Monthly Archives: April 2021

Fae

Beltane art print | Etsy
Mira Xwendel

Today we stand at the Eve of Beltane-May Day, which this year is also Orthodox Good Friday & Holy Saturday – so interesting.  Here we see how the mysteries of birth & death bring us to the same portal seen from different sides. This morning as the birds call in the Sunrise, while moving the etheric forces in eurythmy, I couldn’t help but feel how all the Green World is charged with new life beneath the light of the growing sun.

ETHEL WYNNE M. QUAIL

This is a time when the faeries are powerfully stiring in the elements. These spirit-beings, are of a middle nature betwixt the human being & the Angels. For they are creatures of light & energy -of ‘force’ rather than ‘form,’ who can shift their shape as they please, not being bound by the laws of the physical world.

ETHEL WYNNE M. QUAIL

Today, a new awareness of these beings is returning, as people are awakening to the reality of worlds beyond the limit of the five senses – Their energies are especially potent & accessible during these Cross-Quarter times. More & more folks are cultivating relationships with the elemental beings. These believers are often visionaries, poets & artists, but really anyone who refuses to be influenced by the modern materialistic world-view can work with them.

ETHEL WYNNE M. QUAIL

It seems that, with the current crisis on Earth, we are especially called to reconnect with these Beings of Light who share our planet home. When we ignore, or even worse, pollute, degrade & lay waste to the land, sea & skies, we are destroying their world, too. We tear apart the exquisitely woven tapestry of all creation.

ETHEL WYNNE M. QUAIL

And so the spiritual beings behind these elements are bringing messages thru our current world crisis, urging us to change our ways, from living in separateness, to an awareness of our interconnectedness with all beings, visible & invisible, in the great Web of Life.

ETHEL WYNNE M. QUAIL

Friends, we don’t need special psychic powers to connect with faeries – just the willingness to open the heart & mind, as a child might do. This Beltane season, take a faery walk in Nature, where there are trees & plants, or a body of water. Find a place to sit, & get grounded, taking some deep breaths:

ETHEL WYNNE M. QUAIL

Inhale sunlight & create an imagination of a wave of green light rising from the land beneath you, rising up your body to connect you with the Earth below. Exhale & sense a wave of golden light flowing down from the heavens thru your body, connecting you with the Sun & Stars. Do this several times until you feel relaxed & charged with the energy of Earth & Sky.

ETHEL WYNNE M. QUAIL

Look around, & notice 3 natural things that are calling out to you. Send a vortex of light from the Sun thru your heart & connect with them in the way that each needs.

ETHEL WYNNE M. QUAIL

Now extend that connection to everything around you.  Rest & be at peace in this feeling of oneness.

ETHEL WYNNE M. QUAIL

Perhaps you might ask for a message from the Faery realm.  Open to receive impressions that may come to you. The response may manifest as a feeling, or a movement of light, a sparkling out of the corner of your eye, a rising within of a joyful energy; or it may come as words or images in your mind’s eye. Be open for signs from the animal kingdom, bird or insect movements, winds or calls that may carry a message for you. Send back peace, & love & gratitude…

ETHEL WYNNE M. QUAIL

It helps to be consistent, to reach out & connect thruout the seasons. Be a spiritual scientific researcher & document your impressions – Which can reveal hidden patterns. What is the communication like in the mornings, at high-noon, at sunset or midnight…?

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is beltane-swirl.jpg
Kelba Nealy

The elemental beings need us to prove that we are committed to cultivating a dialogue – trust develops & a relationship emerges…Then we can share our stories around the Beltane fires & watch the sparks rise within our own formative forces & in the world…

Beltane Blessings

~hag

Mercury and Venus after sunset, April 30, 2021
skyandtelescope.org

30 April 2021 – “Speaking with the stars”: Have you gone out to greet Mercury and Venus after sunset yet? They’re still quite low in the northwest even in bright twilight. Venus especially.

Rudolf Steiner’s Lectures on this day (so thankful for rsarchive.org/)

ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY (From the Calendar of the Soul by Rudolf Steiner & Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

Fritz Roeber

Walpurgis Night, In Germanic folklore Walpurgisnacht, also called Hexennacht, literally “Witches’ Night” – the eve of the feast day of Saint Walpurga, an 8th-century abbess in Francia.  In Goethe’s Faust we see 2 scenes: ‘Romantic Walpurgis Night’ the night of a witches’ meeting on the Brocken, the highest peak in the Harz Mountains, a range of wooded hills in central Germany; and later in Part 2 a ‘Classical Walpurgis Night’ is featured.

65 – Seneca, teacher of Nero, murdered

Image result for 1789 – On the balcony of Federal Hall on Wall Street in New York City, George Washington takes the oath of office

1789 – On the balcony of Federal Hall on Wall Street in New York City, George Washington takes the oath of office to become the first elected President of the United States.

Image result for 1812 – Birthday of the enigmatic Kaspar Hauser

1812 – One version of history tells us today was the Birthday of the enigmatic Kaspar Hauser. According Rudolf Steiner Kaspar Hauser was, in fact the hereditary prince of Baden, who was born 29 September 1812. According to ‘history’, the prince died on 16 October 1812. But in truth, he had been switched with a dying infant, & only released from the dark brotherhood that had tried to stop his divine mission, 16 years later as Casper Hauser in the streets of Nuremberg, Germany. His parent were Charles, Grand Duke of Baden & Stéphanie de Beauharnais, cousin by marriage & adopted daughter of Napoleon. As Charles had no surviving male progeny, his successor was his uncle Louis, who was later succeeded by his half-brother, Leopold. Leopold’s mother, the Countess of Hochberg, was the alleged culprit for the plot. The Countess was supposed to have disguised herself as a ghost, the “White Lady”, when kidnapping the prince. Her motive, evidently, would have been to secure the succession for her sons. But of course those who study Anthroposophy know,there is much more to this story.

 From Rudolf Steiner:“An author, in order to indicate the mystery of his life, wrote that as he was carried out to burial the sun was setting on the one horizon and the moon was rising on the other. I speak, as you know, of Caspar Hauser. If you disregard all the pros and cons that have been asserted, if you look only at what has been fully verified, you will know that this foundling — who was one day simply there in the street, and who since he did not know whence he came, was called the Child of Europe — could neither read nor write when he was found. At an age of twenty years he possessed nothing of what is gained through the intellect but he had a remarkable memory. As they began to instruct him, as logic entered his soul, his memory disappeared. This transition in consciousness was accompanied by something else. He possessed at first an incredible, an entirely inborn truthfulness and it was precisely in this truthfulness that he went more and more astray. The more he nibbled, so to say, at intellectuality, the more it vanished. There would be many things to study were we to enter deeply into this human soul which had been artificially held back. It is not difficult for the student of Spiritual Science to credit the popular tradition, so unacceptable to the learned people of to-day, which relates that while Caspar Hauser still knew nothing, while he still had no idea that there were beings besides himself of different form, he exercised a remarkable effect upon quite savage creatures. Savage animals humbled themselves and became mild, something streamed from him that made such beasts gentle, although they savagely attacked anyone else. We could in fact penetrate deeply into the soul of this remarkable personality, so enigmatic to many, and you would see how things that cannot be explained from ordinary life are led back through Spiritual Science to spiritual facts. Such facts cannot be learnt by speculation but only by spiritual observation, though they are comprehensible to an unbiased and logical thinking.:

1877 – Birthday of Alice B. Toklas, an American-born member of the Parisian avant-garde of the early 20th century. Life partner of American writer Gertrude Stein

1885 – The Niagara Reservation becomes New York’s first state park, ensuring that Niagara Falls will not be devoted solely to industrial & commercial use

1939 – The 1939-40 New York World’s Fair opens

Image result for hitler suicide

1945 – Adolf Hitler commits suicide

Image result for 1963 – The Bristol Bus Boycott

1963 – The Bristol Bus Boycott is held to protest the Company’s refusal to employ Black or Asian bus crews, drawing national attention to racial discrimination in the United Kingdom

News from the Central Regional Council:
1. Transitions
2. Looking for new CRC members
3. Our Whitsun Festival
4. A NEW theme for our Study Group
The Central Regional Council’s ‘Great American Eclipse’ pageant in St. Louis

1. Marianne Fieber is stepping down as the representative of our region on the General Council of the Anthroposophical Society in America. 

We thank Marianne for her generous and warm contributions in the past several years. She will be missed but, of course, we support her decision and wish her well.  See you around, dear friend!

Here below are a few words from Marianne Fieber:
 Dear Anthroposophical Members and Friends of the Central Region,
 
In 2005 I had the great privilege to share the work I had begun with Songtrails at a regional gathering in Chicago, IL entitled The Living Map Festival. Perhaps many of you have experienced a Songtrail or heard reports from recent events. Working with the Regional Council at that time was a profound and life-changing experience for me.

My work with Songtrails has blossomed beyond my wildest dreams and I have led many individuals in experiencing a Spirit of Place while actively feeling oneself as a bridge between the earth and heavens. By weaving songs, verses, prayers with walking and stories of the land, a deep personal relationship is built with a place. Shortly after that event, I was asked to join the Central Regional Council. That was over 15 years ago. Throughout that time I have met and worked with so many colleagues, members and friends through collaborative co-creation of weekend conferences, gatherings and artistic experiences with the intention of deepening a living experience of Anthroposophia in our region.
 
I am a Central Regional being – born and raised here in the Midwest. No doubt about that. I have traveled quite a bit throughout the world and country, but feel at home here in the Heartland. It was an honor to succeed Dennis Dietzel (MN) in serving as the representative of our region on the General Council of the Anthroposophical Society in America. It is hard to describe the transformation I have undergone through the rich studies and discussions, contemplations about the direction the ASA might take to meet what the world was asking of us as spiritually striving human beings in the present and future.
 
It is time I now pass the torch of regional representation to Hazel Archer-Ginsberg. She will be stepping into this new role of service beginning in June, 2021.
With gratitude, Marianne Fieber for the Central Regional Council

2. LOOKING FOR NEW COLLEAGUES
 For quite some time now we have been casually thinking about new colleagues. We cannot be casual any longer. As Marianne steps back, it will be important to find new regional members who are ready to step into a collaborative leadership role and help weave the work within our region into the future.
 
The future is always evolving and the work of cultivating anthroposophy throughout our vast region is dynamic and vital. Working regionally is an infinitely rewarding opportunity to serve Anthroposophia. We encourage anyone interested to join us.
 
What are we up to:
 The CRC hosts a monthly online study group. We have been doing this long before the pandemic to cultivate connection among our members and friends both within our region and beyond. We are just completing a cycle of lectures entitled Manifestations of Karma and will be moving into a new cycle and theme (more details below).
 
We are currently co-creating the national Annual General Meeting conference ”Building the Temple of the Heart” 8-10 October 2021 in our region. It is being imagined as a hybrid online, streaming and in-person event with groups throughout our region. Planning meetings for that national event have begun on a monthly basis with the national leadership.
 
Our Festival programmingin celebration of the seasons and spiritual impulses within the course of the year continues. (see belwo)
 
Conversations have begun regarding inter-regional collaboration and initiatives toward strengthening our Anthroposophical communities throughout our continent.
 
If you are interested in talking about how you might be ready to step in to work with the CRC, please email Alberto Loya aloyavaca@utexas.edu 

 

3. Save the dates for Sangraal – a Pentecost Pilgrimage & Whitsun Festival 
with the Central Regional Council. an experiential ‘Pageant’ written by Hazel Archer-Ginsberg, taking us on a Quest from The Cauldron of Ceridwen, to The Holy Grail, & into The Sacred Vessel of the Sophia.

Join us on Whitsunday 23 May 2021, at 11 am PT / 12 noon MT / 1 pm – 2:30 pm CT / 2 pm ET / 8 pm CETZoom Meeting 
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81181550712 
Meeting ID: 811 8155 0712


Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kBw1EgrIRMore details will be provided in a couple of weeks.  Stay tuned!



4. A NEW Theme for our Study Group
After working with Karma & Reincarnation for 3 years the CRC has chosen a new Theme: 
 The Mysteries of the Holy Grail – from Arthur and Parzival to Modern Initiation for our study group, beginning with the June 2nd session.  The book is available for purchase from Steiner Books and Amazon.  The lectures may also be found on the RS Archive (eLib).  We will provide links to the lectures, as possible, in the emails that contain the details for each monthly session.

Note: for our May 5th session we will be reading Chapter 11 of the Manifestations of Karma book (the last chapter of the book).

The Karma Project – Manifestations of Karma Study Group May 5, 2021 – 7:15 pm Central (8:15 pm Eastern)


This is the other aspect of the karma of higher beings — that we develop a power of love which is not confined to humanity alone but which penetrates right into the cosmos. We shall be able to channel this love into beings higher than ourselves, and they will accept this as our offering. It will be a soul sacrifice. This sacrifice in soul will rise up to those who once poured their gifts upon us like the smoke of incense rising up to the spirits in times when human beings still possessed the gifts of the spirit. In those days they were only able to send up the symbolic smoke of sacrifice to the gods. In times to come they will send up streams of love to the spirits and out of this offering of love higher forces will pour down to humankind, which will work, with ever-increasing power, in our physical world, directed by the spiritual world. These will be magical forces in the true sense.“~Rudolf Steiner, Manifestations of KarmaChapter 11“Individual Karma and Shared Karma”, Hamburg, 28 May, 1910 … focus of the May 5 meeting.

The lecture can be found online at the RS Archive (eLib) by clicking this link:
 https://wn.rsarchive.org/Lectures/GA120/English/RSP1984/19100528p01.html
The Central Regional Council of the Anthroposophical Society in America invites you to join our ongoing  study conversation.  The study has been divided among four volunteers who will summarize their section to rebuild it as a foundation for our conversation. Please familiarize yourself with the lecture if possible so you will feel comfortable sharing your reflections and thoughts with the group.This collection of lectures has been republished by Rudolf Steiner Press under the title: “Manifestations of Karma.”  This book is a translation from German of Die Offenbarung des Karma (Ga 120), published in English by Rudolf Steiner Press in 1996.

Video Conference Details: Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81210110113
Meeting ID: 812 1011 0113
Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kdBJRUquk5
If you have questions, please contact Alberto Loya aloyavaca@utexas.edu

Agenda for our Study Call
 7:15  Welcome and Introductions        
7:18  Verse
7:25  Study led by three volunteers
Note: CRC team will ID volunteers
          Camille – pg. 202 to 207
          Travis – pg. 207 to 212
          Mary – pg. 212 to 218
          Hazel – pg. 218 to end
8:05  Conversation
8:28  Close with verse



Living into the Spheres of Cosmic Life and Cosmic Light: Easter, Ascension, Whitsun in the Calendar of the Soul  with Luigi Morelli, Hazel Archer and Geoff Norris – Zoom Host Frank Agrama
13 May 2021 Ascension Thursday 5- 6:30pm PT / 6-7:30 pm MT / 7 pm – 8:30 pm CT / 8-9:30 pm ET / 1 am – 2:30 am GMT / 2 am – 3:30 am CET

Join Zoom meeting: https://zoom.us/j/7052931041?pwd=TStPVnpFRzlwZ0NpRURBZDNyYnpBQT09 
Meeting ID: 705 293 1041 – Passcode: Ascension
Find your local number: https://zoom.us/u/a961qZZhF

Welcome – Frank Agrama
Verse #6 – Geoff Norris
Ascension: The Secret Teachings, The Elementals, & The Etheric Christ – Hazel Archer

Calendar of the Soul – Luigi Morelli – For those who are familiar with the Calendar of the Soul we could say that during spring and summer we follow the ascent of cosmic life, cosmic light, cosmic warmth and cosmic Word as gifts bestowed upon the human being by the cosmos. By being receptive to them we strengthen our connection to cosmos and Self.

We will briefly explore the dynamics of the year, then look at what qualities of soul we need to develop as we move into spring and summer, most particularly from Easter to Ascension and Whitsun. We will look at the verses of the calendar in conjunction with the artistic renditions of Anne Stockton and Karl König, drawn for each of the verses.
We will ask ourselves: How can we live into and grow from this time of the year? How can we deepen our inner relationship to the event of Ascension? What can we receive and what can we give?

Break-out Groups

Group Speech Work with Geoff Norris
Angels, in the early morning
May be seen the Dews among,
Stooping — plucking — smiling — flying —
Do the Buds to them belong?”

~Emily Dickenson

Closing Thoughts– Hazel Archer

For more info. contact Festivals Coordinator Hazel Archer

Events & Festivals Committee of the Rudolf Steiner Branch
of The Anthroposophical Society, 4249 North Lincoln Ave.
Chicago, IL 60618 (map

https://donate.rschicago.org/

Holy Grail - Wikipedia

Sangraal: A Pentecost Pilgrimage & Whitsun Festival with the Central Regional Council an experiential ‘Pageant’ written by Hazel Archer, taking us on a Quest from The Cauldron of Ceridwen, to The Holy Grail, & into The Sacred Vessel of the Sophia.

Join us on Whitsunday 23 May 2021, at 11 am PT / 12 noon MT / 1 pm – 2:30 pm CT / 2 pm ET / 8 pm CET
Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81181550712 Meeting ID: 811 8155 0712
Dial by your location  
Meeting ID: 811 8155 0712
Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kBw1EgrIR

After working with Karma & Reincarnation for 3 years the CRC has chosen a new Theme: ‘The Mysteries of the Holy Grail, from Arthur and Parzival to Modern Initiation’

The Mysteries of the Holy Grail: From Arthur and Parzival to Modern  Initiation: Steiner, Rudolf, Barton, Matthew: 9781855842342: Amazon.com:  Books

You are also invited to get the Book & Join us for study sessions through out the year as well. contact Alberto Loya aloyavaca@utexas.edu for more info

The Will to Serve

Anna Giulinni

Michael supports us with the courage to die into Christ, while still living in the world. Can we come to understand & live into the principle of Resurrection that continues to grow within & around us, even if all we can see is the death process?

Just as the April showers swell the seed in a gradual surrender to life. I find I must continuously, & conscientiously choose to let go, & open to the greening, allowing my whole being to become a vessel for the fulfillment of the Resurrection, allowing The Risen Christ to teach me – thru Nature, thru other human beings, & thru my Higher-Self.

And always my question is: What does this look like as a lifestyle, as a right livelihood, as a Shared festival?…As a community experience, honoring & furthering the Resurrection, by aligning our will with the Divine Will – Learning to serve from a place of wholehearted listening…& a practice of, not I, but Christ in me…

~hag

https://skyandtelescope.org/

29 April 2019 – “Speaking with the Stars”: Face north just after nightfall, look very high, and you’ll find the Pointers, the end stars of the Big Dipper’s bowl, on the meridian pointing toward Polaris straight down below. From the Pointers to Polaris is about three fists at arm’s length.

Image result for joan of arc with Michael

“Appearance of St.. Catherine and Michael to Joan of Arc,” by Hermann Stilke (Left-hand panel of his Joan of Arc triptych)

Rudolf Steiner’s Lectures on this day (so thankful for rsarchive.org/)

ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY (From the Calendar of the Soul by Rudolf Steiner & Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

Image result for St Endelienta

Feast Day of Saint Endelienta, a Cornish saint of the 5th century. She is believed to be a daughter of the Welsh King Brychan, & legend says that she was a goddaughter of King Arthur. She lived as a hermit at Trentinney where she subsisted on the milk of a cow.

Giovanni-di-Paolo

1380 – Death Day of Catherine of Siena, Italian mystic, philosopher, a Scholastic philosopher & theologian & saint. She is believed to have had miraculous visions & felt herself to be united in marriage with Jesus.

Born as the Black Death-ravaged in Siena, Italy, to Lapa Piagenti, the daughter of a local poet, & Giacomo di Benincasa, a cloth dyer who ran his enterprise with the help of his sons. Lapa was about forty years old when she gave premature birth to twin daughters Catherine & Giovanna. She had already borne 22 children, but half of them had died. Giovanna was handed over to a wet-nurse & died soon after. Catherine was nursed by her mother & developed into a healthy child. She was two years old when Lapa had her 25th child, another daughter named Giovanna. As a child Catherine was so merry that the family gave her the pet name of “Euphrosyne”, which is Greek for “joy” & the name of an early Christian saint.

Catherine had her first vision of Christ when she was five or six years old: She & a brother were on the way home from visiting a married sister when she is said to have experienced a vision of Christ seated in glory with the Apostles Peter, Paul, & JohnAt age seven, Catherine vowed to give her whole life to God.

When Catherine was sixteen, her older sister Bonaventura died in childbirth; already anguished by this, Catherine soon learned that her parents wanted her to marry Bonaventura’s widower. She was absolutely opposed & started a massive fast, & cut off her long hair as a protest.

“Build a cell inside your mind, from which you can never flee.” In this inner cell she made her father into a representation of Christ, her mother into the Blessed Virgin Mary, & her brothers into the apostles. Serving them humbly became an opportunity for spiritual growth. She chose to live an active & prayerful life outside a convent’s walls following the model of the Dominicans. Eventually her father gave up & permitted her to live as she pleased.

Her custom of giving away clothing &food without asking anyone’s permission cost her family significantly, but she demanded nothing for herself.

In about 1368, age twenty-one, Catherine experienced what she described in her letters as a “Mystical Marriage” with Jesus. Catherine received, not the ring of gold & jewels that her biographer reports in his version, but the ring of Christ’s foreskin.” Catherine herself mentions the foreskin-as-wedding ring motif in one of her letters, equating the wedding ring of a virgin with a foreskin; she typically claimed that her own wedding ring to Christ was simply invisible

As social & political tensions mounted in Siena, Catherine found herself drawn to intervene in wider politics. She began travelling with her followers throughout northern & central Italy advocating reform of the clergy & advising people that repentance &renewal could be done through “the total love for God.” In Pisa, in 1375, she used what influence she had to sway that city & Lucca away from alliance with the anti-papal league whose force was gaining momentum & strength. It was in Pisa that she received the stigmata.

She received the Holy Eucharist almost daily. This extreme fasting appeared unhealthy in the eyes of the clergy & her own sisterhood. Her confessor ordered her to eat properly. But Catherine claimed that she was unable to, describing her inability to eat as an infermità (illness). From the beginning of 1380, Catherine could neither eat nor swallow water. On February 26 she lost the use of her legs. St Catherine died in Rome, on 29 April 1380, at the age of thirty-three, having suffered a stroke eight days earlier.

Banner
Jeanne d’Arc à la bataille de Patay. Jeanne, as commander of the French army, leads the assault at Patay, where the French won a crushing victory over the English. Painted by Franck Craig, around 1900. Franck painted a oversized banner that would be extremely heavy and difficult to handle in real life.

1429 – Joan of Arc – the Maid of Orléans, defeats the English which begins the process that ended with England’s complete expulsion from the continent.

It was necessary that the Maid of Orleans went through a kind of unaware initiation to fulfill her historical mission.It concerned an initiation that could take place in the time of the thirteen nights between the 25th December and 6th January.In the last time before birth the human being is especially accessible to unaware influences from the spiritual world.

On the 6th January the Maid of Orleans was born, to whom the Christ Impulse was implanted just before she saw the physical sunlight.The Maid of Orleans intervened in the course of history in such a way that everything that happened later was determined through it.

The whole map of Europe would be different, also the spiritual life if the English had won.

The Maid was a servant of St. Michael. She was a warrior of his Will and brought this spiritual will to Earth by her determination and actions.In the Central European civilisation were the springs for the whole spiritual culture of the future, the foundation of the ego-culture.

The human ego had to enkindle itself in the outside world, to be awake and realised internally. Thus the ego-culture of Central Europe was aroused from the objective events, the heroic sacrifices, that have brought the changes into etheric bodies and continue to do so, through the recorded memory.

It is necessary that, there would be souls, who send thoughts into the spiritual world like extending arms and bring down the consciousness from the spiritual world, souls conscious of spirit.The proper purpose of all our endevours is to gain a living connection between the physical and spiritual worlds.

From the courage of the fighters,
From the blood of the battles,
From the grief of the bereaved,
From the nation’s sacrifices
Will grow up the fruits of spirit
If souls aware of spirit turn
Their senses to the spirit land.”

~Rudolf Steiner, Spiritual Science, a Necessity for the Present Time, The Relation of Man to his Folk Soul – Nuremberg, March 13, 1915, GA 159

“In order to throw a little light on the occult understanding of history, we may ask the question: What would the development of modern Europe have been if at the beginning of the 15th century the Maid of Orleans had not entered the arena of events? Anyone who thinks, even from an entirely external point of view, of the development that took place during this period, must say to himself: Suppose the deeds of the Maid of Orleans were erased from history … then, according to the knowledge obtainable from purely external historical research, one cannot but realise that without the working of higher, super-sensible Powers through the Maid of Orleans, the whole of France, indeed the whole of Europe in the 15th century, would have taken on an altogether different form. Everything in the impulses of will, in the physical brains of those times, was directed towards flooding all Europe with a general conception of the State which would have extinguished the folk-individualities and under this influence a very great deal of what has developed in Europe during the last centuries through the interplay of these folk-individualities would quite certainly have been impossible.

Imagine the deed of the Maid of Orleans blotted out from history, France abandoned to her fate without this intervention, and then ask: Without this deed, what would have become of France? And then think of the role played by France in the whole cultural life of humanity during the centuries following! Add to this the facts which cannot be refuted and are confirmed by actual documents concerning the mission of the Maid of Orleans. This young girl, certainly not highly educated even by the standards of her time, suddenly, before she is twenty years old, feels in the autumn of 1428 that spiritual Powers of the super-sensible worlds are speaking to her. True, she clothes these Powers in forms that are familiar to her, so that she is seeing them through the medium of her own mental images; but that does not do away with the reality of these Powers. Picture to yourselves that she knows that super-sensible Powers are guiding her will towards a definite point — I am speaking to begin with, not of what can be told about these facts from the Akasha Chronicle, but only of what is confirmed by documentary evidence.

We know that the Maid of Orleans confided her vision first of all to a relative who — one would almost say, by chance-happened to understand her; that after many vicissitudes and difficulties she was introduced to the Court of King Charles who, together with the whole French Army, had come to his wit’s end, as the saying goes. We know too, how after every conceivable obstacle had been put in her way, she finally recognised and went straight to the King, who was standing among such a crowd of people that no physical eye could have distinguished him. It is also known that at that moment she confided to him something— he wanted to test her by it — of which it can be said that it was known only to him and to the super-sensible worlds. You also know from ordinary history that it was she who, under the unceasing impulse and urge of her intense faith — it would be better to say, through her actual vision — and in face of the greatest difficulties, led the armies to victory and the King to his crowning.

Who intervened at that time in the course of history? — None other than Beings of higher Hierarchies! The Maid of Orleans was an outer Instrument of these Beings, and it was they who guided the deeds of history”. ~Rudolf Steiner, Occult History, Lecture 2, Stuttgart, 28th December 1910

Image result for 1862 –The Capture of New Orleans by Union forces

1862 –The Capture of New Orleans by Union forces in the American Civil War.

1899 – Birthday of Duke Ellington, American pianist, composer, & bandleader

1901 – Birthday of Hirohito, Japanese emperor

Image result for 1910 people budget

1910 – The Parliament of the United Kingdom passes the People’s Budget, the first budget in British history with the expressed intent of redistributing wealth among the British public

1945 –The German army in Italy unconditionally surrenders to the Allies.

Related image

1945 – Adolf Hitler marries his longtime partner Eva Braun in a Berlin bunker they both commit suicide the following day

Image result for 1945 – Dachau concentration camp is liberated

1945 – Dachau concentration camp is liberated by United States troops

1991 – A cyclone strikes the Chittagong district of southeastern Bangladesh with winds of around 155 miles per hour killing at least 238,000 people &leaving as many as 10 million homeless

1991 – The 7.0 Mw earthquake affects Georgia with a maximum intensity killing 370 people

Image result for 11992 –Riots in Los Angeles, following the acquittal of police officers charged with excessive force in the beating of Rodney King.

1992 –Riots in Los Angeles, following the acquittal of police officers charged with excessive force in the beating of Rodney King. Over the next three days 53 people are killed & hundreds of buildings are destroyed

Speaking of Angels and Saints: The Story of Joan of Arc | Ancient Origins
Jan Matejko

POD (Poem Of the Day)

~out of chaos came the light
out of will came life…

~hag

KARMA SIRIKOGAR ART | Art, Visionary art, Abstract
Devi Soickavari
The Karma Project – Manifestations of Karma Study Group
May 5, 2021 – 7:15 pm Central (8:15 pm Eastern)

This is the other aspect of the karma of higher beings — that we develop a power of love which is not confined to humanity alone but which penetrates right into the cosmos. We shall be able to channel this love into beings higher than ourselves, and they will accept this as our offering. It will be a soul sacrifice. This sacrifice in soul will rise up to those who once poured their gifts upon us like the smoke of incense rising up to the spirits in times when human beings still possessed the gifts of the spirit. In those days they were only able to send up the symbolic smoke of sacrifice to the gods. In times to come they will send up streams of love to the spirits and out of this offering of love higher forces will pour down to humankind, which will work, with ever-increasing power, in our physical world, directed by the spiritual world. These will be magical forces in the true sense.“~Rudolf Steiner, Manifestations of KarmaChapter 11“Individual Karma and Shared Karma”, Hamburg, 28 May, 1910 … focus of the May 5 meeting.

The lecture can be found online at the RS Archive (eLib) by clicking this link:
 https://wn.rsarchive.org/Lectures/GA120/English/RSP1984/19100528p01.html
The Central Regional Council of the Anthroposophical Society in America invites you to join our ongoing  study conversation.  The study has been divided among four volunteers who will summarize their section to rebuild it as a foundation for our conversation. Please familiarize yourself with the lecture if possible so you will feel comfortable sharing your reflections and thoughts with the group.This collection of lectures has been republished by Rudolf Steiner Press under the title: “Manifestations of Karma.”  This book is a translation from German of Die Offenbarung des Karma (Ga 120), published in English by Rudolf Steiner Press in 1996.

Video Conference Details: Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81210110113
Meeting ID: 812 1011 0113
Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kdBJRUquk5
If you have questions, please contact Alberto Loya aloyavaca@utexas.edu
Agenda for our Study Call
 7:15  Welcome and Introductions        
7:18  Verse
7:25  Study led by three volunteers
Note: CRC team will ID volunteers
          Camille – pg. 202 to 207
          Travis – pg. 207 to 212
          Mary – pg. 212 to 218
          Hazel – pg. 218 to end
8:05  Conversation
8:28  Close with verse

Living into the Spheres of Cosmic Life and Cosmic Light: Easter, Ascension, Whitsun in the Calendar of the Soul  with Luigi Morelli, Hazel Archer and Geoff Norris – Zoom Host Frank Agrama

13 May 2021 Ascension Thursday 5- 6:30pm PT / 6-7:30 pm MT / 7 pm – 8:30 pm CT / 8-9:30 pm ET / 1 am – 2:30 am GMT / 2 am – 3:30 am CET

Join Zoom meeting: https://zoom.us/j/7052931041?pwd=TStPVnpFRzlwZ0NpRURBZDNyYnpBQT09 

Meeting ID: 705 293 1041 – Passcode: Ascension

Find your local number: https://zoom.us/u/a961qZZhF

Welcome – Frank Agrama

Verse #6 – Geoff Norris

Ascension: The Secret Teachings, The Elementals, & The Etheric Christ – Hazel Archer

Calendar of the Soul – Luigi Morelli

For those who are familiar with the Calendar of the Soul we could say that during spring and summer we follow the ascent of cosmic life, cosmic light, cosmic warmth and cosmic Word as gifts bestowed upon the human being by the cosmos. By being receptive to them we strengthen our connection to cosmos and Self.

We will briefly explore the dynamics of the year, then look at what qualities of soul we need to develop as we move into spring and summer, most particularly from Easter to Ascension and Whitsun. We will look at the verses of the calendar in conjunction with the artistic renditions of Anne Stockton and Karl König, drawn for each of the verses.

We will ask ourselves: How can we live into and grow from this time of the year? How can we deepen our inner relationship to the event of Ascension? What can we receive and what can we give?

Break-out Groups

Group Speech Work with Geoff Norris

Angels, in the early morning
May be seen the Dews among,
Stooping — plucking — smiling — flying —
Do the Buds to them belong?”

~Emily Dickenson

Closing Thoughts – Hazel Archer

For more info. contact Festivals Coordinator Hazel Archer

Events & Festivals Committee of the Rudolf Steiner Branch
of The Anthroposophical Society, 4249 North Lincoln Ave.
Chicago, IL 60618 (map

https://donate.rschicago.org/

***

Holy Grail - Wikipedia

Sangraal: A Pentecost Pilgrimage & Whitsun Festival with the Central Regional Council an experiential ‘Pageant’ written by Hazel Archer, taking us on a Quest from The Cauldron of Ceridwen, to The Holy Grail, & into The Sacred Vessel of the Sophia.

Join us on Whitsunday 23 May 2021, at 11 am PT / 12 noon MT / 1 pm – 2:30 pm CT / 2 pm ET / 8 pm CET

Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81181550712 Meeting ID: 811 8155 0712

Dial by your location  
Meeting ID: 811 8155 0712
Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kBw1EgrIR

After working with Karma & Reincarnation for 3 years the CRC has chosen a new Theme: ‘The Mysteries of the Holy Grail, from Arthur and Parzival to Modern Initiation’

The Mysteries of the Holy Grail: From Arthur and Parzival to Modern  Initiation: Steiner, Rudolf, Barton, Matthew: 9781855842342: Amazon.com:  Books

You are also invited to get the Book & Join us for study sessions through out the year as well. contact Alberto Loya aloyavaca@utexas.edu for more info.

You & I

Prospere Pierre Louis - "Sun Totem," an Oil on Canvas signed by Prospere  Pierre Louis For Sale at 1stDibs
Prospere Pierre Louis

10:10 Testament: from Caite Allam of Ann Arbor, MI. – “Egregore lives large daily in my life. Now there is another short verse (quote) that I gained in Orland Bishop‘s last talk for Applied Anthroposophy: “I AM because YOU ARE because of WHAT the World CAN BECOME.”
Orland went on to say: “And where does this come from? From the future.”
This thought stirs and enlivens egregore for me, each time. So we live into the future, which is Grace because the present is very unsecured.”

Thanks Caite & Orland! And blessings to all who add to the Thought-Seed Egregore everyday – Together we are – The future…

No photo description available.
Art Therapy Spot

What is told as “history” today must first cease to be called “history.” In not too distant a future, instead of speaking of all the things contained in history as it is told today, people will speak of the spiritual impulses standing behind the historical evolution, impulses which are only perceived as if in a dream by human beings. These are the spiritual impulses that call the human being to freedom, and make us free, because they raise us to the world from which intuition, inspiration, and imagination come. For what happens outwardly on the physical plane, what constitutes outer history loses its meaning as soon as it has occurred, if not seen as a spiritual impulse… What is now called “history” is a “corpse-history” compared with the reality of what constitutes karma”. ~Historical Necessity and Freewill Lecture 5, by Rudolf Steiner, Dornach, 15 December, 1917

28 April 2021 – “Speaking with the Stars”

Past Present Future by Susan Schanerman | Art, Past present future, Poster  art
Susan Schanerman

Rudolf Steiner’s Lectures on this day

ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY (From the Calendar of the Soul by Rudolf Steiner & Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

1945 – Benito Mussolini & his mistress Clara Petacci are executed by a firing squad consisting of members of the Italian resistance movement

1967 –Boxer Muhammad Ali refuses his induction into the United States Army & is subsequently stripped of his championship and license

1969 – Charles de Gaulle resigns as President of France.

***

Weeping Willow Tree Paintings | Fine Art America
Claud Monet

POD (Poem Of the Day)

~I come
To the stony place hidden
In the nook of a willow
By the great inland sea
It has the shape of memory
In its fragrance
My weeping unfurls
Into the earth
To be taken
Up by the thirsty laurel
Which bursts into bloom
With the souls of the dead
Like pale yellow flowers yet to come
Again like Spring
~hag

KARMA SIRIKOGAR ART | Art, Visionary art, Abstract
Devi Soickavari
The Karma Project – Manifestations of Karma Study Group
May 5, 2021 – 7:15 pm Central (8:15 pm Eastern)

This is the other aspect of the karma of higher beings — that we develop a power of love which is not confined to humanity alone but which penetrates right into the cosmos. We shall be able to channel this love into beings higher than ourselves, and they will accept this as our offering. It will be a soul sacrifice. This sacrifice in soul will rise up to those who once poured their gifts upon us like the smoke of incense rising up to the spirits in times when human beings still possessed the gifts of the spirit. In those days they were only able to send up the symbolic smoke of sacrifice to the gods. In times to come they will send up streams of love to the spirits and out of this offering of love higher forces will pour down to humankind, which will work, with ever-increasing power, in our physical world, directed by the spiritual world. These will be magical forces in the true sense.“~Rudolf Steiner, Manifestations of KarmaChapter 11“Individual Karma and Shared Karma”, Hamburg, 28 May, 1910 … focus of the May 5 meeting.

The lecture can be found online at the RS Archive (eLib) by clicking this link:
 https://wn.rsarchive.org/Lectures/GA120/English/RSP1984/19100528p01.html
The Central Regional Council of the Anthroposophical Society in America invites you to join our ongoing  study conversation.  The study has been divided among four volunteers who will summarize their section to rebuild it as a foundation for our conversation. Please familiarize yourself with the lecture if possible so you will feel comfortable sharing your reflections and thoughts with the group.This collection of lectures has been republished by Rudolf Steiner Press under the title: “Manifestations of Karma.”  This book is a translation from German of Die Offenbarung des Karma (Ga 120), published in English by Rudolf Steiner Press in 1996.

Video Conference Details: Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81210110113
Meeting ID: 812 1011 0113
Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kdBJRUquk5
If you have questions, please contact Alberto Loya aloyavaca@utexas.edu
Agenda for our Study Call
 7:15  Welcome and Introductions        
7:18  Verse
7:25  Study led by three volunteers
Note: CRC team will ID volunteers
          Camille – pg. 202 to 207
          Travis – pg. 207 to 212
          Mary – pg. 212 to 218
          Hazel – pg. 218 to end
8:05  Conversation
8:28  Close with verse

Living into the Spheres of Cosmic Life and Cosmic Light: Easter, Ascension, Whitsun in the Calendar of the Soul  with Luigi Morelli, Hazel Archer and Geoff Norris – Zoom Host Frank Agrama

13 May 2021 Ascension Thursday 5- 6:30pm PT / 6-7:30 pm MT / 7 pm – 8:30 pm CT / 8-9:30 pm ET / 1 am – 2:30 am GMT / 2 am – 3:30 am CET

Join Zoom meeting: https://zoom.us/j/7052931041?pwd=TStPVnpFRzlwZ0NpRURBZDNyYnpBQT09 

Meeting ID: 705 293 1041 – Passcode: Ascension

Find your local number: https://zoom.us/u/a961qZZhF

Welcome – Frank Agrama

Verse #6 – Geoff Norris

Ascension: The Secret Teachings, The Elementals, & The Etheric Christ – Hazel Archer

Calendar of the Soul – Luigi Morelli

For those who are familiar with the Calendar of the Soul we could say that during spring and summer we follow the ascent of cosmic life, cosmic light, cosmic warmth and cosmic Word as gifts bestowed upon the human being by the cosmos. By being receptive to them we strengthen our connection to cosmos and Self.

We will briefly explore the dynamics of the year, then look at what qualities of soul we need to develop as we move into spring and summer, most particularly from Easter to Ascension and Whitsun. We will look at the verses of the calendar in conjunction with the artistic renditions of Anne Stockton and Karl König, drawn for each of the verses.

We will ask ourselves: How can we live into and grow from this time of the year? How can we deepen our inner relationship to the event of Ascension? What can we receive and what can we give?

Break-out Groups

Group Speech Work with Geoff Norris

Angels, in the early morning
May be seen the Dews among,
Stooping — plucking — smiling — flying —
Do the Buds to them belong?”

~Emily Dickenson

Closing Thoughts – Hazel Archer

For more info. contact Festivals Coordinator Hazel Archer

Events & Festivals Committee of the Rudolf Steiner Branch
of The Anthroposophical Society, 4249 North Lincoln Ave.
Chicago, IL 60618 (map

https://donate.rschicago.org/

***

Holy Grail - Wikipedia

Sangraal: A Pentecost Pilgrimage & Whitsun Festival with the Central Regional Council an experiential ‘Pageant’ written by Hazel Archer, taking us on a Quest from The Cauldron of Ceridwen, to The Holy Grail, & into The Sacred Vessel of the Sophia.

Join us on Whitsunday 23 May 2021, at 11 am PT / 12 noon MT / 1 pm – 2:30 pm CT / 2 pm ET / 8 pm CET

Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81181550712 Meeting ID: 811 8155 0712

Dial by your location  
Meeting ID: 811 8155 0712
Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kBw1EgrIR

After working with Karma & Reincarnation for 3 years the CRC has chosen a new Theme: ‘The Mysteries of the Holy Grail, from Arthur and Parzival to Modern Initiation’

The Mysteries of the Holy Grail: From Arthur and Parzival to Modern  Initiation: Steiner, Rudolf, Barton, Matthew: 9781855842342: Amazon.com:  Books

You are also invited to get the Book & Join us for study sessions through out the year as well. contact Alberto Loya aloyavaca@utexas.edu for more info.

Pandora’s Box

mother pain, original Painting created by the artist Shimon Wanda | Israel  Modern Art
Shimon Wanda

I Think Speech‘ Podcast for today.

Greetings friends – I was hoping my headache would subside so I could share my dream from this morning, but hells bells Sarah Sue no luck. What does Steiner say about pain? Well off hand I remember recently reading in our ‘Manifestations of Karma’ lectures by our dear Dr. Steiner, that an illness involving pain or inflammation is Luciferic – Illness with tumors or cancer are more Ahrimanic. I also remember at another time reading how ‘pain is crystalized wisdom’. Ha, then I started thinking of the song by Sting, ‘King of Pain’. Anyway humor always helps.  

Kathy Gibson Prints | Huntington's Disease Society of America
Kathy Gibson

For the last few nights in an attempt to bring some insights into a karmic conundrum, I have been employing one of Steiner’s ‘Karma exercises’ – where you take a physical attribute or mannerism that sticks out for you of the person you are working to get some clarity about into your sleep. The 1st night I actually slept pretty well & woke up feeling as if my angel had removed a brick from my shoulders. This was a powerful affirmation because after a long hard conversation, the 2 of us had said we were going to hand it over to our angels.

ArtPrize Artist Depicts Pain of Huntington's Disease, Caregiving -  MIBluesPerspectives
Lenny Jenner

But last night my monkey mind was running mad with a conversation involving the 3rd person in the triad, & I couldn’t rest. I finally got out of bed around 3 am & wrote out some questions. After my sunrise adulations, which always  do wonders for my soul, I laid down for a bit before I had to prepare for my ‘Tune-in Tuesday’ presentation for our 6 BE community. And that’s when I had the dream:

File:Pandora - John William Waterhouse.jpg - Wikimedia Commons
John William Waterhouse

I had been assigned to open Pandora’s Box. I even looked like a painting of our dear unlucky heroine, with the Grecian robes & wreathed hair etc. I braced myself, & with a shiver lifted the lock, cracking open a large chest. I remember thinking, that it called to mind the image of the Holy Ark of The Covenant, bright shining metal with long handles, but the golden angels on top looked very Egyptian. At first all that happened was that a big honey bee came zig zagging out, & I thought ‘O how beautiful, it’s a bee. This is great.’

Pin on Bees & Crowns
The Hornet by Bill Duncan 1890

So then I opened the box all the way. But then the bee turned out to be a hornet in disguise, & she was followed by a whole nest of killer hornets. I put my body in front of the box to try & keep them from all coming out. I looked down to see my now bare breasts covered with stings – swelling & oozing with poison. I struggled to close my eyes, but I couldn’t. Actually I was saying to myself open your eyes, open your eyes, even though in the dream I was trying to close them.

Heart pain Painting by Elena Spedale
Elena Speedale

Anyway that was when the hornet, who had at first been disguised as a bee, came back into view, this time it had a human face that looked like a crumbled piece of paper. I gasped because I recognized who it was, & when I did, the face dissolved into dust.

Angels in Human Form Quotes (Page 6) - Line.17QQ.com
Jeffery L. Royland

The Egyptian Angels lifted me up & whispered in my ear. And I knew what to do. That’s when I woke up. I had a pounding headache, but I went into my study & started doing the eurythmy gestures for ‘Faith, Love, & Hope’.

I do these most every day at Sunrise, but I had done something else this morning. While I was doing ‘Faith’ which I like to call ‘Ah Ha’ for awe & reverence, it was so strange, I struggled with it. I found it very awkward. Usually I love this one. I have always felt it came easy for me to practice reverence. But then I realized that while it comes easy to have Faith in the seasonal expressions of beauty, I don’t always bring that faith or awe into my human relationships.

Black karma by date of birth. How is karma calculated by date of birth?

And now writing this I am wanting to hope that perhaps because I let the hornet disguised as a bee bring its full wrath upon me, that maybe now our karmic debt could be paid. But, I know for this to happen, I will have to apply compassion in the form of ‘Faith, Love & Hope’ not just in a general way, but specifically toward the hornet & then maybe she would actually become a honey bee. And maybe my headaches would go away…

~hag

https://skyandtelescope.org/

27 April 2021 – “speaking with the Stars”

katie Wang

Rudolf Steiner’s Lectures on this day

ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY (From the Calendar of the Soul by Rudolf Steiner & Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

Feast day of Our Lady of Montserrat – One of the Black Madonnas of Europe, (“the little dark-skinned one” or “the little dark one”)- Believed by some to have been carved in Jerusalem in the early days of the Church. The Patron Saint of Catalonia, an honor she shares with Saint George. The famed image once bore the inscription ”Negra Sum Sed Formosa” (Latin: I am Black, but Beautiful).

The hymn to the Virgin of Montserrat, known as “el Virolai” is sung at noon on her feast day & begins with the words: “Rosa d’abril, Morena de la serra…” (April rose, dark-skinned lady of the mountain…). Therefore, this virgin is sometimes also known as the “Rosa d’abril”

Feast Day of St. Zita, the Italian patron saint of maids, often appealed to in order to help find lost keys. Born in Tuscany in the village of Monsagrati, not far from Lucca. At the age of 12, she became a servant in the Fatinelli household. For a long time, she was unjustly despised, overburdened, reviled, & often beaten by her employers & fellow servants for her hard work & obvious goodness. The abuse did not deprive her of her inward peace, & her love of those who wronged her. Her faith gradually moved the family to a religious awakening.

Zita often said to others that devotion is false if slothful. She considered her work assigned to her by God. She always rose several hours before the rest of the family to pray.

One anecdote relates a story of Zita giving her own food to the poor. One morning, Zita left her chore of baking bread to tend to someone in need. Some of the other servants told on her & when they went to investigate, they claimed to have found angels in the kitchen, baking the bread for her.

St. Zita died peacefully in her sleep & a star appeared above the attic where she lay. After 150 miracles were proven, she was canonized in 1696.

Her body was exhumed in 1580, discovered to be incorrupt, but has since become mummified. St. Zita’s body is currently on display for public veneration in the Basilica di San Frediano in Lucca.

On her feast day families bake a loaf of bread in her honor.

470 – Birthday of Socrates – teacher of Plato. Socrates gathers his pupils around himself, but how does he feel in relation to them? His manner of treating these pupils has been called the art of a spiritual midwife because he wished to draw out from the souls of his pupils what they themselves knew, and what they were to learn. He put his questions in such a manner that the fundamental inner mood of the souls of his pupils was stirred to movement. He transmitted nothing from himself to his pupils, but elicited everything from them. The somewhat dry and prosaic aspect of Socrates’ view of the world and the way he presented it comes from the fact that Socrates actually appealed to the independence and to the innate reasoning power of every pupil.” ~Rudolf Steiner, Gospel of Mark: Lecture 4

399 BC – Deathday of Socrates 

711 – Tarik ibn Ziyad, (who according to the spiritual scientific research of Rudolf Steiner in Karmic relationships Vol. 1 Chapter 10, reincarnated as Darwin) leads his army into Gibraltar

1667 – John Milton, blind & impoverished, sells the copyright of Paradise Lost for 10 pounds

1882 – Deathday of R.W.Emerson essayist, lecturer, & poet who led the transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century. He was seen as a champion of individualism & a prescient critic of the countervailing pressures of society, & he disseminated his thoughts through dozens of published essays & more than 1,500 public lectures across the United States.

Emerson gradually moved away from the religious & social beliefs of his contemporaries, formulating & expressing the philosophy of transcendentalism in his 1836 essay “Nature”. Following this work, he gave a speech entitled “The American Scholar” in 1837, which Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr. considered to be America’s “intellectual Declaration of Independence”.

Emerson wrote most of his important essays as lectures first & then revised them for print. His first two collections of essays, Essays: First Series (1841) & Essays: Second Series (1844), represent the core of his thinking. They include the well-known essays “Self-Reliance”, “The Over-Soul”, “Circles”, “The Poet” &”Experience”. Together with “Nature”, these essays made the decade from the mid-1830s to the mid-1840s Emerson’s most fertile period.

Emerson wrote on a number of subjects, never espousing fixed philosophical tenets, but developing certain ideas such as individuality, freedom, the ability for humankind to realize almost anything, & the relationship between the soul & the surrounding world. Emerson’s “nature” was more philosophical than naturalistic: “Philosophically considered, the universe is composed of Nature and the Soul”. Emerson is one of several figures who “took a more pantheist approach by rejecting views of God as separate from the world.”

He remains among the linchpins of the American romantic movement, & his work has greatly influenced the thinkers, writers & poets that followed him. When asked to sum up his work, he said his central doctrine was “the infinitude of the private man.” Emerson is also well known as a mentor & friend of Henry David Thoreau, a fellow transcendentalist.

(Spoken of by Rudolf Steiner as Tacitus in Vol 2 lecture 5, of Karmic Relationships. Tacitus was considered to be one of the greatest Roman historians. He lived in what has been called the Silver Age of Latin literature, & is known for the brevity & compactness of his Latin prose, as well as for his penetrating insights into the psychology of power politics )

sarmaticusblog.wordpress.com

POD (Poem Of the Day)

~I am blind until the moment I see
Thru another soul’s eyes
Listening with my hands
Lips pressed in prayer
My head rests in love
Limbs moving in sync with the will
Of spirit ensouled
The Logos in lemniscate
Strengthening the ether
In visible speech we stand
Together at the center of forever
~hag

KARMA SIRIKOGAR ART | Art, Visionary art, Abstract
Devi Soickavari
The Karma Project – Manifestations of Karma Study Group
May 5, 2021 – 7:15 pm Central (8:15 pm Eastern)

This is the other aspect of the karma of higher beings — that we develop a power of love which is not confined to humanity alone but which penetrates right into the cosmos. We shall be able to channel this love into beings higher than ourselves, and they will accept this as our offering. It will be a soul sacrifice. This sacrifice in soul will rise up to those who once poured their gifts upon us like the smoke of incense rising up to the spirits in times when human beings still possessed the gifts of the spirit. In those days they were only able to send up the symbolic smoke of sacrifice to the gods. In times to come they will send up streams of love to the spirits and out of this offering of love higher forces will pour down to humankind, which will work, with ever-increasing power, in our physical world, directed by the spiritual world. These will be magical forces in the true sense.“~Rudolf Steiner, Manifestations of KarmaChapter 11“Individual Karma and Shared Karma”, Hamburg, 28 May, 1910 … focus of the May 5 meeting.

The lecture can be found online at the RS Archive (eLib) by clicking this link: https://wn.rsarchive.org/Lectures/GA120/English/RSP1984/19100528p01.htmlThe Central Regional Council of the Anthroposophical Society in America invites you to join our ongoing  study conversation.  The study has been divided among four volunteers who will summarize their section to rebuild it as a foundation for our conversation. Please familiarize yourself with the lecture if possible so you will feel comfortable sharing your reflections and thoughts with the group.This collection of lectures has been republished by Rudolf Steiner Press under the title: “Manifestations of Karma.”  This book is a translation from German of Die Offenbarung des Karma (Ga 120), published in English by Rudolf Steiner Press in 1996.

This will be a “Zoom” conference call allowing us an opportunity to see one another while conversing (or audio only if you prefer).  To connect to the audio/video-conference:

Video Conference Details: Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81210110113
Meeting ID: 812 1011 0113
Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kdBJRUquk5
If you have questions, please contact Alberto Loya aloyavaca@utexas.edu
Agenda for our Study Call
 7:15  Welcome and Introductions        
7:18  Verse
7:25  Study led by three volunteers
Note: CRC team will ID volunteers
          Camille – pg. 202 to 207
          Travis – pg. 207 to 212
          Mary – pg. 212 to 218
          Hazel – pg. 218 to end
8:05  Conversation
8:28  Close with verse
Anthroposophische Seelenkalender als Wanddruck | Glomer.com

Living into the Spheres of Cosmic Life and Cosmic Light: Easter, Ascension, Whitsun in the Calendar of the Soul  with Luigi Morelli, Hazel Archer and Geoff Norris – Zoom Host Frank Agrama

13 May 2021 Ascension Thursday 5- 6:30pm PT / 6-7:30 pm MT / 7 pm – 8:30 pm CT / 8-9:30 pm ET / 1 am – 2:30 am GMT / 2 am – 3:30 am CET

Join Zoom meeting: https://zoom.us/j/7052931041?pwd=TStPVnpFRzlwZ0NpRURBZDNyYnpBQT09 

Meeting ID: 705 293 1041 – Passcode: Ascension

Find your local number: https://zoom.us/u/a961qZZhF

Welcome – Frank Agrama

Verse #6 – Geoff Norris

Ascension: The Secret Teachings, The Elementals, & The Etheric Christ – Hazel Archer

Calendar of the Soul – Luigi Morelli

For those who are familiar with the Calendar of the Soul we could say that during spring and summer we follow the ascent of cosmic life, cosmic light, cosmic warmth and cosmic Word as gifts bestowed upon the human being by the cosmos. By being receptive to them we strengthen our connection to cosmos and Self.

We will briefly explore the dynamics of the year, then look at what qualities of soul we need to develop as we move into spring and summer, most particularly from Easter to Ascension and Whitsun. We will look at the verses of the calendar in conjunction with the artistic renditions of Anne Stockton and Karl König, drawn for each of the verses.

We will ask ourselves: How can we live into and grow from this time of the year? How can we deepen our inner relationship to the event of Ascension? What can we receive and what can we give?

Break-out Groups

Group Speech Work with Geoff Norris

Angels, in the early morning
May be seen the Dews among,
Stooping — plucking — smiling — flying —
Do the Buds to them belong?”

~Emily Dickenson

Closing Thoughts – Hazel Archer

For more info. contact Festivals Coordinator Hazel Archer

Events & Festivals Committee of the Rudolf Steiner Branch
of The Anthroposophical Society, 4249 North Lincoln Ave.
Chicago, IL 60618 (map

https://donate.rschicago.org/

***

Holy Grail - Wikipedia

Sangraal: A Pentecost Pilgrimage & Whitsun Festival with the Central Regional Council an experiential ‘Pageant’ written by Hazel Archer, taking us on a Quest from The Cauldron of Ceridwen, to The Holy Grail, & into The Sacred Vessel of the Sophia.

Join us on Whitsunday 23 May 2021, at 11 am PT / 12 noon MT / 1 pm – 2:30 pm CT / 2 pm ET / 8 pm CET

Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81181550712 Meeting ID: 811 8155 0712

Dial by your location  
Meeting ID: 811 8155 0712
Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kBw1EgrIR

After working with Karma & Reincarnation for 3 years the CRC has chosen a new Theme: ‘The Mysteries of the Holy Grail, from Arthur and Parzival to Modern Initiation’

The Mysteries of the Holy Grail: From Arthur and Parzival to Modern  Initiation: Steiner, Rudolf, Barton, Matthew: 9781855842342: Amazon.com:  Books

You are also invited to get the Book & Join us for study sessions through out the year as well. contact Alberto Loya aloyavaca@utexas.edu for more info.

Side by side

Pin by Reah Green on Sacred Geometry | Esoteric art, Spiritual art, Sacred  art
Reah Green

~No fear is here
As I gather the serpents to my breast
Speaking their names I take their venom…
Burning with holy fire
I vomit the evil
Wrought with a kiss
Turning the poison into medicine
Smelting my words unto gold
In the eternal dance I twine the snakes into my DNA –
Now death lives on my forehead
Side by side with light
~hag

Communion of Saints Greeting Card for Sale by Elise Ritter
Kori Landau

Reflections on living into the “Reverse Ritual” shared with permission by Florin A. Filip

Communion – with Rudolf Steiner’s teaching, Michael’s Wisdom and Christ’s Love
Transubstantiation – taking all that is offered by the Spiritual Hierarchies and the beloved souls on the other side of the threshold and transforming it within, passing everything through your own fire, doing your internal alchemy
Sacrifice – offering to others “Freely you received, freely give” the seeds you have received and consciously have cherished so they are able to bear fruit for everybody
Revelation – bring that inner flame to the world and light up everybody who is crossing your path

Moon paintings - Piefingers
Emily Loydall

26 April 2021 – “Speaking with the Stars”: Full Sprouting Grasses (or Pink) Moon in Perigee tonight at 10:31 pm CT

Sorghastrum nutans Indian Grass | Prairie Moon Nursery
Sorghastrum nutans Indian Grass in our parkway

Rudolf Steiner’s Lectures on this day 

ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

Snowy at the lakefront for sunrise

26 April 2020 – Deathday of Stephan Sassafras Snow – our beloved family dog for 15 years.

KARMA SIRIKOGAR ART | Art, Visionary art, Abstract
Devi Soickavari
The Karma ProjectManifestations of Karma Study Group
May 5, 2021 – 7:15 pm Central (8:15 pm Eastern)

This is the other aspect of the karma of higher beings — that we develop a power of love which is not confined to humanity alone but which penetrates right into the cosmos. We shall be able to channel this love into beings higher than ourselves, and they will accept this as our offering. It will be a soul sacrifice. This sacrifice in soul will rise up to those who once poured their gifts upon us like the smoke of incense rising up to the spirits in times when human beings still possessed the gifts of the spirit. In those days they were only able to send up the symbolic smoke of sacrifice to the gods. In times to come they will send up streams of love to the spirits and out of this offering of love higher forces will pour down to humankind, which will work, with ever-increasing power, in our physical world, directed by the spiritual world. These will be magical forces in the true sense.“~Rudolf Steiner, Manifestations of KarmaChapter 11“Individual Karma and Shared Karma”, Hamburg, 28 May, 1910 … focus of the May 5 meeting.

The lecture can be found online at the RS Archive (eLib) by clicking this link: https://wn.rsarchive.org/Lectures/GA120/English/RSP1984/19100528p01.htmlThe Central Regional Council of the Anthroposophical Society in America invites you to join our ongoing  study conversation.  The study has been divided among four volunteers who will summarize their section to rebuild it as a foundation for our conversation. Please familiarize yourself with the lecture if possible so you will feel comfortable sharing your reflections and thoughts with the group.This collection of lectures has been republished by Rudolf Steiner Press under the title: “Manifestations of Karma.”  This book is a translation from German of Die Offenbarung des Karma (Ga 120), published in English by Rudolf Steiner Press in 1996.

This will be a “Zoom” conference call allowing us an opportunity to see one another while conversing (or audio only if you prefer).  To connect to the audio/video-conference:

Video Conference Details: Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81210110113
Meeting ID: 812 1011 0113
Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kdBJRUquk5
If you have questions, please contact Alberto Loya aloyavaca@utexas.edu
Agenda for our Study Call
 7:15  Welcome and Introductions        
7:18  Verse
7:25  Study led by three volunteers
Note: CRC team will ID volunteers
          Camille – pg. 202 to 207
          Travis – pg. 207 to 212
          Mary – pg. 212 to 218
          Hazel – pg. 218 to end
8:05  Conversation
8:28  Close with verse
Anthroposophische Seelenkalender als Wanddruck | Glomer.com

Living into the Spheres of Cosmic Life and Cosmic Light: Easter, Ascension, Whitsun in the Calendar of the Soul  with Luigi Morelli, Hazel Archer and Geoff Norris – Zoom Host Frank Agrama

13 May 2021 Ascension Thursday 5- 6:30pm PT / 6-7:30 pm MT / 7 pm – 8:30 pm CT / 8-9:30 pm ET / 1 am – 2:30 am GMT / 2 am – 3:30 am CET

Join Zoom meeting: https://zoom.us/j/7052931041?pwd=TStPVnpFRzlwZ0NpRURBZDNyYnpBQT09 

Meeting ID: 705 293 1041 – Passcode: Ascension

Find your local number: https://zoom.us/u/a961qZZhF

Welcome – Frank Agrama

Verse #6 – Geoff Norris

Ascension: The Secret Teachings, The Elementals, & The Etheric Christ – Hazel Archer

Calendar of the Soul – Luigi Morelli

For those who are familiar with the Calendar of the Soul we could say that during spring and summer we follow the ascent of cosmic life, cosmic light, cosmic warmth and cosmic Word as gifts bestowed upon the human being by the cosmos. By being receptive to them we strengthen our connection to cosmos and Self.

We will briefly explore the dynamics of the year, then look at what qualities of soul we need to develop as we move into spring and summer, most particularly from Easter to Ascension and Whitsun. We will look at the verses of the calendar in conjunction with the artistic renditions of Anne Stockton and Karl König, drawn for each of the verses.

We will ask ourselves: How can we live into and grow from this time of the year? How can we deepen our inner relationship to the event of Ascension? What can we receive and what can we give?

Break-out Groups

Group Speech Work with Geoff Norris

Angels, in the early morning
May be seen the Dews among,
Stooping — plucking — smiling — flying —
Do the Buds to them belong?”

~Emily Dickenson

Closing Thoughts – Hazel Archer

For more info. contact Festivals Coordinator Hazel Archer

Events & Festivals Committee of the Rudolf Steiner Branch
of The Anthroposophical Society, 4249 North Lincoln Ave.
Chicago, IL 60618 (map

https://donate.rschicago.org/

***

Holy Grail - Wikipedia

Sangraal: A Pentecost Pilgrimage & Whitsun Festival with the Central Regional Council an experiential ‘Pageant’ written by Hazel Archer, taking us on a Quest from The Cauldron of Ceridwen, to The Holy Grail, & into The Sacred Vessel of the Sophia.

Join us on Whitsunday 23 May 2021, at 11 am PT / 12 noon MT / 1 pm – 2:30 pm CT / 2 pm ET / 8 pm CET

Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81181550712 Meeting ID: 811 8155 0712

Dial by your location  
Meeting ID: 811 8155 0712
Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kBw1EgrIR

After working with Karma & Reincarnation for 3 years the CRC has chosen a new Theme: ‘The Mysteries of the Holy Grail, from Arthur and Parzival to Modern Initiation’

The Mysteries of the Holy Grail: From Arthur and Parzival to Modern  Initiation: Steiner, Rudolf, Barton, Matthew: 9781855842342: Amazon.com:  Books

You are also invited to get the Book & Join us for study sessions through out the year as well. contact Alberto Loya aloyavaca@utexas.edu for more info.

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