The Hedge Druid

Posts Tagged ‘trees’

It was a stunningly hot and lovely summer’s day as we ventured north from Hockenheim in Germany, past the famous racing track. M and I were heading south-west of Heidelberg to reach the town of Schwetzingen. She had come to visit me for the weekend as I was holed up for two weeks in the Rhine Valley. I was determined that we would see the best of the sites in the area, and had been recommended the castle of Schwetzingen as it was reputed to have some extensive and well-designed gardens. How true!

The town is dominated by a castle that reminded me of The Palace of Versaillesin the grandeur and resplendence of its gardens. As the visitor’s web site states the gardens are divided into two main sections: a symmetrical french design of ornate manicured flower beds and ornamental trees, and a naturalistic English designed that orms the outer areas and incorporates the main water features of the gardens. Frankly, the English design is also the most visually and aesthetically appealing to me. Unfortunately for you, dear reader, I was so enthralled by it that I forgot to take any pictures of that bit, so you’ll have to make do with the French bits!

The garden design incorporates elements that any druid owuld recognise. Here’s a quote from the web site :

“The baroque garden is divided into the parterre, hedge zone and forest section. An unusual feature in Schwetzingen is the circular parterre formed by the “Zirkelbauten” (Quarter-Circle Buildings) and the vine-covered galleries, which distinguishes it from all others of the period.”

The quartered circle should strike a chord. As should the alignments, the correspondences, the nature of the tree planting, the labyrinthine beech maze, and a host of other esoteric elements that any studious druid would prick up their ears at. There was evidence of a great deal of sacred geometry in the design of the gardens, and I was interested to see what effect this woudl have on people. universal joy and contentment would be an apt description!

The gardens contain temples to several Greek God archetypes including Mercury (communication) and Minerva (wisdom). Here’s a link to a photo site giving you one of the pictures I should have taken of the rear of the Temple of Minerva: http://www.panoramio.com/photo/4143935

There are many old and tall trees in the outer established (and less manicured) areas surrounding a beautiful lake. I was so entranced by the delightful asymmetry and naturalistic planting of the woods that I singularly failed to take a single picture of the best bits, but trust me – these pictures even fail to do justice to its majesty and beauty.

Just sitting beneath an old oak tree that hosted a thick old vine snaking up its trunk left M and I in a torpid state of semi-trance. Almost immediately for me I was beginning to venture down a corridor punctuated by doors of various rainbow colours. Interesting! I mused, however the reverie is soon broken by the joyous shouts of excited children let loose in the huge playground that the gardens provide – and who would deny them that joy? Not I.

If you happen to be close to Heidelberg, why not venture off the motorway a little way in order to visit this wondrous place? You can hardly fail to be disappointed. Four euros will bring you all the earthly delights you could take in.

Gwas.

Seeing both sides at once

“Tale Man tell me what’s wrong with my life, am I only here to question? No, sir, you are undoubtedly here to cajole and make suggestions.” {Julian Cope – “These Things I Know” – ‘Black Sheep’ album)

At least the rain had stopped. I parked outside my new favourite wood, whose location, if you don’t mind, I won’t reveal by name. It’s one of the most beautiful places I know, so it seemed the most receptive to the kind of work I intended to do. Tonight, close to midnight, I wanted to commune with the wood after conquering my inevitable fear of being alone in the dark. “Fear?” I hear you scoff. Oh, really? Please be my guest to go and try it in a wood near you! Anyway – take my word for it – at the very least its a proposition to make your hackles react.

I had been watching TV whilst eating my tea – more staring at it than watching it, really. On screen was a beautiful cedar tree which had been mutilated by a cowboy who dared to call himself “tree surgeon”. In the same show was the tale of a wood-chipping firm in Essex who pulped tree remains. Messages and hints were starting to appear, but I was even more determined now to go and make contact, if only to apologise for the horrific atrocities that our kind inflicts upon those they don’t appreciate!

Anyway – soon I walked to the main entrance to the wood and stopped. I knew there was a well-trodden path there somewhere but I couldn’t see it! I couldn’t see more than five feet ahead while my eyes were trying desperately to adjust from light to darkness. I felt a wave of fear…”what was that noise?”, “what’s that dark shape?”. My brain went into panic mode and I wrestled with it, assuring my rational grumblings that I had a purpose to this, and it would just have to shut up and go with it. Easier said than done, however!

I had a trick up my sleeve though – a shaman’s trick for when the rush of the psychedelics overtakes reason and engenders fear. All evening I had been listening to Julian Cope’s new album “Black Sheep” which contains a good few memorable ditties with amusing lyrics. Just the job to rally my intention on a damp, dark and uncertain night in a forest! I started singing in my head and humming gently too.

“These things I know: sometimes we must leave the city. These things I know: your verse may lie if your chorus is pretty.” {Julian Cope – “These Things I Know” – ‘Black Sheep’ album)

I stepped into the blackness slowly with a half-smile and oozing pleasant vibes. As I hummed I chatted in my head about my reasons for disturbing the trees that night. I replayed the thought about wanting to gain knowledge, to become comfortable in the company of tress at all times and seasons, and just because I enjoyed their company. I started to develop an air of pleasance when light shapes began to crowd my peripheral vision. “What was that?” “Is someone there?” I flinched.

I picked my way slowly along the path, one slow step after another until I came to a point where the trees opened out to reveal the night sky. I stopped to look at the stars and to calm down. I tried to ‘zone out’ the rustlings, the drippings and the swooshing noises. “That is all part of the night and the trees.” I told myself. My reason was beginning to give up this senseless fight to flee the wood.

I waited until I could feel my eyes swim a little. Good, I was relaxing now! Geeeerrrrraaaaarrrrrrggghhhh – a plane was descending overhead on its way to Liverpool Airport. I felt the trees “bristle” with annoyance, and listened to them shake their branches at this buzzing wasp, splattering raindrops all around, including one on the back of my head – right on the top! I laughed. “Yes, it’s our doing, but with the current recession they may not be as frequent soon.” I proferred as condolence.

I felt more comfortable now and my eyes were getting accustomed to the lack of light and were compensating to brighten everything up. I could make out the path now, so began to walk on. Why not? All around were only small trees, and I wanted to speak to a larger one. Five paces later I was standing ten feet in front of a very tall but slender oak tree. Yes, I’ve been practising my tree recognition, and could tell even in the dark. “I-Spy” points for me! I lit a small roll-up cigarette while contemplating my next move – dare I go on? Dare I approach? What if I get nothing – nothing at all? How will I feel then? What if…shhhhhh. Inhale! Relax. Aaargh – the light from my lighter nearly blinded me!

I had had several “knock backs” from large oak trees in the past, but I wanted to try again. I walked slowly forwards asking to find the edge of the tree’s nemeton with my hands. I felt it in my stomach first though, and retreated a few steps to make sure I was right. Yep – here it was – the outer moat, if you will, the ‘motte’. I stopped and paid my respects, again going through my intentions and purpose, and asking as nicely as I could for a chance to commune. “May I enter your space?” I asked. A slight push back against me. I hesitated in moving forward, so I asked again. Same response.

It was the cigarette! It didn’t like it being close. I felt that was the situation, so I retreated back down the path and ditched it before returning to try again. A little chastened I approached again feeling for the outer nemeton. This time when I asked I got admittance straight away and stepped towards the tree. I was two paces away from the trunk when my stomach hit a brick wall and knotted! There was an inner nemeton! And I had not been admitted to this part yet. I stopped and thought of how to continue. I re-stated my intentions of seeking knowledge, paid some compliments to the tree, suggested we could both benefit from an exchange, and put out some good vibes to the tree as a ‘taster’, if you like, of what I meant.

The nemeton barrier dissolved and I was able to walk up to the oak’s trunk. As I arrived I was welcomed and told to sit. I sat, and noticed that the place I had chosen in the dark was perfectly shaped to seat me, and I was very comfortable sat with my back against the tree and leaning me head back onto it’s mossy trunk.

Rapidly I slipped into a meditative state – a very deep and powerful one that came on like a dizzy spell, but which was very pleasant too. I ventured a question, “May I ask you a question, lovely tree?” I cleared my mind for a response. A voice now projected into my empty thought stream, “What do you want to know?” I reeled a little from that. It gets me every time! It’s a joyous experience, but I kind of still don’t expect a response and it always startles me. Ha ha.

I thought for a second. Don’t blow your chance, I told myself. Think of something! I focused, “What is the nature of the energy that trees connect to sacred sites – what is its purpose and how does it work?” Phew – where did all THAT come from? I didn’t have time to wonder because I needed to relax the chatter.

The response came, as it sometimes does, audibly first for me. I’m a musician (of sorts) and I love music. This often means that Nature responds to me first in “my own language”. A sharp wind rustled the branches to my left and raindrops sprayed the floor of the wood for a few seconds. Aha! Water?? What about water? I didn’t understand. Another image was projected into my third eye cinema: it was a picture of the “Water Cycle” that we all get taught in school.

The Water Cycle

A question followed in my own voice, but not initiated from me; “What is the nature of that image?“. The question was being rebounded on me in my own terms! Cute. I fumbled for the answer…”Er…system of flows….er,…..circulation?” Fireworks went off in my head and the voice repeated, “Circulation. Circulation. Circulation.” It knew me well! I have an idiosynchratic memory and important things need to be drummed in. Here the tree was insisting I at least keep that one concept in memory!

When the tree felt I had got it the image began to be embellished. I saw a picture of trees drawing down energy from the sun, the moon and stars through their foliage, then working together under the direction and intent of the larger trees to corral and circulate the energy captured and re-worked. The energy generated is pushed out into the landscape down meridians to invigorate and seep into the landscape, promoting growth of new or young trees and plants.

My brain was straining to take in this living picture of the whole system working together in a huge cycle of energy flows involving all aspects of nature. I had a question, though, “What about stone circles where there aren’t any nearby trees?”. Again, an answer followed before I could think further – “Trees work at many levels. Shrubs like the gorse, the heather, even grass are fed by energy flows from trees, just at a smaller scale. We can move energies great distances when we all work together. These smaller plants in turn feed the landscape with energy and keep the flows circulating.” “Think fractal.” I saw in one moment a living flowing picture of the way it all worked together, and was stunned by its intricacy and ‘togetherness’ – a co-operation of purpose between species and levels to maintain energy flows to promote growth and life.

I couldn’t take any more. My head was full of wonder and amazement. At that moment another plan flew over head and I began to awaken from my reverie. Everything came back into focus again. Before I disconnected I pulsed waves of emotion into the tree – waves of gratitude, joy, and sheer pleasure. I invited the tree to make use of any of this energy for as long as it wanted to, and I felt the palpable stream of my energy being drawn as though with magnets upwards and into the tree as I glowed with joy and wonder.

I stood up and turned to thank the tree again for the experience. Then I walked back with none of the hesitation that I had when I first approached the wood that night. I felt no cold, and my head was full of thought of “circulation, circulation” as I left the confines of the trees to step back into reality.

“The flowers, the trees, the beasts, the people receive peace until the morning, when it all starts again.” (Julian Cope, “Psychedelic Odin”, ‘Black Sheep’ album)

Gwas

Find a higher path

I realise that I have used the term ‘nemeton’ without giving it much of a definition. For me the nemeton of something is the energy that it projects. I have found that projection can take many shapes: a complete sphere is common, but also with trails of energy bursting out of that sphere, or perhaps it’s an ellipse shape, or some other organically smooth and bulbous shape.

It is more than shape though. It is an energetic field, a boundary of force or 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. that can be tuned into by adjusting and un-focusing the mind, like twisting the eye’s kaleidoscope. In this state of mind the energy can be felt, sensed, or for some, seen in the mind’s eye – that evanescent show-reel that projects misty-lensed images in your own private theatre. When overlaid on normal sight this can appear like a waking daydream, but carries an immense sense of being real.

I first encountered the word in one of Emma Restall-Orr’s books. She described it like this:-

“…it is often possible to sense the edge with fingertips or hands, feeling a slight pressure, a change in temperature or light in the air. Simply by using our mind, pure intention and openness, a blend of imagination and sensitive vision we can trace the edge, not forgetting the area to either side and behind us.” (‘Living Druidry‘, Emma Restall-Orr, Piatkus, 2004)

Emma goes on to reveal more qualities of this field’s edge, and makes it sound like the classic description I used to read as a curious boy about people’s auras. They have colour, display weaknesses, and can be interacted with opening an emotional connection, or sympathetic vibration.

I now use this term to describe these fields as I have found them around trees, and standing stones. They have different extents depending upon their purpose. Trees seem to develop a nemeton roughly spherical and in line with their size and shape, perhaps only extending a few feet beyond that. Larger trees have nemetons that can be sensed some fifty feet or more away. This is the majestic feeling we have when we walk down a long avenue of large trees – we feel their nemetons if we adopt an appreciative air. It is uplifting, certainly. Rejuvenating to our flagging soul.

Standing stones and stone circles have such a field too. Stone circles are again spherical and usually tied in size to the size of the circle of stones. Standing stones have nemetons that are usually proportionate to the power of the energies at the site, and to the size of the stones. The Bryn Gwyn stones of Anglesey, for example, emit a strong and easily detected nemeton from each of the huge stones. The edges of these elliptical nemetons can be felt without using dowsing rods. You can feel their character just by standing near to the stone for a minute in silence.

When you stop feeling the object’s presence, or attraction, then that’s the edge of it’s nemeton. Emma R-O asks that we treat this edge with respect, as we are invading something’s ‘space’, and we know how upset we get when someone comes too close, and ‘invades our space’! I guess she’s right, but often we can’t help being in something’s space – that’s the way parks and roads are made! It becomes especially important to adopt a good attitude, however, when we switch to attempting to interact with these energetic fields. Then I feel it is right to ask permission to do so.

Recent dowsing has shown me that the nemeton of a stone circle is composed of three concentric circles, and that those circles flow in two directions: the male energy flows anti-clockwise and the female flows clockwise. When the male energies are in the ascendancy (e.g. the sun is shining) then the nemeton flows anti-clockwise, but if the moon’s influence is stronger (the sun has gone down, the moon is full or close) then the flow will go clockwise.

Whichever way it is flowing in a stone circle the energy always enters the circle to spiral around inside into a single point, which is usually what we term 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 ‘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.”, but which mainstream dowsing likes to call a “blind spring” – a point where two underground streams of water cross.

The Nemeton vs. The Aura

There is a lot of cross-over between the concepts of the nemeton and the aura of a living thing, not least that they literally overlay each other. Recently we spent some time dowsing these two fields and determined that they were categorically distinct energy fields. They may have many points in common – for example, they occupy most of the same space, and they can both be controlled in terms of their extent and their properties, yet they have differences too, some of which we are only just understanding.

One of the major differences is in the nature of the energy. In the nemeton field the energy dowsed as a different frequency to that of the aura. The aura is composed of rainbow colours that map onto the human chakra points, but the nemeton is not split into bands of different frequencies, but is instead a whole field of a single energy type.

The purpose of the nemeton is something we are only beginning to get to grips with. What we have found so far is that it seems to be related to inter-connectedness. It seems to be the field that defines the region or sphere of influence that a living entity generates. This field of inter-connectedness can be opened or closed (softened or firmed up) to permit or block a connection with other nemeton fields (of which there are many inter-lacing fields from all living entities). When a connection is made then emotion, meaning and intent can be shared between co-operative entities, such as between a human and a tree. The overlapping of the respective nemeton fields provides the connection between the two, and permits the transport of “vibes”, intuitive thought patterns and imagery.

So, I hope that’s piqued your interest in the idea of a nemeton. I am learning that becoming sensitive to these fields is immensely rewarding and fulfilling, and I hope to learn more so that I can work with them more efficiently. I would dearly like it to become second nature! Oh dear, “pun hell”!

Gwas

Find your nemeton

Alderley Edge, Cheshire : 20th August, 2008

THE BENT TREE

We looked like a scene from Wacky Races as we pulled into the Wizard’s Car Park next to the pub (where you HAVE to buy a meal, it’s rumoured) in the late afternoon. We were the only ‘bangers’ on the lot, but we cared not a jot, as we paid for our stay, realised the car park closed at 6, and went on our way, back to the previous lay-by – feeling foolish. A good start.

First on the agenda was The Bent Tree. Now, there are many bent trees in Alderley’s Edge, but this one was alone in a clearing, with conveniently placed logs for sitting on, and is close to where we parked. I was intending a slow start to wind down after work. I let Kal do the dowsing, as we reached the tree which bends over from rooted-and-ripped end to lopped-and-lodged end. I climbed to the top to sit and gaze into the middle distance for a while.

The Bent Tree with usless ornament

Whilst I was away wih the faeries, Kal found what I would term a new phenomenon for us! He followed some male lines that I had seen on my last visit – around and up the length of the tree trunk – loose spirals appearing occasionally. “In a patch of mud!” he complained about one which was just underneath me. “Yeah – the patch with the crushed mushrooms” I replied. Sadly these were not edible mushrooms and were of the wrong type of toxicity. He then switched to female spirals. He found one quickly, but then continued around the tree – in, out and around other trees in the area. I almost summoned up the motivation to watch him, but was feeling good relaxing so I carried on, half noticing him as he moved beneath me. Then he spiralled again, round and round, then out and away to another earth hump or tree stump. I started to notice him again when he disappeared completely into the near distance, crunching his way through the carpet of leaves off the main path. He stopped somewhere out of sight, then wandered back.

“3 spirals, then 5, then 7, and guess what – 9 for the last one.” he beamed confidently. I had to try for myself. “Where did you start?” I asked. “At this tree stump, near the bent tree.”, he pointed at a moss-encrusted low stump that he had meditated a while on before starting to dowse. “And what did you ask for?” I need to know. “For the most energetic line.” he explained.

I poised my rods, relaxed and asked for the same – the most energetic line. Follow that. Off I walked, tracing a similar route to Kal. I hadn’t really noticed where Kal had been dowsing or turning around, so I was doing this without “playback”. I found a spiral and instead of trying to locate its centre as a terminus point, I let it spin me around three times, then the rods swung the other way to that which had drawn me in, and I followed a curve which bent between two tall and straight elm trees. This was interesting! I had latched onto a line I had found last time, but this time I was intent on following it all the way, not just to the first or second spiral – I wanted to see where this finally ended!

The next spiral was on the path behind the Bent Tree – five times around that and away again back towards the bent tree, to curve back across the path, and just after the crossing to spiral seven times. Then swinging back out of the spiral it gently curved around some large beech trees to spiral nine times, then go into a young sycamore tree. I stood amazed – the sycamore was sprouting small to medium sized branches out of what seemed like every available space on the trunk. I mean, in comparison with the surrounding trees it was “hairy”!! And the set of spirals led straight to it. It seemed to be drawing the energy from the energies around The Bent Tree, a natural wonder, to promote its own vigorous growth. Most of this tree’s neighbours were tall and must have grown quickly to compete for light. This 40ft sycamore was just going to seem like a crazy lone bush in comparison, but here it was “branching out”. Such is its nature, I suppose.

We had fun reversing the dowse back from the tree, Kal re-tracing his initial dowse in, and the pair of us colliding at one of the spirals as we reached it together the start twirling around in front of a passing bemused family with dogs. Fun and games. But we confirmed each other’s findings, even though the position of some of the spirals changed for each of us on the return journey, and on Kal’s second attempt. This energy was alive and moving around. Somehow that still surprised us to learn that, and we felt something new had happened, and we had added to our store of knowledge. It was a natural progression from making patterns manifest when considered side-by-side. We had simply observed its movement now, instead of simply dowsing static patterns. It seemed to indicate a very real “aliveness” to this forest, which pushes you on to trying new ideas, and we like coming to this place.

THE FATHER OF THE FOREST (“FotF”)

We walked on, me asking Kal to find the folly stone circle because I was still being lazy, and while sitting ont he tree I had got myself into a really relaxed state of mind, and was enjoying just strolling through the forest with my staff thumping on the leaf mould and dirt paths. He took up the challenge and I followed him, occasionally taking the easier route as the rods took him up hill and down dale and around large expanses of rock canyons. As we walked we chatted about how it felt dowsing around the forest, its effects on us, whether we had been to this particular part before, and we trudged and strode around.

Then we arrived at FotF – the beech tree with the enormous boughs – “Not half”!. For me it was like greeting an old friend, but for Kal, my oldest friend, he was obviously impressed by the size – the sheer breadth – of this tree. We absorbed the ambience for a while, Kal occasionally closing his eyes and placing his hand on various parts of the tree. I simply smiled inside and out and waited patiently. Then we set off on our quest to find the folly stone circle again.

Seen him before

After a while Kal was beginning to doubt whether he was anywhere close to it, and asked me whether I knew if we were close as I’d been there before. “But I always come upon it by dowsing!” I had to respond. I didn’t think I could find my way there by sight or memory! This place is a maze, you know! I asked if I could try something cheeky. He cautiously agreed, as a good friend would. I said nothing else and scanned the forest with my mind looking for a reaction similar to that of the dowsing feeling when a rod ‘pulls’ your attention in a particular direction, like passing close to the opposite pole of a weak magnet. I got such a response, and simply followed its general direction, which coincided with a path.

I followed unquestioningly, and when I came to a part of the path where I felt it veered away from the direction first indicated, I stopped a re-scanned to feel the right way – literally with my hand raised in front of me, slowly rotating and trying to sense that tug. Invariably, I felt it, and hurriedly walked on before logic overwhelmed the response. “Is it anywhere close?” Kal asked after ten minutes of this caper, and I put on a cheery smile and stated “It’s close. Just around here, I think. If I’m wrong you can kick my arse for bringing you all the way round here for no reason.” I said it like I was sure I was right. I wasn’t. I didn’t remember this path, or this part of it. What if I was wrong? How humili…there was that bit of my brain again – the bit that kept trying to solve ALL the problems. How greedy! And it can be a bit demoralising too, so I closed it down again, and opened up the other bit of my brain that maybe could help. I scanned again – it was close! How could I know that? Shhhh….trust.

Ten steps later, a carbon copy of the last time I was dowsing here with M and that unusual small gentleman who accompanied us, the circle hoved into view. “It’s just there.” I stated, quelling a rush of pride so that it sounded more matter-of-fact than jubilant. Wow. Another new concept to learn – ‘deviceless dowsing’. It had worked. The build up to this had been me thinking I could see the energy lines when in a ‘druid connection state’ recently. Then the slow infusion of the feeling of dowsing that had been building with the amount of dowsing I have been doing recently. Practise was bringing rewards, as too was this forest giving gifts to me through its ambience of good feeling. This is a fertile place for learning.

THE FOLLY CIRCLE

Again I took a back seat for a while to see whether Kal’s paths around the circle would look anything like the ones I got the last two times.

After heading off on a journey down to the FotF tree . “Look how close we were just before!” he exclaimed. He was right – we were less than a hundred feet from the big beech tree, and we had walked in a circle to get here. We chuckled at that. Kal then found a line going around the circle, into it, and spiralling neatly round to a point at one side of the stones. Previous posts will show you this point – it’s the same point of the sun energy spiral I recently dowsed, and when I recreated that it’s centre was the same, but it’s entry point before it spiralled was different. I then showed Kal the earth energy spiral that overlapped the sun line and wondered about the concept of interference patterns between the two.

My two spirals were connected to pne of the two pine trees overlooking the site of the stones on the small rise before them. Kal suggested that I should see if there was anything coming from the other pine, so I did. It thrust forth a line that cut into the circle, then looped around its outer edge to return to the tree. A companion line looped round the other portion of the circle’s outer edge to return to the tree as well. So, one pine tree put a protective field around the circle using two lines to do that, and the other pine tree filled the centre space with two lines of energy that spiralled together within the stone perimeter. Were these trees working together to react in particular ways to the circle’s geometry? Were these lines the energy receptors of the trees that captured and conducted the energy of visitors, people and animals moving through them, perhaps to draw that energy, and then transmit it through to the small trees that they seemed to be supporting? Something to think about.

SHORT THEORY SECTION

Kal and I have been discussing the idea of leaving trails of energy in a kind of wake. As people’s energies are transmitted to the forests in this way, they may feed that energy into the other trees around them. The more people appreciate a site, whether it be natural or man-made, the site may be designed to absorb and re-transmit some of that energy. At sites where trees are found there is always a link between the trees and the shape of the energies at the site. Where stone circles or megaliths have been positioned where there are no trees, still these places are capable of manipulating geological energies – earth energies. Such sites tend to exhibit a great number of male and female patterns – an interplay between the sun and the earth, aligned by moon alignments with moon-powered energies resulting from the combination of the sun and earth spirals.

BACK TO THE CIRCLE

Back in the circle Kal quickly finds 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 ‘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 knew of, and meditates for a short while. Charging himself up? He seems to get inspiration, and finally making use of his new backpack he pulls out a container of quartz crystals which he places, one by one, on top of each stone, so that they all have one.

He then returns to the power centre and drifts away again. I watched him quietly, then went off in search of a rock to give him some peace. You know the drill – you need a rock to try something out and so you head to somewhere you’d expect to find one, like under a tree! Hoping for some communication, as I passed the big beech tree I muttered as request to find a hand sized stone to use for manifesting some energy. And you know that ten seconds later I came across just such a rock lying beneath the beech tree’s huge out-stretched arms. However, like the joker he is, he first led me past a pile of large rocks that might have caused an injury if I’d tried to haul them into the circle! Very amusing. I saw the joke, smiled, and suddenly there was a suitable rock right there amid the beech nut floor. A sandstone, washed clean by rain, and hand sized.

Round and round the circle, like a teddy bear

I returned to see that Kal had finished and he let me place my rock on the power centre. I made a connection by lowering my conscious barriers to it, and then placed energy into the rock until the flow slowed. Then I picked up my rods and began to see if any new energies had appeared. A petal. And another, joining to the first with that celtic spirograph-like sweep into the next petal, and back across the power centre to another, then around again – soon I had the picture of a flower changing shape as I dowsed, just like what had happened last week at Helsby Hill where I had to abandon my attempts to draw it because it changed as I drew and dowsed along. Then it had fazed me, now it excited me – more ‘mobile’ energy patterns and lines! Responding to my increasing awareness of them? I posed that as a question but I felt I knew the answer.

One more confirmation of something established last time I’d been here – No energies in the rocks. I asked Kal to see what he found, then watched to see him shaking his head – “Nothing there!”. Strange, huh? Not an energised stone circle as we had come to know and love them, but a place where energies could be harboured, perhaps invigorated by the forced geometry?

We mused about the way that trees might be using the circle to generate growth energies, with donation or intention from the FOTF connection. What I imagined, as we stood looking at the circle in relation to the surrounding trees, we the way in which the FOTF tree was supplying some of its vast energies along an energy lineThe direction energy takes when moving. It may be straight or curved, in several dimensions and be composed of one or more different types of energies, i.e. negative, positive or neutral. Energy lines can be found at standing stones and ancient sites but are a general feature in all energy fields. that seemed to almost feed or support the newly growing small trees. To each side, connected by a looping energy line, were small rowan and birch. Stringy but growing tall they were flourishing in the late summer warmth and wetness combination, and were also getting good light. Reason enough to thrive, you would think, but I imagined the root systems of the many other surrounding trees are stiff competition for newbies. Nature was giving a helping hand by lending energies from one that could afford it. Protection, stimulation, or feeding – we couldn’t decide.

TO THE BATCAVE

I dowsed next for best place to meditate, and I end up at a place where Kal sat when he last came! I hadn’t been to that spot before – in fact I hadn’t even seen it as it was hidden at the side of the open scar that leads to the quarry below. I wondered a moment about how I could have got to the same place when I had been leading the way. I had even seen a better-looking place with a nicer, less obscured view. I nearly mentioned itm, when Kal told me the story about how he had wanted to sit at the nicer spot when he was here last, but there were people on it so he sat where I ended up, six feet away from the nicer spot with a pine tree about two feet in front of us obscuring the view over Cheshire! We sat on the power centre and meditated on events so far. Now I think about it I should have looked to see whether there was anything aligned with that spot while I was there. You win some…

Tasty specimens of treehood

What I did do was to try a meditation of pushing my senses out into the forest but rain spots made me awaken from that quite quickly, so I played with stopping and starting the rain, with uncanny success. When I couldn’t hold my intention any more I felt the rain falling harder in a few seconds. We arose and moved to the little cave behind our spot, dowsing in the shelter of the trees for lines going in or out of the cave.

After a short while Kal was heading off down the Edge. Meanwhile at the Batcave I had found a male and female spiral, the male loosely wound around a tree on the right hand side, and the female tightly wound just above the cave’s entrance to the left. In the middle was a strong neutral line which connected directly with the spot I had found as the Energy Centre of choice for meditation. In the cave I could see three hollows – one on the right, one on the left, and one straight in the middle. Each on was the start/end point of the lines. How coincidental!

The Batcave - shhhh!

Instead of male/female/neutral i decided to try Greer’s theory on male energies being “sun” energy – things I already associated. I confirmed this by dowsing for “sun” energy and found the male spiral line again. Then I asked for “earth” energies, instead of female. Again, the correspondence. Something in me understood the concept and could translate that to the dowsing experience. Finally, i asked for “moon” energies – the combination of the sun and earth energies. This was the strong linking energy which powered the Energy Centre. Aha! An “aha” moment. I pondered this for a moment, then went off to find out what Kal was up to.

I followed his direction down the edge’s slippy sandstone to find a small cave nearby – big enough to fit into. Kal called me – he’d found one ten times bigger! We explored it with a head torch and as it opened out into a space with some headroom we paused to watch our hot breath condensing in the dank coolness of the dim rock hollow. I scraped the picture of the moon, sun and a tree onto a grime-covered rock half way (?) in before it got too cold to want to continue or linger too long.

Who spilt talc?

I stated that I wanted to find the Wizard’s Well deviceless! Such arrogance! But you couldn’t stop me now I had my new toy to play with. Oh dear – pride cometh before a fall. In a post-modern sensibility the author prepares you for the ‘reversal of furtune’ moment, where the hero’s ‘tragic flaw’ spoils the party for everyone.

After half hour in wrong direction going into darkest most ruined and muddy area of forest I conceded that I had tricked myself and the forest was having a good laugh at me. It just won’t let me find the Wizard’s Well!! “Perhaps it’s because you’re not a wizard?” quipped Kal. Funny. I had to laugh, as the last of the good light fell behind the hills. We tried to escape the oppressive closing in of the holly trees by climbing straight up the side of the path towards the light – and freedom, surely? We were thwarted at every turn by prickly soldiers barring our path, tempting us with glimpses of the barbed wire fence to a field at the top of the ridge – a potential short-cut in the light, we hoped. Kal slid his way back to the muddy path back up Hare Hill, and I walked diagonally down to meet him, severely embarrassed at having got us into this, quite literal, scrape.

Two eyes, nose, mouth!

We walked back in the direction of the car now, and as we passed stone troughs or rocks Kal would chide me about the increasingly folorn exploit of trying to find the Wizard’s Well. Again the forest had thwarted me because I couldn’t control my pride when I learned a new skill. When would I learn this harsh lesson about smugness and pride, I wondered?

By now I was less certain and cock-sure than I had been earlier. We passed a waterfall too, and some puzzled cows watched us skate around and over thick muddy fields, hills and stiles to get back to the main part of the forest. Our walk back through the forest in a black and white film noir, and I revelled in seeing the forest in this twilight. The dark silhouettes danced an ever-changing shadow puppet theatre as we walked along the good un-muddy paths which we hoped would lead us to the car.

I needed to dowse again to restore some ‘faith’. Like falling from a horse, I got back up. I dowsed for the car, and even though it was almost dark I got us close before my confidence fell prey to my rational mind’s hostile takeover and merger, which saw me standing rigid at a crossroads looking unsure about what I felt. Kal took over and easily confirmed the direction, and got us the remaining few hundred yards to familiar ground and on to the parking bay. The light had just gone completely as we drove away, with me happy, chastened, and more respectful of the ways of the forest.

The holes in the title of this blog refer not only to the wondrous holes dotted around The Edge, but to the holes which still exist in knowledge of these subjects. We are, however, also invigorated by such experiences as this evening’s visit to Alderley Edge, and propelled towards further exploration and learning.

Gwas

Follow your true path.