But let me tell you that the only reason I got into office in 2020 was the crossover vote. Republicans voted for me in the general because they saw, having worked with me in one way or another in nonpartisan ways that I’m about delivering and working to bring up the health index of our communities.

So, in the general election, they can vote for you and maintain their Republican ballot. 

I can see it. Your spirit of service is profound. Do you have any other aspirations for future offices?

Donna Michaels: Political offices? That’s a very interesting question.

My commitment right now is to ensure that there’s a controlled and directed local voice that serves rural communities. I can do this very well sitting in the county supervisor’s office. Whatever happens globally and nationally, I think we all need to recognize that it’s us, together, in communities that are going to underpin the strength and safety of our country.  If you can unite people around local issues which affect their daily lives, the polarities drop away.

“The regenerative philosophy is the lynchpin

of future progress and community health.”- Donna Michaels

The Smithsonian Magazine had a very interesting article on the expanding nihilism among people today. 

Donna Michaels: There is a malaise and a nihilism growing in America. And yes, we are not all well enough informed in civil and civic ways to understand the risk that we’re taking by assuming we have the luxury of being a nihilist. You know, that’s for a conversation over wine when you’re not hungry; when you have housing; when your health is in order and when your community is safe. We’re nowhere near those standards in the communities.

 It feels like we are on a precipice. We don’t know what is going to happen. So, security has to come through our community leadership.

Donna Michaels: We’re able to find some sense of security at least in our local communities – places where we can get involved.  I know that the power of a dedicated spirit of service is going to prevail!

Perhaps the jewel in the crown in Donna’s latest achievements and initiatives in 

Regenerative practices.

What’s next?

Donna Michaels:  We’re getting ready to embark on a major relationship with stakeholders across a broad spectrum of businesses: ranchers, farmers, agave growers, the Manzanita Food Bank (who wants to provide compost to quickly heal the soil), and the vintners like Maynard and Alcantara who could turn all that seed waste into energy. The 50 acres DK ranch has been provided by the University of Arizona to be our headquarters for The Center of Excellence-Regenerative Agriculture Practices!

“We’re going to keep helping one another in the places where we need help and not in the ways that somebody else thinks we need the help.” -Donna Michaels

Sidebar news from Kristen Regina

Social Media Postings excerpted from Sedona’s Open Bulletin Board

SEDONA LIBRARY is NOT PUBLIC

Why the DORR Hit Piece Story About Donna Michaels Defunding the Sedona Library is a Far-Reaching Lie: The Usual Suspects want Donna Michaels gone.

Under Arizona law, specifically Arizona Revised Statutes (A.R.S.) § 11-251, a library funded by county taxes must be owned by a city or county. This statute outlines the legal framework for the establishment and operation of public libraries in Arizona.

According to A.R.S. § 11-251, when a county establishes a library system and funds it by using county tax revenues, the library must be owned by either the county or a city within that county. This requirement ensures that public libraries funded by county taxes are under the ownership and control of a governmental entity responsible for providing library services to residents.

The Sedona Library is a private library; it illegally receives 1.6 million dollars per year; it triple-dips from Yavapai County, Coconino County, and the City of Sedona. Under Arizona law, the Sedona Library is entitled to nothing. Fifteen public libraries in Yavapai County must share a little under 1.6 million dollars between all 15 of them! Yet DORR, a political action committee run by the usual suspects, published their lying little hit piece in the Sedona Red Rock News last week.

DORR is not the Democratic Party and lies to serve its agenda. I always believed DORR was the Democratic party, and now I know it is just a PAC. This PAC does not subscribe to democratic principles because it lies.

Excerpted” froth Sedona Open Bulletin Board: Kristen Regina

Enquiring Minds want to know, Donna Michaels’ Position on The City of Sedona Taking Ownership of Sedona Airport. 

As your dedicated County Supervisor,

Donna Michaels maintains a strong stance against the proposed transfer of ownership of the Sedona Airport to the City of Sedona because the City of Sedona currently does not meet federal requirements to effectively oversee airport operations.

Despite external pressures from the City and lobbying attempts, Donna Michaels stands firm in her commitment to adhere to federal regulations, including FAA guidelines, and refrain from endorsing the ownership transfer.

The City is displeased with their inability to get Donna to perform a good “old boy” deal and agree to the transfer despite the city being unqualified. This displeasure is evident in the relentless lies and attacks spread around town and published in the Red Rock News.

As a citizen of Sedona, I am appalled by the conduct of DORR who has put their own special interests above the needs of the Verde Valley. A loss of Donna Michaels would be a loss for us all. Special interests should not play a part in politics, yet Sedona is no better than any other place.

Donna Michaels places the well-being and concerns of her constituents at the forefront of her decision-making. Her dedication to upholding legal standards and promoting transparent governance highlights her steadfast dedication to serving the public interest. In her capacity, Donna Michaels underscores the importance of accountability and impartiality, avoiding any hint of favoritism or clandestine agreements. The more I have gotten to know Donna Michaels the more I am impressed with knowledge, accomplishments, and dedication. I have also learned the noise being generated against her is absolute rubbish and facts have been twisted to create malicious gossip. This gossip has a purpose and that is to allow a select group of controllers to steer the future of the Verde Valley and Sedona.

Effective county leadership necessitates professionalism and a dedication to public service, values that Donna Michaels embodies with integrity and conscientiousness.

Donna has worked tirelessly serving the Verde Valley and will continue to do so!” Kristen Regina

Supervisor Donna G. Michaels, PhD

Donna G. Michaels, Ph.D. is a community engaged leader who has served in government, education, community and cultural initiatives, private industry, development and non-profits nationally and internationally. She is a published author on social policy, public administration and capital funds development. She has expertise in public policy, land use planning and government regulation.

Dr. Michaels has lived in the Verde Valley almost three decades and cherishes the rural, small town character and iconic views that are unique to this area. Her commitment to Yavapai County residents is based in three promises:

• Protect our rural, small town, communities’ character and/or Community Plans and Vision statements and
• Preserve our rural lifestyle wherever possible and practicable, our land use and critically diminishing water resources.
• Promote business that support our communities’ plans and vision, robust, smart technologies and sustainable economies.

She is known for building teams of diverse constituents to develop and implement organizational goals. Dr. Michaels is a hands-on leader in execution or development plans through partnering with internal/external resources and recruitment and mentoring high performance teams.

She is accomplished in the areas of building stakeholder relationships, collaboration with diverse populations, board development, fundraising and program development, implementation, management and marketing.

Dr. Michaels is an accomplished public speaker, moderator, and published author. She has expertise in the fields of education, public policy, land use planning and government regulation. Her passion for horses has led to involvement, support and pro bono consultation for a number of equine organizations and ventures.

Affiliations

• Yavapai College Trustee, Board Spokesperson and Secretary
• Marilyn Sunderman Foundation, Founder, President
• Arizona Rural Health Association, Board Member, State Conference Organizer and M.C.
• National Rural Education Association, Board Member and State Conference Presenter
• National Association of Hearing Officials (NAHO), Member
• Arizona Department of Education, Arizona Risk Retention (The TRUST), Hearing Officer
• Justice Sandra Day O’Connor Speak Out Arizona Sedona/Verde Valley Advisory Board
• Verde Valley Land Preservation Institute, Board member and Chair 2019 Town Hall Forum
• Veterans Equine Therapeutic Alliance, Founder and Board Member
• Arizona Rangers, Verde Valley Company

Education

• Ph.D. Barry University, Miami, Florida
• B.S. and M.S.W., Summa Cum Laude, University of Nebraska, Omaha
• B.S., University of Southwestern Louisiana, Lafayette

Radiance Mixes

Tibetan Bowls with

the Mantras of Deva Premal

by RadianceMatrix (Paul Temple)

(Prabhu Music, 2017) Album

Review by Lane Badger, Dir. Cities of Light Media

I

It’s hard to imagine anything purer and more beautiful than the voice of Deva Premal…Yet together with the transcendental artistry of Tibetan bowl master, Paul Temple, the newly released Radiance Matrix album creates an astonishing synergy. If it’s possible to enhance music in a seamless digital mix, the bounty of positive effects in Radiance Mixes sets a higher plane for others to follow. I felt like I was floating in a cloud across vast regions of space, elongated, and suspended in the heart of each note. Without edges, the notes lingered into the finest filaments of sound until traces melted into more refined strata. I will leave it to others to discuss the virtues of this music and its effects on the neural cortex and the brain’s alpha and delta states. I absorbed this music through direct vibrational osmosis.

If this is a taste of the future of music in full flight as a living force, an animus, an etheric burst of radiance, then Radiance Mixes gives the listener a very good experience of what is to come. The incredibly vibrant movement of sound healing, lead by virtuoso men like Paul Temple, is creating a new potency in work, art, and a passion for excellence. And we, the listener, are ready for the future-now. “Sonic medicine,” a term coined by Paul Temple, will bring great healing to world–well beyond the seven senses into the twelve and higher!

The field of Archaeoacoustics is finding that our starseed ancestors tuned dozens of megalithic sites around the world to 110 Hertz. Imagine that the architecture of the ancient world: pyramids, temples, sanctuaries, great halls and holy places were built to emphasize that frequency. Why? The power of perfected sound resonance retunes the brain and the heart to higher realms of being and to the celestial spheres. Our human ‘temple’ bodies are perfect instruments too for those refined planes.

When I asked Paul about the Tibetan chanting on two of my favorite songs, he had this to say: “There are two sets of throat singing on the Radiance Mixes album:  on OM MANI PADME HUM (last track), the Drikung Kagyu Tibetan Monks are chanting, Deva Premal singing, David Darling playing cello and I play Tibetan bowls. On GURU RINPOCHE MANTRA (track 5) that is actually me doing the Tibetan Throat singing. I took Tibetan Buddhist refuge vows many years ago with Venerable Dhyani Ywahoo and later learned the throat singing from Jonathan Goldman. I have been doing that invocation of Padma Sambhava (also known as Guru Rinpoche) for many years.  The Tibetan throat singing is always part of the concerts with the bowls —it is quite a transporting combination.” – Paul Temple

So if you like Tibetan healing bowls, flutes, and mantras, Radiance Mixes is a must-have album in your collection. You can find RADIANCE MIXES, featuring the voice of DEVA PREMAL with Tibetan Bowls, on iTunes, Amazon, Spotify and Sound Cloud. More information is available on the Music & Video page of Paul Temple at: www.RadianceMatrix.com.  To receive a free track download click here: Free Track Download.  To order a CD email: Paul@RadianceMatrix.com.

Cities of Light Media Film Review

By Lane Badger

Collateral Beauty

Director: David Frankel

Screenplay: Allan Loeb

Production companies: New Line Cinema,

Producers: Allan Loeb, Kevin Scott Frakes, Michael Sugar, Anthony Bregman, Bard Dorros

94 min.

“When a successful New York advertising executive suffers a great tragedy he retreats from life. While his concerned friends try desperately to reconnect with him, he seeks answers from the universe by writing letters to Love, Time and Death. But it’s not until his notes bring unexpected personal responses that he begins to understand how these constants interlock in a life fully lived, and how even the deepest loss can reveal moments of meaning and beauty.”  -Excerpt from film promo, Harkins Theaters, AZ

Thank goodness!

This film doesn’t deliver a froth-induced high, violence- ridden terror or an equilibrium-busting storyline.  The box office films of 2016 films were trauma and black laced, full of sociopaths and skewed individuals with few redeeming exceptions, Collateral Beauty being one.  Though panned by film critics in their usual disdain for everything but dark and sinuous twisting works Collateral Beauty marks a tentative but courageous ‘leap of faith’ for the silver screen and one well worth seeing at the box office this holiday season. 

Finally, one film comes along that is able to dip into the collective bandwidth with some progressive thought and plotline. Still playing to the mass market and stuffed with those handy, clichéd artifices, so odiously labeled as “new age,” Collateral Beauty has a refreshing way of cutting through the biases and delivering a credible and entertaining film about a man who must face the ‘premature’ loss of his daughter.

Without the knowledge or even a hint of the mention of karma and reincarnation to bolster him, something many of us hold as a higher wisdom, consoling us and buffering the visceral pain of intense loss, our hero is helpless in face of the ensuing torment of grief. Many would mask the pain with drugs and drink at this point, but our tragic hero lets it really sink him good-to rock bottom, stripping him of identity, and his personal and professional life…and sanity; yet the crash creates an existential chasm for transcendence-acceptance… and then, rebirth; but, not without the timely intercession of the ‘three graces’ as I call them, labeled in the movie: Love, Time and Death. Of course, such depictions are carefully crafted to fit a storyline palatable to the general public—still, it was nice to see the overarching message that grace does not desert the humbled soul but comes at that pivotal moment when all appears lost and hope rides on the slimmest sliver of the possible. Looking over the edge of the Abyss and rising again, turning our eyes heavenward is the supreme moment in the life of every soul.

Happily, our man in Collateral Beauty does not disappoint and the powerful archetype of the hero is preserved. Screenwriter, Allen Loeb, sets him on the right path again, and though we are not sure where he is heading (like so many of us), our hero is going to be fine as he leaves his shadow behind and moves on with his life.

 Lest this looks too much like that pandemic of ‘inner work’ the socio-spiritual collective is always going on about, Hollywood has added a lot of panache and nuanced silver linings— a really likable cast of characters, Will Smith, Keira Knightley, Helen Mirran, Edward Norton, Michael Peña, and lots of likable subplots that we can all identify with. Happy endings all around for everyone- the gift of collateral beauty.

I was left with that inexplicable feeling that Collateral Beauty is the next step in our shared perception of reality. What a nice Christmas Gift!

Gratitude for The Illuminate Film Festival for delivering a pre-screening to Sedona! Enjoy more films like this and become a member. It also makes a perfect gift

for friends and family. 

Click here:Illuminatefilmfestival.com/index2.php?Get-Involved-Membership-122

]]> http://nextinthewest.com/film-review-collateral-beauty/feed/ 0 http://nextinthewest.com/starry-nightsjanuary-forecast-2017/ http://nextinthewest.com/starry-nightsjanuary-forecast-2017/#comments Tue, 03 Jan 2017 19:00:20 +0000 Lane Badger http://nextinthewest.com/?p=1144 ...]]>

By Michelle Proctor

It’s July – the astrological light-at-the-end-of-the-tunnel month! The stresses of the Grand Cross alignment are fading, and wave after wave of fresh energy is coming in.

First up, Mercury shifts Direct on 2 July. It’s always a relief to have Mercury heading the right way, as communication on all levels goes more smoothly. Yet the benefits of retrogrades are not to be underestimated.

Over the first 6 months of the year, the retrogrades of Mercury, Venus and Mars gave a rare chance to get fresh angles on past events, clear out baggage and prepare our next steps. We rewound, pressed pause and reviewed the movie reels of many past experiences and learnt from their glitches and successes. Now that these inner planet retrogrades are over, we can progress more freely.

From April to June, the Grand Cross also had us in deep contemplation mode. Many felt pinned to the spot, almost as if crucified. A lot of unusual behaviour has popped out this year with the intensity of the Grand Cross alignment. It’s not easy to act in normal ways while being crucified!

While some felt left hanging by life – stuck in the middle of a crossroads considering which of the four paths to choose – others were driven to make radical decisions and embark on immediate change when they came to their crossroads.

Mars’s retrograde, which ended late May, and recent slow movement forward has helped us stay present to some big sunsets and sunrises as people chose their paths and began to walk them – e.g. to say goodbyes or to welcome newcomers, rather than regret not doing so down the track. Retrogrades help us go back and deal with things we regret or avoid creating regrets in the first place.

As in the 60s (the period in which this Grand Cross cycle began), the times are changing extremely rapidly. A whole era is ending. Old values have sung their finales and departed. A number of retail stores in my local area suddenly closed during the Grand Cross months. They had been part of the ambience, soul and culture of my suburb for many years. I was sad to see them go. With online business (Uranus in Aries) now holding a firm foot in the door, retail trade will never be the same again.

Speaking of Uranus, this evolutionary planet turns Retrograde on 23 July, giving us a chance to take stock of life’s rapid changes and muster energy for the next Pluto-Uranus square in December. Uranus heads Direct again at the December solstice.

On 21 July Mars returns to the degree it went Retro (27 Libra) and leaves its shadow period. If you’ve felt held up or held back since early March, especially with relationship, legal or negotiation issues, from 21 July the intensity releases, the foot is off the brake and you can start to feel your way forward.

On 26 July, Mars moves out of Libra, after being there for eight months (since early December 2013). Before Mars fully departs Libra, it leaves us with some stunning alignments that enhance the whole of July.

The loveliest is a trine with Venus. Here we have the God (Mars) and Goddess (Venus) co-operating and enjoying each other’s company. The exact date of the trine is 13 July, and its influence lasts strongly from about 9 to 19 July, yet right from the start of July we are uplifted by its presence.

Venus is in Gemini during that time. As both Venus and Mars are in air signs, communication flows freely – love letters, thank you notes, excited social plans, whisperings of sweet nothings, flurries of texts, twitters etc all seem relevant. I can’t help but think of a pair of happy doves cooing. These could be ‘blue bird of happiness’ days in relationships. Life compels us to reach out to those we are interested in to see if there is chemistry. If not, the energy still remains bright and clear for pursuing other attractions.

The Venus-Mars trine days – 9 to 19 July – inspire networking. It’s a good time to send grant proposals, letters to the editor, audition, go to job interviews, voice your opinions, start a blog, offer invitations or accept them. It’s a perfect time for writing and the arts. It’s also a good time to research, negotiate, close deals and sign contracts. 

On 14 July, Mars is exactly conjunct the North Node in Libra. The combo of the Venus-Mars trine and Mars conjunct the North Node augurs well for relationships that are ‘destined’ to proceed into the next phase. There’s a pull toward soul mates. This relates to work, business, family, hobby and community connections as much as it does to friendships, romance and partnerships.

Mars conjunct the North Node brings us closer to special people in our lives. All month long these effects are felt. There might be a few surprises on this front – we might experience ourselves out of ‘vibe’ with certain people – but mostly we will already be on track with our relationship pathways as we’ve had plenty of time during the 8 months of Mars in Libra to sort relationship priorities.

In addition, all through July Mars makes an extremely close trine alignment with asteroid Hygeia. This powerful asteroid is named after the ancient goddess of healing. Her symbol is the caduceus – the double-entwined snakes. The caduceus promises mending and wholeness – the good health that flows naturally when opposites are in balance.

This is an excellent month for healing, personal growth and unity. Many threads can be woven together to finish major phases on any level. Mars here is like scissors cutting cords to old cycles, and Hygeia is like a surgeon stitching up wounds so that we may heal and thrive. Without the cut – the ‘surgery’ – our experiences might become overripe and even rot.

These Mars alignments (trine to Venus, conjunction with North Node and trine with Hygeia) make July the perfect month to find the right supports to take life to the next level with anything.

From time to time we all need some sort of healing, coaching, training or input – big or small – but especially now as we recalibrate after the Grand Cross. Whatever you need help with – remember that’s anything – this is the month to find those who can help make things ‘whole’ for you. If you get a ‘no’ from one person, be bold and reach out to the next person and the next and the next until you find your right match.

So how’s that for Mars’s last month in Libra – a special swansong with gifts for us all.

July’s other highlight news concerns Jupiter. The 16^th of July is a stand out day because Jupiter moves into Leo. This is a ‘look out world, here I come’ transit. Jupiter is a bold, fiery planet and Leo is a bold, fiery zodiac sign. The combination of these two makes me think of maracas and margaritas – parties, holidays, movies and entertainment. Jupiter spends approximately a year in each zodiac sign and will be in Leo over the next 12 months.

Also on 16 July, Mercury returns to the degree it went Retro (3 degrees Cancer) and therefore leaves its shadow phase. Mercury here is like a ring master announcing Jupiter’s entry into Leo calling for drum rolls and resounding applause.

Over the past 12 months, Jupiter was in Cancer and helped us let go of clutter, get to the nub of our needs, and establish habits that make us feel safe, supported and secure. Now that we have firmed up our foundations, with Jupiter in Leo we have a year to test our confidence and show what we’re made of.

Cartwheels, carousels, dancing troupes and ringing bells – Jupiter in Leo says ‘let’s throw open our hearts through more play, more joy and more creativity’. The energy is high. The challenge is to experience the exuberance of this energy without going overboard or without rebelling against it and popping other people’s balloons, or using all of earth’s natural resources on bigger and better firecracker shows.

Firecrackers going off can be either good or bad depending on the intentions of those lighting the crackers. Mercury’s involvement at the time of Jupiter’s ingress into Leo cautions that intention is everything. Under Jupiter in Leo we can get too high and lose touch with our grounding. Mindfulness is the key to making the most of this wonderfully exuberant energy.

From 1 August there’s a lot happening in Leo – Mercury is now in Leo, the Sun is in Leo and Jupiter is in Leo. Yet all this Leo is squared by Saturn in Scorpio and Mars, also now in Scorpio. From 8 to 16 August, this square is particularly felt. Saturn and Mars advise us to check we are not being reckless and about to cause irreparable damage. If you’ve double-checked your goals and feel comfortable with the foreseeable consequences, this energy could really take you places.

In fact there’s a double whammy from 8 to 16 August. Uranus and the South Node in Aries make a trine alignment to Sun and Mercury in Leo showing a huge impulse toward fun, passion, creativity and just damn well following our hearts and desires. This alignment brings random outside-the-box experiences, like the ups and downs of a roulette wheel. This volatile energy swings between the possibility of stressful accidents and exhilarating spontaneous surprises.

You must be the one to discern if any seemingly amazing experiences at this time really are good for you or whether they are poison apples dressed up as golden apples. They could be either. Saturn and Mars in Scorpio help with discerning hidden intentions and taking sober steps.

Venus enters Leo on 12 August and adds to the Leo brightness. She’s still there at the end of August keeping up the theme of flying with breakthroughs. In fact from 23 to 30 August, Venus makes her own trine alignment to Uranus and the South Node bringing ‘destined’ meetings, blasts from the past and opportunities to break free. During that week, Black Moon Lilith in Leo travels next to Venus, indicating some tough choices might need to be made in work, social and love situations about inclusion/exclusion.

Do be sensitive if people are not included. The bottom line with Lilith is always respect. If there are good fair reasons for non-inclusion, communicating them mindfully helps everyone’s dignity and confidence remain intact so that the positives of the Leo vibe can be enjoyed by all. Black Moon Lilith’s presence warns of the consequences of forgetting to show respect. Lilith doesn’t have her wild woman image for nothing!

If you have been putting a lot of effort over the past two years into mastering a skill involving focus of personal willpower to allow your creativity and passion to flow, August is a stand out month for your talent pouring through and you receiving the recognition you have long worked toward.

Really the whole of August is infused with the excitement of intense alignments in action. This is a liberating month for many, but there is a huge warning to take care.

Saturn is worth a closer look because he shifts Direct on 22 July bringing our attention back to him. In these times of intensive change, often the most radical changes are happening within each of us. While in Scorpio, Saturn is in mutual reception with Pluto in Capricorn and this locks the two into a very powerful energy that brings great results when channelled into personal truth and growth, from the inside out; from bottom to top.

Basically it’s time to face our dark sides. One day, it might be our turn to feel and transform painful memories and emotions, the next day it might be someone else’s. While there is much exuberance in July and August, there is also always the ongoing process of becoming more real, more ethical, more truthful and more trustworthy.

Once Mars arrives in Scorpio from 26 July he becomes very powerful in his own zodiac sign. Mars rules not only Aries, but also Scorpio. Here we will get to test our mettle with personal power. How will we use the immense willpower at our disposal with Mars in Scorpio? Will we give into our fears and keep up the status quo, or will we muster all our courage to make a stand for the lives we have always dreamed we would live?

In mid-August, Mars starts to conjunct Saturn. The exact dates are 25 and 26 August, yet the few days before and after are strong too. Ultimately, the whole second half of August is coloured by this. If the heaviness of Saturn next to Mars makes you doubt yourself and your efforts, it’s time to either strengthen your commitment to your goals or ditch them for new ones. If your heart and soul insist you are on track, don’t give up. ‘Rise like a phoenix’ (gotta love Conchita!) and find a way to get through each obstacle on life’s obstacle course.

If it turns out you really are hitting your head against a brick wall, you will find out during these weeks. Frustrating as it is, we all face immovable reality-checks from time-to-time. There’s no shame in coming to a dead end or ‘wrong way, go back’ sign. Every champion does their time on the sidelines. When the going gets tough, the tough get going, right? So shift your focus and find another goal to direct your passion and skills through.

The cosmic invitation is to forge beyond perceived walls – not blindly or manically, but with discernment. Use your passion to insist life helps you find the right goal, project or way ahead. Passionately using your will to step onto the path of being more fully you will make the second half of August, with its Saturn-Mars effect, a great time to establish your purpose.

On 12 July, there’s a Full Moon in Capricorn conjunct Pluto, opposite Jupiter and square Mars, the Nodes and Uranus. The wonderful social, flirtatious vibe of Mars’s July alignments is alive and well, but this Full Moon reactivates the Grand Cross energy that we’ve just all passed through. While out and about swapping news and making connections, we’re also sizing up people’s new pathways. Raw feelings simmer beneath the talk and chatter. This Full Moon in Capricorn asks us to be sensitive to other people’s hardships and stay respectful when communicating. Many are healing from difficult times or still going through them. If respect is shown and attitudes of how people ‘should’ be are put aside, this Full Moon helps mend broken friendships and forge new ones so that everyone can feel supported and on track with their goals.

On 27 July, there’s a New Moon in Leo conjunct Jupiter, which is now in Leo square Mars. New Moons offer opportunities to imagine new pathways and plant the seeds of our tomorrows. With a New Moon in Leo, this is a time to visualise and map out plans for cherished adventures. Get to the bottom of what you want to do to bring more happiness and celebration into your life. Do you want to travel, take up a hobby, learn an instrument, have a baby, switch careers, start a romance…? Whatever it is, Jupiter’s involvement with this New Moon says ‘just do it!’, move through doubts, build your confidence and get into action. As discussed above, watch for Saturn and Mars in the wings squaring the Leo planets. Be sure to take care of practical details and use your discernment, then use this fabulous New Moon to leap toward success.

On 11 August, there’s a Full Moon in Aquarius opposite Black Moon Lilith and Mercury, and sextile the South Node and Uranus. There’s a lot of movement and energy charging about here. A conversation, news or other communication brings powerful information, intense emotions and big choices. Something is likely to come out of the blue. Uranus is Aquarius’s ruler so with a Full Moon in Aquarius closely aligning Uranus, a lightning bolt of change could emerge. Anything from winning a lucky draw to suddenly having to drive around to replace a blown appliance is possible. Come to think of it someone might blow a gasket and read you the riot act, or perhaps they grab and whirl you about a room in wild celebration. Messages arrive about life directions. Doors fly open and new pathways appear. This is a wild card Full Moon so keep your wits about you.

On 26 August, there’s a New Moon in Virgo, making lovely sextile alignments to Hygeia and Ceres. Both Ceres and Hygeia are nurturing goddesses – they help us nourish and heal, and look after ourselves and others. Diet, nutrition, health and fitness all come under the spotlight. What are our bodies telling us? Is there a health niggle we ought to pay attention to? Have we been overlooking loved ones in the wild extroverted energy of July and August? This New Moon encourages getting cosy with loved ones, cooking up healthy meals, assessing routines and checking we’re not cutting corners we’ll later regret. This New Moon helps us see the hidden ‘nasties’ in many of our food, cleaning and other products. It’s a perfect time to throw out old products, stock up with sustainable ethical ones and implement new patterns to feed ourselves the right kind of fuel for the distances we want to travel.

Enjoy the waves of fresh energy as they arrive this July and August. Have fun!

Radiant Living http://www.radiantliving.com.au/january-2017-monthly-forecast

The World Mother: 

Teachings of Helena Roerich and Geoffrey Hodson 

 By John Nash 

                                                                                         Mary by Pamela Mathews

http://www.grail.co.nz/

Among the wealth of insights contributed by Helena Roerich and Geoffrey Hodson were important teachings about the divine feminine individuality known as the World Mother. This article explores the two authors’ teachings and compares them with each other, with eastern and western religious beliefs, and with contributions from other writers of the last 100 years.

The major thrust of Roerich’s and Hodson’s teachings is that the World Mother has manifested many times over the millennia, most recently as Mary, the mother of Christ. It is suggested that “World Mother” is in fact an office, part of a hierarchy extending from planetary to cosmic levels, which has been held by a succession of entities. The office-holders align themselves with the deva evolution, which has a feminine polarity juxtaposed against the masculine polarity of the human kingdom.

The World Mother is described mostly, but not exclusively, as expressing beauty, joy, and even playfulness. She is also described as serving humanity in a nurturing role, but she has a special affinity for nature and the natural world. Reportedly, the Mother is now becoming more active in human affairs and urging us toward relevant areas of world service.

Background 

Belief in feminine manifestations of God extends back to prehistory. But for many centuries, western religion discouraged this avenue to the divine and promoted a masculine deity in combination with patriarchal social norms. Things began to change in the mid-19th century, when a new awareness of the Divine Feminine developed. The same period witnessed the emergence of powerful women, like Helena Petrovna Blavatsky (1831–1891), Mary Baker Eddy (1821–1910), Myrtle Page Fillmore (1845–1931), and Violet Mary Firth (1890–1946),¹ who launched major religious initiatives or became influential esoteric teachers. Many other women have followed in their footsteps.

The new awareness of the Divine Feminine and the emergence of these women teachers can scarcely be considered unrelated developments. This is not to say that all significant teachings on the Divine Feminine have come from women. Nor would it be true to say that the new awareness was simply an offshoot of the feminist movement; its scope has been considerably more general. Male authors have made major contributions, and large numbers of men have reported favorably on the expansion in their own awareness of the divine nature.

This article explores the work of two people—a woman and a man—whose contributions to our understanding of the Divine Feminine were particularly significant and reinforced and complemented each other. Helena Ivanovna Roerich (1879–1955) was born into a prominent Russian family. Spiritual experiences in her childhood years set her on a path that progressively expanded throughout her life. Her marriage to artist and writer Nicholas Roerich produced a most fruitful partnership. The Roerichs traveled to England, the United States, and most significantly to India and Tibet where they explored remote areas of the Himalayas.² During much of her life, Helena Roerich served as a channel for the Master Morya, Chohan of the first ray, and together they produced the 17 Agni Yoga books that have greatly influenced modern esoteric studies. She also published three other books under pseudonyms and wrote numerous letters, which have been preserved. In 1920 the Roerichs founded the Agni Yoga Society in New York City to promote the teachings but unlike the Arcane School founded three years later by Alice Ann Bailey (1880–1949) it never sought to become an esoteric school. Helena also established the Himalayan Institute of the Scientific Studies and served as honorary president. She died in Kalimpong, India, and her body was cremated according to Buddhist rites.

Geoffrey Hodson (1886–1983) was born in the United Kingdom to an upper-class family, at-tended private schools, and served as an army officer in World War I. But already in 1913, a lecture in Manchester by Annie Wood Besant (1847–1933), president of the Theosophical Society, inspired him to become a member. His association with the Society and the Esoteric School of Theosophy³ would dominate the next 70 years of his life. Even as a child he experienced expansions of consciousness that enabled him to see beyond the dense physical world. In due course this gift allowed him to carry out clairvoyant research, with particular emphasis on the devic kingdom, for which he became famous in esoteric circles. Hodson traveled widely through the Americas, India and Australia, finally making his home in New Zealand. During a long life, he had ongoing contacts with higher entities from both the human and the deva evolutions. Hodson gave frequent lectures and published many books and articles, but it was only with the posthumous publication of his occult diary: Light of the Sanctuary,⁴ that the extent of his contacts with higher beings became generally known.

Manifestations of the World Mother 

Helena Roerich and Geoffrey Hodson both explored the feminine aspect of God in its role as the “World Mother” or “Mother of the World.” The Mother is just one of the archetypes through which the Divine Feminine has manifested through the ages, others being the Virgin, Bride, Consort, and personification of Wisdom. However, the archetypes can manifest in combinations, and, as we shall see, the Divine Mother has often been perceived as a Virgin Mother.

Roerich’s and Hodson’s understanding of the Divine Feminine was clearly influenced by eastern religious and philosophical traditions. In part, this orientation reflected their familiarity with the teachings of the Theosophical Society. Roerich was not formally associated with the Society, but she translated Blavatsky’s Secret Doctrine and sections of the Mahatma Letters into Russian. Hodson’s extensive involvement in the Society has already been noted. The eastern orientation also derived from their own studies and personal experiences in Asia. Doubtless, both were aware of the work of Ramakrishna (1836–1886), 19th-century India’s best-known devotee of the World Mother in her role as Kali, consort of Shiva.

However, they did not hesitate to draw upon western traditions where it was appropriate to do so. In adult life, Roerich identified strongly with Buddhism; but as a young woman she may have been influenced by the long tradition of reverence to Sophia, the expression of Divine Wisdom, in the Russian Orthodox Church. Hodson always considered himself a Christian, and he was as comfortable with religious devotion as he was with esoteric philosophy. Although raised in the Church of England, he was eventually ordained in the Liberal Catholic Church, and he took his responsibilities as a priest very seriously.⁵ 

Hodson’s perception of the World Mother underwent considerable development during his long years of study, contemplation and clairvoyant research. Initially he perceived her as an abstract principle—one that generalized all the virtues he appreciated in human women. For example in 1941 he mused, almost as though he were writing romantic poetry:

Behind all womanhood exists the Eternal Woman, the one divine manifestation of femininity… What are the essential qualities of the archetypal woman? They are sacrifice, tenderness, graciousness, divine radiance, heavenly fragrance, beauty, and grace. They are wisdom, fathomless as a still dark pool of infinite depth, profound compassion and intimate concern for all living things, ministration, healing love. They are joyous radiant girlhood, graceful womanhood, creative, preserving, and transforming motherhood. Within the Heavenly Woman is an ascetic refinement of utter purity.⁶

Later in life his image of the World Mother took more definite form, and he focused increasingly on her manifestations. However, from the start he recognized the necessity for cosmic balance and union between the feminine and the masculine: “At its origin,” he wrote, the Eternal Woman “is cosmic, being the half of all creation. The other half is the Eternal Man, and mysteriously these are not two but one.”⁷

Roerich and Hodson both emphasized that the World Mother has manifested in a variety of forms over the centuries and millennia. In Hodson’s words: “The different visions and differing appearances and positions which people of various religions and countries attribute to the World Mother are all adaptations of visions and teachings chosen as most suitable.”⁸

Roerich offered examples of such manifestations, including one that might seem to contrast with Hodson’s litany of feminine virtues:

From time immemorial the Mother of the World has sent form to achievement. In the history of humanity, Her Hand traces an unbreakable thread. On Sinai Her Voice rang out. She assumed the image of Kali. She was the basis of the cults of Isis and Ishtar.⁹ 

But Hodson agreed with Roerich about the Mother’s manifestation as the Egyptian goddess Isis. In a devotional poem we find:

This is the Eternal Virgin, Isis, The Mother of all the World, the Cosmic Lotus, The Universal Womb from which all Worlds are born, In which they yet remain.”¹⁰

Like all virgin goddesses, “Though ever She brings forth, She yet remains Immaculate.” Hodson clearly recognized here that, as a divine archetype, virginity refers to the independent woman whose potential has not been channeled into a particular path, without regard to sexual experience or motherhood. It is worth noting that classical Latin distinguished between virgo, which captured the notion of female independence, from virgo intacta, which expressed the modern, everyday sense of virginity.¹¹ 

The classical Buddhist text known as the Prajnaparamita Sutra recognized the goddess Prajnaparamita as the mother of all Buddhas.¹² And a similar title was bestowed on the Tibetan Buddhist Tara. However, Roerich went further to assert that the World Mother was the spiritual mother of both the Buddha and the Christ:

I have already [mentioned] the Mother of Buddha and Christ. Indeed it is time to point out that the one Mother of both Lords is not a symbol but a great manifestation of the Feminine Origin, in which is revealed the spiritual Mother of Christ and Buddha.

One alone in the image of female beauty.

The immeasurable within its measure Thou alone, before me, in me.²⁵

Geoffrey Hodson also emphasized the beauty of “the Mother Goddess.” No artistic repre-sentation can do her justice, but her true beauty can be perceived by those with eyes to see:

None of [her representations], even the most beautiful Madonna statue or picture, really por-trays the… World Mother, Who nevertheless, responds to and permits Herself to be seen in forms acceptable and helpful to those who are accorded the appropriate vision.²⁶

Similarly, he commented that Isis “was a glorious and beautiful female Adept.”²⁷

Roerich commented on the World Mother’s “playfulness,” a concept not unknown in the East but foreign to customarily dour western religion. In a passage that calls to mind Rogers and Hammerstein’s Maria in “The Sound of Music”:

Rejoice in the Great Play of the Mother of the World! She beckons to Her children from far-distant fields: “Hasten, children! I wish to teach you. I have keen eyes and alert ears ready for you. Sit ye down upon My garment. Let us learn to soar!²⁸ 

Elsewhere we find: “We see the radiance of the Mother of the World!”²² And: “The Lights of the Mother of the World resemble the pillars of the aurora borealis.”²³ The beauty and radiance of the Mother of the World recall the depiction of the Shekinah of esoteric Judaism as the Glory of God.²⁴ Roerich’s experience also recalls the account of an ecstatic vision of Sophia by the Russian philosopher and mystic Vladimir Soloviev (1853–1900). Soloviev awoke to a scent of roses, exclaiming:

(Editor’s note: Excuse missing section, I am looking for it…)

Trinity.”³³ She went on to identify this “Figure” and to place her assertion in a historical context:

[T]here is no religion, except later ecclesiastical Christianity, in which the Feminine Element is not included among the Primates of Beness. Thus, the Gnostics also considered the Holy Ghost as a Feminine Element. In the most ancient Teachings, the manifested Trinity of Father, Mother, and Son was considered as an emanation of the highest, eternally hidden Cause.³⁴

Roerich evidently knew that the earliest formulation of a Christian trinitarian doctrine, by Theophilus, Bishop of Antioch (c. 117–c. 181 CE), identified Sophia as the third person of the trinity.

Roerich also detected triplicity within the Di-vine Feminine itself. Referring to the Mahayana Buddhist Tara, she claimed that three “facets of cosmic fire can be seen on the Tara by a sensitive eye.” Moreover, “These facets are so powerfully revealed that their radiance melts all discovered obstacles.”³⁵ Similarly, Geoffrey Hodson depicted the cosmic Isis as a triune goddess, expressing Nephthys, Hathor, and Isis herself in manifest form.³⁶ Furthermore, this feminine triplicity extends down functionally to the most fundamental levels of creation:

Isis represents, in her cosmic aspect, the threefold sprititual essence of Prakriti. She is a triple Goddess, a queen to represent the positive, a woman to represent the negative, and a mother to represent the conjoined pair… As Isis in the Cosmos, meaning the soul of the Great Deep—with its triple powers of self-reproduction, positive, negative, and neutral—was and is represented by mighty Dhyan Chohans, so at each lower level, down to the planetary Aditi-Akasha, an Adept Official undertakes the task of directing the manifestation of the Triple Feminine current in the creative life and activity in and on a planet.³⁷ 

Hodson explains Dhyan Chohans as “members of the Host of Spiritual Beings Who… supervise the cyclic evolution of life and form in a Solar System.” ³⁸ Akasha (Aakaz), which forms a fifth element in eastern philosophy, complementing earth, water, air and fire, is considered to be the spiritual essence that pervades the universe. By prefixing it with Aditi (Sanskrit:, literally “unlimited”), he was emphasizing its sacredness. Aditi, whom Hodson describes as “the Mother Goddess,” was originally a Vedic sky-goddess.

Prakriti (àk«it, “nature”) is usually taken to be the undifferentiated matter from which the universe was created. ³⁹ In relating the World Mother to matter or nature, Hodson drew upon precedents in many religious and philosophical systems. The Latin word for mother, mater, is directly linked etymologically to “matter” and “matrix.” Spirit is masculine in polarity, while matter or form is feminine; but matter is not to be regarded as separate from the divine. In Roerich’s words:

[S]pirit and matter are one… The manifest Universe, visible and invisible, from the highest to the lowest, reveals to us the infinite aspects of Radiant Matter. Where there is no matter, there is no life.⁴⁰

However, juxtaposing the masculine against the feminine, spirit against matter, explores not a trinitarian structure but a divine duality, which may or may not be compatible with models of a triune deity.⁴¹ The main theological issue relating to the Divine Feminine may not be to fit the feminine aspect into the trinity but to reconcile the triune and the dualistic manifestations of the Godhead.

Elsewhere, Geoffrey Hodson related the Di-vine Feminine to the universal feminine energy of Kundalini (Sanskrit: k…{filnI). The “Universal Kundalini,” he explains

is the manifestation or incarnation of the feminine generative interior “faculty” of the Logos, or Second Aspect—yes, feminine if your wish, though of course far beyond such divisions, being arupa [i.e., formless] in this universal aspect of its expression.

The World Mother [is] very sacred indeed. She is to be revered most deeply and humbly, wondrous One as She is and not only in religious personifications as a celestial Personage, but as a universally creative Kundalini-manifestation of the Logos with which She is ever identified.⁴²

The Virgin Mary 

The closest Christianity has come to legitimizing worship of the Divine Feminine is veneration of the Virgin Mary. In a somewhat confusing statement of doctrine she was said to be the Mother of God, but not herself divine.⁴³ Nevertheless, devotion to Mary within the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Churches has remained strong since the Middle Ages, no doubt tapping into an unspoken need for a goddess. With the Theosophical Society’s “christianization” in the early 20th century, its teachers turned their attention to Mary, and this trend continued and expanded in the Liberal Catholic Church to which many of them belonged.

Geoffrey Hodson often identified the World Mother with the Virgin Mary. He approved of traditional Catholic titles—some of which were borrowed from Isis—such as “Queen of the Angels” and “Star of the Sea.” And he described a vision of Mary thus: “At this point, the Blessed Lady Mary becomes visible before me in all Her wondrous blue and, as it were, reaches out and touches my head.”⁴⁴ Hodson insisted that no artistic depiction can adequately represent the Mother, but he offered two paintings that captured his own ob-servations.⁴⁵ Both resemble traditional representations of Mary. He confessed that he was drawn to the Madonna image, “a realisation of the Mother-Love of God,” although he acknowledged the comparable roles of Kwan Yin, Isis, Ishtar, Parvati and other mother goddesses.⁴⁶

Hodson gave the Virgin Mary a far more exalted status than did mainstream Christianity, but he embraced traditional affirmations of Mary’s compassionate, nurturing role:

The Blessed Lady Mary, incarnation of the Maternal Spirit of the Godhead, moved by purest compassion and love, holds the whole of humanity in Her arms and at Her breast, nourishing it with spiritualizing like for the purpose of quickening the evolution of all sentient beings.⁴⁷ 

He saw Mary overseeing the gestation and birthing processes not only in the human but also in the animal kingdom. In his clairvoyant studies of human pregnancies he observed the myriads of building devas constructing the embryo.⁴⁸ And he realized that these devas were “agents of a great Intelligence which presides over and directs all maternal processes throughout Nature… the Feminine or Mother Aspect of the Deity, of which She is a manifestation and a representative.”⁴⁹ 

Hodson also recognized the special role of the World Mother in “birthing” in the more symbolic sense:

She also is present and helps to bring about the mystical “birth” of the Christ consciousness within the Inner Self of every Initiate when admitted to membership of the Great White Brotherhood.⁵⁰Significantly, the first initiation is customarily referred to as “the birth.”⁵¹ 

Adept and Archangel 

Both Helena Roerich and Geoffrey Hodson asserted that the Mother has manifested in a variety of forms throughout history. Hodson clarified how this occurred by stating that the “World Mother” should not be considered an entity so much as an exalted office, which various entities may hold in different places and at different times. In particular: “That Official is the World Mother for a planet and a period… There is such a Being, there is such an Official, and Mary the mother of Jesus now holds that Office, as Isis held it in earlier days.”⁵² And: “As far as my understanding and experiences inform me, the Blessed Lady Mary, Mother of Jesus, is the present Holder of that Office [of World Mother].”⁵³ 

Popular Catholic devotion has long depicted the Virgin Mary as Queen of the Angels. And Charles Leadbeater had referred to the World Mother as ”a mighty Angel, having under Her a vast host of subordinate Angels whom She keeps perpetually employed in the work which is especially com-mitted to Her.”⁵⁴ Hodson took up the same theme, describing the Mother as an archangel and a senior member of the Planetary Hierarchy:

The planetary World Mother is conceived… as a highly-evolved Archangel Representative and Embodiment on earth of the Femi-nine Aspect of the Deity. She is also thought of as an Adept Official in the Inner Government of the World, in whom all the highest qualities of womanhood and motherhood shine forth in their fullest perfection. However, Hodson departed from traditional Christian teachings by relating the World Mother to the Lord of the World, Sanat Kumara. The “Queen of the Angels, World Mother, Our Lady, [is in relationship and collaboration] with the Lord of the World—in what might be called, if one may so presume, His femininity-functions, extremely delicate and refined as they are in every kingdom.”⁵⁶Here, Hodson was affirming the kind of masculine-feminine duality referred to earlier; but he identified the duality specifically with the relationship between the human and deva evolutions.⁵⁷

Feminine entities, equivalent to the World Mother, are not confined to our world. Hodson regarded her as a member of a hierarchy of entities to which he refers by the eastern term Maha-Devis or “Great Devas.” Some of these entities are more powerful than our Mother. For example, there are Maha-Devis associated with the Logoi of star systems, like our own: “Supra-planetary Maha-Devis fulfil the same Office for groups of planets in a Solar System.”⁵⁸ “Divine Mother” evidently can be a more comprehensive term than “World Mother.”

Hodson related how the “Adept Isis” took the whole Egyptian nation under Her charge, and for at least 10,000 years guarded and inspired its progress an development from birth to death. She was a very wonderful Being Who has now gone to higher spheres of Buddhahood.⁵⁹

In describing Isis is this manner he was asserting that there are, or have in the past been, fe-male adepts, a view that is still not held by all esoteric teachers. Moreover, the suggestion that Isis became a buddha is, to say the least, evocative. Among other things it demonstrates Hodson’s skill in transferring concepts among different esoteric traditions.

We saw that, in his early years, Hodson viewed the Divine Feminine as a principle ex-pressed through the virtues of human women. Later, he expanded this vision to a more definite link between the World Mother and women everywhere:

In the holder of the divine Office of World Mother, a conscious union occurs between the archetypal woman fully manifest in the woman Adept and the cosmic principle of womanhood… The potentiality of this hypostatic union exists in every woman… This is in part the mystery of womanhood, this is the secret life of every woman, that on occasion she knows and is one with the Eternal Woman and has her mysterious life in that realm wherein She abides.⁶⁰ 

Perhaps because of this link, Hodson acknowledged the intriguing possibility that a human woman could evolve not only to the level of adept but eventually to become the World Mother. Such an entity “becomes as an Ava tara for the feminine, or negative, polarity of the Logos and the power, life, and currents of divine Breath and divine Life-Force of Kundalini.”⁶¹ Here we have an interesting juxtaposition of ideas. On the one hand, Isis, the Virgin Mary and others are viewed as avataras, or divine incarnations; on the other Hodson saw the World Mother as a position that could be attained through the evolution of human consciousness. Somehow these two concepts—one “top-down,” the other “bottom-up”—must be resolved. A similar issue arises in connection with the Christ.

The Legacy 

However, Hodson departed from traditional Christian teachings by relating the World Mother to the Lord of the World, Sanat Kumara. The “Queen of the Angels, World Mother, Our Lady, [is in relationship and collaboration] with the Lord of the World—in what might be called, if one may so presume, His femininity-functions, extremely delicate and refined as they are in every kingdom.”⁵⁶ Here, Hodson was affirming the kind of masculine-feminine duality referred to earlier; but he identified the duality specifically with the relationship between the human and deva evolutions.⁵⁷

Feminine entities, equivalent to the World Mother, are not confined to our world. Hodson regarded her as a member of a hierarchy of entities to which he refers by the eastern term Maha-Devis or “Great Devas.” Some of these entities are more powerful than our Mother. For example, there are Maha-Devis associated with the Logoi of star systems, like our own: “Supra-planetary Maha-Devis fulfil the same Office for groups of planets in a Solar System.”⁵⁸ “Divine Mother” evidently can be a more comprehensive term than “World Mother.”

Hodson related how the “Adept Isis” took the whole Egyptian nation under Her charge, and for at least 10,000 years guarded and inspired its progress an development from birth to death. She was a very wonderful Being Who has now gone to higher spheres of Buddhahood.⁵⁹

In describing Isis is this manner he was asserting that there are, or have in the past been, though the focus has been more on Sophia than on the World Mother; and the Virgin Mary has generally been ignored.

On the other hand, the frequency of reported apparitions of Mary has increased dramatically. A worldwide total of 378 apparitions were reported between 1925 and 1999, compared with only 14, including the famous series at Fatima, Portugal, from 1900 to 1925.⁶² A small sample of the apparitions are those at Beauraing, Belgium, in 1932; Heede-im-Emsland, Germany, in 1937; Tre Fontane, Italy, in 1947; Syracuse, Italy, in 1953; Akita, Japan, in 1969; San Sebastian de Garabandal, Spain, in the 1960s; Betania, Venezuela, in 1976; Chiang Si, China, in1978; Kibeho, Rwanda, in 1981; Phoenix, Arizona, in 1988; and Marpingen, Germany, in 1999.⁶³ What-ever judgments are made about their validity, these apparitions attest to the intensity of con-temporary devotion to the Virgin Mary. In recognition of this devotion Pope Pius XII proclaimed that Christ had crowned his mother Queen of Heaven and designated May 31 to be the feast of Mary’s Queenship.⁶⁴

More directly relevant to the World Mother has been the work of mystic and environmental activist Andrew Harvey. For him the Divine Feminine has passionate immediacy, and he seeks to be her disciple of action. The Mother is rooted in Hindu, Buddhist, Tao, Sufi and Christian tradition, but now she is calling people of all religious persuasions to this area of world service: “In our growing, expanding imagination … we come to understand more and more what the feminine force could do and how we could work with it to save our planet.”⁶⁵ Roerich had issued her own call to action more than 60 years earlier, affirming: “In the hands of women lies the salvation of humanity and of our planet.”⁶⁶ Now, the question is not whether women should get involved but how many women and men will work together in a collective, global effort.

The goddess Kali has often been considered a disturbingly negative image; however; she has a sizeable following in India. Moreover, Roerich saw a transformation: “Kali, the Destroyer, has become Mother, the Creator.”⁶⁷ Harvey retains elements of both the negative angry at the environmental threat to the planet and humanity’s hesitation in responding to it. But this is not the anger of a vengeful god:

There is nothing punitive… in the Mother’s anger. Her rage is a summons to attention, a shaking of her children so that they… wake up, a shaking that can seem—and be—very violent, but which is always in the service of liberation and deeper knowledge and the outpouring into action of a galvanized love.⁶⁸

Hodson wrote of the World Mother’s role in birthing the Christ consciousness. Andrew Harvey speaks of the birthing of a new world order of environmental and social harmony, calling us all to serve as “midwives.”⁶⁹

Many books and articles have explored eastern concepts of the World Mother. After centuries in which worship was circumscribed in the West, it is not surprising that many people turned to eastern traditions to find her. But other authors besides Harvey have approached the subject using western idioms,⁷⁰ and many more can be expected.

Awareness of and interest in the Divine Femi-nine continues to increase, and people evidently find the archetype of the Mother particularly meaningful. One measure of the demand for information and insights is the number of Internet websites concerned with the Divine Mother: 79,600 in a recent count. When Helena Roerich began her work, awareness in the west was minimal, but her own work and that of Geoffrey Hodson compensated richly. From the accumulated wisdom of the past as well as new revelation, we are building a new understanding of the divine nature, tapping into new expressions of divinity, and finding new opportunities for action relevant to our times.

¹ Firth wrote under the pseudonym of “Dion Fortune,” a corruption of Deo non fortuna, her ini-tiatory name in the Society of the Golden Dawn.

² References to their expeditions appear in Nicholas Roerich’s Shambhala: In Search of a New Era. Inner Traditions, 1930.

³ At times the Esoteric School was known as the Esoteric Section of the Theosophical Society.

⁴ Sandra Hodson (ed). Light of the Sanctuary: The Occult Diary of Geoffrey Hodson. Theosophical Publishers, 1988.

⁵ The Liberal Catholic Church was an offshoot of the Old Catholic Church which claims apostolic succession but split from Rome in the late 19th century over the doctrine of papal infallibility. Theosophist Charles Webster Leadbeater (1847–1934), whom Hodson met a number of times, served as the Church’s second presiding bishop.

⁶ Sandra Hodson (ed). Light of the Sanctuary. Theosophical Publishers, 1988, pp. 81-82. Throughout this article, quotes are attributed to the authors; however, in many cases the authors were serving as amanuenses for higher entities.

⁷ Ibid.

⁸ S. Hodson. Light of the Sanctuary, p. 284.

⁹ Helena I. Roerich. Leaves of Morya’s Garden, II, 8, 11. Agni Yoga Society, 1925, p. 69. In traditional Hindu art, Kali was portrayed dancing on the chest of her husband Shiva She car-ried a sword in one hand and a severed head in the other. Her earrings were dead bodies, her necklace was made of human skulls, and she wore a girdle of dead men’s hands. Her eyes were red, her tongue thrust out from her mouth, and her face and breasts were covered with blood.

¹⁰ Geoffrey Hodson. Illuminations of the Mystery Tradition. Theosophical Publishing House, 1992, p. 71

¹¹ Portrayal of Virgo Maria (the “Virgin Mary”) as sexless has all the markings of a deliberate con-fusion of the terms by the church fathers to pro-duce a suitable feminine ideal for institutional-ized Christianity.

¹² Buddhahood was always regarded as an ad-vanced stage of spiritual attainment: enlightenment. Prince Gautama, whom we refer to as “the Buddha,” was the last of a long lineage of buddhas.

¹³ Roerich. Leaves of Morya’s Garden, II, 8, 11, pp. 68-69.

¹⁴ Ibid, p. 69.

¹⁵ See for example: Alice A. Bailey. The Externalization of the Hierarchy. Lucis Publishing Co., 1957, p. 519.

¹⁶ Roerich. Leaves of Morya’s Garden, II, 4,11, p. 36

¹⁷ Helena I. Roerich. “Star of the Mother of the World.” Letters of Helena I. Roerich. Agni Yoga Society, 11 January 1935.

Copyright © The Esoteric Quarterly, 2006 44 Winter 2006

¹⁸ Joseph F. Smith et al. “The Origin of Man.” Improvement Era, Nov. 1909, p. 80.

¹⁹ Annie W. Besant. “The New Annunciation.” Insert in The Theosophist, vol. 49, June 1928.

²⁰ Charles W. Leadbeater. The World-Mother as Symbol and Fact. Theosophical Publishing House, 1928, pp. 53-54.

²¹ Helena I. Roerich. Infinity, I, 154. Agni Yoga Society, 1930, pp. 133-134. See also: Leaves of Morya’s Garden, II, 8, 12, p. 69.

²² Helena I. Roerich. Hierarchy, 4. Agni Yoga Society, 1931, p. 12.

²³ Helena I. Roerich. Fiery World, II, 424. Agni Yoga Society, 1934, p. 81.

²⁴ See for example: John Nash. “Shekinah: the Immanent Glory of God.” Esoteric Quarterly, Summer 2005, pp. xxx.

²⁵ Vladimir Soloviev. “The Three Meetings.” Quoted in: Eugenia Gourvitch. Vladimir So-loviev: the Man and the Prophet. Rudolf Steiner Press, 1992, pp. 34, 36. Soloviev really did turn to romantic poetry in his lifelong devo-tion to the Divine Feminine.

²⁶ S. Hodson. Light of the Sanctuary, p. 284.

²⁷ Geoffrey Hodson. Illuminations of the Mystery Tradition. Theosophical Publishing House, 1992, p. 71.

²⁸ Helena I. Roerich. Agni Yoga, 20, 60. Agni Yoga Society, 1929, pp. 20, 45.

²⁹ Helena I. Roerich. Fiery World, I, 663. Agni Yoga Society, 1933.

³⁰ Helena I. Roerich. “Mother of the World.” Letters of Helena I. Roerich. Agni Yoga Soci-ety, p. 456.

³¹ Ibid, p. 372.

³² Sergei Bulgakov. Sophia: the Wisdom of God. (Transl: Patrick Thompson, O. Fielding Clarke, & Xenia Braikevitc.) Lindisfarne Press, 1993, pp. 35-37. The Greek word hypostasis is trans-lated into English as “person,” as in “person of the trinity.” Oursia captures the notion of di-vine essence or substance.

³³ Helena I. Roerich. “Mother of the Universe.” Letters of Helena I. Roerich. Agni Yoga Soci-ety, 9 January 1935

³⁴ Ibid.

³⁵ Roerich. Infinity, I, 201, p. 167.

³⁶ G. Hodson. Illuminations of the Mystery Tradition, p. 71.

³⁷ Ibid, pp. 69-70.

³⁸ Ibid, pp. 274, 281.

³⁹ Prakriti and mūlaprakriti, have similar meanings .

Duane Carpenter: www.light-weaver.com

The Quivering

 The Texture of the Threshold Experience

by Heidi Rose Robbins                             

If we but make friends

with the quivering,

the subtle and not so subtle

shaking of the body

and all its parts,

letting go

                         of what we’ve held onto

                         long enough,

If we but soften our grasp

on who we have always been,

to make room for

what can be

knowing not

what may appear,

knowing only

the quivering,

(And I ask,

Is not some part of us

always dying?)

(And I ask,

Are we not everyday

in some small way

reborn?)

Then, just as the

wild animal shakes

off the fear of attack,

we too can shake

off the fears that

want to eat us whole.

We can walk

barefoot in the woods

with a quiver of arrows,

cautious of what

still wants to ensnare us,

but alive with the

light emanating

from our newly

trodden path.

Are we not path makers?

So we are.

Are we not path finders?

So we are.

Do arrows not quiver

before they are loosed into the world?

Then so must we.

Finally,

we are archer and arrow

at once

sprung into the wind

carried swiftly,

silently,

precisely

to our

very

heart,

pierced and present.

Heidi Rose Robbins

The Quivering; The Texture of the Threshold Experience

Join Heidi explores the delicate and potent territory we cyclically experience as we grow into greater, more conscious expressions of ourselves. There is always a quivering as we step over a threshold to greater light and understanding. We are, for an instant, equally pulled by the past and beckoned by what’s to come. Through poetry and story, we will explore the beauty of standing in the unknown and choosing to move always towards a vaster light.

HEIDI ROSE ROBBINS is a poet, speaker and astrologer and one of the founders of the Hello Love Experiment, a radical, joyous practice about greeting others with love. She regularly offers Radiant Life Retreats in Ojai, California, where she teaches groups of women to live more full, passionate and expressive lives. She lives in Southern California with her husband Andrew Heffernan and their two children, Kate and Dylan. Contact: heidirose4@aol.com

The time that my journey takes is long           and the way of it long.

I came out on the chariot of the first gleam of light, and pursued my voyage through the wildernesses of worlds leaving my track on many a star and planet.

It is the most distant course that comes nearest to thyself, and that training is the most intricate which leads to the utter simplicity of a tune.

The traveller has to knock at every alien door to come to his own, and one has to wander through all the outer worlds to reach the innermost shrine at the end.

My eyes strayed far and wide before I shut them and said, “Here art thou!”

The question and the cry, “Oh, where?” melt into tears of a thousand streams and deluge the world with the flood of the assurance “I am!”

Excerpted from Gitanjali; The Song of Offering by Rabindrath Tagore

Artwork by Nicholas Roerich

                        Infinity

Excerpted from Heart by Helena Roerich

   Verse, 144.

    When you become conscious of Infinity, then you must also become accustomed to its properties. Inexhaustibility is the very first property, which will make every courageous heart happy.

Champaca is the much loved garland flower

of Krishna and Radha.

 Article by Cynthia Olivera de Kapp

Champaca Speaks

“I am the heavenly fragrance that intoxicates your senses.

I intoxicate you with LOVE.

The love that you are–the love that is all around you.”

“My deepest desire is that You

Seek this Love, this Bliss,

This Eternal Self

That brings celestial peace

And deep understanding.

Leading you to who you are

The Truth of Yourself.

Surrender to my scent and let it pierce your heart.

Shattering and releasing the knot of unhappiness…

Creating unbounded Joy.

Inhale often and deeply and

I will put a smile in your heart,

And in your soul.

I teach the way of LOVE long forgotten.”

Champaca Flower—Michela Alba comes from the Magnoliaceae family. She grows in India and Southeast Asia.  The Champaca tree is a very thick round tree and blooms flowers from spring to fall. 

Indians refer to this tree as Golden Champaca, ‘the incarnation of the Goddess of Wealth.’

I chose to write about Champaca as she is the perfect scent to bring you into your summertime bliss.   With all the traumas that the world is experiencing, we need to lift our vibration and visit our euphoric soul space, so that we can remain in balance with our hearts and our emotions.  Oftentimes, these shifting times create a disconnection from our hearts and our joys.  This beautiful enchanting essence has the ability to bring us back home to our hearts and our connection to All.

The scent of the Champaca flower is not only intoxicating for people, but for the bugs as well.  It is said that many bugs strive to get the sweet nectar at the center of the blossom.  Champaca is a multi-dimensional flower, and blooms in yellow, orange and white.  It forms into clusters that look like stars.  At a close examination, the flower gives us information about its properties.

What might a multi-dimensional white starflower with an intoxicating fragrance have to teach you about yourself?  Try sitting with a bottle of pure unadulterated Champaca essence and breathe it in deeply.  You will find that the fragrance might remind you of the sweetness of life, a starry summer evening or early morning dew.

This is why the Champaca flower was the favorite of Lord Krishna and even today in India, garlands of Champaca adorn His temples.  The five prominent star-like petals are said to signify these qualities:

v Aspiration

v Sincerity

v Devotion

v Surrender

v Faith

Champaca brings us deeply into the dreamtime where we can create our deepest desires.  Here we can use Champaca essences with these qualities to craft out dreams.

What is the Aspiration/Dream/Desire that you would like bring forth in your world?  Is that desire in Sincerity/Truth with your mind and your soul?  Is this something you want to create with all of your heart? Once you have figured that out, the next step would be to Devote/Dedicate yourself to that creation. Find fun and palyful ways a to hold the vision that you wish to manifest. Your devotion to your goal should be a joyful process!  Finally, one needs to Surrender or detach from anything that is not in keeping with what you wish to create.  Surrendering the process to Spirit/God/Goddess/Universe keeping the absolute Faith that it will come to pass.  This is the gift of Lord Krishna’s garland of flowers.

Additional gifts of this magical essence include:

v Connecting you to the Divine Mother Goddess.

v Opening the heart to an influx of Divine energy and information.

v Assisting in in psychic development.

v An aphrodisiac—on all levels.  Opens the doorway to your sacred sexuality.

v Apply on sacrum to assist in opening the second chakra.

v Apply on your Third Eye for wisdom and insight.

v Reminding you to stay in love.

v A peaceful cloak in troubled times.

v Joyful.

v Absolutely transformative!

Medicinally:

v Diuretic

v Works with gout.

v Reduces fevers.

v Helps some skin issues

v Heals cracks on feet.

v Respiration

v Rheumatism

In closing, I invite you to journey with this magnificent diva.  Let her journey with you for an ultimate summer experience.  I am sure you won’t be disappointed.

Until next time…

From deep within the Plant and Tree Kingdom,

I wish you Love.

~ Cynthia

Curandera, Cynthia Olivera de Kapp is the Educational Director of Wisdom of the Earth. Wisdom of the Earth has top quality essences from all over the world, many of which are sold at their boutique store in Page Springs, AZ.  Connect with them at:  928-649-9968, or online at: www.wisdomoftheearth.com.

Medicinal Aromatherapist and healer, Cynthia Olivera de Kapp, has indigenous roots in the Caribbean and Corsica- rich in curandera traditions. Her personal mastery and teaching work in the healing medicines of the Mother Earth, make her the perfect choice for this new section in Next In The West magazine.  Cynthia is a Master Aromatherapist and Educational Director for Wisdom of the Earth Essential Essences in Page Springs, Arizona, where she teaches advanced Aromatherapy certification courses with her husband Barry Kapp, the founder of WOTE.  She has been teaching women to dance their prayers, heal their sexual issues and meditate with the Earth and work with ‘essences’ as their allies.

by Leisa Wheeler, N.D.

I’ve talk quite a bit about adrenal fatigue  in my professional life, and what happens when the adrenals can’t keep up with the daily demands of stress and the stress hormone cortisol depletes. One thing I haven’t talked a lot about though, is what happens prior to that when cortisol levels are high and we are pushing the boundaries of what we can cope with.

There are three main stages of stress – the alarm phase (our fight or flight instinct), the resistance phase (the response that allows us to cope with longer periods of stress), and exhaustion, when we just can’t keep up anymore. Each of these phases have different symptoms and hormone patterns. In the resistance phase especially, we may not even realize how much stress we are under, unless we test our hormone balance and reveal what is truly happening in the body.

In resistance, the hormone cortisol rises to allow us to adapt to a situation that requires our focus. We might have to strategize, plan and come up with ideas to take us out of a situation that may be harmful. In nature, we experience this response and the changes that go with it, for a limited period of time. However, in the modern world we live in we can experience the resistance phase of stress for decades! The hormones that help us cope and adapt to stress are beneficial for us in the short term, but over the long-term can harm our health.

Excessive cortisol has a number of undesirable effects on the body - symptoms of which include fatigue, lethargy, depression, insomnia, PMS, inflammation and immune dysfunction. Over the long term we see a higher incidence of cardiovascular disease, Type 2 diabetes, and cancer. When we are in the resistance phase we have switched off the part of our nervous system, which is called ‘rest and digest’, so we see low digestive juices and issues with nutrient absorption, which causes more stress in itself.

Another negative effect from a high cortisol state is that the sleep hormone melatonin may not be released properly, leading to insomnia.  We are meant to have a beautiful flow of hormones over the day and night, whereby we have a burst of cortisol early in the morning to switch off our sleep hormone and give us energy, and then it will slowly deplete during the day until in the evening, when our melatonin hormone releases, sending us to sleep. This pattern is the way these two hormones are meant to flow, and happens easily and normally, when we are not stressed and able to handle our day-to-day activities.

When we are stressed though, cortisol can remain high at night, leading to low melatonin levels. Not only can this affect our sleep, but low melatonin can also indicate low levels of serotonin (our mood elevation hormone), as serotonin is the precursor to melatonin production.  Low serotonin is related to disorders of consumption (alcoholism, bulimia, anorexia), mood, sleep, anxiety, thought (OCD), learning, memory, sexual activity, aggression, and suicide.

So there are stages of stress that can be measured before we hit exhaustion!  Being aware of our stress levels is very important in preventing both short-term and long-term health disorders. Exercise is important in managing stress levels, as is regular meditation, a whole foods diet, eliminating stimulants such as caffeine and alcohol and healing our emotional wounds and traumas. Eating in a resting state helps our digestive system, as does ensuring that we are well hydrated.

http://www.embracinghealthblog.com/