea in West Glamorgan. I had already travelled for three hours to get to Chepstow, but such is our zeal for our quests that I was prepared to venture another hour or so into the furthest corners of west Wales just on the off-chance that this place might be good. Luckily, it was better than good!

We arrived at Parkmill and took what we presumed was the right track past the Heritage Centre and ended up at a small car park. We checked the maps but couldn’t decide which way we ought to be going so I went over to check a nearby information board supplied by Cadw. It showed the area of Parc le Breos (Park Le Bruce, or Park Wood) to be full of interesting sites – a reconstructed long cairn, a cave and possibly a well. Frankly, I didn’t read past the long cairn – already I wanted to see it. We made our way up the well-made path, eager to see what this reconstruction had to offer.

Information about the Park Wood site

The long cairn (or more properly I should say it is an Initiation Chamber) had been excellently rebuilt. It looked beautiful, and gave us a very good idea of how the front may have looked in its original form. These builders clearly knew how to make a great structure. I took some pictures then put the camera away. It was time to have a look around inside. I approached the entrance and introduced myself to the place. When I walked forward I asked if I may enter and waited for a response. I got one – a horrible push in my stomach that felt like a nasty prod in the guts. Hmmm…rejection. It would seem that I wasn’t in the right state to enter at this time – maybe not at all?

I got my dowsing rods out and asked if there was something I could do in order to prepare myself for entry into the chamber. The rods directed me away from the building and towards the nearby line of trees. As I broke through the tree line into the woods the rods swung around to point at the moss-lined back of a large oak tree. “Sit here!” they seemed to be saying. So I sat down and lit some incense sticks, hoping they would assist me with the cleansing process. I felt I ought to rid myself of my “worldly” energies – the energetic clutter and state of mind that comes from driving in the modern world. I wasn’t in a megalithic state of mind yet!

Minutes later the oak had helped me to divest myself of all my detritus, and I felt cleaner and really “tuned in” to the place. I thanked the tree and went back to check whether or not I would be able to get back into the chamber to do some work.

The psychonaut has achieved re-entry!

As I stood at the entrance with my staff in my hand I felt completely different this time. I was more relaxed, and my request was more respectful (less demanding) that my previous request. The tone must have been correct for this time when I asked to enter I got a slight tug at my navel chakra. So, I entered. I stood for a moment wondering which chamber to enter, but the decision wasn’t too hard. My intuition was pulling me into the first chamber on the left.

I stood inside the chamber, feeling for its character. How did the chamber feel? It felt like it was warm. I felt warm too. In my mind I saw fire. This was a Fire chamber. I moved on to the chamber opposite. Same procedure – how did it feel? I smelt earth. I felt the ground beneath my feet and could feel the earth strongly. This was an Earth chamber. I walked along the central passage and stood in the middle wondering which chamber was next. Left again. As I walked into the chamber I could feel the freshness, the breeze, and the clarity of the space. This was an Air chamber. I crossed the puddle in the central passage and walked into the final chamber. It felt cool and clammy. I smelt water condensed in the air, and I knew this was a Water chamber.

Reconstructed initiation chamber at Park Wood

Kal was nearby so I asked him to see how he felt. He went into the first one and said, “Air!” I said, “Really? What do the dowsing rods say?” He checked using his rods. “Oh, it seems to be fire.”, he corrected himself. I smiled. “What about the rest?” Kal went through each dowsing for their element and returned exactly the same answers as I had intuited. What could I say? My intuitive senses are getting better.

After Kal had confirmed them all I wondered what this meant. Why was I being shown the four elements in relation to an initiation chamber? I knew that the initiation process was not anything I needed to go through, so why was I being shown this particular configuration, and why hadn’t I discovered the same thing at other chambers such as West Kennett? I sat on the small ridge at the end of the central passage, which just seemed like a perfect seat. Then I realised it was a seat!

I went into meditative mode. The world began to fade away and I sent out connective threads to try to communicate with the Spirit of Place that the dowsing rods had indicated existied at this site. Soon I felt a tug of attention and knew that I was not alone in my thoughts. Time to ask some questions. Oh, Spirit of this place, I would like to know about my healing quest, and also about creating wards and glyphs…. “ONE THING OR THE OTHER!” came the indignant response. Oh well, I suppose I had asked for that one – being greedy for knowledge? I chose the healing quest. Please tell me how this elemental set of chambers relates to my healing quest, I asked.

The answer was startling and immediately obvious in its simplicity. I had been struggling with whether to concentrate on human healing or earth healing. My incination was for earth healing. Now the Spirit of Place showed me that each of the four elementals could be used as powers to call upon to make the earth healing happen. I was shown in an instant that each site would need a particular blend of elements to re-balance it, to cure it. To effect earth energy healing I would simply need to call upon each of the elemental spirits that I already had affinity with, and to ask for their assistance in creating the right balance of elemental forces to heal the site. Simple. Obvious. Yet startling. I jumped up in a “Eureka!” moment and opened my eyes and mouth in astonishment. “How wonderful!” I said out loud.

Gwas.

My current concept of Arthur

This Arthur fellow – he got about a bit, eh? These days I prefer the interpretation I read recently that “Arthur” is a title adopted or given to many kings, several of whom may have contributed to the myth and legend, the story and history surrounding the King Arthur that we have been remnanted. I like Paul Broadhurst’s idea that the Arthur figure was associated with the fixed constellation of the Great Bear, the guardian of the Pole Star. In my own additional interpretation, Arthur is aligned with and gets energy from the Great Bear’s stars. In particular I think this is the asterism of The Plough, or The Big Dipper as it is also known.

Plan of the sites surrounding Dorstone

My wife, M, entered the site straight away and went to sit on a small man-sized mound next to the monument. There she settled in for what she expected would be a long dowse. I wasn’t about to go against expectations. I got my dowsing rods out and began to explore, but first I had to find an entrance suitable for me and my energy at that time. I entered the site after asking silently for permission from the spirit of the site. I would be allowed in today – no pushing away or dive-bombing birds, or claps of thunder or anything like that.

As I entered the gate in the fence surrounding the monument I saw two other couples reading the information board provided by English Heritage. I turned my attention away from them, not wanting to overhear anything they might say about the site. I would stay out of earshot until they got bored and wandered away, as most people do at these places after ten minutes. I began by asking to be shown a ritual path that I could follow that would lead me to 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. that was most suitable for me. I was taken from where I stood in a path that snaked in front of the “false entrance” stone, and then wound its way into the monument from the right-hand side of the covering front stone (seen slanting in the picture below). My path ended in the shadows at the back of the chamber on the left-hand side. I repeated the exercise from three other locations chosen at random and soon I was walking the same snaking path to the front of the dolmen, and then into the right-hand side of the chamber and to the back left corner again and again. By the fourth time I was realising this was a pretty certain dowsing result.

Looking into the initiation chamber

Having found my meditation spot what better thing to do than go for a bit of meditation? I had some questions about healing energies and about Arthur that I thought might be best answered at this place. Within minutes I was whisked away into a deep trance and was lost to my surroundings. As I had tuned into the energies arising from the earth and bouncing around within the dolmen’s chamber I was swept along like a feather on a breeze, drifting down into a deep dark and warm world of a dream-like space. I relaxed and asked my questions:-

• How should I call my healing ally? – Picture her and she will come.
• How can I generate healing energy? – By knowing its source and timing.
• Did anyone called King Arthur ever visit this stone? – Several. Several King Arthurs? That prompted me to think about the name and the title of Arthur.
• Was this chamber used for initiation, healing, education, honouring the gods, of something else? Initiation, honouring.

The sounds of summer’s lively parade began to invade this dream space and I knew I was coming out of the trance whether I had finished or not. Teaching time was over! I had no idea how long I had “been away”, but it felt like seconds. From the look on M’s face it must have been several minutes or more. So, back to the dowsing for a few more answers to the mysteries of this site.

Arthur's Stone is popular, accessible and impossibly balanced

I began to look at the skeletal remains of the dolmen from the perimeter of the site. There was a raised ridge alongside the dolmen on one side, a vague reminder that earth may have been banked up over the top of the structure at one time. I decided to dowse the extent of the original mound, but first I was curious to know whether any ley lines or energy leys were passing through this site. I asked whether any lines existed within 50 feet of this site and get a positive response for one line, so I asked to be taken to the nearest point on that line.

I walked out of the gate in the fence and over to the road that passed close by to the monument. The rods crossed at the road. The road? The road was 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 certainly was! I didn’t want to go too far along the road tracing it, but as I passed the two couples at the information board (still there, nattering and making social connections) I could see they were intrigued by the dowsing. They wanted to draw my attention to the information board – there was something on there I should see, but I refused to look yet. What was it, I asked? “It shows the perimeter of the original site.” one man responded, “Is that what you’re looking for?” No, I said, but I can do! I set off with a new directive – please show me the outline of the original structure constructed here!

I began near the gate, on the opposite side to the couples so that I could get going without being stared at. The rods began to cross the road, follow the ditch next to it, and then almost go into the fields beyond. Then they turned back over the road and came around near to the fence. Just past the information board (which I couldn’t see because the people were in front of it) the rods pulled me back inside the fence. As I walked close to the “false entrance” the rods dipped inwards, making a U-bend, and then back out to follow the perimeter of the remains of the earthen mound before joining back up where I had started. Well, at least I was consistent in that, I thought.

The couples mouths were agape and their eyes were wide. “What?” I asked. “Come and look at this board!” they said. I wandered over and looked at it. It had an aerial plan of the site and marked on the plan was a white line showing where the archaeologists thought the original perimeter was. One of the men said, “I was watching where you walked. It was almost exactly the same as this plan!” I wasn’t surprised. I said, “And where it differed I suspect the rods were correct and the plan is wrong.” Somewhat of a bold statement, but based on many years of similar experiences. Sadly, not really able to confirm any of it!

I inspected the board and followed in my head the route I had just taken. He was right. I had been moving into the field on the other side of the road exactly where the board said the boundary went (the dotted lines). I had come back into the fence slightly further down than the diagram indicated (a matter of ten feet or so), the U-shape at the entrance was the same, and then the line following the earthwork was also exactly the same. Very minor differences indeed. Otherwise – exactly the same!

How the archaeologists see the site

How Arthur’s Stone chamber could have been used

On the official plan board is an entrance marked as a “false entrance”. It proved to be anything but false for me! It was my entrance via a winding energetic ritual path that led me to a place within the structure that was the most energetic and aligned point where I should do some meditation. This is an entrance for the Masters – the druids who would prepare themselves and the site for the initiate. My dowsing reveals to me that they would raise their energy levels and commune with the spirit of the place, informing them and entreating them to co-operate with the process of initiation that may follow if an initiate was ready and the time of year was right.

What time of year is this site most active? It rises in strength from Spring Equinox, through Beltane until its peak at Summer Solstice. The energy quickly ebbs away thereafter and by Lammas the energy is greatly diminished. By Samhain the site goes dormant energetically.

There is a stone-lined path at the ‘rear’ of the site. This path is for initiates who are being initiated into the world of subtle energyA form of energy that has so far eluded scientific definition. It is neither electric, magenetic, nor electro-magnetic, so far as our current technical equipment can measure. It does, however, exhibit many of the characteristics of magnetism and electricity in terms of its effects and properties. It may be a form of either or both of those energies that we have not yet identified. and natural magickThis is a system of belief that is often defined as being the appropriation and re-use of naturally occurring forces for the purposes of healing, transformation, communication, or a host of other subtle effects. The natural elements of the magick can also be seen by the under-pinning concept that the use of these forces should be co-operative rather than coercive., or to meet with ancestral or Otherworld spirits. The living and non-corporeal guardians of the site have worked together to create this route, its chambers and their effects for the purpose of raising the consciousness or fertility of the person who is invited to sit within it. Of course now it is all exposed and cannot perform the same function, but when it was covered in alternating layers of organic and inorganic materials, then it would have been a powerful block to the electro-magnetic fields causing a quite elucidating effect upon the brain. In addition, the crystalline rocks that lined the chamber would enhance the subtle energies, in combination with the natural earth energies of the site, the 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. running through the structure, and the geometry of the chamber itself.

Arthur's Stone - An entrance for initiates

Sight lines over stones

Having replayed in my mind the purpose of the site I felt there was one last aspect that needed to be examined – the sight lines between this site and the surrounding hills and valleys. From the information board I could see that there were other megalithic sites nearby, and that this valley and ridge were an important place at one time. I began to move around the site looking for tell-tale notches in the remaining stones at the edge of the structure.

As I stood behind the entrance stone I saw that its notched top looked like the notch formed between two hills in the distance which were completely in 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. with the site’s orientation. I checked the capstone and found that this too was in 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. with a distant hill. Later research on the Megalithic Portal revealed that others thought so too. Here’s what one person said:

“I found that the forecourt of the dolmen was orientated towards this prominent peak to the south. Apparently it is Skirrid Fawr – ‘the sacred mountain’.” – Angie Lake on the Megalithic Portal.

Notches and valleys line up

I hope my brief visit and dowsing efforts that day serve to add a little bit more food for thought as we try to recover the lost knowledge of the ways and means of our exceptional ancestors whose legacy we are free to explore thanks to their forward-thinking and ingenious engineering skills, most of which we have yet to re-discover the purpose and meaning behind it.

Gwas.

The series of large megalithic structures concentrated in the Boyne Valley was the target of our first full day in Ireland. We were stationed nearby at Duleek, so getting to the Newgrange complex was a breeze, and we were properly fuelled by a hearty breakfast including locally-reared produce and home-made soda bread and jams.

We followed signs for Newgrange, knowing that this was the popular site and that it probably would lead us to the rest too. Sure enough as we aprked in the jazzy new car park at the Visitor Centre and walked down to the main door, we knew we were in for the full tourist treatment. Even knowing that didn’t prepare us for the officialdom that was to follow:-

• visitors are directed to state which combination of the sites they want to visit: Newgrange only, Knowth only, or both. Clearly, most went for both or just Newgrange
• a sticker was placed upon you in a visible location indicating your bus time, and then you were directed to the cash point to pay 5 Euros per site (actually, 6 for Knowth becuase it’s a tad further)
• you paid and then were informed about how to reach your first bus, which was a 200 yard walk through the centre, out the doors, across the Boyne, along a winding path, and then up to the circular bus pick-up point.

To say these guys had this regulated was an understatement! Although initially appalled by this we were actually quite grateful that this system, which only permitted a group of around thirty people at a time in a site, actually allowed everyone to enjoy the site’s features without bumping into people all the time. It made sense, even if it was far from what we were used to. It reminded us of visiting Stonehenge.

Rock Art as Energy Symbols

One of my objectives for visiting these popular megalithic sites was to get a comparison of the famous rock art shapes with those that we had discovered through our dowsing adventures over the last few years. Did any of them match? Would we be able to make a sensible guess at the forms and shapes, the symbols and swirls that our neolithich ancestors had taken so much time and trouble to inscribe into rock?

As we waited for our bus I took pictures of the rock art displyed in photographs and pictographs in the free exhibition in the Visitor Centre. On arriving at Knowth half an hour later (after listening to a few minutes of the guide’s useful commentary then making our excuses) I went around with my camera taking snapshots of all of the rock art on the base supports of the large mound. I wanted to compare our energy findings with the shapes represented in the stone. Here are some examples of the interesting symbols. In a subsequent post more of these symbols are explained, but for now, here are the ones we could identify immediately:-

Spiral of seven rings between two standing stones acting as portals

If one looks at the image above as a two-dimensional depiction of a three-dimensional energy field then things become a little easier to understand. The spiral is, of course, what we would call 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.” – a point on the earth where the energies of the earth emerge and merge with the radiant solar and lunar energies. The most ‘sacred’ of these types is 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. that merges the three ‘alignments’ or types of energy – male, female and neutral.

The two arcs on either side of the spiral are the neutral entrance and exit arcs that we have begun to discover at numerous sacred places, usually stone circles. These arcs form ‘spaces’ in the energy field through which poeple and spirit energies can pass without ‘interfering with’ or being affected by the overall energy field, because to pass through the energy field around a site is to interact with it. These neutral entrances and exits seems to be a bypass to that trip-wire effect, possibly to allow for the ‘safe passage’ of spirit energy through the site, unhindered by the site’s design and potential.

Seven levels of radial energy

It is entirely possible to read too much into the decorative swirls and shapes that adorn the rocks surrounding Knowth’s major mound, and yet one gets the sense that they are not purely decorative. After all – someone has gone to a lot of time and trouble to do this work, and even today we rarely decorate in stone just for the sake of it. Stonework usually has some kind of symbolic significance at least, even if only to express a wider design concept in keeping with our culture. So, it is with some hesitance that I point out the desing of seven concentric circles in the stone above, and mention that this might have a link to the seven chakras. Then, in the stone below, we see five circles. Five pathways for the incoming energies into the human body, according to C.W.Leadbeater in his book “The Chakras”. Again, perhaps the information is for me only to interpret in this way, but 7 and 5 are cropping up again at a site that is associated with human consciousness transformation processes.

I could go on to talk about many many of the symbols that we saw displayed in the exhibition in the Visitor Centre, all taken from parts of the Knowth site. Kal and I went through them all and had reasonable and rational correspondences with shapes we had dowsed, or energy formations that we had traced, for almost every shape on display. Some did seem purely decorative, but I wouldn’t say that we had a full vocabulary of all possible dowsable patterns yet either. On epattern in partucular, the zig-zag pattern, would reveal itself to us soon enough, as it happened.

An Insight Into the Transformation Process

Clearly the central mound at Knowth – the huge mound constructed of interlaced layers of rock and earth materials – was the major feature of the site. That much was obvious. However, it was not central to our investigations on either this first visit or `the next. Not to say that it wasn’t worthy of investigation, but we had so much more to look at first. There were smaller and more available mounds of different types, there were the remains of different shaped buildings, there were grave-like mounds, pits, grassy enclosures, a timber circle and much more! We can come back to the main mound at the end.

We began by looking at the smaller mounds – the satellite mounds that were seemingly randomly scattered around the main mound’s periphery. In fact they were not randomly sited – they were placed upon particular places where the earth energy was coming out of the ground most strongly. That was what determined their siting. Then their entrances were positioned so as to avoid the ingress of the sun where possible. That was the case for those mounds that were used as sensory-deprivation chambers, and whose energies were suitable for transformation of the human chakras, or whatever the neolithic people would have called these personal energy centres – these joining points with the Other dimensions, these energy centres involved in the raising of human awareness and consciosness, of opening the mind up to other dimensions.

One of the first things we found here was that no ley lines come into or cross Knowth. In fact, that was repeated at all of the Boyne Valley sites too. Why? Good question. We worked it out eventually. It was because the sites around the Knowth mound were used as transformation chambers, an initiation process into the higher spiritual consciousness brought about by sensory deprivation and communingAn interaction with an invisible and natural sentient force that is independently identifiable, even if it cannot be named or classified. The interaction takes place at the level of a subtle amalgamation of the mind of the perceiver such that a dialogue or transference of feelings may occur between the two sentient parties. The interaction that is ‘communing’ is purposefully initiated by the perceiver for the express purpose of learning or simply to transfer feelings in a sympathetic manner. with the spirits of ancestors whose ashes and bones may have been deposited in the mounds specifically for that purpose. The energy of ley lines somehow disturbs the Knowth setup – either because the neutral energy travelling in straight lines disrupts the energy work being done there, or because it would allow the energies to travel in a way that was not desirable, that did not assist the transformation process.

Although we didn’t actually dowse the big mound (I have no idea why – I think it was because we were time-pressured each visit with about 40 minutes to follow whatever train of thought we could) we did find out something about its relationship with the surrounding mounds. The big mound was constructed of interlaced layers of earth and rock materials (very much like Wilhelm Reich’s Orgone Accumulator concept). The mound, we decided, was used by the higher-ranking spiritual leaders, or those shamans who had been through all of the other initiations that the Boyne Valley sites offered. We will come to discuss the purpose of the other sites as we get to them.

We were intrigued by the idea that ley lines had been prevented from coming into the sites. How had this been done? The way the megalith builders guarded against the intrusion of ley lines was firstly to site the buildings in the crook of a fast-flowing river, but additionally they also treated the river with the placement of energised stones in order to form a magical barrier against the 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. energy.  We found later that houses close to the sites have very tall aerials to pick up TV reception! All mobile phones are practically useless in the area too (but that’s probably because they can’t site masts in the UNESCO world heritage area).

Each smaller mound has an area outside of it, often close to the entrance, that is 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. for naturally-occurring subtle earth energy. The mix of this energy is male + female + neutral = the ideal combination, and hence we dubbed these areas White Power Centres due to the pleasant and empowering nature of that combination.

The Transformation Process

Intrigued by our initial findings we wanted more detail on exactly what these “initiates” had to go through. Did they just sit in the dark until they couldn’t stand it any more? How did it work? The process that the initiate went through was to be placed into the small mound for three days when the moon was full (one day either side the full moon). After three days he would emerge cleansed and stand on the white 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. and would have his energy field transformed within four minutes. The initiate may have fasted during that period to enhance the experience.

Our final finding related to this process was that the smaller mounds could be used whenever the moon was full, but the main mound was primarily used at the Equinoxes, presumably by some of the more enlightened drudes. Possibly it was for all of them enlightened ones at that specific date – a communal transformation, perhaps?

Finally, can we tie the patterns on the stones to the ritual process? Unfortunately we couldn’t find any specific link. We had discovered that the energy formations depicted on the stones showed energy forms that we were familiar with, and that the initiates who had been taken through the rituals at these sites had used the smaller mounds regularly and may have sought to attain entry into the main mound once they had succeeded.

Gwas.

2. Bryngwyn Stones: SH462669 – off the A4080 towards Newborough (South West Anglesey) 

We had a vague idea about the whereabouts of the remaining two massive stones that had once formed part of two small circles, and it was much easier to find the location this second time. We parked in a small lay-by next to the A4080 just past the village of Brynsencien and made our way over a stile through the heavily muddied fields towards the imposing sight of the two tall stones in the stark sunlight. 

What's left of the Bryngwyn circles

 In contrast to the smooth clean paths to Bryn Celli Ddu the Bryngwyn stones were surrounded in deep mud, and I was glad of my walking boots. If you plant o visit these stones – be warned – choose a dry summer’s day, and watch for the heavily pitted approach to them, as cows have turned the fields into battlefields. 

The Bryngwyn Stones fascinated us on our last visit because they dowsed as being two small circles, despite the imposing size of the stones themselves. The remaining stones mark the boundary between two fields, but also between the two circles – each original circles must have been in either field. Oddly, we decided to dowse for the position of a King Stone, which I got to be some thirty feet away from the remaining stone in what can only be described as a faery ring – that unique circle of differently-coloured grass in a ring that marks this feature. Kal confirmed the position for me, and we judged that the King Stone was probably quite close to the outer edge of the original stone circle, almost providing the view in the photograph above.

Excellent hide-and-seek material

Kal began to become interested in bathing in the sunlight that was being captured by the smaller female stone (the one with the flat top). I, on the other hand, had positioned myself resting in the completely diametrically opposite position of lying against the flat and upright male stone in the shadeA shade is the energy body of a human being that has become transfixed at a geographical location. The shade retains many of the qualities of the human that it was attached to (memories, character traits, a level of sentience, movement between places known in life).. Not a position I would have chosen, ordinarily, but one which the dowsing rods had led me to take up. Again, this was not something that we noticed initially, but realised when we came to talk to each other – “Oh – look where we’re positioned – opposite each other and standing against the stones that are opposite to our usual polarities!”.  Yes, these are the kind of conversations we have.

I meditated in the shadeA shade is the energy body of a human being that has become transfixed at a geographical location. The shade retains many of the qualities of the human that it was attached to (memories, character traits, a level of sentience, movement between places known in life). of the tall male stone and I felt the energy that I have gathered at Bryn Celli Ddu begin to, well, I can only describe it as…consolidate, or agglomerate. It was like it was re-arranging itself and compacting at the same time, sort of…sorting itself out, if you like. Later, Kal described much the same process, and we again were astonished at the similarity of the experience. We had both experienced it differently, but the effect was the same. We both used different terms to describe it, but the process we were describing was unmistakably similar.

Rear view of the Bryngwyn stones showing the thin male stone

 As I “came to” from my meditation I began to focus on a point in the distance. I had my back to the flat male stone was the angle made my eyes unvaryingly come to rest upon a small mound that stood out in the middle distance that seemed to have a megalith or a structure on top of it. I couldn’t make it out properly at the time, but when I got home I found that this line led to a Dolmen called Bodowyr.

One day I will walk to it and investigate it, because at the time I felt it was a significant 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., if only for me. Apparently it stands on a rise that has a view down to the Menai Straits, exactly where the Bryngwyn Stones are situated.

3. Soar Stone, SH319864 – Llanfaethlu village on the A5025 (North West Anglesey) 

The tall Soar Stone is situated next to a church building just off the A5025 Valley to Cemaes road at Llanfaethlu village. It is in a field right next to the road. The stone is about 10 feet tall, flat and encircled by male earth energy. This stone is not connected to other sites, but is self-contained, which is rather unusual, so we have found. We took some photographs, did enough dowsing to realise that there was only a ring of male energy around the stone and that’s it, and then Kal wanted to go. I didn’t, however.

The Soar Stone next to a church

I stood on the sunny side of this male stone. Kal did not need to do any energy work at this site, so stood idly by complaining about the bitter cold and how I should hurry up. I relaxed and began a quick meditation, ignoring his complaints. The only purpose I could determine for this stone was to further charge up my heavily-depleted male energies. I came to realise that I had been working almost exclusively with female energy over the last year, and that over that period I had created a huge imbalance. The Soar Stone, catching the Winter Solstice sunlight square on and being enclosed by a male earth energy field, was helping to bolster my male energy and bring my into a state of equilibrium. After five minutes I felt very balanced (purely subjective, of course) and we were able to take our leave. Simple – effective. 

The 'powering up point' of the Soar Stone

Now that I had achieved and energetic balance Kal was eager to get to the final site that we needed to visit on our little tour of Anglesey – Lligwy Chamber. He felt that something exciting was going to happen there on this special day, and his infectious enthusiasm meant that we headed there without distraction or delay. You can read all about that, including a new energy map of the site, in the next post. 

Gwas Myrddyn.

1. Bryn Celli Ddu (South Anglesey) 

We started at our favourite Anglesey starting point – the neolithic mound of Bryn Cell Ddu. It has all the right ingredients – it’s away from traffic but easy to get to; it’s close to the Menai Bridge; it’s beautiful; it’s aligned to the Winter Solstice. Perhaps that last point was the most important!

We missed the sunrise moment, but arrived at about 11am, in time for the midday sun. The previous day’s weather had been appalling making us wonder whether we’d be out here at all, but today the sun was out and the sky was blue, despite being very cold. Not impossible weather to dowse in if kitted out with gloves, hats and sturdy boots (well, I was anyway).

Almost the first moment we began to dowse we noticed something rather unusual – our usual alignments (myself = female, Kal = male) had been inverted! When I asked to be taken to a compatible 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 arrived at a male 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. atop a recumbent stone at the edge of the mound. Later, when I caught up with Kal this was the very first thing he said to me: he’d been drawn to female centres and lines. We had confirmed each other’s findings, even if we didn’t understand why this was so. 

Winter Solstice sun path

We set about dowsing. I had vague memories of when we had last mapped the site’s energies and was keen to see whether that had changed at all, given that this was the Winter Solstice. Oh my word, had it changed! The energy flows were significantly different from when I had dowsed here last. Either that, or we are finding more and more layers to the existing energy structures. However, when I had finished dowsing I asked if there were any more energy formations and the rods indicated that there were not, so I suspect the flows have modified, rather than us finding more and more new formations. This, of course, makes the idea of mapping the energies a moving target, as they would have to be mapped over the course of a year the get a full picture of how they change. 

Energy flows

The mound was enclosed in the loving ‘hands’ of female energy, which stayed clearly outside of the ‘moat’ feature that surrounds the mound. A ‘tunnel’ of female energy was diverted into the mound’s interior along the ‘Entrance’ path and flows into the gap in the rear of the chamber. As I had found previously the female energy then hugs the walls of the passageway, and flows up and over the mouth of the passage as it emerges at the Northern end. It seems as though this ‘entrance’ is the entrance for energy, whilst the passageway is the human entrance to the structure. 

Midwinter Solstice energy fields

Inside the chamber I found that the male energy was the same as the last time – it emerged from the petrified tree trunk (as proposed by Rupert Soskin, see this YouTube link for details, from the video ‘Standing With Stones‘), and from the recumbent stone outlying the mound, but within the moat area. 

Sun in the passage at Bryn Celli Ddu

The male energy was confined to the stones within inner circle of the mound area. The male recumbent transformer stone gathered the sun’s energy and fed it to the standing stone at the back of the mound in a circular link. The standing tree stone inside the mound chamber gathered energy from somewhere inside the mound (possibly male earth energy beneath the stone) and fed it out of the back of the chamber, around the mound, and pulled it back inside to the tree stone again. No other male energy formations could be found this day. 

The carved energy patterns

These energy formations were nothing like our previous experience of the mound in the summer months when energy had been evenly distributed between male and female. This shows us that our energy maps are going to change depending upon the time of year that we map them, making the maps even more dynamic than we anticipated! 

Thinking and stinking

To conclude we both did a little meditation and lighting of incense. This also involved us walking around the tree stone inside the chamber. It was an attempt to connect to the specific energies of the Winter Solstice and to try to gather them up, and indeed that was what happened. Both Kal and I felt as though we had managed to infuse ourselves with the Solstice energy and that it was being stored within us, ready for our next site visit, where we hoped to understand what might happen next. We were still at the stage of “letting things occur”, but adding in a little direction ourselves by stating our purpose for using the energies.

In the next post I tell of how we ventured further along the southern edge of Anglesey to the Bryngwyn Stones, and then up to the Soar Stone in the North West, and how the energies of those places interacted with the energy we had gathered from Bryn Celli Ddu. In the final post of this series we do some valuable energy work at Lligwy Chamber, and I map the energies again.

“The site is very different to its original structure; many tons of stone were taken from the cairn by the builders of the nearby turnpike road in 1764. Other stones were used to build the adjacent house and farm, and more were recycled into an ornamental garden in Tunstall Park.
However, before this large scale ransacking occurred, it appears that the Bridestones was an incredible monument, perhaps unique in England. Evidence from a variety of sources indicates that it was a chambered tomb of massive proportions with a paved crescent forecourt and a port-holed stone dividing the main chamber. The complex was supposedly 110 metres in length with the horned cairn being 11 metres wide. A report from the 18th Century notes that in addition to the main chamber which still stands today, a further two subsidiary ones were located at a distance of 55 yards. No traces of these have ever been found, but there is much debate as to whether they are located east of the surviving chamber, or west. The latter seems more likely as they were probably covered by the same cairn as the main chamber.” (source: UPIA web site)

My task on this visit was not to investigate the former scale of the site, but to map the remaining energies in detail. I set about the task with some vigour as there was a cool wind and the sky was thickly clouded – not a day to be hanging around sun-bathing!

Luckily for my work the site was empty and there was little passing traffic from Dial Lane – the road passing the site across the adjacent field. The field contained a small group of young bullocks, though, and brought to mind several dowsing visits where cows had curtailed such dowsing endeavours. This spurred me into action all the quicker!

Yet I couldn’t start dowsing just yet. I had to have a good look around and get “into attunement” with the site, which is simply a question of being there, without thought, tuning into one’s senses and taking in everything at once without analysis. Moments later I felt myself blend into the site much better, and then I was ready to start dowsing its energies.

I started at the entrance and worked inwards to the chamber. Once I found a connection to the chamber I stayed in there for a while finding its power centres, denoted by terminating spirals. The 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. of the power centres seemed beautifully balanced – a male here, then a female, then a male and female centre combined. It felt lovely to be dowsing here – some sites feel ‘difficult’ or complex, but this site was beautiful in its simplicity and balance.

Inside the chamber

I stepped into the chamber by the right-hand edge’s gap and felt a compulsion to light a stick of incense in there. These days I go with such feelings, so I lit one and it scented the air nicely as I dowsed the rest of the chamber. Were the remains of the dividing wall between the two parts of the chamber the place where there was a hole that could fit a man, allowing access between the two when there had been a roof? It was hard to tell. The dowsing rods indicated that possibility, but were not conclusive about it.

Re-emerging from the chamber an intriguing lone pointed (male) stone caught my attention and I found that it had a connection to an energy that formed a ritual path into the nearby chamber. I was finding this feature almost every time I dowse a site now, and am beginning to think that Stone Dowser may have been on to something with his ‘ritual paths’. It does indeed seem like there was a specific way to enter some sites, irrespective of simply finding entrances.

The bullocks begin to take an interest and come over to see what’s happening. We have a short one-way conversation where I quiz them about why they might be interested in my dowsing. When questioned they move away as though they had never been interested after all.

I followed the spirals I had found to their termination points. Where did they go? Were they self-contained or did they link to other sites, I wondered? The female-to-female spirals I knew were self-contained, as was the male energy around the outlying male stone. It was the male/female 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. that needed to be explained. I followed the female energy to a large spiral a few feet outside the entrance to the chamber. The male energy flowed through a gap at the back of the chamber to sinew its way out of the back of the site but I couldn’t follow it far through the thick rhododendrons, brambles and assorted other obstacles that sealed off the rear of the site.

Some sort of rambler’s club began to make their presence known by gabbling loudly as they walked up the lane to the site. I decided this would be a good time to retire to consider what I wanted to do next, and leave the site to them for a few minutes. In my experience visitors to ancient sites are usually frequent, but fleeting. And so it proved. Minutes later your anti-social Hedge Druid had devised a set of questions to ask at the site and was back on the job without distractions – even the curious bulls had retreated faced with the retirement party.

I made a more respectful entrance, introducing myself to the guardian of the site, stating my name and purpose, and asking for permission to enter. A curious ritual, but one which I have learned from reading about and trying to understand the mind of The Druids. It was at this stage that things began to take a mystical turn!

I’ve posted recently on the strange phenomenon of the sun making an appearance when Kal and I meditate at sacred sites. Standing 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. in front of the tall stones outside the chamber I felt a gradual warmth penetrate my eyelids. I opened my eyes to see the whole site, and only the site, bathed in the spotlight of sunbeams the were radiating through a gap in the thick cloud cover that had been the constant feature of the day’s weather. This was highly improbable, but certainly very welcome!

Power centre lit up by sun

I smiled. I felt integrated with the site’s energies, and in response the sun was smiling down on me. Of course, it’s pure coincidence, but when it happens like this you feel something special is happening. I felt this was a good time to get the rest of my questions answered.

Here are the questions I asked the dowsing rods to help me answer about this site:-

1. Is this site still capable of performing its original function? YES.
2. Is the site still energetically active? NOT RIGHT NOW. (3:50pm on 3rd October 2009)
3. Can the site be activated? YES. AT SAMHAIN.
4. Can the site be used for education, revelation, healing, transformation, communication or something else? EDUCATION by nature spirits, REVELATION, HEALING, and TRANSFORMATION.
5. Does the site need restoring, healing or balancing? NO to all.
6. Is there a genius lociGenius Loci means 'spirit of the place' and refers to the geological/gaian spirit of place. It is transfixed to a place – being an embodiment of the collective intelligence of the place. present at this site? YES. FEMALE.
7. Does this site respond to human interaction, the position of the sun, moon or stars? YES to all. Specifically the FULL moon, and the sun at NOON. Stars, less so.
8. Is the site an observatory, a calendar, an initiation chamber or a burial place? OBSERVATORY, CALENDAR, INITIATION CHAMBER.
9. Is there underground water at this site? YES.

With that information in mind I went back to do some quick dowsing for where water might be present at the site to see if it had any obvious significance in terms of where it might flow. As you can see from my sketch below there were two main flows of underground water crossing the site, and indeed they did tally with significant places for energy – namely the female spiral links just behind the entrance to the chamber, and the other, wider stream being marked by an outlying stone.

As I drove away from the site back towards Congleton I saw the group of bullocks react. They saw me driving away and began to gallop as a tight group stalking the car from across the field. I watched in a kind of amused shock. What were they doing? Then they turned like a flock of starlings straight towards me as they approached the end wall of the field. Now they were galloping towards me with a speed I could never have supposed a bovine to be capable of! I waved to them and wished them a cheery good day as my car dipped down the hill and beyond the confines of the field. Very strange behaviour!

From the information gleaned from this site I can see that there might be more to be learned, but that the next interaction would need to be a much more spiritual affair, guided by the information that I have obtained from dowsing. I think this clearly demonstrates the way in which dowsing can be used as a powerful investigative tool that can lead one quickly to understand qualities of a site, and the times when these qualities can best be utilised for the purposes that the site was designed for. We shall see!

Gwas.

There’s something mystical about Wiltshire. This county has more than its fair share of ancient sacred sites and now crop circle formations too. Wiltshire boasts Avebury, Stonehenge, Old Sarum, West Kennet Long Barrow, The Ridgeway ancient track, the list goes on and on. ‘Plan A’ was to find any remaining crop circles to dowse them – ‘Plan B’ was to ‘follow my nose’ and see what happened.

Yes, We Have No Crop Circles

If you intend to visit and stay in Wiltshire you could do far worse than to stay at The Seven Stars pub. It is close to Marlborough and the Ridgeway, and more importantly for cereologists, it is close to Alton Barnes and The Barge Inn – now landmarks of renown on the crop circle tours. The landlord and landlady were incredibly helpful and the food at this pub was outstanding. Highly recommended if you plan to stay in this area. If you want to see any crop circles, however, I’d recommend going in July.

The names of the places are all vaguely familiar if you’ve been reading books and web sites about crop circles for long enough: Alton Barnes, Ogbourne St.George, Banbury Castle, Silbury Hill. These are quaint names that evoke thoughts of ancient Britain, stone monuments, wheat fields, chalk figures and old churches. They are also places of renowned earth energy – possibly not a coincidence to the crop circle phenomenon.

There’s one thing that’s modern about Wiltshire though: the farming methods are bang up to date. On the day I arrived, a new moon, there seemed to be a note in every farmer’s diary – “Thursday 20^th: Harvest stupid crop circle fields today.” Sadly, by the time I had travelled down from Cheshire and then had dilly-dallied with a handful of the wealth of sacred sites that are sprinkled liberally around this part of Britain, all of the crop circles that remained only day earlier had been harvested. In fact, the last one was being bailed as I drove out to find it. Ah well, maybe a slight change of plan was required for the next day. Nevertheless I had spent an intriguing day travelling along the white 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.’s trail. What 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.’s trail? I’m so glad you asked! ‘Plan B’ was in action.

The Setting

The Ridgeway is a line of chalk stone that forms a ridge running from Overton Hill near Avebury in Wiltshire to Ivinghoe Beacon hill, near Tring in Berkshire. It’s around 87 miles in length and predominantly runs along a chalkstone ridge. It is an ancient trackway, possibly a ceremonial or processional path too. This links in with the recent idea that Stonehenge was once used for large-scale celebrations at specific solstice times of the year. The area may have harboured tribes who worshipped horse gods – the so-called Epona Cult – and consequently there are several white chalk horses carved into the hillsides of the valleys of the North and South Downs. The most famous of these horses – The Uffington White Horse – is something different, however, and I will come to that in the next post where some evidence suggests an alternative perspective.

An Old Straight Track

I parked at the Uffington White Horse car park, and headed for a site that I had longed to visit: the intriguingly named “Wayland’s Smithy“.

The character of Wayland The Smith has a long pedigree. I first came across him in Susan Cooper’s trilogy of books called “The Dark Is Rising” in which she interwove a modern setting with traditional Celtic characters and motifs. John “Wayland” Smith makes an appearance to forge magical symbols from elements to create a crossed circle which was then fitted to a belt of power. The elemental magic item was then used to repel the rising forces of The Dark, symbolised as the forces of Winter.

The essence of the Western Mystery Tradition was embedded in these excellent stories, and the maturation, the transformation and rebirth of a young adult named Will Stanton, a solar hero. His achieving union with the forces of The Light and Summer was the grand finale of this epic struggle. Another elderly character, Merriman Lyon, is a thinly-veiled personification of Merlin meanwhile.

The Ridgeway was evocative of The Old Straight Track of 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. history, or the track spoken of in the rhymes in her books that I used to memorise:

When the Dark comes rising, six shall turn it back;
Three from the circle, three from the track;
Wood, bronze, iron; water, fire, stone;
Five will return, and one go alone.

As I walked the chalk track up to Wayland’s Smithy, such thoughts came back to me like a much-loved song.

For more about Wayland, here’s an article from a Berkshire history web site. For me, Wayland symbolised a place or person who could help you to forge a symbol or sign of value that could be used to advance one’s learning and progress in the ways of the western mystery tradition.

Lucky for me then, that without any forethought that’s exactly what happened. Symbols must have been on my mind.

Lair of the White 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.: Wayland’s Smithy

The site is almost hidden by trees, and is only noticeable because of a small signpost pointing the way to the copse of beech trees huddled amidst farmed fields. I dowsed straight away for an entrance point to the site. As no-one was around at the time I respectfully waited at the two tall beeches that guarded the entrance way and felt a gentle tug at my sacral chakra point, which indicated assent, so I entered.

I then asked to find “my place” or 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. where I could take stock of the site from. I was taken to a place on top of the barrow where I de-camped my gear. Next, I wanted to determine what type of energies were present around the site. No matter where I went I read for male, female and neutral energies all around. The whole site seemed to be a complete white streamA flow of positive energised and healing subtle energy. The white streams usually emanate from a source of good energy such as a holy well, a sacred site, a power centre or a place of worship of good intent. We have found that white stream energy consists primarily of male and female energy combined in a balanced and harmonious blend, such that the two streams “play” with each other, warping and wefting in a dance that invigorates and enlivens everything that comes into contact with it. If a human stands in such a stream then they will feel positive, happy and energised, warm even. energy field encircled and enclosed by a ring of old beech trees.

At the back of the barrow, off to one side in a small circular clearing where someone had had a fire I found a strong terminus point for a white streamA flow of positive energised and healing subtle energy. The white streams usually emanate from a source of good energy such as a holy well, a sacred site, a power centre or a place of worship of good intent. We have found that white stream energy consists primarily of male and female energy combined in a balanced and harmonious blend, such that the two streams “play” with each other, warping and wefting in a dance that invigorates and enlivens everything that comes into contact with it. If a human stands in such a stream then they will feel positive, happy and energised, warm even.. At this spot there was a bare patch of earth. I decide this would be the place to ask for a manifestation of the site’s own symbol, as I had done at other sacred sites before. The shape that had been manifested I took as a sigil of the site – it’s symbolic expression of energy – it’s signature, if you like.

A sigil generator based on Rosicrucian ideas

I don’t know how the Rosicrucians derived their  ideas of how to discover such symbols, but my own sigil was discovered through deep meditation. Finding the sigil for the spirit guardian of Wayland’s Smithy was done by asking and then dowsing the shape. Perhaps it was my polite manner, or good fortune, but one appeared for me at the termination point of the spiralling white streamA flow of positive energised and healing subtle energy. The white streams usually emanate from a source of good energy such as a holy well, a sacred site, a power centre or a place of worship of good intent. We have found that white stream energy consists primarily of male and female energy combined in a balanced and harmonious blend, such that the two streams “play” with each other, warping and wefting in a dance that invigorates and enlivens everything that comes into contact with it. If a human stands in such a stream then they will feel positive, happy and energised, warm even. energy that flowed across the site. Here is the symbol I dowsed – Wayland’s Sign:

Wayland's Sigil

As I wandered back to my power place I contemplated the mood of this site. It seemed like a great place to prepare yourself, perhaps for a spiritual journey – very calming, peaceful, and reassuring. The dappled light from the tall beech trees made it feel calming and I found myself smiling a great deal while I was there.

I went back to the entrance to the site, between the two tall beech trees in front of the main large stones, where there is a small bare patch of earth. I drew site ‘key’ sigil in the earth with my staff and felt a much stronger pull from the guardian trees. I walked back up to my 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. and ate my lunch whilst various visitors briefly inspected the site, then left contented that they had ticked their itinerary box.

As I sat on my 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. located on one of the three capstones to the chamber’s entrance, seated in a small depression in the rock, it occurred to me to draw my sigil in chalk on my 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.. As I did this my attention was drawn to the cup marks in the stones on either side of the chamber. I wondered if they were anything like the marks in the stone at Nine Stones Close in Derbyshire. I wondered if they would activate the site in some way. I dowsed the marks and found that I got agreement with this idea, but today was not the day to work with this site, I felt. I wasn’t ready to do that yet.

Instead I just meditated in the cooling afternoon breeze, lulled by the sound of the tree’s branches brushing each other gently. As I went into a trance I heard a phrase repeated over and over. “Go for a ride” it said. Go for a ride? On what, I wondered? On the nearby white horse of Uffington perhaps? I sprang up, mobilised. Of course it was. I packed and left to head back to where I had parked – I could pick up the path to the chalk horse from near the car park.

En route I picked up a small crab apple lying in the path heading for the chalk horse – it seemed like an apple might do very well for a horse! I made my way towards Uffington Castle to reach the great carving. Little did I know that a revelation was awaiting me.

Gwas Myrddyn

On the trail of the White 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.…