The Marvel of Glastonbury

Glastonbury has always had a special attraction for me and is the main location for much of the King Arthur Ledgends and was the place I most wanted to visit.. So again, with marvelous bus/train/bus connections I was to Glastonbury in a matter of hours and again to find "no room in the Inn". There is always something special going on there but this weekend it was the Megalithomania Festival and the town was FULL. I was actually about to give up and leave town when I discovered a tavern (definitely not a lovely English Pub) with a "rooms available" sign.  I gave it a look, took the room and the young lady mentioned they had music that evening till midnight.  Well, the only other person staying there was the DJ for the evening and later I found out why we were the only two people staying there.  When I got to the room in the evening I couldn't believe how LOUD the music was, it actually vibrated the bed and made the hangers in the closet rattle.

After checking in I took a walk to the Tor

coming back to the town on a Public Walking Path through the fields and literally stumbled on the Shekinashram as I left the fields.  They had B&B rooms and were having a special celebration for Amma that day. If I was to have a Guru it would definitely  be Amma,  Sheila and I have stayed at Amma's Ashram in India, I listen to her Bhajans and see her when she comes to Seattle.  Well, they had a room for the next night, a lovely yurt in the garden and I took it for the following day which was Sunday.

Courtyard of  Skekinashram

Celebration with Amma

And what a Sunday it was, like being back at the Tagore Festival with one big experience after another.  First there was an early morning Cleansing Fire Ceremony at the Ashram which was very meaningful.  I rushed from that back to the "Boom Box Hotel" to check out and have my "English Fry Up" for breakfast (not at all in sync with the vegan ashram crowd) and hitch-hiked to the Street Quaker Meeting one village away.

 Newer Street Meeting House built in the mid 1,800's

To my surprise the Street Meeting is one of the 10 largest in England in membership with a long Quaker History and with some of the very first Quakers as members.  One of the ladies had brought a beautiful bouquet of roses for the table (Quakers don't have altars) and offered them to me as I was leaving so I was able to take them back to the Ashram where they were very much appreciated.  The Ashram has flowers and rose petals everywhere.

After the Meeting I was off to experience the Abbey which is where the legend says King Arthur and  Queen Guinevere are buried and some other gruesome English history.

The Abbey Kitchen, the only building not destroyed.

The Abbey is a major tourist attraction with people 

in costume telling stories of the history.

The monk was especially funny, he told of how the Abbey was destroyed by fire in 1184 and in 1191 they miraciouslly discovered the tombs of Arthur and Guinevere and re-buried them with much pomp and ceremony, attended by King Edward 1 and Queen Eleanor.  The monk said if you believe the story or not  you have to agree it was a marvelous bit of marketing that raised lots of money  to rebuild their beloved Abbey and still does.  And rebuild it they did, in such glory that by the 1500's it was the 2nd largest in England.  In 1539 Henry VIII seized the Abbey with the Dissolution of Monasteries Act.  Now here come the gruesome part. The Archbishop, Richard Whiting, protested and to set an example King Henry had him hung at the Tor, his head cut off and stuck on a pole at the entry and his body quartered and sent off in the four directions.  Makes me cringe to write about it.

I finished the Abbey in time to catch an afternoon lecture at Megalithomania.

Lecture by John Martineau at the Megalithomania Conference

 titled What on Earth is the Universe Up To. 

John is well known in cosmological circles and his examples of Sacred Geometry  are amazing.  He finished by saying the Universe is blossoming and we are in the center of the lotus flower.  A lovely image as opposed to Armageddon.

Quite a day in Glastonbury and feeling fortunate I didn't have to leave town.  Glastonbury was everything I imagined and more.

The 100th Monkey Cafe serving fresh love that day

Monday was more relaxed, thank goodness.  Had lunch at the 100 Monkeys Cafe which I think is a great name for a cafe, especially here.  Lots of great names like The Psychic Piglet; Heart Felt Trading, Cafe Galatea, The Goddess and the Green Man, Labyrinth Books, Natural Everything and on and on and on....

Chalice Well where the Holy Grail is suppose to be at the 

bottom of turning the water slightly red.

In the afternoon I spent time at the beautiful Chalice Well Garden which is a National Peace Garden. They have celebrations in the garden for the 8 positions of the moon each year as well as the Full and New moons.  Not just the solstices and the equinoxes but the time halfway between each called First Stirring, Flowering, Fruition and Resting.   I have mixed feeling about the Grail Legend but found the garden to be an especially peaceful and worshipful place and begin to appreciate the Holy Grail story more as metaphor than as story.  That's and accomplishment for being brought up with a literal fundamental approach to Christianity.

I now appreciate the search for the Holy Grail more as a personal journey and our search for meaning and transformation.

Seems like the perfect place to end this personal journey,  hopefully I can remember and integrate a few of the things I have learned along the way.  It has been a pleasure to share them with you and in so doing have made them more real for myself.

Wishing you well on your own journeys.

We live our life when we love it.

~Rabinindrath Tagore~

A Visit to Dartmoor

I've always been intrigued with the moors in the West Country but wasn't sure how I could do some exploring there without a car but managed to with the marvel of the English buses and hitch hiking.  A couple buses from Tintagel and I was at Princetown in the middle of the Moor.  Princetown is famous for it's prison and where Sir Arthur Conan Doyle wrote The Hound of the Baskervilles.  I little history lesson:  this is where the British took over 12,000 US prisoners during The War of 1812.  I knew nothing except the name, The War of 1812, and 'lo and behold' it was mainly a war of commercial interests with some of the battles being fought in Michigan at Detroit and Macinaw as well as New Orleans and other places..  Supposedly the English hadn't accepted the US was it's own country at that time and treated the prisoners not very well as traitors.  A surprise to me having grown up in Detroit and never knowing this.

North Hersary Tor with a burial cairn from the bronze age.

Over 3,500 years old

Another view of North Hersary Tor

Wild Ponies in the morning fog. Their have been ponies sold
at the pony market in Princetown for 100's of years with ponies being sold for almost nothing.
The last sale was in the early 1950's

Nuns Cross in the upper right corner from the 13th Century
that marked the boundary between the Forest of Dartmoor and Buckland Abbey

Ancient stone bridge at Postbridge.  Three long flat stones for the top.  Amazing to see.

The Moor was the 1st place I tried hitch-hiking since the train/bus systems were so good and what I wanted to see was usually close to the villages I was able to get to them.  But the Moor was different with only 1 bus in and out of Princetown and none between the Villages.  So I gave Hitch-hiking a try to get to Postbridge and it worked beautifully there and back.  With success under my belt I decided to give Widecome-in-the-Moor a try with all my luggage.  This was a longshot because of no direct route  but the 2nd vehicle stopped and asked where I was going and the young man said, "that's where I'm going, my parents live there and I'll give you a ride."  Still hard to believe but true and I had this most beautiful  drive on these very narrow country roads between the hedge rows. Widecome-in-the-Moore is one of the most picturesque villages but with no bus service from anywhere, to my surprise, and being Friday no rooms available.  So after a lunch and a lovely visit  I tried hitching again, not sure to where, and immediately got a ride to Bovey Tracy where there is bus service and I was on my way to Glastonbury for a long weekend.  

Cornwall and King Arthurs Castle

It's been over a week since the Tagore Festival was over and I've been traveling in Cornwall, Dartmoor and Glastonbury.  I'll do a separate posting for Dartmoor and Glastonbury.

Besides attending the Tagore Festival I wanted to connect with some Quaker History and the ancient history and stone circles in this part of England.  I couldn't have been luckier because when I met June at the festival and found out she was from Cornwall I asked if I could get a ride in her direction because I wanted to attend the Come-to-Good Quaker Meeting in Cornwall.  As it turned out she is a Quaker and was happy to go with me to the Meeting.

Come-to-Good Quaker Meeting House built in 1720

After Meeting we spent the day visiting some of the Cornwall Coast and ended up in Penzance.  Some  Quaker Friends of June's she introduced me to at the Festival, Heather and Barrie Bray, lived in Marazion at the entry to St Michael's Mount and invited me to their home and to show me the Quaker Meeting House there.  

The Marazion Quaker Meeting House built in 1678

The view of St Michael's Mount from the Bray's living room

Both the Bray's are exceptional artists and Heather has become "a healer" since the tragic death of their daughter.  She introduced me to dowsing and the use of the pendulum and gave me a book she has written titled Key's to Wisdom.  Some amazing stories of healing.  My introduction to the occult which is everywhere in this part of the West Country

The whole week has been full of magic; some of which is the English train/bus system.  I headed of from the Bray's to the Penzance train station not knowing how I would get to Tintagel on the Cornish Coast where King Arthur was suppose to have been born and where Merlin's Cave is.  Well, a train headed in that direction with in 1/2 hour and with 2 seamless bus connections I was King Arthur's Catle in a matter of hours.  This happened time and time again as I ambled my way around the West Country.

A couple photos of the ruins of the Castle from the 6th Century

The Cornwall Coast at Tintagel.  Think Iceburg Point x 5

Tintagel Post Office built in the 1400's

Interesting to get in touch with the King Arthur legends in this part of the world between here and Glastonbury where I finished this adventure.   I headed off from here to erie Dartmoor, more photo's from there in the next posting.

The Gardens of Dartington

I mentioned earlier I would include some photos of the beautiful gardens at Dartington.  Enjoy!

Inscription at the entrance to the main courtyard.

The Azalea Dell

The view from the terrace walk over the tiltyard back to the Great Hall

Memorial sculpture by Henry Moore in the foreground

More Azaleas and the Swan Fountain by Willi Soukop

The view of The Glade where I went to meditate

  Love in the garden; they couldn't help themselves

The view from the window of my room

The majesty of ancient Oak trees

Look to this Day.

For it is Life, the very Life of Life

In it's brief course lie all the varities

And Realities of your Existence: 

The Bliss of Growth,

The Glory of Action,

The Spendour of Beauty.

For Yesterday is but a Dream,

And To-morrow is only a Vision;

But To-day well-lived makes every Yesterday

 a Dream of Happiness,

 And every To-morrow a Vision of Hope.

Look well to this day.

~ Rabndranath Tagore ~

Tagore Festival is Over

And what a week it has been.  Every day packed with interesting , informative and inspiring presentations, all with that wonderful Brit humor they all have.  Easy and fun to listen to without exception.  We ask each other what was our favorite part of the week and everyone has a different answer.  I have several contenders but have to go with Chloe Goodchild  who was part of Rumi/Tagore poetry-musical story telling presentation one evening.

and followed the next morning with a workshop "the Universe Singing inside You; Your Singing Soul".  The technique includes hand movements with different sounds for each chakra as you go up and down the chakras and end in silence.  Imagine a room with 50+ people singing loudly as the go up and down the chakras and ending in an deep/complete/gathered silence. A strongly felt presence of being. Chloe says the silence is the most important part.  She has a program called The Naked Voice which trains people in this practice and maybe we can get someone to come to Lopez to teach us.  I'll try.

Other contenders were;

     Rob Hopkins - The inspiration for a movement called Transition Towns which now has over 350 towns in 30 countries.  Rob's talk was titled Recipes for Resilience.  I bought the handbook.  Lopez is well along this path but maybe being part of a world movement would be good for them and for us.

    Big names like Deepak Chopra, Physical Healing and Emotional Wellbeing; Vandana Shiva, Nature as Teacher; Jane Goodall, Reason for Hope; etc were all exceptional as you would expect.

    Lot's of British Names I wasn't familiar with but all very smart  and very impressive.  The English seem to be a lot further along the path of cultural/spiritual change in their thinking on the environment, finance and politics:  Tim Smit, Ilan Pappe, Clare Short, John Moat, Jonathon Porrit, Mark Tully and others.

  All this good thinking but lots of dancing (mostly Indian), poetry and singing.  All relevant  and consistent with Tagore's philosophy to include art and poetry and music with the intellect.  

The festival was closed with a group named Seize the Day. One of their songs simply titled "America" ended with the words "take back your power or take the blame." I felt like they were talking directly to me.   

The over all attitude towards America was not positive at all.  No one made it personal but lots of comments both in the presentations as well as in conversation.

A nice touch to try an make the experience real was what they called The Prayer Tree.

The idea was to write on a ribbon a pledge of action you would do for One Year and a day and offering a day a month to a worthy cause.

I choose to pledge to continue for a full year with what I have been doing with hitch-hiking/walking and driving as little as possible (definitely increases my miles per gallon and decreases carbon emissions) and to structure my life to be more simple so I can help when I can.  I believe I already do more than a day a month for a worthy cause.

So that's it.  I recommend reading some Tagore.  He's definitely an inspiration for the times. Always has been.

I have become my own version of an optimist.

If I can't make it through one door, Ill go through another door -

or I'll make a door.

Something terrific will come no matter how dark the present.

Rabindranath Tagore                                                                        

Tagore Festival at Darting Hall

The Great Hall at Dartington

I had hoped to post more often but here it is Thursday already and I'm just finding time.  What a full and exciting time  from 10 in the morning to 10 at night.  Actually it has been exhausting to experience so many meaningful, inspiring, and enjoyable events one after another.

Surprise of surprises that when I arrived at the festival on Saturday the very 1st person I ran into was Arore Marens at the entry of Sharpham Hall.  Very few people from the US are here so it's even more remarkable.  Sharpham is another retreat center associated with Dartington with a magnificent Manor House.  One of the special things about the manor house is a 4 story spiral stone staircase to a domed celling with exceptional acoustics.  The Ishirini Choir from London that was part of the opening ceremony was also staying at Sharpham and a huge treat was that after breakfast they practiced singing in the spiral staircase.  The most beautiful musical experience I have ever had, makes me tear up just to remember it.

                                     A Tagore quote  you can partially see in the photo was 

 We live in the world when we love it.

One of the overall themes of the conference is we need to wake up and wake up KNOW to address all of the critical issues facing us.  The 1st program on Monday was with Tony Juniper, who wrote the book Harmony with the Prince of Wales, and dealt with the magnitude of the change needed and that the change needed is cultural, philosophical, political and economic as well as environmental.  We need a spiritual shift and a change in core values.

Next was a a very interesting program for me by two Schumacher Professors connecting Einstein and Tagore through Holistic Science and how our over-emphasis on mechanistic thinking is threatening the integrity of both Nature and culture.

Followed by a talk by Iain McGillchrist, an engaging Scottish psychiatrist, on right brain-left brain thinking and how right brain thinking has got us into the messes we are in and we need BOTH to survive.   How do I feed myself  and yet stay alive;  attending to narrow interests and global interests at the same time.

And to top it off to end the afternoon with Jane Goodall.  What a sweet and powerful lady who reminded us we are not borrowing resources from our children, we are stealing them and that everyone of us can make a difference every day in the way we live. To think about the consequences of small choices, that we have to become involved and to never give up.  An honor to be in the presence of su

All this mixed with music and dancing and Poetry.  Sounds exhausting, doesn't it?  but delightfully exhausting.  

We live in the world when we love it!

1st Day in Totnes

The Barrel House was the pub I went to last night for the Consciousness Cafe for the lecture on "Welling Up, How the body informs the mind" by one of the founders of Schumacher College. Very interesting and at least 100+ seekers mostly 50+.  I just love this place with so many interesting things to take part in.

                                  The Royal Seven Star Hotel in Totnes where I watched the ceremony

I woke at 5:00 this morning and turned on the tube to non stop coverage of Prince William and Kate's marriage.  What an ordeal and I'm surprised I enjoyed it so much.  I think I will spend some time in London on the way home and go to Westminster Abbey to experience it in person.  I especially liked when the Bishop of London said "all weddings are royal weddings with the groom and bride being the king and queen of creation bringing love into the world." Probably best if you hear him say it in the context of his speech.  And could you believe the hats the women were wearing?   Hard to believe they think they are attractive and I wonder how they managed to keep them on their heads.  Anyway,  I feel fortunate to have been here to experience it close up.  I'm sure I would have missed the whole thing if I was on Lopez.

I'm at the Albert Einstein Pub having the Friday night "Pot Pie & Pint" special.  Delightful but I can't figure out how you are suppose to eat the peas with out a spoon.  Makes me think of "I eat my peas with honey, I've done it all my life.  Makes my peas taste funny but it keeps them on my knife."  Looking over the catalogue for the Tagore Festival I was surprised to see that Tagore and Einstein were friends and one of the programs is about connecting Einstein and Tagore through Holistic Science and integrating our intuition with our reason.

Off to see some live music at the Barrel House.  No lack of things to do here in Totnes.  I looking forward to move over to Dartington Hall tomorrow.

                           I slept and dreamt that life was joy
                           I awoke and saw that life was service
                           I acted and behold, service was joy.


                                         ~Rabindranath Tagore ~