“Sing in me, Muse, and through me tell the story.” ~Homer
The classical Greeks describe the Muse, as ‘She Who Knows All That Is, Ever Was or Will Be’. Mousa is the ancient Greek word for the Muse, the archetypal goddess of the mind, representing the forces of intuition, inspiration, & creative imagination, that leads to wisdom & self-realization.
She is also the power of language in all of its many forms — the power of communication at its most exalted & divine manifestation thru words, song, music, dance & art.
Gustave Moreau
“Happy is he whom the Muses love: sweet flows speech from his mouth.” ~Hesiod
In the seventh century B.C.E. Hesiod sang of Nine Muses, the Mousai: Kalliopeia, muse of epic poetry & the oldest of the nine Muses; Euterpe, muse of music & lyric poetry; Melpomene, muse of singing & tragedy (interesting compo); Erato, muse of mystical & erotic love; Terpsikhore, muse of whirling & ecstatic dance; Urania, muse of astronomy & prophecy; Kleio, muse of history & heroic poetry; Thaleia, muse of comedy & idyllic poetry; & Polyhymnia, muse of sacred hymns and meditation.
Rossetti
The Nine Muses are the daughters of Mnemosyne, the goddess of Memory, & Zeus, the god of the lightning-like flash of inspiration. Sudden & powerful moments of intuition combined with the power of memory give piercing insights into the mysteries of the universe.
Mnemosyne, the power of remembrance, is one of the three elder Muses, along with Melete, the power of practice, study, & meditation, & Aoide, the power of song, chant, & mantra. These Muses are the ancient Divine Muse of the threefold goddess, the symbolic teacher & guide of the Pythian Priestess at the Delphic Oracle. This prophetic priestess, a channel for the Muse, was the most powerful religious & political authority in the Hellenic world for more than two thousand years.
John Collier
The Pythia’s greatest law sent from the Divine Muse was: ‘Know Thyself’.
Know thyself through meditation, mantra, & memory – the tools of the 3 elder Muses who are the daughters of the goddess Gaia -the Earth, & the god Uranus – the Heavens. This knowing is the connecting principle between heaven &earth. Through meditation, mantra, & memory, we can connect the power of heaven’s creativity with the grounded, sustaining energy of the earth within our own being.
The Divine Muse taught the use of intuition & prophecy as a way to inner development. They fused prophesy & poetry with inspiration — the creative energy welling up from deep within the mind. The word inspiration means breathing into, inhalation, the breath of life, to be filled with the breath of life, to be inspired, to show genius.
The Divine Muse is inspiration — the sacred breath, the life force in the etheric – the formative power that makes consciousness possible. The Muse breathed into Hesiod, “a divine voice to celebrate the things that were and shall be.”
“This draught of flowing nectar, the Muse’s gift, the sweet fruit of the mind,” ~Pindar
Thru the Muse we are taught that vibration & music are the gateways to knowledge of the universe, of reality, & of ourselves. The Pythagoreans structured their colleges as temples dedicated to the powers of the Muse.
Both Aristotle & Plato created shrines to the Muse in their colleges of philosophy.
The word museum originally meant the shrine or temple of the Muse, designating a place of transformation of consciousness, a place of research, scholarship, & learning, a place where sculpture, painting, art, & sacred texts were kept.
Jean Marc Nattier
“Musikos,” the Greek word for music, meant, “relating to the Muses.”
Plato used musikos to refer to the quality of being, “well educated and versed in things of the mind.” Plato taught that the concept of music encompassed all that relates to the mind. He believed in revealed knowledge as a path to knowing ultimate truth, describing the channel of flowing creativity between the human & divine as the Muse herself.
Within our thinking there are unused areas of potential energy & psychic awareness. The power to awaken these dormant regions is within us. We can open the gate to wisdom & consciousness through study, meditation, singing, & dancing — the rituals of the Muse who lies hidden in our memory, waiting to lead us to the highest states of knowledge, blessedness, & being. Once the Muse reveals the truths within us, we understand who we are & what we are supposed to do.
“[The Muses] are all of one mind, their hearts are set upon song, and their spirit is free from care.” ~Hesiod
The Muse is not a mythological figment of the ancient past, she is the inner source of wisdom & the force of creativity within our own minds. Rise in your thinking to meet the Muse within & she will come. ~hag
1834 – Birthday of Ernst Haeckel, a promoter of scientific racism who embraced the idea of Social Darwinism. Haeckel was also a German zoologist, naturalist, eugenicist, philosopher, physician, professor, marine biologist, & artist who discovered, described & named thousands of new species, mapped a genealogical tree relating all life forms, & coined many terms in biology, including ecology. Haeckel promoted & popularized Charles Darwin’s work in Germany. The published artwork of Haeckel includes over 100 detailed, multi-color illustrations of animals & sea creatures. See Haeckel, the Riddles of the World and Theosophy, by Rudolf Steiner, Berlin, 5th October 1905
1924 – Rudolf Steiner began the Karmic Relationships lecture today in Dornach GA 235-240 – KARMIC RELATIONSHIPS I, GA 235, Lecture I, 16 February 1924, Dornach
“I now wish to begin to speak to you of the laws and conditions of human destiny, which, as you know, it has become customary to describe as karma. Karma, however, cannot be seen clearly unless we are prepared to learn to know the different kinds of universal law and universal activity…Both when we try to comprehend the World’s phenomena and when we wish to understand the phenomena of human life, we are wont to speak of “causes and effects.” Especially in science nowadays, people are accustomed to speak quite generally of “causes and effects.” Yet it is precisely this habit which leads into the greatest difficulties, in face of the true reality. For if we speak in this way, we are leaving out of account the variety of forms in which “cause and effect” actually occur in the universe…”
The Categories of Aristotle – a process of contraction… Is there a path to expansion…..?
PUBLIC LECTURE AND EURYTHMY WORKSHOP WITH CLAUDIA FONTANA
Friday 24 March 2023 – Lecture 7 pm CT – 8:30 pm – Purchase tickets at the door or pay online $12
Saturday 25 March 2023 – Workshop – 9 am CT– (10:30 am 1/2 hour break – 11 am) 12:30 pm CT – Purchase tickets at the door or pay online $50
The Categories of Aristotle: A process of contraction…exploring a path to expansion…
Does one have to be a philosopher of great erudition to approach Aristotle’s gift to humanity……his Categories?
Perhaps , YES! But an initial acquaintance with them can lead out of the confinement of the intellectual concept to an experience of expansion supported by Eurythmy.
In the evening lecture Claudia will introduce the life of the Categories before they became concepts – Bringing the symbols in a sequence of sounds (called the Evolutionary Sequence ) out of their conceptual form, to life, supported by Eurythmy and examples of poetry.
During the workshop we will enter into the movement of the poetry presented during the lecture. This will be accessible to Eurythmists as well as to anyone interested in the life of language, poetry and our alphabet.
Claudia Fontana saw a Eurythmy performance when still a teenager. Unbeknownst to her at the time, that performance was the gate to her destiny path. Soon thereafter she studied Eurythmy in Vienna and subsequently spent fourteen years as a performer with the Dornach, London and Stuttgart Eurythmeum ensembles. Teaching became the next challenge which she happily met in the United States, Europe. Before Covid, she spent seven years teaching all levels in Thailand, Malaysia and China. She resides in Ann Arbor, MI still performing and teaching.
The Women at the Tomb – A Festival of Resurrection
with Hazel Archer-Ginsberg,
Insights about Mary Magdalene with Faith DiVecchio,
For more Info. contact Hag@RSChicago.org Cultural Events & Festivals Coordinator Rudolf Steiner Branch 4249 North Lincoln Avenue, Chicago, IL 60618 (map) www.rschicago.org/donate
This course is available on Zoom. You will be emailed a Zoom link closer to the time of the class. The course will be recorded and you will receive a link to watch it.Go to the Infinity Foundation web site to enroll
Course Number 231154 / Zoom Date: Thursday, May 11 Time 7:00 – 8:30 PM CST Cost $33/23 payment 10 days in advance
Gerald Shepherd
When we tune into the Cycle of the Seasons, we experience that as the Earth breathes out in the Springtime, the beings of nature reach upwards towards the heights. The longing of the human soul also strives to meet this mood of ascension, which attunes all life to the cosmic expanses.
Together we will gain insights in how to rise up to our Higher Self by participating in this harmonizing spring-dialogue between the worlds.
This reconnection between heaven & earth was prefigured in the story of Jacob’s ladder from the Old Testament. Through his dream of the ‘stairway to heaven’, Jacob gave us a prophecy in the picture of a golden ladder on which choirs of Angels traverse between the ‘Above & Below’. The Mystery of the Ascension of Christ, 40 days after the Resurrection at Easter, fulfilled Jacob’s Prophecy. Christ as the Being of Love became the living bridge connecting us to the eternal.
Through this workshop we will learn how humanity will also be transfigured in the fullness of time. The company of the Angelic Hierarchies wait for us, their younger siblings, to ascend, first of all in our thinking, to meet them in fellowship, as they work all the while by our sides.
Nancy Poer
~Vitae Sophia~A Whitsun Festival of United Soul Endeavor
with Hazel Archer-Ginsberg, Velsum Voices & Eurythmy
Saturday 27 May 2023 a Hybrid event in person* & on zoom
We are called to redeem the ether spheres to create an Ecclesia, a chalice for The Sophia. Then the spirit flame can spread out to become what Steiner called a “World Whitsun”, which began in earnest at the Christmas Conference. The Whitsun Festival highlights one of the greatest challenges of being human: placing our individual gifts, in right relationship within the social realm. This challenge is especially strong now during this ‘pandemic’. Our groups striving to know Spiritual Science must work together as a community, to have the possibility to create a new culture where a sacrament is possible in every encounter. Our individual strength is enhanced by weaving our gifts together, kindling our social world in conscious community.
For more Info. contact Hag@RSChicago.orgCultural Events & Festivals Coordinator *Rudolf Steiner Branch 4249 North Lincoln Avenue, Chicago, IL 60618 (map) www.rschicago.org/donate
O look – another veil has dropped – a fresh insight has emerged – a challenging crossroad has appeared…Now what?
Head down & plodding I could easily miss it – open to adventure I may choose to take the road less traveled – or perhaps I’ll just sigh & say, nah, too much trouble – no – it feels like an obstacle – a trap – a turn for the worst – a chance to get lost…
But maybe – I am – fully prepared to ford the ravine – to scale the, well, maybe not a mountain, but surely a good sized mole-hill – to bump into wonder –Then I can stand on this milestone of the moment – in the tickling triumph of discovery – wrought thru with little breadcrumb clues & simple surprises…Knowing – I am – taking every step – with reverence – in awareness – that at every turning point, there is often a stumbling – into opportunity – disguised as a problem…
Yep I had a break thru in my thinking last night, & nope it wasn’t very pretty – Enlightening? Hell Yes. Still processing? Always Yes…And I know that this trans-personal revelation – this knowing of myself – this practical Anthroposophy which has lead me once more to the Threshold of the abyss to meet the Guardian – who sends me once again to stand in front of the Seraphim with the flaming sword – So…OK – I won’t be jumping up & running hither & thither, cause I’m not sure what to do with this break thru, with this explanation, this excuse..?
Ok so…I will – let it steep before I leap – Be 4 – I can – take my time – Be cause – I know – a magic twisty rise – will arise – up into a fresh future – And so…I engage in another wrestling match with my angel – a reckoning with my past – accompanied by a slap in the face from the future.
Happy Monday.
~hag
7 March 2022 – “Speaking with the Stars”
Thomas Aquinas by Fra Bartolommeo
“How is it they live in such harmony, the billions of stars, when most men can barely go a minute without declaring war in their minds?” ~Thomas Aquinas
161 – Deathday of Emperor Antoninus Pius, who is succeeded by his adoptive son Marcus Aurelius
321 – Emperor Constantine I decrees that the dies Solis Invicti (sun-day) is the day of rest in the Empire
Carlo Crivelli
1274 – Deathday of Thomas Aquinas, a Dominican Friar & Theologian, “The prince of Scholastics”. Nickname in school=The ‘dumb ox’. Also known as the ‘Angelic Doctor’. “It must be realized that Thomas Aquinas, in the 13th Century, attained the concepts and ideas he elaborated in his writings in a completely different way from the way ideas are acquired today. One must think of his books as being inspired by a spirit from the Hierarchy of the Angeloi and that he recorded what came from a higher consciousness” ~Rudolf Steiner, The Karma of Materialism
Aquinas, who is most renowned for his Five Ways of Proving the Existence of God, believed that both faith and reason discover truth, a conflict between them being impossible since they both originate in God.
Believing that reason can, in principle, lead the mind to God, Aquinas defended reason’s legitimacy, especially in the works of Aristotle. The philosophy of Aquinas continues to offer insights into many lingering problems in Metaphysics, the Philosophy of Mind, & the Philosophy of Religion & Ethics.
Albertus Magnus by Tommaso da Modena
In Rudolf Steiner’s historic sketch of the life of thought in the Middle Ages, he shows how Albertus Magnus ( an earlier incarnation of Marie Steiner) & Thomas Aquinas ( an earlier incarnation of Aristotle & Rudolf Steiner himself) & the Scholastics of the 12th century gave an impetus towards what in the twentieth century has come to be known as Spiritual Science, or Anthroposophy.
“The Middle Ages would not have produced what is called Scholasticism — the philosophy of Thomas Aquinas and Albertus Magnus and the other Scholastics — if this philosophy, this world conception, with all its social consequences, had not been inspired by the most important thought of the Church, by the Easter thought. In the vision of the descending Christ, Who lives for a time in man on Earth and then goes through the Resurrection, that soul impulse was given which led to the particular relation between faith and science, between knowledge and revelation which was agreed upon by the Scholastics. That out of man himself, only knowledge of the sensible world can be acquired, whereas everything connected with the super-sensible world has to be gained through revelation — this was determined basically by the way the Easter thought followed upon the Christmas thought.” ~Rudolf Steiner, The Cycle of the Year as Breathing-Process of the Earth
Aristotle by Raphael
“Thomas Aquinas made himself thoroughly familiar with the world conception of Aristotle, who becomes, as it were, his master in the life of thought…For centuries, he is il maestro di color che sanno, the master of those who know, as Dante expresses the veneration for Aristotle in the Middle Ages.”
“Thomas Aquinas had intended on the one hand to investigate the world through physical research and intellectual knowledge but, on the other hand, that he had wanted to supplement this intellectual knowledge with the truths of revelation. But he had done that precisely to gain access to the unifying principle of the world.” ~Rudolf Steiner, Dornach, 12 June 1923
“Of the great Dominicans, St. Thomas Aquinas is especially noteworthy because in him the influence of the astral body of Christ was manifest to a high degree.”
“St. Francis of Assisi and Thomas Aquinas had copies of the astral body of Jesus of Nazareth woven into their souls, and it is this fact that allowed them to be such dynamic teachers. They worked from a sphere in which Christ had once lived.
In some cases external events such as natural catastrophes or similar things enhance this weaving of spiritual bodies into the soul of the recipient. It is said of St. Thomas Aquinas that lightning struck and killed his little sister in the room where he happened to be standing, but spared him. He interpreted this lightning bolt next to him to the effect that elemental forces were necessary to help him take up the copy of the astral body of Jesus of Nazareth. Elisabeth of Thüringen also had an imprint of the astral body of Jesus of Nazareth in her soul”. ~ Rudolf Steiner, The Principle of Spiritual Economy, Rome, March 28, 1909
During the Feast of Saint Nicolas in 1273, Saint Thomas Aquinas had a mystical vision that made writing seem unimportant to him. At mass, he reportedly heard a voice coming from a crucifix that said, “Thou hast written well of me, Thomas; what reward wilt thou have?” to which Saint Thomas Aquinas replied, “None other than thyself, Lord.”
When Saint Thomas Aquinas’s confessor, Father Reginald of Piperno (an earlier incarnation of Ita Wegman) urged him to keep writing, he replied, “I can do no more. Such secrets have been revealed to me that all I have written now appears to be like straw” Thomas Aquinas never wrote again.
1792 – Birthday of English astronomer Sir John Frederick William Herschel. In 1864, he published the General Catalogue of Nebulae & Clusters, which astronomers still use today
1876 – Alexander Graham Bell is granted a patent for an invention he calls the “telephone”
1913 – The Berlin chapter of the Theosophical Society, of which Rudolf Steiner was president & Marie von Sivers secretary, is officially annulled.
1965 – Bloody Sunday: A group of 600 civil rights marchers is brutally attacked by state and local police in Selma, Alabama
Star Wisdom comes alive through active embodiment within each participant, made possible by working together in the instrument of the StarHouse—or within your sacred imagination in your own home. This immersion facilitates each participant forming conscious relationships with zodiacal and planetary beings.
Join us for an exploration, based on spiritual science and star wisdom, into the following themes:
This course, to train practitioners in Star Wisdom will take place in the StarHouse June 2022. It is designed to train beginners who are willing to ride a steep learning-curve, and long-time astrologers.
Our teaching weaves experiential activities (embodiment) and conceptual learning so you learn it more thoroughly.
On-line too: The course will also be on-line (live-streamed, interactive). A manager on our end will coordinate actively with those attending via Zoom, including relaying questions to the presenters for comment. (We plan that the event will be filmed and edited, and parts of it made available as a course through our website.)
Our approach to astrology is informed and inspired by Rudolf Steiner’s indications found sprinkled throughout his six thousand lectures, as it has been developed by a small group of astrosophers over several decades. This deeper understanding of, and interaction with, the heavens is based on:
A sidereal (star-based) view of the heavens, emphasizing the active and dynamic role of the beings working from stars and constellations
Equal length zodiacal signs (relating to the lineage of Zarathustra), equal houses, and recognizing the Earth’s role and significance to the birth chart
Anthroposophy (thus called astrosophy, with its particular guidance for understanding the beings indwelling the zodiacal and planets)
Identifying and working with spiritual themes in our lives in a way made practical by the research of Robert Powell, and the indications of cosmic Christianity, as understood through Anthroposophy.
And other features that we will teach.
Some topics that we will cover:
New and traditional methods for interpreting a birth chart
Zodiacal constellations in the birth chart
Understanding the meaning in the patterns of the moving planets
Planetary aspects in the birth chart
The important role of the twelve equal houses, in the birth chart
How transiting planets interplay in the time-stream of life, presenting challenges and opportunities
Determining the time of conception and its own chart
The care necessary to regard the information of a person’s sacred birth moment with reverence and understanding
The importance of understanding reincarnation and karma for human development
The journey between death and rebirth, and why that is important for human destiny
Human Life phases: the 7-year periods of our life biography and the relation of those periods to the planetary spheres
The role of self-development for a practitioner of New Astrology
Commitment: This intensive requires participation in five-plus full days.
Dates: Begin Thursday evening, June 23, 2022, 7 PM, through midday Tuesday June 28. On June 24-27, we will go from 9 AM to 5 PM. Evenings are for homework, integration, and optional study groups. Lunches will be provided, including the last day, Tuesday.
Limits: Enrollment will be limited to 24 in-person participants and others will participate on-line. In-person will go through an application process. More important than years practicing astrology is your motivation to learn. Our present on-line courses (New Astrology, series 1 and series 2) will be made available to all registered participants and can provide a strong foundation to a motivated person with little experience. After application for In-person participants, one of our team will arrange a phone call to interview you.
Scholarship program: We plan to have a scholarship program to which those of means can contribute. Please consider contributing to this fund to support others taking this course.
Costs: Cost of on-site/in-person for the whole course $1100. On-line (live-streaming) $800. A deposit will hold your place.
Meals and Snacks: Lunches provided every day including Tuesday (just after the end of the course). Dietary restrictions are queried on the application. Snacks and tea are provided mid-morning and mid-afternoon every day.
Lodging: You will need to find your own lodging and transport. Some lodging is available in nearby residences, and the Retreat Cabin near the StarHouse. These can fill up quickly, so please make your request soon. Other lodgings nearby are the Boulder Adventure Lodge (a-lodge.com), which fills up in summertime quickly. More information will be sent after registration.
Questions about the course
Tune in to our Zoom broadcasts, brief presentations of aspects of this course, with lots of time for Q&A. Intended to total 20 minutes in length. These are given on different days so you might find one that would work best for you. Each of these brief sessions will be different!
The Anthroposophical Society in America presents: Sophia Rising: Unveiling the Wisdom of Being Human in Santa Fe, New Mexico ~ April 21-24, 2022 Hotel Santa Fe Hacienda and Spa
Join us in New Mexico, the ‘land of enchantment’, resonant with light ether and deep history, as we enliven Sophia. Join together in community as Sophia emerges and rises in her many facets and expressions- past, present, and future.
Come and experience Sophia Rising as we honor the elements, the landscape, and each other.
VENUE & TRAVEL
Our gathering will take place at the lovely Native American-owned Hotel Santa Fe. We recommend you book your stay with the hotel to create a connected communal atmosphere for our gathering. The hotel has a full restaurant, pool, hot tub, and spa, as well as kivas and cozy sitting areas. Please call or email to make reservations with our special room rate for suites at $179/night. Each suite includes a refrigerator, microwave and sitting area. So much of what Santa Fe has to offer is within walking distance from the hotel.
**Ask for ASA Gathering to book with our special rate of $179/night for a suite. **
Registrants will receive suggested activities from our local organizers to explore in Santa Fe before or after our gathering. Extending your stay? The special ASA hotel rate is available for 3 days prior to and 3 days after the ASA gathering.
HOTEL and VENUE ADDRESS: 1501 Paseo de Peralta Santa Fe, NM 87501 Phone: (877) 259-3409
TICKETS The ticket price includes access to all conference activities, snacks, coffee/tea and beverages, dessert reception Thursday, dinner Friday, lunch Saturday and brunch on Sunday.
Early Bird Only with Room Booking – After 2/26 more tickets will be released!
SCHEDULE (subject to minor changes)
THURSDAY, April 21
7 pm Gathering Together – with a dessert reception
7:30- 8:30 pm ArtActs: Past – Present – Future Eurythmy, and Singing,
FRIDAY, April 22
Explore Santa Fe on your own and continued arrivals
1:00 – 2:30 pm Welcome: Spirit of Placewith organizers
WEAVING EARTH Opening Ceremony with Angela Foster and friends
2:30pm-3:00pm Break
3:00-4:30 pm Encountering the Celestial Goddess Anthroposophia with Mary Stewart Adams
HeartMath with Michele Mariscal
4:30-4:45 pm Break
4:45- 6:00 pm WEAVING AIR ArtActs Eurythmy, Singing, and Speech
6:00-7:30 pm Dinner Together*
7:30 pm Fireside Chats – Story and Sharing – Breakout circles led by friends and organizers 8:30 pm
Stargazing with Mary Stewart Adams
SATURDAY, April 23
Breakfast – On your own
8:30 – 9:30 am WEAVING ETHER Eurythmy
9:30 – 10:00 am Break
10:00 -11:15 am The Virgin of Guadalupe: Sophia Rising in the Americaswith Stephanie Georgieff – The Virgin of Guadalupe is one of the first recorded apparitions in the Americas. Revealing herself to a Nahuatl Native and ultimately to the Bishop of New Spain and his entourage in December of 1531, this image has continued to inspire countless souls for nearly 500 years. The symbolism and timing of her appearance presents deep mysteries for our age, and points to the ultimate Sophianic impulse for the present and future of Humanity.
11:30 – 12:30 pm WEAVING STORIES Biography Work
12:30 – 2:00 pm Lunch Together*
2:00 – 4:00 pm ‘ANTHROPOSOPHIA: OUR ALCHEMICAL WEDDING’ with Hazel Archer-Ginsberg and Friends. At the heart of this convergence isa Grand Experiential Soul Journey to ‘Know Thyself’’ – A Temple Experience in the New Mysteries, built up and worked on during all the WEAVING sessions, preparing us to enter a deeply intensive initiatory experience – a ‘Movable Feast’ with various stations engaging us in group eurythmy, singing, Steiner verses, color gestures in art, and a telling of the New Isis Myth. Passing through Trials of the Soul we meet powerful Spiritual Beings on the way to our sacred marriage – a union of Warmth and Light, so that we can unveil the ‘Sophia Rising’ within ourselves, and the world.
4:00 – 4:30 pm Break
4:30 – 5:30 pm WEAVING COLOR Invoking Natura: Sensing the Cosmic within the Earthly Pastels with Helen-Ann Ireland
8:00-9:30 pm WEAVING COMMUNITYSophia Rising- Past, Present, and FutureMC’d by Lucien Dante Lazar & Ultra-Violet Archer. Sign up to bring something to share! Poetry, Instruments, Story
SUNDAY, April 24
8:00 – 9:00 am WEAVING LIGHT Bathe in the Natural Warmth and Harmony of the Metal Gold with Helena Hurrell – A metal color light therapy experience inspired by the glass windows at the Goetheanum
9:00-10:30 am WEAVING FIRE with Carrie Schuchardt HeartMath with Michele Mariscal
10:30 – 12:00pm Brunch Together*
12:00-1:00 pm WEAVING WATERWater Ritual with Joyce Reilly and Friends WEAVING WHOLENESSClosing with Angela Foster and Friends
Notes: *Meals marked with an asterisk are included in the price of the ticket – Coffee, tea, and snacks will also be provided through the conference
A quiet ‘Sanctuary Room’ will be provided for contemplation
PRESENTERS AND GUIDES (Not a full list-more to come!)
Mary Stewart Adams is a Star Lore Historian, and host of the weekly public radio program and podcast “The Storyteller’s Night Sky”. Through her research in spiritual science and her education in literary arts, Mary has developed a unique, humanities-based approach to understanding our relationship with the stars. Her work is further augmented by an extensive knowledge of ancient mythologies and fairy tales, which she relates to the research and ideas of contemporary astronomy in order to understand the new star wisdom of astrosophy.
Eyahnna DalBo (artist of the Sophia Rising painting) came to anthroposophy 30 years ago when her daughter attended a Waldorf school. Her studies have included an undergraduate degree in fine art and graduate work in psychology using the arts for healing. In her private practice, she developed various energetic modalities. Her experience with subtle energy fields gave her the opportunity to teach and take part in designing a curriculum for a 2-year program focusing on energy healing. As a consultant, she initiated numerous therapeutic programs to assist in pioneering the field of art therapy. Through the gift of an apprenticeship with indigenous people she was able to bring their practices and ceremonies to what she offered deepening her ability to be of service. As an artist, she continues to utilize the spoken word, movement, sound, and visual imagery to honor and create a field that fosters awareness, growth, and transformation.
Angela Foster has been an active student of anthroposophy since 2008. After growing up in Texas, Angela is now embracing life in Atlanta, Georgia as an artist, teacher, and mom of two daughters, shepherd to two mini sheep. As a conscious practitioner of “beginner’s mind”, Angela has completed programs in foundation studies in Anthroposophy numerous times and is currently enrolled in Foundation Studies in Goethean Science through the Nature Institute. She and her husband manage the Anthroposophical Resource Center (ARC) an initiative in Decatur, Georgia that offers space for community events and serves as a little house for Anthroposophia.
Stephanie Georgieff, MS is an author, podcaster and pilgrim. Residing mostly in the Northern Hemisphere, she has written several books on The Divine Feminine as presented through the genre of The Black Madonna, The Virgin of Guadalupe and The Divine Sophia. She has spoken at conferences and venues throughout North America, the United Kingdom and Europe. The Black Madonna Speaks is her latest endeavor, a weekly podcast exploring the mysteries of The Black Madonna from an Anthroposophical and Esoteric Chritian perspective, along with artists, poets, authors and scholars on the subject.
Hazel Archer-Ginsberg – Founder of Reverse Ritual: Understanding Anthroposophy through the Rhythms of the Year & the ‘I Think Speech’ Podcast. Trans-denominational Minister, Essayist, Lecturer, Poet, Anthroposopher – working as the Cultural Events & Festivals Coordinator of the Chicago Rudolf Steiner Branch, & as the Central Regional Council representative on the General Council of the Anthroposophical Society in America. Past Video Recordings.
Helena Hurrell joyfully met Anthroposophy in San Fransisco in 1977 and has been working with individuals and groups as a Waldorf educator since 1981 and then throughout her life trained to become a therapist while living in Australia, the UK and North America. She is currently in private practice in Colorado blending the therapeutic work she offers through her love of color ~ as an Art and Metal Color Light Glass Therapist trained in the UK and Germany. Both of these trainings are certified by the Medical Section at the Goetheanum. Metal Color Light Therapy is a relatively new initiative originated by the late Marianne Altmaier who developed this therapy and training out of her deep interest in and knowledge of the Goetheanum windows in Dornach. Helena’s website: www.helioscenter.org
Helen-Ann Ireland has been involved in anthroposophical studies for over 30 years as a Waldorf teacher, member of the School for Spiritual Science, Class holder, and now as chair of the Anthroposophical Society of America. A special interest has been in the area of the Divine Feminine and the Being of Sophia.
Michele Mariscal has 30 years of experience in the health and wellness field. She is a skilled facilitator in soft skills, speaker, coach and author. She is an Advanced Grief Recovery Specialist as well as a Trainer and Coach with the Institute of HeartMath. She facilitates greater heart-based living for individuals and organizations Michele is also a five-time author with her most recent publication of Growing Through Grief – The Alchemy of Healing from Loss.
Joyce Reilly Joyce studied psychology in college and was fascinated by the idea of a therapeutic community. She has worked in Camphill for many years, and is trained as a Waldorf and Therapeutic teacher. She founded Gheel House, a therapeutic community near Kimberton Pennsylvania, still thriving after 37 years. Joyce’s interests expanded to international conflict work and refugee resettlement. She works with organizations such as the Janusz Korczak Association, Karuna Peacebuilders, Kiwimbi International, Good Grief, the Worldwide Storytelling and Puppetry Association, and especially with the New York Anthroposophical Branch, and also works part-time at the local public library. Joyce is also trained in Psychosynthesis therapy and Anthroposophical psychology – currently practicing as a life coach and counselor.
Carrie Schuchardt co-founded The House of Peace in 1990, a home that is a physical and spiritual refuge for victims of war in a community with adults with special needs. In the last 15 years over 400 refugees from approximately 30 countries have been received in the healing embrace of The House of Peace, giving supportive assistance in establishing themselves in the US. In addition to the daily work of The House Peace, Carrie participates in many activities for the conversion of consciousness and policies from war to peace. Carrie has begun a network of women who witness publicly, Women Weeping, where women dress in mourning carrying symbolic lifeless children in order to help people feel what is rarely expressed in the media: the grief of hundreds of thousands of mothers in war zones around the world who lose their children to the terrible violence of war.
Maria Ver Eecke is presently the therapeutic eurythmist for the School of Eurythmy, Spring Valley, NY. She taught eurythmy for forty years in Waldorf schools, a charter school, and a home-school program. Maria met anthroposophy in Maseru, Lesotho, when she was a class teacher in an English-medium preparatory school. Currently she is the editor of the newsletters for the Eurythmy Association of North America and the Association of Therapeutic Eurythmy in North America.
Here is the spoken word piece called ‘Positive Listening‘ on the ‘I Think Speech‘ Podcast
Greetings friends – In our 6BE practice group we have been working with the 4th exercise of Positivity. Here is a wee fairy tale that celebrates the power of Positivity & the blessings of the music of Spring.
Once upon a time a 100 years ago, or was it yesterday…A joyous thoughtful Queen married a kind & loving King from a distant land. During the wedding feast, he was poisoned by 3 evil Dukes who wanted to control the kingdom. They set up rumors that it was the Queen herself that had murdered the King. The Queen became very sad & nothing could cheer her up. What once was a joy became a burden. The constant undermining of the evil Dukes created enmity & doubt within the court & the Queen who was once revered became suspect. Having no way of defending herself the Queen became stormy & very negative indeed. She soon fell ill & no one in all the court knew the true cause of her sickness or how to bring about a cure. The Queen still worked hard to make the Kingdom great, but because her efforts were received with suspicion, now she never smiled & went about fought & weary.
“The Queen needs daintier food,” thought the Court Cook, so he served broiled peacock eggs on toast, & pomegranates with cream, & wild honey, O & the cheese-cakes as light as feathers, but the Queen just became fat & even more grouchy & negative.
“The Queen needs medicine,” declared the Court Physician, so he searched the countryside for growing things & he brewed rose-leaf tea, & he made a potion of basil flowers mixed with rosemary, that he distilled with dew gathered at sunrise, & wild honeysuckle from the fields by the sea. But the Queen only wanted coffee, & would have none of it.
“Perhaps music will divert the Queen,” suggested the Court Jester. “It might make her forget her woes.”
The Court Herald hastened thru the streets, calling as loudly as he could: “Music for the Queen! Music for the Queen! Riches & honor for whoever can play a healing tune – one that will make her majesty forgo her sorrow.”
Immediately the palace was filled with music, some of it quite beautiful & some played by the very famous of the famous in all the land. But it was deemed either too loud or too soft, too high or too low by the Queen. A sweet singer came with his lute & regaled the Queen. But at the end the Queen was still weak & sorrowful. A harpist from a far country came & played music that sounded like the mighty wind on high mountain tops & the rushing flow of great valley streams. But the Queen slightly moved was still only able to thank the harpist & request that he be paid for his pains & bid him journey back to his home. Later, there came a trumpeter who gave great battle calls on his horn, but the Queen covered her ears to shut out the sound & looked even sadder than ever because the sound only gave her a headache.
So it seemed as if not even music would make the Queen well, & since no one suspected what the 3 evil Dukes were about, no one knew what to do & so pallor of gloom hung about the kingdom. The Queen spoke her mind at the palace meetings, & what she said was true, & certainly for the good of all, but her pain-tinged tone came across as harsh & no one wanted to listen. The evil Dukes played off her pain & kept the rumors going to keep her off balance.
Meanwhile, way down in the valley, there lived a little boy called Gladheart who tended sheep. He was the youngest of five brothers, & there was little room & less food for them in their mother’s house. But Gladheart had been given his name because he was always full of love & smiled over even a crust of bread, ever since he was a baby. Now that he was a strapping lad of ten with a great flock of ewes & lambs to tend & drive through sun & storm, he had even more smiles & kind words for all; & he played his fiddle all the day long, filling the valley with his sweet songs. When he heard of the Queens sorrow, Gladheart said: “I must go & play before her majesty.”
“They will only laugh at your old fiddle,” said his brothers, but the eldest agreed to tend the sheep for a day, & Gladheart set out for the palace.
“The Dukes will have naught to do with a shepherd lad dressed in goatskin & bearing an old fiddle,” the guards at the door said. But Gladheart touched the strings with the bow & such a blithe tune came forth that the guards opened the door wide, & Gladheart went inside.
At first the sight of the Queen sitting so bent & sorrowful on the throne with a face as frowning & sad as a storm frightened Gladheart. But he took courage & stood as straight as he could in front of the Queen, & began to play on the fiddle a tune that he had learned while working in the fields with his sheep.
It was a lovable tune, like a dozen twittering birds & a little wandering wind & the voice of a rippling brook all joined with the sounds of the little Sun singers, the bees, the katydids, & the crickets. As the Queen listened, her bent shoulders straightened & her face became bright with life. She reached out her hands to Gladheart. “I’ve heard that tune before, when I was a young lass & all I knew was love ,” – It makes me well to hear it now. What is it about, lad?”
“It is about the Spring-time, your majesty,” said Gladheart. “It is the song that I learned from the fields when winter is finally over. And if your majesty will come with me to my sheep pasture, you may hear it there every day.”
No one could understand why the Queen was suddenly so positive & full of life, or why she went often to sit with Gladheart & the sheep, but they were all very happy over it. All except the 3 evil Dukes, who continued to plot, even though they were obliged to give Gladheart the riches & the honor that had been promised to whoever could heal the Queen. And because of the healing music the Queen was reminded that Love was all that mattered, & from then on she could find nothing else but beauty & good in the world.
Star Wisdom comes alive through active embodiment within each participant, made possible by working together in the instrument of the StarHouse—or within your sacred imagination in your own home. This immersion facilitates each participant forming conscious relationships with zodiacal and planetary beings.
Join us for an exploration, based on spiritual science and star wisdom, into the following themes:
This course, to train practitioners in Star Wisdom will take place in the StarHouse June 2022. It is designed to train beginners who are willing to ride a steep learning-curve, and long-time astrologers.
Our teaching weaves experiential activities (embodiment) and conceptual learning so you learn it more thoroughly.
On-line too: The course will also be on-line (live-streamed, interactive). A manager on our end will coordinate actively with those attending via Zoom, including relaying questions to the presenters for comment. (We plan that the event will be filmed and edited, and parts of it made available as a course through our website.)
Our approach to astrology is informed and inspired by Rudolf Steiner’s indications found sprinkled throughout his six thousand lectures, as it has been developed by a small group of astrosophers over several decades. This deeper understanding of, and interaction with, the heavens is based on:
A sidereal (star-based) view of the heavens, emphasizing the active and dynamic role of the beings working from stars and constellations
Equal length zodiacal signs (relating to the lineage of Zarathustra), equal houses, and recognizing the Earth’s role and significance to the birth chart
Anthroposophy (thus called astrosophy, with its particular guidance for understanding the beings indwelling the zodiacal and planets)
Identifying and working with spiritual themes in our lives in a way made practical by the research of Robert Powell, and the indications of cosmic Christianity, as understood through Anthroposophy.
And other features that we will teach.
Some topics that we will cover:
New and traditional methods for interpreting a birth chart
Zodiacal constellations in the birth chart
Understanding the meaning in the patterns of the moving planets
Planetary aspects in the birth chart
The important role of the twelve equal houses, in the birth chart
How transiting planets interplay in the time-stream of life, presenting challenges and opportunities
Determining the time of conception and its own chart
The care necessary to regard the information of a person’s sacred birth moment with reverence and understanding
The importance of understanding reincarnation and karma for human development
The journey between death and rebirth, and why that is important for human destiny
Human Life phases: the 7-year periods of our life biography and the relation of those periods to the planetary spheres
The role of self-development for a practitioner of New Astrology
Commitment: This intensive requires participation in five-plus full days.
Dates: Begin Thursday evening, June 23, 2022, 7 PM, through midday Tuesday June 28. On June 24-27, we will go from 9 AM to 5 PM. Evenings are for homework, integration, and optional study groups. Lunches will be provided, including the last day, Tuesday.
Limits: Enrollment will be limited to 24 in-person participants and others will participate on-line. In-person will go through an application process. More important than years practicing astrology is your motivation to learn. Our present on-line courses (New Astrology, series 1 and series 2) will be made available to all registered participants and can provide a strong foundation to a motivated person with little experience. After application for In-person participants, one of our team will arrange a phone call to interview you.
Scholarship program: We plan to have a scholarship program to which those of means can contribute. Please consider contributing to this fund to support others taking this course.
Costs: Cost of on-site/in-person for the whole course $1100. On-line (live-streaming) $800. A deposit will hold your place.
Meals and Snacks: Lunches provided every day including Tuesday (just after the end of the course). Dietary restrictions are queried on the application. Snacks and tea are provided mid-morning and mid-afternoon every day.
Lodging: You will need to find your own lodging and transport. Some lodging is available in nearby residences, and the Retreat Cabin near the StarHouse. These can fill up quickly, so please make your request soon. Other lodgings nearby are the Boulder Adventure Lodge (a-lodge.com), which fills up in summertime quickly. More information will be sent after registration.
Questions about the course
Tune in to our Zoom broadcasts, brief presentations of aspects of this course, with lots of time for Q&A. Intended to total 20 minutes in length. These are given on different days so you might find one that would work best for you. Each of these brief sessions will be different!
The Anthroposophical Society in America presents: Sophia Rising: Unveiling the Wisdom of Being Human in Santa Fe, New Mexico ~ April 21-24, 2022 Hotel Santa Fe Hacienda and Spa
Join us in New Mexico, the ‘land of enchantment’, resonant with light ether and deep history, as we enliven Sophia. Join together in community as Sophia emerges and rises in her many facets and expressions- past, present, and future.
Come and experience Sophia Rising as we honor the elements, the landscape, and each other.
VENUE & TRAVEL
Our gathering will take place at the lovely Native American-owned Hotel Santa Fe. We recommend you book your stay with the hotel to create a connected communal atmosphere for our gathering. The hotel has a full restaurant, pool, hot tub, and spa, as well as kivas and cozy sitting areas. Please call or email to make reservations with our special room rate for suites at $179/night. Each suite includes a refrigerator, microwave and sitting area. So much of what Santa Fe has to offer is within walking distance from the hotel.
**Ask for ASA Gathering to book with our special rate of $179/night for a suite. **
Registrants will receive suggested activities from our local organizers to explore in Santa Fe before or after our gathering. Extending your stay? The special ASA hotel rate is available for 3 days prior to and 3 days after the ASA gathering.
HOTEL and VENUE ADDRESS: 1501 Paseo de Peralta Santa Fe, NM 87501 Phone: (877) 259-3409
TICKETS The ticket price includes access to all conference activities, snacks, coffee/tea and beverages, dessert reception Thursday, dinner Friday, lunch Saturday and brunch on Sunday.
Early Bird Only with Room Booking – After 2/26 more tickets will be released!
SCHEDULE (subject to minor changes)
THURSDAY, April 21
7 pm Gathering Together – with a dessert reception
7:30- 8:30 pm ArtActs: Past – Present – Future Eurythmy, and Singing,
FRIDAY, April 22
Explore Santa Fe on your own and continued arrivals
1:00 – 2:30 pm Welcome: Spirit of Placewith organizers
WEAVING EARTH Opening Ceremony with Angela Foster and friends
2:30pm-3:00pm Break
3:00-4:30 pm Encountering the Celestial Goddess Anthroposophia with Mary Stewart Adams
HeartMath with Michele Mariscal
4:30-4:45 pm Break
4:45- 6:00 pm WEAVING AIR ArtActs Eurythmy, Singing, and Speech
6:00-7:30 pm Dinner Together*
7:30 pm Fireside Chats – Story and Sharing – Breakout circles led by friends and organizers 8:30 pm
Stargazing with Mary Stewart Adams
SATURDAY, April 23
Breakfast – On your own
8:30 – 9:30 am WEAVING ETHER Eurythmy
9:30 – 10:00 am Break
10:00 -11:15 am The Virgin of Guadalupe: Sophia Rising in the Americaswith Stephanie Georgieff – The Virgin of Guadalupe is one of the first recorded apparitions in the Americas. Revealing herself to a Nahuatl Native and ultimately to the Bishop of New Spain and his entourage in December of 1531, this image has continued to inspire countless souls for nearly 500 years. The symbolism and timing of her appearance presents deep mysteries for our age, and points to the ultimate Sophianic impulse for the present and future of Humanity.
11:30 – 12:30 pm WEAVING STORIES Biography Work
12:30 – 2:00 pm Lunch Together*
2:00 – 4:00 pm ‘ANTHROPOSOPHIA: OUR ALCHEMICAL WEDDING’ with Hazel Archer-Ginsberg and Friends. At the heart of this convergence isa Grand Experiential Soul Journey to ‘Know Thyself’’ – A Temple Experience in the New Mysteries, built up and worked on during all the WEAVING sessions, preparing us to enter a deeply intensive initiatory experience – a ‘Movable Feast’ with various stations engaging us in group eurythmy, singing, Steiner verses, color gestures in art, and a telling of the New Isis Myth. Passing through Trials of the Soul we meet powerful Spiritual Beings on the way to our sacred marriage – a union of Warmth and Light, so that we can unveil the ‘Sophia Rising’ within ourselves, and the world.
4:00 – 4:30 pm Break
4:30 – 5:30 pm WEAVING COLOR Invoking Natura: Sensing the Cosmic within the Earthly Pastels with Helen-Ann Ireland
8:00-9:30 pm WEAVING COMMUNITYSophia Rising- Past, Present, and FutureMC’d by Lucien Dante Lazar & Ultra-Violet Archer. Sign up to bring something to share! Poetry, Instruments, Story
SUNDAY, April 24
8:00 – 9:00 am WEAVING LIGHT Bathe in the Natural Warmth and Harmony of the Metal Gold with Helena Hurrell – A metal color light therapy experience inspired by the glass windows at the Goetheanum
9:00-10:30 am WEAVING FIRE with Carrie Schuchardt HeartMath with Michele Mariscal
10:30 – 12:00pm Brunch Together*
12:00-1:00 pm WEAVING WATERWater Ritual with Joyce Reilly and Friends WEAVING WHOLENESSClosing with Angela Foster and Friends
Notes: *Meals marked with an asterisk are included in the price of the ticket – Coffee, tea, and snacks will also be provided through the conference
A quiet ‘Sanctuary Room’ will be provided for contemplation
PRESENTERS AND GUIDES (Not a full list-more to come!)
Mary Stewart Adams is a Star Lore Historian, and host of the weekly public radio program and podcast “The Storyteller’s Night Sky”. Through her research in spiritual science and her education in literary arts, Mary has developed a unique, humanities-based approach to understanding our relationship with the stars. Her work is further augmented by an extensive knowledge of ancient mythologies and fairy tales, which she relates to the research and ideas of contemporary astronomy in order to understand the new star wisdom of astrosophy.
Eyahnna DalBo (artist of the Sophia Rising painting) came to anthroposophy 30 years ago when her daughter attended a Waldorf school. Her studies have included an undergraduate degree in fine art and graduate work in psychology using the arts for healing. In her private practice, she developed various energetic modalities. Her experience with subtle energy fields gave her the opportunity to teach and take part in designing a curriculum for a 2-year program focusing on energy healing. As a consultant, she initiated numerous therapeutic programs to assist in pioneering the field of art therapy. Through the gift of an apprenticeship with indigenous people she was able to bring their practices and ceremonies to what she offered deepening her ability to be of service. As an artist, she continues to utilize the spoken word, movement, sound, and visual imagery to honor and create a field that fosters awareness, growth, and transformation.
Angela Foster has been an active student of anthroposophy since 2008. After growing up in Texas, Angela is now embracing life in Atlanta, Georgia as an artist, teacher, and mom of two daughters, shepherd to two mini sheep. As a conscious practitioner of “beginner’s mind”, Angela has completed programs in foundation studies in Anthroposophy numerous times and is currently enrolled in Foundation Studies in Goethean Science through the Nature Institute. She and her husband manage the Anthroposophical Resource Center (ARC) an initiative in Decatur, Georgia that offers space for community events and serves as a little house for Anthroposophia.
Stephanie Georgieff, MS is an author, podcaster and pilgrim. Residing mostly in the Northern Hemisphere, she has written several books on The Divine Feminine as presented through the genre of The Black Madonna, The Virgin of Guadalupe and The Divine Sophia. She has spoken at conferences and venues throughout North America, the United Kingdom and Europe. The Black Madonna Speaks is her latest endeavor, a weekly podcast exploring the mysteries of The Black Madonna from an Anthroposophical and Esoteric Chritian perspective, along with artists, poets, authors and scholars on the subject.
Hazel Archer-Ginsberg – Founder of Reverse Ritual: Understanding Anthroposophy through the Rhythms of the Year & the ‘I Think Speech’ Podcast. Trans-denominational Minister, Essayist, Lecturer, Poet, Anthroposopher – working as the Cultural Events & Festivals Coordinator of the Chicago Rudolf Steiner Branch, & as the Central Regional Council representative on the General Council of the Anthroposophical Society in America. Past Video Recordings.
Helena Hurrell joyfully met Anthroposophy in San Fransisco in 1977 and has been working with individuals and groups as a Waldorf educator since 1981 and then throughout her life trained to become a therapist while living in Australia, the UK and North America. She is currently in private practice in Colorado blending the therapeutic work she offers through her love of color ~ as an Art and Metal Color Light Glass Therapist trained in the UK and Germany. Both of these trainings are certified by the Medical Section at the Goetheanum. Metal Color Light Therapy is a relatively new initiative originated by the late Marianne Altmaier who developed this therapy and training out of her deep interest in and knowledge of the Goetheanum windows in Dornach. Helena’s website: www.helioscenter.org
Helen-Ann Ireland has been involved in anthroposophical studies for over 30 years as a Waldorf teacher, member of the School for Spiritual Science, Class holder, and now as chair of the Anthroposophical Society of America. A special interest has been in the area of the Divine Feminine and the Being of Sophia.
Michele Mariscal has 30 years of experience in the health and wellness field. She is a skilled facilitator in soft skills, speaker, coach and author. She is an Advanced Grief Recovery Specialist as well as a Trainer and Coach with the Institute of HeartMath. She facilitates greater heart-based living for individuals and organizations Michele is also a five-time author with her most recent publication of Growing Through Grief – The Alchemy of Healing from Loss.
Joyce Reilly Joyce studied psychology in college and was fascinated by the idea of a therapeutic community. She has worked in Camphill for many years, and is trained as a Waldorf and Therapeutic teacher. She founded Gheel House, a therapeutic community near Kimberton Pennsylvania, still thriving after 37 years. Joyce’s interests expanded to international conflict work and refugee resettlement. She works with organizations such as the Janusz Korczak Association, Karuna Peacebuilders, Kiwimbi International, Good Grief, the Worldwide Storytelling and Puppetry Association, and especially with the New York Anthroposophical Branch, and also works part-time at the local public library. Joyce is also trained in Psychosynthesis therapy and Anthroposophical psychology – currently practicing as a life coach and counselor.
Carrie Schuchardt co-founded The House of Peace in 1990, a home that is a physical and spiritual refuge for victims of war in a community with adults with special needs. In the last 15 years over 400 refugees from approximately 30 countries have been received in the healing embrace of The House of Peace, giving supportive assistance in establishing themselves in the US. In addition to the daily work of The House Peace, Carrie participates in many activities for the conversion of consciousness and policies from war to peace. Carrie has begun a network of women who witness publicly, Women Weeping, where women dress in mourning carrying symbolic lifeless children in order to help people feel what is rarely expressed in the media: the grief of hundreds of thousands of mothers in war zones around the world who lose their children to the terrible violence of war.
Maria Ver Eecke is presently the therapeutic eurythmist for the School of Eurythmy, Spring Valley, NY. She taught eurythmy for forty years in Waldorf schools, a charter school, and a home-school program. Maria met anthroposophy in Maseru, Lesotho, when she was a class teacher in an English-medium preparatory school. Currently she is the editor of the newsletters for the Eurythmy Association of North America and the Association of Therapeutic Eurythmy in North America.
Chocolate candy kisses dear friends on this Valentine’s Day 2022– In ancient times the month began with the sighting of the New Moon. The middle of the month held Bella Luna in her fullness – this was called “the ides”, which means ‘split’ since the lunar month was split into three parts, the ides being in the middle of the month coinciding with the Full Moon. (We’ve all heard of the ‘ides of March’ which was famous not only for Caesars death, but because it was the Spring Equinox celebration in the Greco-Roman era; but every month has an ‘ides’.)
Today is the Eve of the Eve of the Full Chaste Moon in Leo – the Lion Hearted. Venus (occult Mercury) & Mars have been dancing with the waxing Moon since early February, getting closer & closer to perfect their conjunction on the 16th.
Among the wandering stars, no couple represents complementary forces better than Venus & Mars, as they hold the energies of the Archetypes at the very foundation of desire & will. Venus attracts magnetically, Mars conquers energetically.
What are the Celestial Lovers doing?
Botticelli
Their conjunction is taking place in Capricorn, which means that their union inherits the challenge of the Venus retrograde that recently took place in that sign of initiation.
February 16 : FULL MOON IN LEO + Venus (16Cap53) in Conjunction with (16Cap53) Mars
February 23 : Mars (22Cap12) Sextile (22Pis12) Neptune
February 24 : Venus (22Cap14) Sextile (22Pis14) Neptune
Venus in Capricorn Says… “Put a Ring On It!” ~Astrology.com
Venus in Capricorn gets serious. She is willing to carry on relationships only if they sit on solid foundations.
The retrograde period helped us to understand whether this was really the case. And if not, what will we do to make things work? (~Thanks to Roberto Corona & his amazing site https://astronomicon.co/)
~All are One in Love… We are Her body electric, Her Eternal Time moves in our bellies… There is no season in which heaven is not in earth holding the shape of the Beloved to connect the heart & mind… We are growing, forgiving, re-membering, forgetting, becoming We are the many – One face changing expression – We are the will of Love… ~hag
Feast Day of St. Valentinus – English 18th-century antiquarians Alban Butler & Francis Douce, noting the obscurity of Saint Valentine’s identity, suggested that Valentine’s Day was created as an attempt to supersede the pagan holiday of Lupercalia. Many of the current legends that characterize Saint Valentine were invented in the fourteenth century in England, notably by Geoffrey Chaucer & his circle, when the feast day of February 14 first became associated with romantic love. During the Middle Ages, it was believed that birds paired in mid-February. This was then associated with the romance of Valentine. (see more in the recordings above)
Leon Battista Alberti
1404 – Birthday of Leon Battista Alberti an Italian humanist author, artist, architect, poet, priest, linguist, philosopher & cryptographer; he epitomised the Renaissance Man
1502 – Spanish Inquisition: The Catholic Monarchs issue a decree forcing Muslims in Granada to convert to Catholicism or leave Spain
1876 – Alexander Graham Bell applies for a patent for the telephone, as does Elisha Gray
1920 – The League of Women Voters is founded in Chicago
1945 – World War II: On the first day of the bombing of Dresden, the British Royal Air Force & the United States Army Air Forces begin fire-bombing Dresden.
1945 – World War II: Navigational error leads to the mistaken bombing of Prague, Czechoslovakia by an American squadron of B-17s
1989 – Union Carbide agrees to pay $470 million to the Indian government for damages it caused in the 1984 Bhopal disaster
1990 – 192 people are killed when Indian Airlines Flight 605 crashes in Bangalore, India
1998 – An oil tanker train collides with a freight train in Yaoundé, Cameroon, spilling fuel oil. One person scavenging the oil created a massive explosion which kills 120
2005 – YouTube is launched by a group of college students
2008 – Northern Illinois University shooting: A gunman opened fire in a lecture hall of the DeKalb County, Illinois university resulting in 16 fatalities (including gunman) & 21 injuries.
2011 – As a part of Arab Spring, the Bahraini uprising begins with a ‘Day of Rage’
2017 – Deathday of our beloved Richard Dancey – Christian Community Priest.
‘May my heart-love reach to soul-love. May my love’s warmth shine to spirit-light. Thus, I draw near to you. Thinking spiritual thoughts WITH you, Feeling cosmic love IN you, Willing in spirit THROUGH you – Weaving with you One in experience’. ~Rudolf Steiner
The Anthroposophical Society in America presents Sophia Rising: Unveiling the Wisdom of Being Human – Santa Fe, New Mexico ~ April 21-24, 2022 Hotel Santa Fe Hacienda and Spa
***Early Bird Rate Until February 26 ~ Exclusively For Those Who Book With Hotel Santa Fe***
Join us in New Mexico, the ‘land of enchantment’, resonant with light ether and deep history, as we enliven Sophia. Join together in community as Sophia emerges and rises in her many facets and expressions- past, present, and future.
Come and experience Sophia Rising as we honor the elements, the landscape, and each other.
VENUE & TRAVEL
Our gathering will take place at the lovely Native American-owned Hotel Santa Fe. We recommend you book your stay with the hotel to create a connected communal atmosphere for our gathering. The hotel has a full restaurant, pool, hot tub, and spa, as well as kivas and cozy sitting areas. Please call or email to make reservations with our special room rate for suites at $179/night. Each suite includes a refrigerator, microwave and sitting area. So much of what Santa Fe has to offer is within walking distance from the hotel.
**Ask for ASA Gathering to book with our special rate of $179/night for a suite. **
Registrants will receive suggested activities from our local organizers to explore in Santa Fe before or after our gathering. Extending your stay? The special ASA hotel rate is available for 3 days prior to and 3 days after the ASA gathering.
AIR TRAVEL: Fly to Albuquerque or Santa Fe (note that flights are more limited and subject to the weather as Santa Fe is a small airport.)
HOTEL and VENUE ADDRESS: 1501 Paseo de Peralta Santa Fe, NM 87501 Phone: (877) 259-3409
TICKETS The ticket price includes access to all conference activities, snacks, coffee/tea and beverages, dessert reception Thursday, dinner Friday, lunch Saturday and brunch on Sunday.
No refunds after March 21, 2022
EARLY BIRD with ROOM BOOKING (until 2/26): $295*
STANDARD TICKET (After 2/26): $350
SUPPORTER TICKET: $425
*Must book at Hotel Santa Fe to receive this special early bird rate! Email stay@hotelsantafe.com or call 877-259-3409 to book. Please specify your reservation is for the ASA Gathering.
Early Bird Only with Room Booking – After 2/26 more tickets will be released!
SCHEDULE (subject to minor changes)
THURSDAY, April 21
7 pm Gathering Together – with a dessert reception
7:30- 8:30 pm ArtActs: Past – Present – Future Eurythmy, Singing, and Speech
FRIDAY, April 22
Explore Santa Fe on your own and continued arrivals
1:00 – 2:30 pm Welcome: Spirit of Placewith organizers
WEAVING EARTH Opening Ceremony with Angela Foster and friends
2:30pm-3:00pm Break
3:00-4:30 pm Encountering the Celestial Goddess Anthroposophia with Mary Stewart Adams 4:30-4:45 pm Break
4:45- 6:00 pm WEAVING AIR ArtActs Eurythmy, Singing, and Speech
6:00-7:30 pm Dinner Together*
8:00 pm Fireside Chats – Story and Sharing. Breakout circles lead by friends and organizers
8:30 pm Stargazing with Mary Stewart Adams
SATURDAY, April 23
Breakfast – On your own
8:30 – 9:30 am WEAVING ETHER Eurythmy
9:30 – 10:00 am Break
10:00-11:15am Presentation with Stephanie Georgieff
11:30 – 12:30pm WEAVING STORIES Biography Work
12:30 – 2pm Lunch Together*
2:00 – 3:30pm Anthroposophia: Our Alchemical Weddingwith Hazel Archer-Ginsberg and Friends – At the heart of the gathering is a Grand Experiential Soul Journey to ‘Know Thyself’’ – a movable feast, with various stations engaging us in group eurythmy, singing, speaking verses, color gestures in art, and a telling of the New Isis Myth with Hazel Archer- Ginsberg. This experience is built up and worked on during all the WEAVING sessions.
3:30 – 4 pm Break
4:00 – 5:00 pm WEAVING COLOR Invoking Natura: Sensing the Cosmic within the Earthly Pastels with Helen-Ann Ireland
7:30-9:30pm WEAVING COMUNITYSophia Rising- Past, Present, and Future. Bring something to share! Poetry, Instruments, Story
SUNDAY, April 24
8:00 – 9:00 am WEAVING LIGHT Bathe in the Natural Warmth and Harmony of the Metal Gold with Helena Hurrell – A metal color light therapy experience inspired by the glass windows at the Goetheanum
9:00-10:30 am WEAVING FIRE with Carrie Schuchardt
10:30 – 12:00pm Brunch Together*
12:00-1:00 pm WEAVING WATERWater Ritual with Joyce Reilly and Friends WEAVING WHOLENESSClosing with Angela Foster and Friends
Notes:
*Meals marked with an asterisk are included in the price of the ticket
Coffee, tea, and snacks will also be provided through the conference
PRESENTERS AND GUIDES (Not a full list-more to come!)
Eyahnna DalBo (artist of the Sophia Rising painting) came to anthroposophy 30 years ago when her daughter attended a Waldorf school. Her studies have included an undergraduate degree in fine art and graduate work in psychology using the arts for healing. In her private practice, she developed various energetic modalities. Her experience with subtle energy fields gave her the opportunity to teach and take part in designing a curriculum for a 2-year program focusing on energy healing. As a consultant, she initiated numerous therapeutic programs to assist in pioneering the field of art therapy. Through the gift of an apprenticeship with indigenous people she was able to bring their practices and ceremonies to what she offered deepening her ability to be of service. As an artist, she continues to utilize the spoken word, movement, sound, and visual imagery to honor and create a field that fosters awareness, growth, and transformation.
Mary Stewart Adams is a Star Lore Historian, and host of the weekly public radio program and podcast “The Storyteller’s Night Sky”. Through her research in spiritual science and her education in literary arts, Mary has developed a unique, humanities-based approach to understanding our relationship with the stars. Her work is further augmented by an extensive knowledge of ancient mythologies and fairy tales, which she relates to the research and ideas of contemporary astronomy in order to understand the new star wisdom of astrosophy.
Carrie Schuchardt co-founded The House of Peace in 1990, a home that is a physical and spiritual refuge for victims of war in a community with adults with special needs. In the last 15 years over 400 refugees from approximately 30 countries have been received in the healing embrace of The House of Peace, giving supportive assistance in establishing themselves in the US. In addition to the daily work of The House Peace, Carrie participates in many activities for the conversion of consciousness and policies from war to peace. Carrie has begun a network of women who witness publicly, Women Weeping, where women dress in mourning carrying symbolic lifeless children in order to help people feel what is rarely expressed in the media: the grief of hundreds of thousands of mothers in war zones around the world who lose their children to the terrible violence of war.
Stephanie Georgieff After nearly thirty years as a practicing Naturopath and Acupuncturist, Stephanie Georgieff has chosen to transform her healing vocation into writing and lecturing on various aspects of Christian Spirituality and its relationship to emotional and physical health. She has lectured throughout Europe and North America on various subjects, but her passion is on the Middle Ages and the Divine Feminine. Georgieff hosts a podcast “The Black Madonna Speaks,” writes for numerous publications, and has her own Blog: The Heart of the Black Madonna. The Black Madonna, Mysterious Soul Companion is the first in a series of books examining how the Black Madonna as an art form offers healing insights to our collective past and present. These volumes also explore the invitation humanity has from the spiritual world to co-create a healthy and peaceful future.
Helena Hurrell is an art and metal color Light therapist trained in the UK/Germany and certified by the Medial Section at the Goetheanum
Angela Foster has been an active student of anthroposophy since 2008. After growing up in Texas, Angela is now embracing life in Atlanta, Georgia as an artist, teacher, and mom of two daughters, shepherd to two mini sheep. As a conscious practitioner of “beginner’s mind”, Angela has completed programs in foundation studies in Anthroposophy numerous times and is currently enrolled in Foundation Studies in Goethean Science through the Nature Institute. She and her husband manage the Anthroposophical Resource Center (ARC) an initiative in Decatur, Georgia that offers space for community events and serves as a little house for Anthroposophia.
Trans-denominational Minister, Essayist, Lecturer, Poet, Anthroposopher – working as the Cultural Events & Festivals Coordinator of the Chicago Rudolf Steiner Branch, & as the Central Regional Council representative on the General Council of the Anthroposophical Society in America. Past Video Recordings
Helen-Ann Ireland has been involved in anthroposophical studies for over 30 years as a Waldorf teacher, member of the School for Spiritual Science, Class holder, and now as chair of the Anthroposophical Society of America. A special interest has been in the area of the Divine Feminine and the Being of Sophia.
Michele Mariscal has 30 years of experience in the health and wellness field. She is a skilled facilitator in soft skills, speaker, coach and author. She is an Advanced Grief Recovery Specialist as well as a Trainer and Coach with the Institute of HeartMath. She facilitates greater heart-based living for individuals and organizations Michele is also a five-time author with her most recent publication of Growing Through Grief – The Alchemy of Healing from Loss.
Joyce Reilly Joyce studied psychology in college and was fascinated by the idea of a therapeutic community. She has worked in Camphill for many years, and is trained as a Waldorf and Therapeutic teacher. She founded Gheel House, a therapeutic community near Kimberton Pennsylvania, still thriving after 37 years. Joyce’s interests expanded to international conflict work and refugee resettlement. She works with organizations such as the Janusz Korczak Association, Karuna Peacebuilders, Kiwimbi International, Good Grief, the Worldwide Storytelling and Puppetry Association, and especially with the New York Anthroposophical Branch, and also works part-time at the local public library. Joyce is also trained in Psychosynthesis therapy and Anthroposophical psychology – currently practicing as a life coach and counselor.
For questions or inquiries please email programs@anthroposophy.org or call the office at 734-662-9355
Dear Friends, Today 109 years ago on 3 February 1913 we can re-call the very 1st AGM of the newly formed Anthroposophical Society, after the split from the Theosophical Society, held in Berlin, with the cycle of lectures called The Mysteries of the Orient & of Christianity (GA 144)
Rudolf Steiner opened the conference on this day with the lecture: The Being of Anthroposophy. In light of the upcoming ‘Sophia Rising’: Unveiling the Wisdom of Being Human Convergence, I thought to share some relevant quotes for your inspiration on this anniversary:
Iris
“…The being of anthroposophy is intimately connected with the being of our time- not with our own immediate little present moment, of course, but with the whole age within which we stand.
Today I want to point out the character of this being by speaking of the necessity for establishing anthroposophy in our time.
“Love, who commands the chambers of my mind Discoursing of my lady passionately, From hour to hour speaks things of her to me At which my intellect bids me demur. Sweetly his words make music of such kind My soul, which hears and feels how they agree, Exclaims, ‘Alas, that I can never be Equal to saying all I hear of her! Such things appear within her fair aspect As show they bear the joys of paradise I mean, both in her smile and in her eyes, Where Love brings them as if he brought them home.”
It seems very clear. A poet has written a love poem…This poem was not written today, however, but was written by Dante
Dante himself told us…that the beloved lady, with whom he had so direct and personal a relationship, was none other than Philosophy. Dante says that when he speaks of the lady’s eyes and says that what they say is no lie, he means the evidence of truth; and by her “smile,” he means the art of expressing the truth communicated to the soul; and by “love,” or amor; he means scientific study the love of the truth.
People who do not know how the times – into which our soul is ever growing with new life-change, lack any idea that Dante was just one (among many) of those with the capacity for a concrete experience of a passionate and personal relationship, immediate and of the soul, with Lady Philosophy, such as we today can feel only toward a man or woman of flesh and blood. In this sense, Dante’s time is past. The modern soul no longer approaches Lady Philosophy – the woman, Philosophy as a being of the same, fleshly nature as itself as Dante did.
When the Greeks present something, it is Sophia, not Philosophia. And they present her in such a way that, again, we experience her as a living being, as an immediate presence. We experience the Greek Sophia as an immediate, living being, just as Dante feels Philosophy to be. Always, however, we feel this Greek Sophia – and I ask you to please go through the descriptions that exist – to be an elemental force, as it were, an active being who intervenes in existence through action.
Albrecht Dürer
Beginning around the fifth century A.D., we find that Philosophia is first represented, initially described by poets in the most varied guises: nurse, benefactor, guide, and so on. Then somewhat later, painters begin to represent her. Thus, we reach the period during the Middle Ages called Scholasticism, when many philosophers really felt they were experiencing a directlyhuman relation when they became aware of beautiful, noble Lady Philosophia, who actually approached them from the clouds. Many medieval philosophers, in fact, felt the same deep, burning feelings toward the Lady Philosophia as she floated toward them on the clouds as Dante describes toward his Lady. And anyone who can feel such things will find a direct connection between Raphael’s Sistine Madonna floating on the clouds, and the exalted Lady Philosophia.
…the Greeks confronted Sophia, or Wisdom, as a being, so to speak, whom they could encounter standing before them in a particular place, Two beings then -Sophia and the Greek – faced each other, as if Sophia were a definite objective entity, to be looked at, with all the objectivity of the Greek’s way of seeing.
How then does the consciousness soul confront Sophia? This is done so that it brings the I into direct relationship with Sophia while at the same expressing -much more so than the objective being of Sophia the activity of the I within the relationship between the consciousness soul and this Sophia. “I love Sophia” was the natural feeling of an age that still had to encounter the being we designate as Philosophy – an age that was preparing the consciousness soul and, out of the relationship between the I and the consciousness soul (on which the greatest value must be placed), was working toward representing Sophia as simply as it represented everything else. It was natural for the time of the intellectual soul – which was preparing for the consciousness soul- to express this relationship to Philosophy. And because things came to expression slowly and gradually, this relationship was being prepared during Greco-Latin times.
Philosophy is no longer the “woman” she was to Dante and others who lived in his time.
..we now live in the age of the consciousness soul and look toward the dawn of the age of the spirit-self, and we know in this way that something is again becoming objective to human beings – something that looks forward to the coming times that will be gained by what we have won through the time of the consciousness soul.
What, therefore, must be developed? It must unfold that, once again, as a matter of course, a “Sophia” becomes present. But we must learn to relate this Sophia to the consciousness soul, bring her down directly to human beings. This is happening during the age of the consciousness soul. And thereby Sophia becomes the being who directly enlightens human beings. After Sophia has entered human beings, she must take their being with her and present it to them outwardly, objectively. Thus, Sophia will be drawn into the human soul and arrive at the point of being so inwardly connected with it that a love poem as beautiful as Dante wrote may be written about her.
Sophia will become objective again, but she will take with her what humanity is, and objectively present herself in this form. Thus, she will present herself not only as Sophia, but as Anthroposophia as the Sophia who, after passing through the human soul, through the very being of the human being, henceforth bears that being within her, and in this form she will confront enlightened human beings as the objective being Sophia who once stood before the Greeks.
What we receive through anthroposophy is our very own being.
Kristena West
This once floated toward us in the form of a celestial goddess with whom we were able to enter into relationship. This divine being lived on as Sophia and Philosophia, and now we can once again bring her out of ourselves and place her before us as the fruit of true anthroposophical self-knowledge. We can wait patiently until the world is willing to test the depth of the foundations of what we have to say, right down to the smallest details. It is the essence of anthroposophy that its own being consists of the being of the human, and its effectiveness, its reality, consists in that we receive from anthroposophy what we ourselves are and what we must place before ourselves, because we must practice self-knowledge.” ~Rudolf Steiner
May we receive this being, that is our birthright, with grace & develop her within us with intention & love.
3 February 2021 – “Speaking with the Stars”: Tonight and tomorrow evening in twilight, the curved outer edge of the crescent Moon aims nearly at Jupiter like a bow shooting an arrow at it; see above.
Meanwhile – Mercury (occult Venus) is stationary at 4 pm CST in Sagittarius, & then begins tracking East against the background stars of the Archer.
ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY
1690 – The colony of Massachusetts issues the first paper money in the Americas
1870 – The Fifteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution is ratified, guaranteeing voting rights to male citizens regardless of race.
Picasso
1874 – Birthday of Gertrude Stein, American novelist, poet, playwright
1894 – Birthday of Norman Rockwell, American painter & illustrator
1909 – Birthday of Simone Weil, French mystic & philosopher
1913 – The Sixteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution is ratified, authorizing the Federal government to impose & collect an income tax.
Rudolf Steiner
1913 – The 1st AGM of the Anthroposophical Society in Berlin, where Rudolf Steiner gave the lecture series “The Mysteries of the Orient and of Christianity” & spoke for the 1st time about the Being of Anthroposophy!
1924 – Deathday of Woodrow Wilson. Rudolf Steiner has a lot to say about what was behind this individuality & in his former incarnation as Muawiya
1959 – Rock & roll musicians Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, & J. P. “The Big Bopper” Richardson are killed in a plane crash near Clear Lake, Iowa.
1961 – The United States Air Forces begins Operation Looking Glass, & over the next 30 years, a “Doomsday Plane” is always in the air, with the capability of taking direct control of the United States’ bombers & missiles in the event of the destruction of the SAC’s command post.
Umění Olomouc
POD (Poem Of the Day)
~There is no ending to becoming I lose & find my way over & again One task gives rise to the next I wage battle against my own proud ignorance – My sentimental affection for folly In occluded justification… Let me live To strive Forever for perfection In Loves grace I go ~hag
