19 June 2019 – “Speaking with the Stars”: Here it is two days from Summer Solstice, & the conspicuous Summer Triangle asterism dominates the eastern sky in late evening.
325 – 1stCouncil of Nicea concludes & promulgates the Nicene Creed
1566 –
Birthday of James VI of Scotland & I of England, son of Mary, Queen of Scots. He sponsored the translation of the Bible into English
that would later be named after him: the Authorized
King James Version. Sir Anthony
Weldon claimed that James had been termed “the wisest fool in Christendom”. He was the patron of Frances Bacon, William Shakespeare, Joacob
Boehme & Jacob Balde.
James’s visit to Denmark, sparked an interest in the study of witchcraft, which he considered a branch of theology. He attended the North Berwick witch trials, the first major persecution of witches in Scotland under the Witchcraft Act 1563. Several people were convicted of using witchcraft to send storms against James’s ship, most notably Agnes Sampson. James became obsessed with the threat posed by witches & wrote Daemonologie in 1597, a tract opposed the practice of witchcraft & that provided background material for Shakespeare’s Tragedy of Macbeth.
1623 – Birthday of Blaise Pascal, French mathematician, physicist, inventor, philosopher & child prodigy.
1844 – Deathday of Étienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, defender of Goethean science, a French naturalist who established the principle of “unity of composition”. His scientific views had a transcendental flavor.
1862 – The U.S. Congress prohibits slavery in United States territories, nullifying Dred Scott v. Sandford.
1867 –
Deathday of Maximillian I. Seeking
to legitimize French rule in the Americas, Napoleon III invited Maximilian to
establish a new Mexican monarchy for him. Many foreign governments refused to
recognize Maximilian’s claim or regime. His self-declared empire collapsed, &
he was executed by the Mexican government.
1917 – The solar eclipse of June 19, 1917
1936 – The solar eclipse of June 19, 1936
1953 – Julius & Ethel Rosenberg are executed at Sing Sing, in New York
1964 – The Civil Rights Act of 1964 is approved after surviving an 83-day filibuster in the United States Senate
2012 –
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange requests
asylum in London’s Ecuadorian Embassy for fear of extradition to the US after
publication of previously classified documents including footage of civilian
killings by the US army
~ ~ ~
Weltenwärme (World Heat) Summer – In radiant heights where, Glistening in the sun, The friendly dragonflies are Flitting out rays of warmth Which blend into the space around. There, tarry thou, my soul; For, thinking of me, they weave From sadness, strength. Already I can feel How they are sensing me; How warmth streams from them, Permeating me. The spirit dissolves In cosmic interweaving, The earthly heaviness Into light of the future. ~Rudolf Steiner
~~~
In our time now at the Summer Solstice, the Sun enters the
fixed stars of Gemini, the Twins; which puts the Earth in the opposite stars of the Archer; the constellation which is
associated with the Winter Solstice.
This is the vertical axis of the
life of Sun & Earth.
The equinoxes of Spring & Autumn hold the horizontal axis, forming the great cross of nature, the seasonal life & symbol of Earth. Upon this cross we have the Christian festivals, with St. John’s & Christmas coinciding with this vertical axis, & Easter & Michaelmas along the horizontal axis.
Judith Pillar
When
thinking about the the in-breath & out-breath, the living cycle of the soul
of the Earth, we learn from Rudolf Steiner, that at Summer Solstice the Earth
soul & spirit (which is now the Christ) are fully exhaled out to the
periphery of the cosmos, to become intermingled with the grandeur of the
highest cosmic mysteries, where the true forces of life exist among the stars.
The soul of the Earth is dreaming now in the heights. The forces which live in
the seeds are held now in these summer dreams of the Earth in union with the
hierarchies, & it is this dreaming which is brought back into the Earth to
become assessable during the sacred time of the Holy Nights.
The summertime union between the sun & earth is actually a re-union between the spiritual beings of the sun & their human offspring. Through ‘the great window of heaven’ we experience this interaction which helps us develop an awareness of our higher “I”. We can contemplate this dynamic & bring it to life in our soul most strongly at this time of year.
Rudolf Steiner tells us that at
midsummer the Trinity reveals itself out
of the heart of this cosmic activity. A sounding, like the music of the
spheres, that calls us to explore our own inner harmony with the cosmos. To
answer the echo that unites us to the eternity of the Trinity.
Also important: Can we learn, to be still & small enough to hear the voice of conscience?
Bruce Rimell
At the fullness of Summer, the light is so bright that it leaves no room for the shadow to hide. High Noon is the hour of judgment – a good time to remember what John said “Then you shall know the truth, & the truth will set you free.”
Metanoia by Botticlelli
This is true if we respond to the summertime call for a ‘metanoia’- a review of life that brings us to want to engage in repentance, a call to ‘make straight the path’
The Beheading of Saint John the Baptist Pierre Puvis de Chavannes (1824–1898)
For when our ‘little ego’ decreases, we grow in Christ. The true power of our higher “I” will increase like Christ increases in earth existence. Just as John the Baptist, 1st had to decrease, then after the beheading, he was able to distillate his Spirit-Self to become the guardian angel of the apostles, especially Lazarus John, his name sake.
Da Vinci
Johannes E – O – Ah – nes…Following this archetypal gesture we can see that John the Baptist has become one of the main
impulse givers towards group work -guiding community life for us even today.
~hag
***
29-30 June 2019 Biography Work. Your Unique Life, Your Unique Path by Thania Keppel Coaching LLC
Everybody’s life is UNIQUE!
We are all at different stages in our lives and we are all unique individuals. That’s why there is no “one size fits all” solution to our issues.
We all have the frustrating experience of events in our lives that keep repeating themselves (challenging personal or professional relationships, accidents, failures, illnesses, etc.) That’s because the school of life doesn’t allow us to skip important lessons. Only when we have completed our “homework” or overcome a certain challenge will we be able to move to the next level.
In this two-day Biography workshop you’ll learn how to live in harmony with yourself. You’ll develop a personal roadmap to your life through immersion into the rhythms and cycles of your life, supported by hands-on activities. You’ll understand how to best connect with those around you: Your clients, your spouse, your partner, your children, your employees and the entire community!
If you are tired of going in circles and are ready to take control of your life this workshop is for you!
16 June 2019 – “Speaking with the Stars”: The Full Honey Moon officially arrives at 3:31 am CDT tomorrow morning, but it looks completely illuminated all night. Sweet Bella Luna appears low in the southeast as the Sun sets & climbs highest in the south around 1 am. The Full Moon resides among the background stars of southeastern Ophiuchus, sliding into western Sagittarius by daybreak.
Don’t be surprised if your friends ask you what that
bright object sitting next to the Moon is -You can impress them by answering Jupiter right away. The Benevolent
King, showing himself on this Father’s Day reached opposition last week, holding
space with Venus, which doesn’t rise
until morning twilight is well underway.
Adding to the panorama are, to their right, fainter Antares & the other stars of upper Scorpius
Happy Father’s Day to all you benevolent Kings out there!
100 years
ago, In June 1917 Rudolf Steiner spoke for the 1st time about Three-Folding…Are
we ready to carry this seed to the next stage…?
“Understanding of the world as it actually is, ability to bring spiritual knowledge right down into the practical life of humanity, into the stubborn spheres of technical industry & economics, as well as into the thinking, the moral life & the actions of the human being – this is one side of Rudolf Steiner’s challenge. The other is the development of the inner life of soul which generates love for human beings and the wisdom to promote their spiritual & social wellbeing…The inspirer of the 20th century has lived among us, & lives among us still. Is it not for us to work as laborers unto harvest?” ~D.N. Dunlop, “Rudolf Steiner and the fulfillment of the Quest.
1361 – Deathday of Johannes Tauler, a disciple of Meister Eckhart, one of the most important Rhineland Mystics. He promoted a neo-platonist dimension in the Dominican spirituality of his time
1858 – Abraham Lincoln delivers his House Divided speech in Springfield, Illinois
1901 – Deathday of Herman Grimm, son of one of the “Brothers Grimm” compilers of indigenous folk tales. His reputation is that of the arch-Romantic, Gründerzeit art historian, he was viewed as the intellectual successor of Goethe. His approach to art history was through the “Great Masters,” & a biographical account of art history. Rudolf Steiner spoke about his past lives as Pliny the Younger & Beatrice of Tuscany.
1903 – The Ford Motor Company is incorporated
1904 – Irish author James Joyce begins a relationship with Nora Barnacle & subsequently uses the date to set the actions for his novel Ulysses; this date is now traditionally called “Bloomsday”
1911 – IBM founded in Endicott, New York
1920 – Dr. Rudolf Steiner, & Dr. Ita Wegman, founded “Futurum AG“, in Arlesheim, Switzerland, & “Der Kommende Tag AG (an incorporated company to encourage economic & spiritual values) in Stuttgart Germany. Both companies merged for economic reasons, & today is known as Weleda.
1932 – D.N. Dunlop plans “International Association for the Advancement of Spiritual Science”
1936 – Deathday of Emil Molt, used concepts of the 3-fold social order in his business. He was the founder of the first Waldorf School, where Rudolf Steiner was the pedagogical director. Steiner spoke of him as the individuality called Charlemagne.
Emil Molt, orphaned at 13, was born in southern Germany. After finishing high school he was apprenticed to Emil Georgii in the town of Calw, in the Black Forest. There he learned about money, his powerful work ethic, & wonderful customer service. He was diligent & a quick study, valued by his employer, who took the unusual step of asking him to work a year beyond his obligation.
During this time Molt met his wife-to-be, & felt an immediate inner connection. But he was not yet in a position to marry. At 19 he went to serve his obligatory year of military service in Ulm. When he was finished, he signed a four-year contract with a German-run export business in Greece, & moved to Patras. After one year, in which he learned much about international trade, Greece got into a war with Turkey over Crete, & lost. Germany had sided with Turkey, & so Germans were unpopular.
Molt was offered a position in Stuttgart with the son of Emil Georgii (who was also called Emil) which he accepted. He was finally in a position to marry his beloved Berta, with whom he had been corresponding continually. They got married & they settled down in Stuttgart to manage a cigarette manufacturing company owned by the younger Emil Georgii. Molt traces the ups & downs of the business, & tells the story of how he eventually came to be director & part owner of the Waldorf Astoria cigarette company. Under Molt’s direction the brand was highly successful. Molt was a sensitive & progressive manager, he experimented with such novelties as open-book management.
World War One was devastating to Germany, & difficult for the Waldorf Astoria cigarette company. But Waldorf fared better than most of its competitors due to Molt’s foresight in buying several years worth of raw materials at the start of the war, before Germany’s foreign currency became worthless (most of the tobacco came from Greece & Turkey). At the end of the war Molt had too many workers, because Molt had hired replacements for those that went off to fight. When the soldiers returned from the front, Molt did not want to simply fire the replacements. Instead he kept everyone on the payroll, & worked them half days. In the afternoons he held adult-education classes for his workers, & paid for them to attend. He offered courses in history, geography, paper-making, tobacco cultivation, as well as literature. These were popular, but the workers, unaccustomed to learning, found the courses tiring. This made him realize that to make a difference, education had to come to children, & so he started thinking of a school for the children of his workers.
Molt first heard Rudolf Steiner speak in 1904, & became a member of the Theosophical Society in 1906. Stuttgart was a hub of anthroposophical activity, & Steiner came through many times. The area had the first dedicated branch house (in 1911) & regular meetings. After the First World War Steiner spoke several times in lectures about things that could be done, & Molt felt called upon to act.
Molt & several other Stuttgart-based anthroposophists tried to establish the Threefold Social Order in Baden-Württemberg, but despite their tremendous efforts, this did not come about. But Molt did take his idea of a school for his worker’s children, which he had shared with the workers to great enthusiasm, to Rudolf Steiner, who took it up. Molt earmarked a substantial sum from the company profits to pay for the school. The school was opened within six months. For the first year it was a “company” school, with the teachers being paid as employees of the Waldorf Astoria Cigarette Company. A year later, in 1920, the school was made independent, at the insistence of the teachers. A charitable foundation was established to own & manage the school, & the Waldorf Astoria Cigarette Company continued to pay the tuition of the factory worker’s children. Many new pupils joined. Enrollment went from around 300 to 1,100 students in about 5 years. The school was considered a model, & other schools were founded shortly thereafter in other cities. In 1928 a Rudolf Steiner School as far away as New York was established.
While the school flourished, business went downhill in the 1920’s. Molt bought out his partners in the Waldorf Astoria Cigarette Company. Inspired by the idea of a business association to fund anthroposophical work he & several other Stuttgart-based anthroposophists donated their businesses, becoming shareholders in “Die Kommende Tag”. The association was poorly managed, & collapsed a year later. The Waldorf Astoria Cigarette Company, its prized asset, was sold by the association to some banks, who kept Molt on as manager. Molt lost his entire investment, as did many others. In 1928 the banks sold their interest to the largest cigarette manufacturer in Germany, which was in the process of buying out & liquidating the competition. Molt read about the sale in the newspaper, & was shortly out of a job, the Waldorf Astoria Cigarette Company relegated to history.
At his death in 1936 the Waldorf School was being slowly strangled by the Nazi’s, & was shut down a few months later. But the model survived. After the war, it reopened, & today there are over 900 recognized Waldorf Schools worldwide.
1961 – Rudolf Nureyev defects from the Soviet Union
1963 –Cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova becomes the first woman in space
1967 – The Monterey Pop Festival begins
1976 – Soweto uprising: A non-violent march by 15,000 students in Soweto, South Africa turns into days of rioting when police open fire on the crowd
2008 – California began issuing marriage licenses to
same-sex couples
***
Alessandro Sicioldr
POD (Poem Of the Day)
~The eye opens differentiating
Colors in the light
Recalling me in this now
Knowing my name
It watches my heart
Wags my tongue
& Hangs the sky with Moon & Star
It is
Yesterday & tomorrow
A million years traveling
To reach the flowers in my hand
~hag
***
This Years’ Road trip to the ‘Villes’
István Orosz
I am still digesting our potent journey thru the Easter Paradox of 2019. The road trip from Chicago thru Louisville, to Nashville & Knoxville was a true culminating Whitsun event. My dear friend Elisabeth Swisher, the lead driver in our higher octave ‘Thelma & Louise’ adventure, was a godsend.
The power of the thriving Fox Hollow bio dynamic farm shone like a beacon in the atmosphere around Louisville as we made our way to visit a music festival at the botanic gardens outside the city. The rains always seemed to let up as soon as we arrived somewhere, making the air fragrant with life forces.
No trip to Nashville would be complete
without a visit to the home of the world’s only full-size replica of the
ancient Parthenon – nicknamed the “Athens of the South”; the centerpiece
of the 1897 Centennial Exposition, where a number of buildings were based on
ancient originals. The Parthenon was the only one preserved by the Knights of
Pythias.
Forty-six Doric columns encircle the building. The largest bronze doors in the world, weighing 7.5 tons each, stand at the East & West entrances.
But what draws me back is the featured colossus of Athena Parthenos, the tallest indoor sculpture in the Western world.
Many other sculptures & friezes are also direct casts of the original sculptures which adorned the pediments of the Athenian Parthenon, dating back to 438 BC.
Brigitta Gallaher
After taking in these ancient influences, we made our way to Barbara Bittles gracious home away from home, where the community gathered for a wonderful potluck meal before the 1st presentation on the Rose Cross in the evening. Barbara’s home is a true sanctuary, we worked in ‘The Chapel’ where she hosts the Christian Community Act of Consecration quarterly. The room is imbued with reverence & Barbara’s good will; it was an honor to share my offerings there again this year. Cathy Green & Elisabeth Swisher led us in song, we did folk eurythmy, & we worked with Rudolf Steiner’s indications for ‘Preparation, Illumination, Initiation’ to warm the ground of our souls for this important meditation. Fruitful conversation ensued, & we all took potent spiritual thoughts into our sleep.
The next day Mary Bryan, felt inspired in
the night to make up beautifully rendered copies of the mantras for everyone to
work with. Thank you dear Mary!
The Workshop the next day was sublime:
*Singing with Cathy Green: ‘Down by the River *Folk Eurythmy: ‘I Think Speech’ *The ‘Easter Paradox’ of 1924 – 1943 -2019 *Social Sculpture: Are you a ‘Springtime’ or an ‘Autumn person’? *The 3-Fold Movable Feast: The Resurrection – Antidote to the ‘fall’ The promise of Ascension leading to the 2nd Coming Whitsun: Festival of United Soul Endeavor *Singing with Elisabeth Swisher – Da Pacem Cordium (Peace to every heart) *Labyrinth of Vitae Sophia *Eurythmy: Foundation Stone
We discussed impressions from both the ‘Esoteric’ & the ‘Ecclesiastical’ Holy Weeks:
What a powerful experiment, researching, observing, listening, asking questions, being open to the messages within & around us during this extended opportunity to live into the 3-fold Festival of Easter during this paradox year.
some of the group from Nashville
At the end of our workshop, it was such a blessing that again the elemental spirits gave us space to walk the labyrinth & end with the Foundation Stone Meditation, in Barbara’s lovely garden.
A few times during our work, especially when we were singing, I had a clear image of Don Brakebill, Charlotte’s beloved husband from Maryville, where we were headed next, standing & singing with us. An imagination of him dressed in white, peaking around a corner, waving with a bright smile on his face. I said to the group: ‘Don is at the Threshold’. And I had a feeling Whitsun would be his birth day into the spiritual world.
After another wonderful social meal we hit the road making our way to Bill & Bonnie Rogers’ beautiful domicile in Knoxville. We stopped in town 1st for a Southern meal in Market Square where we met some interesting young folks at a resale shop. We got to talking about art & life, & danced among the racks of fun second hand clothes (E & I both found a treasure to take home!)
We sat up till late drinking tea sharing deep insights with dear Bill & Bonnie, such thoughtful, deep thinkers, kind & attentive, their hospitality attuned to beauty & every comfort.
Whitsun morning we received word that Don had indeed made his transition early Whitsun morning. Up until recently Charlotte still brought Don to all the study group sessions where every once in a while he would add the perfect comment even though he had been suffering with Alzheimer’s for about 12 years. I remember last year when I came to give a presentation he told a few stories of his life on the farm where he grew up, & joined enthusiastically in the singing, which was his great love. Read more about his life here
a portion of the Knoxville group that stayed late. Bonnie is holding a picture of Charlotte & Don.
The friends from the Knoxville area gathered for a generous potluck lunch before the workshop, & with one heart dedicated Whitsunday to Don, who we all felt was with us in spirit.
Workshop activities: *Leading Thoughts & original art-collage projections *‘The Golden Legend’ + Plant / Human: our future evolution *Building the Image of the Rose Cross *Folk Eurythmy: ‘IAO’ *Social Sculpture: Are you an ‘Autumn Person’ (RED) or a ‘Spring-time Person’ (BLUE) ? Folk Eurythmy: Hallelujah for Don
Many insights were shared by the participants; thoughts about the connections of the Rosicrucian stream with Freemasonry, insights gleaned from our biographies highlighted by the artistic work, discussions pointing up connections from other studies, all interweaving & enlivening the day’s theme.
After the workshop we took a walk in nature among yellow butterflies & views of the river, as we processed all that we had experienced. We ended the day by watching a compelling documentary featuring quotes by Rudolf Steiner, about 5G, which we must all educate ourselves about. (Although I don’t recommend watching it right before bed)
After a lovely breakfast, with our dear friends Bill & Bonnie, on colorful china from Bulgaria, Elisabeth & I hit the road. We thoroughly enjoyed sharing our biographies, & listening to a Neil Gaiman book on CD. We stopped for the best BBQ in Tennessee & took a nature walk in a lovely State Park before finding ourselves back on the shores of the Great Inland Sea of Chicago, full, & grateful for such an enriching journey.
The Easter Paradox of 2019 was a true milestone,
whose research will continue to live within me, a conduit from the original ‘Turning
Point in Time’ – thru Steiner’s Paradox experience in 1924 – & Lili Kolisko’s
powerful experiments in 1943…
Having heard the call to action, may our
work at this year’s 3-fold Paradox add to the etheric energies that this cosmic
& earthly opportunity has given us, to help enliven our future evolution.
30 May 2019 – “Speaking with the Stars”: The watery king Neptune rises around 2 am CDT high in the east-southeast as twilight commences.
A gigantic asterism you may not know is the Diamond of Virgo, some 50° tall and extending over five constellations. It currently stands upright in the south after the stars come out.
Start
with Spica, its bottom. Upper left
from Spica is bright Arcturus. Almost
as far upper right from Arcturus (as you face south) is fainter Cor Caroli, almost overhead. The same
distance lower right from there is Denebola,
the 2nd-magnitude tail-tip of Leo
(remember, this was where the Spring Full Moon fell right after the Equinox) And
then back to Spica.
The
brightest, bottom three of these stars, form a nearly perfect equilateral
triangle. Maybe we should call this the “Spring Triangle” to parallel those of summer & winter?
I turn to history not for lessons but to confront my experience with the experience of others and to win for myself a sense of responsibility for the state of the human conscience. ~ Zbigniew Herbert (Poet) 1924 – 1998
1431 – Deathday of Joan of Arc, French martyr & saint, burnt at the stake by the British under Duke of Bedford.
Burned at the stake as a heretic after a politically-motivated trial, Joan was beatified in 1909 and canonized in 1920. Born of a fairly well-to-do peasant couple in Domremy-Greux (southeast of Paris), Joan was only 12 when she experienced a vision and heard voices that she later identified as St. Michael the Archangel, Catherine of Alexandria, and Margaret of Antioch. During the Hundred Years War, she led French troops against the English and recaptured the cities of Orléans and Troyes. This enabled Charles VII to be crowned as king in Reims in 1429. Captured near Compiegne the following year, she was sold to the English and placed on trial for heresy and witchcraft. Professors at the University of Paris supported Bishop Pierre Cauchon of Beauvis, the judge at her trial; Cardinal Henry Beaufort of Winchester, England, participated in the questioning of Joan in prison. In the end, she was condemned for wearing men’s clothes. The English resented France’s military success–to which Joan contributed. On this day in 1431, she was burned at the stake in Rouen, and her ashes were scattered in the Seine River. A second Church trial 25 years later nullified the earlier verdict, which was reached under political pressure. Remembered by most people for her military exploits, Joan had a great love for the sacraments, which strengthened her compassion toward the poor. Popular devotion to her increased greatly in 19th-century France and later among French soldiers during World War I. Theologian George Tavard writes that her life “offers a perfect example of the conjunction of contemplation and action” because her spiritual insight is that there should be a “unity of heaven and earth.” Joan of Arc has been the subject of many books, plays, operas, and movies. “Joan of Arc is like a shooting star across the landscape of French and English history, amid the stories of the Church’s saints and into our consciousness. Women identify with her; men admire her courage. She challenges us in fundamental ways. Despite the fact that more than 500 years have passed since she lived, her issues of mysticism, calling, identity, trust and betrayal, conflict and focus are our issues still.” (Joan of Arc: God’s Warrior, by Barbara Beckwith)
1593 – Deathday of Christopher Marlowe, English poet & playwright
Paul-Delaroche
1672 – Birthday of Peter the Great Czar of Russia. He led a cultural revolution that replaced some of the traditionalist & medieval political systems with ones that were modern, scientific, based on The Enlightenment.
1778 – Deathday of Voltaire, French philosopher & author. Rudolf Steiner speaks of him as being a former pupil of the mysteries in Karmic Relationships Vol. 2.
1806 – Future U.S. President Andrew Jackson kills Charles Dickinson in a duel
1935 – Deathday of Daniel Nicol Dunlop , a Scottish entrepreneur, founder of the World Power Conference & other associations, a theosophist-turned-anthroposophist. Thought to have been a Templar in a former life. Dunlop saw Rudolf Steiner for the first time when he was still General Secretary of the German Section of the Theosophical Society, both of them expressed their intimate spiritual connection &respect for one another. Dunlop started the anthroposophical “Human Freedom Group & anthroposophical Summer Schools. In 1928 he organized the first & only World Conference on Anthroposophy & in 1929 he was elected General Secretary of the Anthroposophical Society in Great Britain. He had a deep friendship with Eleanor Merry, who supported his work, especially after the death of his own wife, Eleanor in 1932. As a result of conflicts & power struggles within the General Anthroposophical Society, leading to its splintering in April 1935, Dunlop was expelled together with a number of other leading members. He died shortly afterwards of an appendicitis. Dunlop enlisted the help of fellow anthroposophist Walter Johannes Stein in the hope of founding a World Economic Organization, but his death prevented this.
1936 – Ludwig Polzer-Hoditz resigns from the General Anthroposophical Society on the 1 year anniversary of his friend D.N. Dunlop’s death, in protest after many of his contemporizes were expelled from the Society.
1937 – Memorial Day massacre: Chicago police shoot & kill 10 labor demonstrators
1989
–The 33-foot high “Goddess of
Democracy” statue is unveiled in Tiananmen Square by student
demonstrators
1998
– The 6.5 Mw Afghanistan earthquake killed
over 5,000
***
POD (Poem Of the Day)
~In the clouds I hear what I see – A low hum of vitality The bell of flowers singing… With the bright blade of spirit I turned new ground, Planted seed & watched, Beneath my hand things happened – Grapes & wheat In time I will serve Wine & bread… ~hag
***
Rita De Cassia Perez.
Cloud Gazing Thoughts of Ascension
When we attune ourselves to beings such as Raphael, Archangel of Spring, we can awaken to the way spiritual entities constantly interact with earth thru the elements.
The messengers of cosmic warmth in the rays of the sun activate the ascension of the element of water. Through its union with air, clouds are born. In the cloud, which is between the depths of earth & the heavenly heights, in the sphere of the etheric realm – a mobile balance manifests. – We see it in the blue sky, dancing with the ever changing clouds. It is the primal image of metamorphosis, of organic forming & transforming, the never-resting developing, blessed by the heights. For this reason, blossoms & fruits are in reality not just products of earth but heavenly forms filled with earthly substance, like us.
Michael Torevell
And so for 40 days after the Resurrection, amidst this seasonal activity, the apostles received from The Risen Christ His esoteric teachings; essentially the contents of the 5th Gospel given to us by Rudolf Steiner.
Benvenuto Tisi
Then they witnessed The Christ, being received into the clouds, moving out of their sight – an expansion of His being – like the unfolding of a lotus flower into the universe. Rudolf Steiner tells us, that at the same time, the vivid spiritual reality of what would have happened to earth existence if the mystery of Golgotha had not occurred; came into their consciousness. It was revealed to them that human physical bodies would have so deteriorated that all of humanity would have perished.
Edvard Munch
Our physical bodies have earth-gravity,
but our etheric bodies have sun levity, so if the Christ deed we call The
Ascension had not taken place, our etheric bodies would have left the physical
for good as well, & the existence of humankind would have come to an end,
having no formative forces to give them life.
We know that until the Mystery of
Golgotha, the sun was the dwelling place of the Christ. The human etheric body,
which was in danger of being drawn out towards the sun, like clouds, &
dispersed –is held together, contained thru this cosmic deed, so that we are
not dispersed, but can remain as individuals.
Christ remains in union with the earth, which rescues for the earth the sunward-striving etheric body. –But to be able to take effect in a human being’s spirit & soul nature, the Christ impulse must also be consciously recognized. The spiritual effect can only proceed from a true recognition of its content.
The mystery here is that in the festival of Ascension opens us
to the forces proceeding from the sphere of the Father.
This is big folks, the gospel of Mark tells us: ‘Then the Lord, after He had
spoken to them, was taken up into the heavenly spheres & sat down at the
right hand of the World-Father as the fulfiller of His deeds’.
As a result of the conversations over the 40 days with The Risen Christ, the apostles were able to receive the primal sources of a new imaginative clairvoyance, removing the veil hiding the true image of death, which is really a facet of the Father-God in the aspect of Creator. – What is born must die, but thru Christ death becomes life. This revelation of the apostles’ higher imagination brings the true content of death with its connection to the kingdom of the divine Father into perceptive.
At the moment of the Ascension the
mystery of death was made manifest not only to the immortal spiritual beings
who, being eternal have no experience of death, but also to the apostles, for they
beheld it with their own eyes to be a process of union with the world of the
Divine.
From
that turning point of time onward, Rudolf Steiner tells us that, one of the 1st experiences of
every human being after death is a contemplation of Christ’s Ascension; which
can reveal to the person’s soul, the true picture of death & its connection
with the highest sphere of the Father.
As
the Christ has ascended, so too, in the fullness of time will humanity be
transfigured. The company of the hierarchies wait, for us, their younger
siblings to ascend in our thinking to meet them in fellowship, as they work all
the while at our sides.
And another thing to contemplate:
Just as the experience of the Ascension lies between Easter & Whitsun, so between Good Friday & Easter lies the event known as Christ’s Descent into Hell. Both hold the image of Christ disappearing from sight.
By His death Christ opened up the
paths of the higher spheres for those exhausted souls trapped in Kamaloca, so
they could ascend into the upper planetary realms & be renewed.
The Descent into Hell rescued the heavenly forces for humanity; the Ascension rescued the formative forces.
Kristena West
At the Baptism, The Christ Being united with the physical body of Jesus of Nazareth & was therefore united with earthly evolution as a whole.
David Taulbee Anderson
At the Transfiguration Christ permeates the etheric body of Jesus. In the
scene of the transfiguration, Christ reveals his higher sun nature, to the 3
chosen disciples, a visionary manifestation of the fully transformed etheric
body, which radiates light like a Sun.
These
events are mirrored, & transformed by the mystery of Golgotha, Ascension relates to the Transfiguration & Whitsun to the Baptism.
In
the Ascension, Christ showed the connection to the spiritual Sun forces which
became manifest in the Transfiguration, with the etheric bodies of all human
beings.
When Christ entered into Jesus at
the Baptism, His Sun-Being took over the ego of Jesus, the Zarathustra soul had
to leave the body or be completely overpowered.
After the resurrection the Christ impulse can live within mankind without taking over the ego-consciousness. But in order for this to happen, Christ had to Ascend.
Peter Brindle
Then after 10 days He sent the Holy Spirit- that divine Being of the Trinity that does not overpower, but enhances the individual ego of human beings. –RS. So now the Christ impulse can enter human souls thru the mediation of the Holy Spirit, so that we can retain our “I” in freedom.
Sören Emil Carlsen
My friends, The
Christ-Revelation ‘coming in the clouds’ is here- Showing us the bridge that
brings a harmonizing spring-dialogue between the worlds.
At the
Ascension, Christ becomes “Lord of the
heavenly forces upon earth”.
The
fulfillment of the secret promise of the Ascension, is the Second
Coming.
It was said to the apostles, “He
will come again, in like manner, as you have seen Him go up into the clouds of
heaven.”
The
Ascension is the seed of this Second Coming, & the Second Coming is the
fulfillment of the Ascension.
A Journey thru the ‘Easter Paradox’ of 2019, thru Ascension into Whitsun as a ‘United Soul Endeavor’
Eurythmy: A – I stand for myself, U- I stand for humanity, M – I stand for Life
Social Sculpture: Are you an ‘Autumn Person’ or a ‘Spring-time Person’? Through Art, the bridge between science & spirit, we warm the ‘I’, to open the heart, in support of healthy community.
What are my gifts-What are my tools? How can I place them in right relationship within the social realm? How can I hone them to strengthen and enhance the world? Leading Thoughts & original art-collage projections with Hazel Archer-Ginsberg
Enter the Labyrinth of Vitae Sophia – Human hearts, once warmed, can rise up to meet the source of wisdom, like flowers turning toward the sun.
Eurythmy: Living into the Foundation Stone of Love – How can we take our individual Inner Whitsun & expand it, into what Steiner calls the “World Festival of Knowledge” a path leading from ‘Sprit Recollection’, to ‘Sprit Sensing’, to ‘Sprit Beholding’?
Also on 7 May at the Rudolf Steiner House in Ann Arbor MI, the headquarters for the Anthroposophical Society in America
also:
10 am – 1 pm Saturday 8 June 2019 -4804 Sewanee Road, Nashville, TN 37220. for more info. contact Cathy Green cgreen@grasslandaquatics.com
also
11-12 June 2019, Ashville, TN. for more info. contact Marnie Muller
***
‘Preparation, Illumination & Initiation’ – The Rosy Cross
Incorporating ‘The Golden Legend’, & the Plant vs. Human Kingdoms, To enliven our work with ‘The Rose Cross Meditation’.
Using our head, hands & heart we will enact this powerful Rosicrucian tool given to us by Rudolf Steiner, as a soul path of initiation, using imaginative cognition to build spiritual etheric forces; a Metamorphoses of Self & of World.
Friday 7 June 2019, 7-9pm4804 Sewanee Road, Nashville, TN
also:
12 Noon Potluck, Program 1 pm -5 pm Whitsunday 9 June 2019, In Knoxville, TN. for more info. contact William Rogers wmerogers@gmail.com
Hazel Archer-Ginsberg – Founder of Reverse Ritual Understanding Anthroposophy through the Rhythms of the Year. Essayist, Lecturer, Poet, Trans-denominational Minister, Anthroposopher, working as the Festivals Coordinator & Council Member of the Chicago Rudolf Steiner Branch, The Traveling Speakers Program, & the Central Regional Council of the Anthroposophical Society.
20 May 2019 – “Speaking with the Stars”: This evening look for the bright “wondering star” at the upper right of Bella Luna, which is none other than the Beneficent King: Jupiter.
“…So the
positions of the planets actually show what human beings themselves have
previously engraved in those spheres. When we consider the position of the
planets astronomically, and also the position of the planets in relation to the
fixed stars, these are a kind of indication of what we have ourselves inscribed
there. The actual planets are not of consequence; what affects us is what we
have ourselves inscribed in each sphere. Here we have the real reason why the
constellations of the planets do indeed work upon the human being. It is
because the human being passes through the spheres. When the Moon stands in a
particular position relative to Jupiter and to a fixed star, the members of
this configuration work together. This means the qualities of Jupiter together
with those of the Moon and the fixed star work upon the person, and thereby
occurs what can come about through their working together. So it is actually
our moral legacy, deposited during the life between death and birth, that
appears karmically in the new life as star configurations in our destiny. That
is the deeper basis for the constellation of the stars and its connection with
human karma”. ~Rudolf Steiner, lecture March 3, 1913.
World Bee Day – Birthday in 1734 of Anton Janša, the pioneer of beekeeping.The purpose of this international day is to acknowledge the role of bees & other pollinators for our ecosytem
325 – The First Council of Nicaea is formally opened, starting the first ecumenical council of the Christian Church. Its main accomplishments were settlement of the Christological issue of the divine nature of God the Son & His relationship to God the Father, the construction of the first part of the Nicene Creed, & establishing uniform observance of the date of Easter, & the promulgation of early canon law.
1497 – John Cabot sets sail from Bristol, England, on his ship Matthew looking for a route to the west.
1498 – Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama discovers the sea route to India when he arrives at Calicuta India.
1570 – Cartographer Abraham Ortelius issues Theatrum Orbis Terrarum, the first modern atlas.
1609 – Shakespeare’s sonnets are illicitly published in London, by Thomas Thorpe.
1631 – The city of Magdeburg in Germany is seized by forces of the Holy Roman Empire & most of its inhabitants massacred, in one of the bloodiest incidents of the Thirty Years’ War.
1645 – Yangzhou massacre: the 10-day massacre of 900,000 residents of the city of Yangzhou, part of the Transition from Ming to Qing.
1802 – By the Law of 20 May 1802, Napoleon Bonaparte reinstates slavery in the French colonies, revoking its abolition in the French Revolution.
1813 – Napoleon Bonaparte leads his French troops into the Battle of Bautzen in Saxony, Germany, against the combined armies of Russia and Prussia. The battle ends the next day with a French victory
1862 – U.S. President Abraham Lincoln signs the Homestead Act into law
1883 – Krakatoa begins to erupt; the volcano explodes three months later, killing more than 36,000 people.
1891 –The first public display of Thomas Edison’s prototype kinetoscope
1902 – Cuba gains independence from the United States.
1940 –The first prisoners arrive at a new concentration camp at Auschwitz.
1956 – In Operation Redwing, the first United States airborne hydrogen bomb is dropped over Bikini Atoll in the Pacific Ocean
1983 – First publications of the discovery of the HIV virus that causes AIDS in the journal Science by Luc Montagnier.
1989 – The Chinese authorities
declare martial law in the face of
pro-democracy demonstrations, setting the scene for the Tiananmen Square massacre.
***
POD (Poem Of the Day)
~To my body I gave the power of my heart Bee love & create I said Beat within the grace of the world’s rhythms A radiant sun In tune with the music of becoming A ferry thru dark churning waves An oasis flowing with fresh waters On the high tide of blessings To open my head to pure thought unfolded ~hag
***
Mulberry Mudd
The Honeybee, Sustainer of Life on Earth By Gunther Hauk
Rarely are we aware of the very subtle interrelationships of life, for they are hidden by the facts that jump out at you. We all know that the bison provided meat, hides and bones for the American Indians. And yet, these gifts were almost side effects compared to the critical, yet less-seen role that the bison had of building up the deep, rich humus in the prairies, a richness in fertility creating the breadbasket of our nation. Our conventional agriculture is still relying on this richness, but depleting it by the year.
When we think of the honey bee, we think of her gifts of pollinating about 3/4 of our daily food, of the honey she prepares out of the nectar of plants, of pollen and propolis. These, too, are minor contributions to life on earth, compared to the far greater importance she holds as sustainer of life. She shares this task with all the stinging insects, the hornets and wasps, the other bee species and the ants.
“Sustainer of life?? Isn’t this a bit exaggerated?”- you might ask. It may seem so, but the facts verify this statement. Let me explain. If we pose the question about which group of organic substances are at the basis of all life processes in plant, animal and the human being, the answer might astonish and surprise most people. It’s the acids! Little do we consider acids as the basis of our physical life since we experience them as caustic, corrosive, or even dangerous. This they are, but in homeopathic dilution, we find them in all life processes in nature, in every part of our body: DNA, fatty acids, amino acids, peptic acid, uric acid, folic acid, just to name the more familiar ones. Without these acids, no life processes could take place.
In plants it is the oxalic acid that provides the basic life-giving substance. Oxalis clover, rhubarb, and wood sorrel have lots of it and we can taste the sour acid element more easily than in most vegetables. In the animal kingdom, specifically in the stinging insects, it is the formic acid that plays a major role. Formic acid (formica = the ant) is the poison we feel when an ant bites us or a wasp or bee stings us. Each of these species produces a variation of formic acid.
As the bees and wasps receive nectar and pollen from the flowers, they are able to take in some of this oxalic acid, but they do not only take, they also provide a gift for the plants. As these insects fly and crawl through nature, they in return distribute their formic acid. An old forest ranger in Germany once told me that wherever ants are missing in forests, the forests lose their vitality and die more quickly than if there is an ample amount of these insects around. Thus, ant colonies are being reestablished and protected in European forests to keep the trees healthy.
This formic acid, in finest dilution, wafts through the air and in Spring the germinating seeds and budding perennials receive this formic acid that has been produced the year before and still saturates the atmosphere, as their Spring tonic. So, on such a basic level, these stinging insects are the nurturers of life on earth since plants provide food, directly or indirectly, to all other beings.
Oxalic and formic acid each acts as an invigorator, as a boost to the life processes for the other kingdom. It is with the help of minute quantities of formic acid that the earth’s entire plant life grows and thrives. And, on the other hand, it is the plants’ oxalic acid that stimulates and invigorates all of the animal and human kingdom. The commonly accepted image we have of life being based on fight and competition, with the survival of the fittest, loses its sting when we consider this grandiose symbiosis, this mutually beneficial interrelationship.
Let us take a closer look at the role these acids play in our very own lives. As we eat our spinach, broccoli, chard, carrots, the fruit and berries, we also take up the oxalic acid contained in them. Now a mysterious transformation occurs: we are able to change this acid into our very own formic acid. Actually, one can achieve this very process in the chemical laboratory. Glycerin is added to oxalic acid in a retort; when heated, carbon dioxide escapes and the steamy vapors will condense, lo and behold, as formic acid. As we have small amounts of glycerin in our body, the fire of our digestion is able to instigate this transformation and we all know that carbon dioxide is exhaled with our breath.
It is an established fact that our entire endocrine processes—governing growth, health, reproduction—function by virtue of miniscule amounts of the secretion created by the pituitary gland. Little, if any, scientific knowledge exists that on the same level of importance, this process of transforming oxalic acid into formic acid lets us live as spiritual beings in a physical body *(Rudolf Steiner, “Bees”).
For our life on Earth we depend on the vast numbers of individual stinging insects, which enliven the plant kingdom with their formic acid. Our attitude toward these insects will have to undergo a drastic revision, away from disdain, anger, and fear toward gratitude and respect, toward nurturing instead of killing.
Considering the honey bee, the ants, wasps and hornets, we can now understand that our lives depend on them. But why does the honey bee take a special place among all these formic acid producing insects? In contrast to the solitary bumblebee, carpenter and orchard bees, the hornets and wasps, honey bees live through the winter as a colony of perhaps 10 -20 thousand individual workers. By the end of March they may have already doubled their numbers and by the summer solstice reach 40-60 thousand individual worker bees. Bumble or orchard bees, wasps or hornets have only young queens surviving the winter and it takes two to three more months until a colony of several hundred insects can do their enlivening work in nature. The vast numbers of honeybees flying already in early Spring not only contribute to the much needed pollination, but to the amount of formic acid released into nature.
Now we may better appreciate the statement that our very lives depend on the care of the honeybee, on beekeeping. To those who are aware of this fact, Colony Collapse disorder (not only a national, but rather a global phenomenon) becomes a crisis far more serious than global warming. In the US alone we have lost millions of colonies in the last two decades. Can farmers, gardeners, forest rangers witness a decline in natural vitality? You bet! Not only our elm trees are practically gone, now it’s our ash trees, coastal oaks, beeches and other species that are being diminished in great numbers. Of course we will try to find the causes in beetles, viruses or air pollution. These may be a contributing factor, but on a much deeper level, it is the diminishing of the multitudes of stinging insects—many of these are simply diminished by the monocultures and lack of forage, as well as by all the poisons and pollution put into our environment— that pose a real threat to nature’s and our own well-being.
My book “Toward Saving the Honeybee” (first published in 2002) predicted a serious crisis if the present day exploitive, highly mechanized beekeeping practices, combined with our poison-loaded agriculture, do not find their way to a new paradigm. Both are the major components, are at the root of the Colony Collapse Disorder phenomenon.
In 2006, before CCD, Spikenard Farm was founded with the vision to establish a biodynamic farm with a honeybee sanctuary at its heart. A sanctuary is a place where a being is cared for in the best possible way so that a healing can take place. Annual and perennial forage is being planted and organic, sustainable beekeeping methods are being taught, methods that are, to a great part, diametrically opposed to conventional beekeeping practice.
In 1923, in his lectures on bees and other insects, Rudolf Steiner said that, if we were not to change the industrialized beekeeping methods (which had been introduced two to three decades before), the honeybee might not survive the 20th century. This statement was not accepted by Mr. Mueller, the beekeeper attending the lectures. Steiner simply said that the long-term effect of these methods could not be seen right away. He offered Mr. Mueller a conversation in 80 years.
I wonder what Mr. Mueller has to say now?
***
Sun. 26 May 25th 2019 – The ‘Easter Paradox’ Workshop 1 pm – 4pm
The 2nd Coming leading to a “World Whitsun”
A Journey thru the ‘Easter Paradox’ of 2019, thru Ascension into Whitsun as a ‘United Soul Endeavor’
Eurythmy with Mary Ruud: AUM = A – I stand for myself, U- I stand for humanity, M – I stand for Life
Social Sculpture with Deborah Rogers: Are you an ‘Autumn Person’ or a ‘Spring-time Person’? Through Art, the bridge between science & spirit, we warm the ‘I’, to open the heart, in support of healthy community.
What are my gifts-What are my tools? How can I place them in right relationship within the social realm? How can I hone them to strengthen and enhance the world? Leading Thoughts & original art-collage projections with Hazel Archer-Ginsberg
Enter the Labyrinth of Vitae Sophia – Human hearts, once warmed, can rise up to meet the source of wisdom, like flowers turning toward the sun.
Eurythmy with Mary Ruud: Living into the Foundation Stone of Love – How can we take our individual Inner Whitsun & expand it, into what Steiner calls the “World Festival of Knowledge” a path leading from ‘Sprit Recollection’, to ‘Sprit Sensing’, to ‘Sprit Beholding’?
Also on 7 May at the Rudolf Steiner House in Ann Arbor MI, the headquarters for the Anthroposophical Society in America
also:
10 am – 1 pm Saturday 8 June 2019 -4804 Sewanee Road, Nashville, TN 37220. for more info. contact Cathy Green cgreen@grasslandaquatics.com
also
12 Noon Potluck, Program 1 pm -4 pm Whitsunday 9 June 2019, In Knoxville, TN. for more info. contact William Rogers wmerogers@gmail.com
11-12 June 2019, Ashville, TN. for more info. contact Marnie Muller
*Hazel Archer-Ginsberg is the founder of the website and blog Reverse Ritual – Understanding Anthroposophy through the Rhythms of the Year (www.reverseritual.com). She is an Essayist, Lecturer, Poet, Trans-denominational Minister, and “Anthroposopher.” She works as the Festivals Coordinator & Council Member of the Chicago Rudolf Steiner Branch as well as with the Traveling Speakers Program, and she serves on the Central Regional Council of the Anthroposophical Society.
***
Friday 7 June 2019, 7-9pm
4804 Sewanee Road, Nashville, TN
‘Preparation, Illumination & Initiation’ – The Rosy Cross
Incorporating ‘The Golden Legend’, & the Plant vs. Human Kingdoms, To enliven our work with ‘The Rose Cross Meditation’.
Using our head, hands & heart we will enact this powerful Rosicrucian tool given to us by Rudolf Steiner, as a soul path of initiation, using imaginative cognition to build spiritual etheric forces; a Metamorphoses of Self & of World.
Hazel Archer-Ginsberg – Founder of Reverse Ritual Understanding Anthroposophy through the Rhythms of the Year. Essayist, Lecturer, Poet, Trans-denominational Minister, Anthroposopher, working as the Festivals Coordinator & Council Member of the Chicago Rudolf Steiner Branch, The Traveling Speakers Program, & the Central Regional Council of the Anthroposophical Society.
4 May 2019 – “Speaking with the Stars”: New Moon occurs at 5:46 pm CDT. At its New phase, the Moon crosses the sky with the Sun & so remains hidden in our star’s glare.
Head outside late this evening & you can’t miss Jupiter. The giant planet rises shortly after 11 pm & climbs highest in the south around 4 am. The Benevolent King is the brightest point of light in the sky in the constellation Ophiuchus, until Venus rises during twilight.
Vega is the brightest star in the northeast late these evenings. Look to Vega’s upper left for Eltanin, the nose of Draco the Dragon. Closer above & upper left of Eltanin are the three fainter stars of Draco’s stick-figure head, also called the Lozenge. Draco always points his nose to Vega no matter in what part of the sky we see them. He seems awfully curious about it. Do dragons eat jewels?
250 AD – Feast day of St. Florian the patron of Upper Austria, chimney sweeps; soapmakers, & firefighters. The “Florian Principle” (known in German language areas as “Sankt-Florians-Prinzip”) is named after a somewhat ironic prayer to Saint Florian: “O heiliger Sankt Florian, verschon’ mein Haus, zünd’ and’re an”, equivalent to “O Holy St. Florian, please spare my house, set fire to another one”. This saying is used in German much like the English “not in my back yard. The name Florian is considered synonymous with fireman in the German speaking world. In some cases call for a fireman will actually be spoken as calls for Florian.
1493 – The Division of the world: The Spanish-born Pope Alexander VI decreed in a Papal Bull that all lands west & south of a pole-to-pole line one hundred leagues west & south should belong to Spain. Portugal objected because its status & rights had been omitted & overlooked. King John II of Portugal began negotiations directly with King Ferdinand & Queen Isabella of Spain to push the line west & allow him to lay claim to lands discovered east of it. The result was the Treaty of Tordesillas.
1875 – Birthday of Hermann Beckh a pioneering German
Tibetologist & prominent promoter of anthroposophy.
Due to his unusual memory skills, &
his many interests & talents, his peers encouraged him towards law. It
became clear to him that he was not made out to be a judge when he had to
impose a fine on a poor married couple for stealing wood. He paid the couple’s
fine out of his own pocket & left his position.
He later took up the study of oriental
languages, Indology, & Tibetology. In 1907, he received his doctorate with
a thesis on Kalidasa’s poem Meghaduta.
In 1911, he met Rudolf Steiner & Friedrich Rittelmeyer, which led to his intensive study of Steiner’s work. On Christmas Day, 1912, he became a member of the Anthroposophical Society.
In 1916, Beckh was drafted into
military service, shortly after he published two volumes about the Buddha &
his teachings. Stationed in the Balkans, he was called to work in the Kiel Institute for the World Economy.
Due to his task, he learned the Scandinavian languages in addition to: English,
French, Italian, Classical Greek & Latin, Hebrew, Egyptian, Sanskrit,
Tibetan & Old Persian.
From 1920 onwards, he worked as a
lecturer of anthroposophy. In March 1922, he joined the Circle of Priests of The Christian Community & worked until his
death as a priest, seminary teacher, lecturer, independent researcher &
writer. In 1928, “Mark’s Gospel:
The Cosmic Rhythm” was published, in which he related the narration of
the gospel of Mark to the path of the sun through the twelve zodiac signs. In Beckh’s exposition, Mark’s gospel could
be understood more in connection with the “earthly” signs seen in the
planets, & John’s gospel more in connection with the “stellar”
zodiac of the fixed stars. At the time
of The Mystery of Golgotha the planets & the constellations were together,
not separate as they are now, due to the progression of the equinoxes. In the Introduction to the sequel, “The Cosmic Rhythm, the Secrets of the
Stars & Earth in the Gospel of John” (1930), Beck favorably mentioned
Wilhelm Kaiser’s “Die geometrischen Vorstellungen in der Astronomie” (1928), &
referred to The Novices of Sais, of Novalis. Beckh died in Stuttgart, in 1937.
~ ~ ~
John Lautermilch
(POD )Poem Of the Day)
~My heart pulses with power In the balance of the elements Beatbeatbeat I am the eagle in the light of the Sun My wings beat in time to my thoughts… I am a Taurus Bull in the pleasure glade Glad am I – the thoughts that love felt I fly to the far edge of sky I rest in the deep folds of earth I am a child of eternity I am Free ~hag
~ ~ ~
Hilma af Klint
From the Esoteric Lessons Part II:
Berlin, October 11, 1911
“We
know that the physical world is only an inverted mirror image of the astral
world.
A very
important meditation to make the words “The world is only maya” effective is
the following: Everything is really there in reverse.
What we see from above downwards is really there
from below upwards.
A plant’s root is above and the flower down
below.
The starry heavens we have before us is the
result of spiritual beings who are really active behind us.
Any sound that’s received by the left ear
comes from the right.
We must become familiar with these facts and
also with complementary colors. If someone has a lot of red spots imagine that
they’re green, or imagine that projecting limbs are cavities. One imagines the
green in a plant as reddish purple and a brown root as dark blue.
One should permeate all of these exercises
with reverence and devotion. That’s the feeling with which we can hope to
approach the world’s Godhead; otherwise God remains an abstraction to mere
thinking.
If we glow through our thinking with reverence, devotion and humility, we may hope to penetrate the spiritual world”. ~Rudolf Steiner
~~~
Tuesday 7 May 2019 in Ann Arbor Michigan
& also
Sat. 25 May 2019 – 7 pm – 9 pm in Chicago
Climbing Jacobs Ladder: Celebrating the Feast of Ascension
Leading Thoughts & original art-collage projections with Hazel Archer-Ginsberg
The Karma Project A Western Approach to Reincarnation & Karma May 8, 2019 – 7:15 pm CST (8:15 pm EST)View this email in your browser
The Central Regional Council of the Anthroposophical Society in America invites you to a presentation on the psychological understanding of karma, with special guests Drs. Roberta Nelson and David Tresemer.
Guidance – and challenge – from Rudolf Steiner (August 3, 1924): “If we want to experience our karma in a comfortable way — it will surely take vengeance on us in one way or another … to be anthroposophists we must be able to observe our own experience of karma with constant wide-awake attention.”
Roberta Nelson is Faculty Chair in the 3-year programs offered by the Association for Anthroposophic Psychology (AAP). She has a doctorate in Counselor Education that qualifies her to supervise, educate, and counsel. In addition, Roberta is dual licensed as a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor (LPCC) as well as a Licensed Addiction Counselor (LAC) in the state of North Dakota. She has other trainings and certifications in Psychosynthesis, EMDR, NVC, and other modalities.
David Tresemer is President of AAP. He has a doctorate in psychology from Harvard. He has written about various aspects of anthroposophy applied to issues in our world, the most relevant for this webinar being contributing to and editing of The Counselor: As If Soul and Spirit Matter (to which Roberta Nelson was a major contributor) and Slow Counseling, as well as quarterly columns in Lilipohmagazine.
Our approach on May 8: An anthroposophic psychology must take seriously the different functions of body, soul, and spirit. Spirit—light, freedom, beyond time and space; Physical Body—vehicle for experience and expression; Soul—the mediator. Karma—held as precious in Spirit, stamped into the Physical Body, and worked in Soul. Whereas the Spirit sings in light and freedom, the Soul learns through darkness and constraints, through struggles. The anthroposophic notion of karma helps us understand how we can wrestle with our own being, transforming through experience.
Audio-video: We will have some images on screen, though we will describe these to those who join by telephone.
PREPARATION: Please have a pen and blank paper. If you have chalk-based pastels, please have those ready as well.
Audioconference Details
Option 1. Click link below if you wish to connect through your computer (a headset is recommended): https://zoom.us/j/689514145
Option 2. Call in using your telephone. United States: (646) 558-8656 or: (669) 900-6833 Access Code:689-514-145
Please join us!Agenda (Central Time)
7:15 Welcome and introductions 7:18 Verse 7:20 Introduce guest speaker 7:25Guest Speakers:Drs. Roberta Nelson & David Tresemer (45 minutes) 8:10 Q&A – Please state your name, location before asking a question 8:28 Close with verse
***
Sunday 19 May 2019, 2 pm – 4 pm- Social Sculpture Workshop around the ‘URPFLANZE’ with Victoria Martin. More details to follow
10 am – 1 pm Saturday 8 June 2019 -4804 Sewanee Road, Nashville, TN 37220. for more info. contact Cathy Green cgreen@grasslandaquatics.com
also
12 Noon Potluck, Program 1 pm -4 pm Whitsunday 9 June 2019, In Knoxville, TN. for more info. contact William Rogers wmerogers@gmail.com
also
7 pm – 10 pm 11 June 2019, Ashville, TN. for more info. contact Marnie Muller
Eurythmy: AUM = A – I stand for myself, U- I stand for humanity, M – I stand for Life
Social Sculpture: Steiner’s ‘Blue Dot Exercise’: Through Art, the bridge between science & spirit, we warm the ‘I’, to open the heart, in support of healthy community.
What are my gifts-What are my tools? How can I place them in right relationship within the social realm? How can I hone them to strengthen and enhance the world?
Enter the Labyrinth of Vitae Sophia: Human hearts, once warmed, can rise up to meet the source of wisdom, like flowers turning toward the sun.
Living into the Foundation Stone of Love: How can we take our individual Inner Whitsun & expand it, into what Steiner calls the “World Festival of Knowledge” a path leading from ‘Sprit Recollection’, to ‘Sprit Sensing’, to ‘Sprit Beholding’?
*Hazel Archer-Ginsberg is the founder of the website and blog Reverse Ritual – Understanding Anthroposophy through the Rhythms of the Year (www.reverseritual.com). She is an Essayist, Lecturer, Poet, Trans-denominational Minister, and “Anthroposopher.” She works as the Festivals Coordinator & Council Member of the Chicago Rudolf Steiner Branch as well as with the Traveling Speakers Program, and she serves on the Central Regional Council of the Anthroposophical Society.
