The Hedge Druid

Posts Tagged ‘henge’

Kal has already posted on this visit so I’m not going to repeat any of what he has said, but I am going to add my own particular report  of what I did and what I found out at Mitchell’s Fold stone circle because it leads me into the New Year nicely.

I sub-titled this post “Location, location, location” for a couple of reasons. Later in the post I will talk about the effects of nearby megaliths on local residents, but I also wanted to draw attention to the delightful location of many of the remaining megalithic structures of this country. Whether in the depths of Winter or the height of Summer being at these sites stimulates the soul in a deep fashion. Mitchell’s Fold stone circle in particular is blessed with a stunning location fenced by the imposing Corndon Hill, yet having distant views to Wales. I recommend going out of your way to visit it if you can.

Of course, if you DO visit in Winter then be prepared for an interesting journey. I navigated the car along the smallest of roads and the most treacherous compacted snow and was thankful that I now drove an all-wheel drive car. There is no way the little blue Peugeot would have made this trip! No way at all. Thus we have managed to extend the site visits to almost all year round now, which I am thankfully well equipped for after my Canadian expedition.

Gwas shields from a biting wind behind the tallest menhir at Mitchells Fold

The smell of birth and death

Wrapped from head to toe in warm and woolly gear I stifled a chuckle at Kal’s brave attempts to stave off the bitter winds that whipped up across the plateau upon which Mitchell’s Fold stone circle is perched. It was indeed a day for being quite specific about your dowsing questions – formulating them in your head then hurriedly removing gloves and doing the necessary connection with the divine knowledge source that is Nature.

The first thing I needed to do, I determined, was to mark the passing of two of my closest neighbours – one a human, one a tree. One of our favourite neighbours, old Dolly, had died whilst I was on holiday in Canada. This was not unexpected given how she had been in and out of hospital for weeks with heart problems, yet I felt a tremor of sadness nevertheless. Also while I was away the proposed destruction of the beloved beech tree that stood in our immediate neighbour’s front garden but which we had come to think of as ours too – this also went ahead. In a way I knew it while I was away. It had been on the cards – we knew it was coming. Yet, there was a pang of sadness one late evening that I couldn’t account for. I put it down to being stranded at Calgary airport, but I think it was a strand of nature’s web that was linked to me being stirred by the demise of either or both of my two homely connections. This was indeed a bitter Winter in so many ways.

I might have known I would have trouble lighting the four incense sticks for the tree and another four for Dolly. I huddled with a cheap lighter for ten minutes before they were all lit, and then had to re-visit the double square formation placed on a suitable 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. several times as the wind insisted on making the sticks go out on a regular basis. I only lightly grumbled, supposing that the effort was not wasted if it was going towards this mark of respect and mourning.

As I struggled back and forth breathing in the frankincense aroma I caught the irony of the scent at this time of year, and how it had come to mark the birth of a saviour, just as I was marking two deaths. Birth and death come to close together in the cycle.

A watery sun over Corndon Hill seen from Mitchells Fold

The Yule part of the year

When I asked for advice from my spirit guidance about what I might turn my attentions to for the next part of the year I was told to “Write a book!“. Now I have to call upon some muses to work out what it should be about, or to get the motivation to write it. I have 5 weeks until February 1st! The first draft needs to be complete by then.

I wonder about this “guidance”. When I had been thinking about the lunar eclipse as a form of death of the year/moon I asked for guidance and got the response “Celebrate death“. Recently my father had asked me about how my book was coming along. I told him I’d be writing it this year. Next thing – my ‘guidance’ is saying “Write a book“. Hmmm…I am deeply suspicious that these short phrases are just my subconscious bubbling up a task in answer to my request for one. The Fates say a first draft needs to be ready by February! I’d better get typing….so I’ve made a start but it’s not likely to be done in any way, shape or form by February. Maybe if I get the concept formulated?

Maen Beuno – or is that Mean Beuno?

Saint bleeding Beuno gets everywhere in North Wales! He has a cave up near to Bodfari, an abbey on the Lyn Peninsula, and so many other namesake places and objects that he seems to pop up everywhere we go. So it was no surprise that when we scanned around the area on our way back home from Shropshire, close to the town of Welshpool, we found St.Beuno’s stone marked on the iMegalith app.

We decided to visit this stone because it looked easy to get to, and having seen how impossible it was to reach the yew tree we had planned to visit earlier (due to snow) we thought this was a good decision. Now I find that if we had ventured just a mile further into the town of Berriew we could have visited another Beuno stone AND an old yew tree at the same time. Oh, the irony!

The official line on the stone

It was easy to find (compared to many sites listed on that app) but the henge that it mentioned as being nearby was now merely the slightest of raised bumps in fields covered in snow. No henge now – but there was a stone and it had a snow-covered placard, so we stopped close by and skated over to the stone to check it out,

The stone is predominantly surrounded in male energy with only the slightest female energy. The shape alone indicated that it would be male – it has sharp edges and a square shape that goes into a point at the top. It is linked 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 Kal discovered as being in the centre of the road that the stone stood next to, He also dowsed that it had been moved from its original location, but had been replaced on a place that had some earth energy – so it was a ‘knowledgeable’ move by someone long ago. This kind of thing is rarely considered these days by people who move megaliths around because they are “in the way”.

St Beuno gets everywhere - even down small lanes

The interest thing we discovered was sparked by an observation we made as we drove down the lane. There is a cluster of houses, probably only eight along the lane. At least three of the houses had “For Sale” signs up outside them, and we thought that was a disproportionate ratio. So, we began to ask about whether there was any link between the stone and its human neighbours. After a while we discovered that the energies of the stone were overwhelmingly pagan, and that St.Beuno had been pagan too – later gathered into the sainthood of Christianity for their own purposes of adopting local notable figures as their own. This is our contention, and we explain our reasons below.

St Beuno’s strong energies were in this stone, and they were for some reason incompatible with the people who lived in the houses that were up for sale. Whether they realised it or not, they were being “forced” out of their homes due to this incompatibility between their energy fields and those that this stone was emitting. Of course, this is pure speculation, but that’s the conclusion we arrived at by careful questioning of the dowsing rods over the stone.

I later did a bit of digging on the background of St.Beuno to verify how true this idea might be. Here’s what I found out about him:-

“Beuno was born in Powys, supposedly at Berriew, the grandson of a prince of that realm. After education and ordination in the monastery of Bangor-on-Dee in north-east Wales, he became an active missionary, Cadfan, King of Gwynedd, being his generous benefactor. Cadwallon, Cadfan’s son and successor, deceived Beuno about some land and, when the saint demanded justice, proved unsympathetic. Thereupon, Cadwallon’s cousin Gwyddaint, in reparation, “gave to God and Beuno forever his township” of Clynnog Fawr in the Llŷn peninsula, where the saint founded a famous abbey.

Beuno became the guardian and restorer to life of his niece, the virgin Saint Gwenffrewi (Winefride; in modern English Winifred). He was relentless with hardened sinners, but full of compassion to those in distress. Before his death at Clynnog “on the seventh day of Easter” he had a wondrous vision.” (source Wikipedia)

A vision, eh? Very shamanic. I venture to suggest that his education may have been along the lines of many of the royal household in that area – schooled in the druidic teachings of the Western Mystery Schools. His celebration (or ‘Feast’) day is April 21st. That date in the pagan calendar is Parilia, described by the Pagan Calendar site as

“…a festival for protection and fertility for farms”. (source: Pagan Calendar).

St Beuno is also associated with the fertility and good health of farm animals. Coincidence again. This Beuno bloke begins to have echoes of former pagan celebrations – I wonder if his spirit was co-opted to ingratiate him with the farming community? Beuno is also listed on the Megalithic Portal due to some very old standing stones at his abbey on the Lyn Peninsula. I venture to suggest it was sited on an ancient pagan site. So I think it’s about time we paid his home territory to see what we can find out about Beuno and his possible pagan leanings.

Gwas.

It was the finest day of a long series of fine days that were typifying the last of the lingering end of year sun. We were loathe to call this Autumn when it felt like Summer. The sun was shining, the air was warm, the ground was dry, and there wasn’t a hint of wind. We set sail for Derbyshire in the mid-afternoon, heading for Arbor Low. Surely, if any day, today was the perfect day to avoid getting blown over, dying of hypothermia or being flooded out? Surely, today was the day to have a pleasant experience at Arbor Low?

I had no set agenda when we arrived at the small lay-by near to the farmhouse (that is actually a guesthouse too!). I was here merely to bask in the rays of the evening sun and to marvel at the fact that it was pleasant to be here for once. As often happens when I head out on such journeys to sacred sites my expected peacefulness was shattered by a small amount of dowsing that I did. You know, sometimes you should just leave things be! No, I’m glad I did it because I got to meditate in the evening sunset and found out some useful information, and picked up a new skill into the bargain.

Entrance into the Otherworld

The Spirit of Arbor Low

I had entered the site asking to find the current location of the Spirit of Place. I was taken around the trench that rings the site in the shadow of the raised embankment. When I stopped I was standing at the left-hand edge of the southern entrance. I felt a little shudder, which is how I know that I am in the presence of an energetic form. I then asked to be shown the path that the spirit had taken, from the current moment back to midnight. I began to follow a path that curved around one of the many recumbent stones that formed the inner circle of Arbor Low’s henge, and then into a tight spiral that turned anti-clockwise.

I reversed the path so that I was now following the chronological sequence. I unwound the spiral, travelling clockwise as I traced the spirit’s path through the dark hours of the night and into the morning. At the position that represented dawn the path straightened, and then began to turn anti-clockwise as the “day” unfolded beneath my rods. This was the inverse path of one that I had dowsed for another Spirit of Place at Moel-Ty-Uchaf, which had followed what I assumed was a convention of being clockwise in the day and anti-clockwise at night. Clearly, such assumptions are fallacious, yet the principle remains that the Spirit of Place traces a double spiral pattern on its journey around the site during the course of a day.

The Spirit of Place's path over a day

I stood once more in the place where the spirit was currently located and tried to commune with it. As I entered into a trance state  I asked, “What can I learn about my forthcoming task of meeting the spirit of Merlin?“. A feeling came through that made itself resolve into a notion that I could learn about invisibility here at Arbor Low, that this was a place where learning was easy, and in fact the site was designed for this purpose. I came back out of trance, thanking the spirit and began to dowse again, “Take me to a place where I can learn about invisibility.” I asked of them. They led me to a slight dip in the ground near to the central stones.

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Section 7. Summary of the Year

In order to organise our thoughts Kal and I came up with some questions the answers to which we hoped might summarise the way that year has gone for us – what were the bits we expected, what exceeded our expectations, and which things arose to meet us on this path that we didn’t anticipate? Here are my answers to this year’s questions.

What did I think I was going to learn?

1. Whether specific periods of the year are more energetic than others, and whether those periods align to the calendrical eight-fold year.
2. How stone circles work in terms of their energy
3. Whether specific geology affects the energetic responses from sites

By the summer of 2009 I had already established to my satisfaction that there was a difference in the strengths of energies at the Spring Equinox and Summer Solstice. I was sure that there was more powerful sun energy (i.e. stronger male energy) at the Summer Solstice. The Spring and Autumn Equinoxes were very similar in strength, and were a balance of male and female earth energies. At the Winter Solstice the male energies were very weak, as was the Sun. The female energies fluctuated only in relation to the strength of the Moon and the input from nearby trees, again weaker in Winter.

Determining any objective means of measurement was difficult, as our own energy levels seemed to be a factor in how well we could dowse or do energy work at a site, however a scale of measurement (strength from 1-10) seemed to work for the purposes of obtaining some data that could be compared between sites. The solstice and equinox dates depended upon the quality of the Sun to determine the amount of additional energy was at the site compared to our visits to them on other dates.

The Celtic Festival dates (Lammas, Beltane, Samhain and Imbolc) in between those times were much harder to figure out. These dates seems to depend upon the position of the Moon for their effects upon ancient sites., rather than the Sun’s effect. I will be posting much more on this soon, complete with a table of the relative energy levels at various sites dowsed this year.

Further theories have emerged concerning the operation of energies at stone circles and other sites too. See the Earth Energies and Ancient Sites Summary posts for details on those.

We have kept a weather-eye on the geology of sites whilst dowsing this year. It started for me in Carnac when I discovered that the stone rows were placed along a shelf of rock quite different from the surrounding geology of the rest of the nearby coastline. We have concurred with the popular dowsing theory that geological faulting is important to the situation of ancient sites, as is often the presence of water, but we do not wholly agree with the necessity of water (or a ‘blind spring’ formation) being present at all ancient neolithic sites. Some major sites such as Stonehenge and The Rollright Stones do have this water formation, however, and we think these popular sites may have led to the popularity of the idea amongst the dowsing fraternity that such a formation is necessary to a strong energy site. We do not find this to be true.

'CARNAC: Des Pierres Pour Les Vivants' by Pierre Mereaux

What’s been the surprise?

1. Crop circles being designed by some intelligence beyond the confines of this planet – expected them to be of human design and manufacture.
2. The energetic and healing potential of running water – Pistyll Rhaeadr and Viktor Schauberger convinced me of this at different ends of the year. At Pistyll Rhaeadr waterfall my wife’s twisted ankle was healed in minutes. Later I read Schauberger’s theories on the properties of water and I understood how this could have come about.
3. A spiritual pilgrimage being worthwhile doing, and not some soulless religious historical trail as I had imagined it to be.

1. Astrology - There is a correlation, a link, between the relative positions of the stars and a human being. My natal chart is stunningly accurate in assessing my personality traits. Kal and I have also discovered that we are energetically linked to particular planets – Kal to Mercury and myself to Venus. We are more energetically ‘loaded’ or ‘charged’, and more energy work is possible, when our respective planets are visible. I have tracked this since the beginning of the year and have each dowsing response confirms this.
2. Elemental beings and cloud sylphs – I see some this year on four separate occasions and each time I was stunned by the effect – this was no mere simulacrum. Seeing faces in the clouds must be the third and conclusive qualifying factor in any signs of madness developing – that much I do appreciate, but nevertheless, they have been present at quite specific times of high energy.

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