URGENT APPEAL: SAFT TO ANC
PRESS RELEASE
-----------------------
24 MARCH 2009/ AFTERNOON: STATEMENT BY THE SOUTH AFRICAN FRIENDS OF TIBET ON THE SA GOVERNMENT’S ANNOUNCEMENT THAT H.H. DALAI LAMA WILL NOT BE ALLOWED ENTRY INTO SOUTH AFRICA UNTIL AFTER THE 2010 WORLD CUP EVENT.
Having been apprised of the SA government’s decision not to allow H.H. Dalai Lama to visit South Africa until after the 2010 World Cup, the South African Friends of Tibet notes the following:
1. We appeal to the South African government to recognize that, in barring H.H. Dalai Lama from visiting South Africa in a manner which directly associates this globally unpopular action with the 2010 World Cup, a vast opportunity for using the World Cup as a stage for international Tibet support, including worldwide boycotts and other forms of protest is unnecessarily created.
2. We, as a South African Tibet support group, have assiduously avoided any reference to using the FIFA World Cup as a platform for Tibet-related support and demonstrations, and would prefer that these issues be kept separate. We do not want to see the World Cup hosted by South Africa compromised by human rights issues, as happened with the Beijing Olympics. In this regard we have already rejected two proposals to align ourselves with a campaign of this nature.
3. We therefore appeal to government to modify its stance, and to issue an open ubuntu invitation to H.H. Dalai Lama to visit this country at his earliest convenience.
4. We remind government of the strong international support for Tibet and the person of H.H. Dalai Lama, a support base which includes numbers of effective Tibet Support Groups, as well as other powerful human rights NGO’s concerned from time to time with the Tibet Issue.
5. We have no doubt that creating any connection between the 2010 World Cup event and an adverse stance by the SA Government towards H.H. Dalai Lama will result in demonstrations, boycotts and other negative publicity for the 2010 event from numberless international lobbyists.
6. As we are extremely reluctant to see this premier soccer event becoming the negative focal point of Tibet-related support worldwide, we feel duty-bound to issue this timely statement
The Committee and Members of the South African Friends of Tibet.
Wednesday, 25 March 2009
Thursday, 22 January 2009
This was sent to me by Animalsasia READ IT GO TO THEIR WEBSITE SEE THE PICTURES IF YOU MUST
PASS IT ON AND HELP IF YOU CAN PLEASE
Rescued from meat traders, they need your help now!
Dear Leslie,
I hope you had a great New Years’ Eve and are looking forward to the Year of the Ox!
For us, it was a bumpy start to the year – elation at being involved in the first major rescue of “meat dogs” from a trader in China, but also sadness at seeing the state of the dogs and the knowledge that millions of others are still trapped in this brutal industry.
It all started on New Year’s Eve when the Qiming Rescue Centre, a dog shelter in Chengdu, asked for our help. The authorities in nearby Pengzhou had just confiscated 149 dogs from an unlicensed trading station (after a tip-off from Qiming staff) and the dogs were on their way to the shelter.
Our first sight of the dogs was shocking.
A small team, including one of our vets and a vet nurse, quickly grabbed medical supplies and headed for the shelter. We arrived just as the truck carrying the dogs pulled in. I couldn’t believe what we were witnessing! It was horrible in every sense of the word – the stench (so familiar from our visits to live animal markets), the blood-curdling cries coming from the cages as the terrified dogs bit into each and, as always, the terrible feeling we all get when we look into the haunting, sad eyes of these beautiful animals.
I hate to think how long they had been in those cages, many of them packed in so tightly that they were piled on top of each other. Some of the dogs were shaking with anxiety, while others were rigid with fear. Many were suffering terribly and showing symptoms of parvovirus, distemper and kennel cough. Most were skeletal and their coats filthy from being excreted and urinated on by the top layer of dogs.
Our volunteer vet nurse Helena tends to the dogs.
Animals Asia is health-checking the dogs, treating their wounds, vaccinating them and, sadly, euthanising those that are just too sick to save or so aggressive that we could not rule out rabies or other diseases; these dogs are also a serious risk to other dogs and handlers. The process is ongoing, but we hope many of the dogs will recover and find good homes. However, these are the lucky ones – this year alone, millions of other dogs (and cats) will be slaughtered in the most brutal manner in hellish meat markets in China.
Many of the dogs were chronically ill and weak.
They will be crammed together into tiny cages, loaded onto trucks and driven day and night for four or five days with no food or water (if they are lucky, they might be hosed down, just to keep them alive). Once at the markets in southern China, they will be bludgeoned across the face, stabbed and bled out, or slowly, torturously beaten to death in the misguided belief that their meat will taste better if they are panic-stricken at the point of death. The same fate awaits millions of cats – some of them are even boiled alive.
What is so encouraging about this rescue is that it was a local animal-welfare centre that alerted the authorities about the unlicensed trader and, for the first time, the authorities actually confiscated the dogs! This is a wonderful example of Chinese people standing up and saying “no” to the cruel dog-eating trade – and it underpins our education efforts to stop demand and bring this industry to an end.
Many of the dogs were wearing collars and a number of them were pure-bred; these were possibly stolen pets; others had been collected as strays from the streets, bred in dingy cages on dog farms or raised in rural houses purposefully for meat.
At the moment, Qiming Rescue Centre has only cramped room to house these new dogs – at least temporarily – as we revamp and upgrade the facility and help them recover from their terrible trauma while they await adoption.
Animals Asia’s Christie comforts some of the survivors.
We have much work to do, as the bitterly cold winter months close in on us, including more weatherproofing, extending the roof to cover many more dog runs, concreting the enclosures and runs and making dry, wooden-box beds. With the added expense of food and medical care, this is going to be a costly process.
All the money raised in this appeal will go directly to the care of the dogs at the Qiming shelter. Any remaining when our work there is finished, will go to our ongoing campaigns to end dog-and-cat eating.
Already, dogs that ran away whenever we walked into the enclosures are now slowly approaching us with cautious tail wags and trusting eyes. Some will stand nervously as we gently stroke their fur – but when we stop they will turn towards us shyly asking for more. Somehow I think they know they're the lucky ones – but there is still a long way to go.
Right now, these poor dogs need your help! Please send a donation, however small, to help us save them – and maybe turn some into animal-therapy “ambassador” dogs.
Warm wishes,
Jill Robinson MBE
Founder and CEO
Animals Asia Foundation
PS: Don't forget to check my blog for regular updates on how we're helping the rescued dogs and to read their brave stories.
Visit Jill's Blog: www.animalsasia.org/blog
To donate now, please go to our website: www.animalsasia.org
Rescued from meat traders, they need your help now!
Dear Leslie,
I hope you had a great New Years’ Eve and are looking forward to the Year of the Ox!
For us, it was a bumpy start to the year – elation at being involved in the first major rescue of “meat dogs” from a trader in China, but also sadness at seeing the state of the dogs and the knowledge that millions of others are still trapped in this brutal industry.
It all started on New Year’s Eve when the Qiming Rescue Centre, a dog shelter in Chengdu, asked for our help. The authorities in nearby Pengzhou had just confiscated 149 dogs from an unlicensed trading station (after a tip-off from Qiming staff) and the dogs were on their way to the shelter.
Our first sight of the dogs was shocking.
A small team, including one of our vets and a vet nurse, quickly grabbed medical supplies and headed for the shelter. We arrived just as the truck carrying the dogs pulled in. I couldn’t believe what we were witnessing! It was horrible in every sense of the word – the stench (so familiar from our visits to live animal markets), the blood-curdling cries coming from the cages as the terrified dogs bit into each and, as always, the terrible feeling we all get when we look into the haunting, sad eyes of these beautiful animals.
I hate to think how long they had been in those cages, many of them packed in so tightly that they were piled on top of each other. Some of the dogs were shaking with anxiety, while others were rigid with fear. Many were suffering terribly and showing symptoms of parvovirus, distemper and kennel cough. Most were skeletal and their coats filthy from being excreted and urinated on by the top layer of dogs.
Our volunteer vet nurse Helena tends to the dogs.
Animals Asia is health-checking the dogs, treating their wounds, vaccinating them and, sadly, euthanising those that are just too sick to save or so aggressive that we could not rule out rabies or other diseases; these dogs are also a serious risk to other dogs and handlers. The process is ongoing, but we hope many of the dogs will recover and find good homes. However, these are the lucky ones – this year alone, millions of other dogs (and cats) will be slaughtered in the most brutal manner in hellish meat markets in China.
Many of the dogs were chronically ill and weak.
They will be crammed together into tiny cages, loaded onto trucks and driven day and night for four or five days with no food or water (if they are lucky, they might be hosed down, just to keep them alive). Once at the markets in southern China, they will be bludgeoned across the face, stabbed and bled out, or slowly, torturously beaten to death in the misguided belief that their meat will taste better if they are panic-stricken at the point of death. The same fate awaits millions of cats – some of them are even boiled alive.
What is so encouraging about this rescue is that it was a local animal-welfare centre that alerted the authorities about the unlicensed trader and, for the first time, the authorities actually confiscated the dogs! This is a wonderful example of Chinese people standing up and saying “no” to the cruel dog-eating trade – and it underpins our education efforts to stop demand and bring this industry to an end.
Many of the dogs were wearing collars and a number of them were pure-bred; these were possibly stolen pets; others had been collected as strays from the streets, bred in dingy cages on dog farms or raised in rural houses purposefully for meat.
At the moment, Qiming Rescue Centre has only cramped room to house these new dogs – at least temporarily – as we revamp and upgrade the facility and help them recover from their terrible trauma while they await adoption.
Animals Asia’s Christie comforts some of the survivors.
We have much work to do, as the bitterly cold winter months close in on us, including more weatherproofing, extending the roof to cover many more dog runs, concreting the enclosures and runs and making dry, wooden-box beds. With the added expense of food and medical care, this is going to be a costly process.
All the money raised in this appeal will go directly to the care of the dogs at the Qiming shelter. Any remaining when our work there is finished, will go to our ongoing campaigns to end dog-and-cat eating.
Already, dogs that ran away whenever we walked into the enclosures are now slowly approaching us with cautious tail wags and trusting eyes. Some will stand nervously as we gently stroke their fur – but when we stop they will turn towards us shyly asking for more. Somehow I think they know they're the lucky ones – but there is still a long way to go.
Right now, these poor dogs need your help! Please send a donation, however small, to help us save them – and maybe turn some into animal-therapy “ambassador” dogs.
Warm wishes,
Jill Robinson MBE
Founder and CEO
Animals Asia Foundation
PS: Don't forget to check my blog for regular updates on how we're helping the rescued dogs and to read their brave stories.
Visit Jill's Blog: www.animalsasia.org/blog
To donate now, please go to our website: www.animalsasia.org
Wednesday, 28 May 2008
Even Indiana Jones recognises the need for space
Just in case anyone was wondering the line in Indiana Jones is in Erickson hypnotic language and is used in therapy to get you to do just that - get out of this space and into the space inbetween - this is where change occurs. Because it seems so nonsensical your conscious mind takes it and bounces it off a couple of walls until the unconscious mind picks it up and takes it and you where it should go - into the realms of possibility and suspense of disbelief.
It is also a metaphor for the Quantum field. Which is what all the scientists are arguing about mainly because it proves magic happens in that place - the space between the spaces. It alludes to the many worlds theory - I would recommend reading The Universe Next Door by Marcus Chown or google things like Otto Schroedinger (nasty experiment to prove a premis) then go look at Down the rabbit hole.
All from the search of the Quantum in the Universe - all scientific - all about being two places at once and the 'What if?' train of thought - which is what we need at this time in the world - like What if we stopped being arrogant, selfish, whingeing , me first, I want what you have GIVE IT TO ME NOW OR ELSE little shits, how many wars would that stop from being started - how may lives would it save if we taught not bigotry but a sense of responsibility for our choices? How much happier would we be?
It is also a metaphor for the Quantum field. Which is what all the scientists are arguing about mainly because it proves magic happens in that place - the space between the spaces. It alludes to the many worlds theory - I would recommend reading The Universe Next Door by Marcus Chown or google things like Otto Schroedinger (nasty experiment to prove a premis) then go look at Down the rabbit hole.
All from the search of the Quantum in the Universe - all scientific - all about being two places at once and the 'What if?' train of thought - which is what we need at this time in the world - like What if we stopped being arrogant, selfish, whingeing , me first, I want what you have GIVE IT TO ME NOW OR ELSE little shits, how many wars would that stop from being started - how may lives would it save if we taught not bigotry but a sense of responsibility for our choices? How much happier would we be?
Saturday, 1 December 2007
thoughts on audacity
THE EARTH DOES NOT BELONG TO MAN MAN BELONGS TO THE EARTH..... ..... ALL THINGS ARE CONNECTED, LIKE THE BLOOD THAT UNITES ONE FAMILY, ALL THINGS ARE CONNECTED, WHATEVER BEFALLS THE EARTH BEFALLS THE SONS OF THE EARTH, MAN DID NOT WEAVE THE WEB OF LIFE HE IS MERELY A STRAND IN IT, WHATEVER HE DOES TO THE WEB, HE DOES TO HIMSELF Chief Seattle, Dwamish
Wednesday, 29 August 2007
M.E. and Ancient Healing
(shaman the one with eyes to see in the dark)
We are mind and body and Spirit. Why do we think that when one has dis-ease it will have no effect on the others? We are energy; we make it and transform it all the time; 60,000 years ago they made this connection. We made a light bulb and lost it! We focussed too hard on the machinery and forgot the fuel.
M.E is a dis-ease of the mind, the body and most importantly the spirit.
Shamanism is potentially an important factor in healing this dis-ease. The Shaman heals the Spirit as well as the mind and the body; one such healing is Soul retrieval.
At times of great trauma, stress, and long illness’ or of abusive situations the Soul fragments and parts will leave in order to protect themselves. This can happen at any time in life and the loss of this can bring a human being to their knees. They lose all interest in life and become wastelands of matter in the sea of apathy.
The Shaman is adept at accessing altered states of consciousness, which allows them to enter other world realities. It is within these other worlds that they seek out and find the answers, to do battle for the Soul part if necessary, to de-possess a person of less than totally supportive habits and to then journey back to the Seeker and teach them how to walk their path by connecting them with allies like Power Animals and Guides.
This also gives the Seeker back the power over the malaise that they may feel is at the root of the problem; releasing energy and allowing it to flow freely again.
Even although it is well over 60,000 years old it has applications to the modern dis – eases we suffer from.
M.E. also known as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, which can advance to include Fibromyalgia; which attacks the muscle fibres themselves, causing a great deal of pain and an almost complete inability to function.
The M.E stands for Myalgic Encephalomyelitis, it attacks the immune system via the brain and spinal chord. It can be a frighteningly debilitating dis-ease ranging from bone crushing exhaustion to in extreme cases long periods of hospitalisation.
Sufferers describe their symptoms as severe exhaustion, inability to do even the simplest of tasks like brushing their own teeth or washing and dressing themselves. Even completing a coherent sentence is a gargantuan task.
They become isolated by their inability to have enough energy to socialise or go shopping; even talking to people on the phone expends energy they just do not have.
I know this – I was finally diagnosed with it in 2002, but it has been with me now since at least 1976. Sporadic bouts in between long periods of remission, if you are lucky you may stay that way, if not the periods of remission become shorter and less frequent as the dis-ease relentlessly takes over your life.
M.E. is triggered by a lot of different circumstances and these are usually based in traumatic and or abusive events during childhood and through early adulthood, constant exposure to virus’, not taking time off or going back to work too early would result in consistently high levels of cortisol being dumped into the body. Myalgic encephalomyelitis is akin to battle fatigue. You can only be on your guard for so long before your body has to rest, if you do not – you wear the body out and the immune system with it.
What has this got to do with Shamanic healing?
People who have had traumatic, abusive incidents/ accidents or emotional breakdowns, whether through outside influences or self inflicted often will come to a Shaman with symptoms of M.E. they bandy around words like void, emptiness, fatigue, apathy, headaches, always catching colds, feeling ill all the time, they are just too tired to fight anymore.
The belief that during a time of trauma or abuse the Soul will fragment and part of it will leave the body in order to protect itself is also a part of Buddhist teaching – they describe the first trauma as that of birth. This would possibly be the first fragmentation, personally I think that it can happen in vitro and even if conception was not as loving as it could have been. If it is traumatic to the mother, then the foetus will experience it as trauma too.
The amazing burst of energy and vitality that happens when a Soul part is returned can be seen on the physical plane. The recipient not only feels the whole thing happening but the changes physically are immediately apparent.
They walk differently; there is a spring in their step, a light in their eyes and a lilt to their voice. Sometimes there are tears of joy or relief, recognition of a long lost friend returned home.
The job does not end there, of course, the Seeker is taught how to connect to themselves and their own Universe inside and out, but that is another story…
It is not for everyone, nothing is. This is a very subjective look at a subject that is personal to me. Shamanic healing saved my life in more ways than one, it is not a cure, but it is a healing. I am a work in progress and through becoming a Shamanic Practitioner the progress is coming in leaps and bounds.
All things are relative and what worked for me may not work for everyone, but it will work for some.
You don’t have to be ill to see a Shaman – we have lots of fun things we do too. It’s really intriguingly Quantum.
We are mind and body and Spirit. Why do we think that when one has dis-ease it will have no effect on the others? We are energy; we make it and transform it all the time; 60,000 years ago they made this connection. We made a light bulb and lost it! We focussed too hard on the machinery and forgot the fuel.
M.E is a dis-ease of the mind, the body and most importantly the spirit.
Shamanism is potentially an important factor in healing this dis-ease. The Shaman heals the Spirit as well as the mind and the body; one such healing is Soul retrieval.
At times of great trauma, stress, and long illness’ or of abusive situations the Soul fragments and parts will leave in order to protect themselves. This can happen at any time in life and the loss of this can bring a human being to their knees. They lose all interest in life and become wastelands of matter in the sea of apathy.
The Shaman is adept at accessing altered states of consciousness, which allows them to enter other world realities. It is within these other worlds that they seek out and find the answers, to do battle for the Soul part if necessary, to de-possess a person of less than totally supportive habits and to then journey back to the Seeker and teach them how to walk their path by connecting them with allies like Power Animals and Guides.
This also gives the Seeker back the power over the malaise that they may feel is at the root of the problem; releasing energy and allowing it to flow freely again.
Even although it is well over 60,000 years old it has applications to the modern dis – eases we suffer from.
M.E. also known as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, which can advance to include Fibromyalgia; which attacks the muscle fibres themselves, causing a great deal of pain and an almost complete inability to function.
The M.E stands for Myalgic Encephalomyelitis, it attacks the immune system via the brain and spinal chord. It can be a frighteningly debilitating dis-ease ranging from bone crushing exhaustion to in extreme cases long periods of hospitalisation.
Sufferers describe their symptoms as severe exhaustion, inability to do even the simplest of tasks like brushing their own teeth or washing and dressing themselves. Even completing a coherent sentence is a gargantuan task.
They become isolated by their inability to have enough energy to socialise or go shopping; even talking to people on the phone expends energy they just do not have.
I know this – I was finally diagnosed with it in 2002, but it has been with me now since at least 1976. Sporadic bouts in between long periods of remission, if you are lucky you may stay that way, if not the periods of remission become shorter and less frequent as the dis-ease relentlessly takes over your life.
M.E. is triggered by a lot of different circumstances and these are usually based in traumatic and or abusive events during childhood and through early adulthood, constant exposure to virus’, not taking time off or going back to work too early would result in consistently high levels of cortisol being dumped into the body. Myalgic encephalomyelitis is akin to battle fatigue. You can only be on your guard for so long before your body has to rest, if you do not – you wear the body out and the immune system with it.
What has this got to do with Shamanic healing?
People who have had traumatic, abusive incidents/ accidents or emotional breakdowns, whether through outside influences or self inflicted often will come to a Shaman with symptoms of M.E. they bandy around words like void, emptiness, fatigue, apathy, headaches, always catching colds, feeling ill all the time, they are just too tired to fight anymore.
The belief that during a time of trauma or abuse the Soul will fragment and part of it will leave the body in order to protect itself is also a part of Buddhist teaching – they describe the first trauma as that of birth. This would possibly be the first fragmentation, personally I think that it can happen in vitro and even if conception was not as loving as it could have been. If it is traumatic to the mother, then the foetus will experience it as trauma too.
The amazing burst of energy and vitality that happens when a Soul part is returned can be seen on the physical plane. The recipient not only feels the whole thing happening but the changes physically are immediately apparent.
They walk differently; there is a spring in their step, a light in their eyes and a lilt to their voice. Sometimes there are tears of joy or relief, recognition of a long lost friend returned home.
The job does not end there, of course, the Seeker is taught how to connect to themselves and their own Universe inside and out, but that is another story…
It is not for everyone, nothing is. This is a very subjective look at a subject that is personal to me. Shamanic healing saved my life in more ways than one, it is not a cure, but it is a healing. I am a work in progress and through becoming a Shamanic Practitioner the progress is coming in leaps and bounds.
All things are relative and what worked for me may not work for everyone, but it will work for some.
You don’t have to be ill to see a Shaman – we have lots of fun things we do too. It’s really intriguingly Quantum.
Monday, 28 May 2007
this is a two kit kat and 3 coffee experience
Path of the Shaman
Shamanic practise is more than 50,000 years old. It is not a religion of itself but can be found interwoven into many religions; not excluding the main known orthodox beliefs. A part of, but apart from the major religions of the world. It is singular and of itself, and is remarkable in that although developed by many separate cultures, it has a central core that is common to all these indigenous traditions.
From the Australian Aborigine to the Tibetan Monks, from Siberia to Africa, from North and South America to Northern Europe. From Santa Claus to Arch Angels, Shamanism is alive and well and becoming more and more apparent as the Universe shifts back the spiritual balance to the individual; be it person, tribe, clan or village, the Universe is calling its warriors to arms, the Warriors of the Shadow, the Shapeshifters, the Healers, the Pyromancers, the Psychopompers, those who have eyes to see in the dark.
Le Barre said that there were Shamen before there were Gods, this is understandable as it would behove that a Shaman would be the one with access to the other words; other realities and different dimensions. Only when one found the way to enter these dimensions would it be possible for them to communicate with the beings/spirits therein. How they chose the first Shamen is still a mystery.
Supposedly, the original travellers to space and time had no pre - conceived ideas of what to expect and therefore, the fact that the Shamens’ individual (and very separate) experiences have so much in common has allowed them to connect with others such as themselves, that a belief system of ‘other worlds, of other dimensions, of other realities of has evolved from a core experience and recounting of these.
Their relating of journeys to otherworldly realms, the purpose of which was to find good hunting, good shelter, or more prosaically - an honourable victory over a Shaman from a rival tribe. From the birth of new members of the tribes, what their souls would bring to their people, what gifts would be brought by this new life, to the guidance of souls passing through the veils of shadow lands back into the void. The Shamen were the ones who knew how, and each one through ritual and wisdom passed down by elder Shamen to the chosen few, would have the responsibility of the lives and fortunes of all those within the tribe.
The similarities and the success of these rituals and ceremonials are testament not only to the wisdom and aptitude of the individual, but are an indication to a shared knowledge of something most of the Western world can only dream of. Thankfully, some of us still do dream of it and though even fewer of us act upon those dreams, the few are increasing in number as we as humans begin to realise that there is a finite amount of money, carbon based fuel and land.
This brings us to our main belief systems today, which have collected that which suited and rejected as evil that which did not, allowed the creation of Heaven and Hell, and who is to go to whichever the ’priest’ decreed through his knowledge of the new mysteries; 2,000 years young. The basis of which was made upon texts translated from Aramaic and Sanskrit into Greek and then Latin. No matter that the academic prowess, and therefore the competence of the priests was suspect as long as they were zealous, pure, pious, knew the fundamentals and were willing to implement the Gospel according to whomsoever was revising the “good book” at the time; any which way and with as much force as it would take to convert the poor daemon worshipping, simple minded souls they encountered on their way, who had the audacity to believe that they knew more about their spiritual needs than these new guys in frocks, who couldn’t speak their language, couldn’t cope with their weather and conditions and instead of being gracious guests became tyrannical overseers.
While doing this pushed most pure Shamanic traditions to past the point of extinction in places, it only succeeded to bestialise and ridicule its practise in others, though still chasing it underground and ensuring that only the most inaccessible places on this earth kept a pure tradition. Were it not for some of the more open of European minds the Native American Culture would have been totally lost to a Hebrew God whose testament has been bastardised and politically spun throughout the ages - not least by the first Pope who had converted from a Pagan background, and in his wisdom decided what the poor plebs could handle and what they could not; so it was the Gospel according to Constantine not God.
Still taking into consideration the pantheon of God/Goddess’ from various traditions, Greek, Roman, Celtic, Nordic/Heathen. Shamanic resonance can be seen in all of these, even unto the Bible. The bible
Teaches Druidic theology, the sacrificing of oneself for the good of the many, for the good of the land, this was taught by the Druid priests since there were people on this island. The King who was and will be again, risen from the dead to lead his people to freedom of suppression is not just the remit of the bible. Every child knows the Arthurian legends. Every mainstream religion is based upon the messiah concept. The de- possessing of spirit’s, the common sense that has been lost in translation, the trial on the mount the feeding of the 5,000, the vision quest in the desert 40 days and 40 nights. Go tell it to a Native American Brave, that is before the missionaries came to make him over in Gods own image, before they came to destroy and bully a people who were so connected to the land they lived and died for it. A people whose Medicine men treated not just the wounds of their people but the traumas of their souls, by connecting to the land that sustained them.
Shamen have power over fire, time and space, the weather, and particularly they have great power in healing arts and in psychopomping ; the assisting of souls crossing over to a new
Dimension, or state of being. These days our lives are full of arts and means to keep death at bay. Death is the ultimate change and we, although having a tendency to embrace change when we can see the outcome, have less and less intention to accept and embrace death. Somehow we have come to see it as an end to ourselves, in our human form we are so self obsessed. Western Society by and large does not take to spirituality unless there is a crisis in the offing. A Tsunami will do it for some, though less of praying for the dead and more of rifling the wallet takes place, there are a few people who put aside their everyday lives and trials and for some reason have an all encompassing urge to do something - something they would never normally think of.
People go on holiday every day to places like Thailand and India and the Maldives. They see the poverty, they see the potential for destruction and loss of life but they don’t own it, it is not their problem. They’re doing their bit by visiting the place and brining in much needed tourist money. Most of them go home having had a great time and not realising or even registering the fact that there are people who live on the edge every single day, that their tourist money is actually not doing much good, because the more they visit the more hotels have to be built therefore the more land is cleared. Natural breakwaters, natural barriers no longer exist. The government spends no money on early warning systems because it’s not as important as the next new resort for rich Westerners to come and spend their money.
And the indigenous peoples, they live with death every day. Their rights are taken from them by faceless foreigners who want their land and resources but these are finite resources. The real gold is in the fact that indigenous peoples have treatments for cancers that we don’t know about. They don’t get the kind of cancers and diseases that we have. That they have good health and longevity that we can only dream of. That they know a peace and contentment that we shall never see again, lest we go back to real basics remembering who we are and that we need each other, not another car, not a bigger house, not a pool; we need to connect.
It is known as a magico - religious practise, whose practitioners bring on an ecstatic trance state, through dance, chanting, journeying and meditation. Some practitioners use psychotropic drugs, these are not necessary for all.
Shamanic practise is more than 50,000 years old. It is not a religion of itself but can be found interwoven into many religions; not excluding the main known orthodox beliefs. A part of, but apart from the major religions of the world. It is singular and of itself, and is remarkable in that although developed by many separate cultures, it has a central core that is common to all these indigenous traditions.
From the Australian Aborigine to the Tibetan Monks, from Siberia to Africa, from North and South America to Northern Europe. From Santa Claus to Arch Angels, Shamanism is alive and well and becoming more and more apparent as the Universe shifts back the spiritual balance to the individual; be it person, tribe, clan or village, the Universe is calling its warriors to arms, the Warriors of the Shadow, the Shapeshifters, the Healers, the Pyromancers, the Psychopompers, those who have eyes to see in the dark.
Le Barre said that there were Shamen before there were Gods, this is understandable as it would behove that a Shaman would be the one with access to the other words; other realities and different dimensions. Only when one found the way to enter these dimensions would it be possible for them to communicate with the beings/spirits therein. How they chose the first Shamen is still a mystery.
Supposedly, the original travellers to space and time had no pre - conceived ideas of what to expect and therefore, the fact that the Shamens’ individual (and very separate) experiences have so much in common has allowed them to connect with others such as themselves, that a belief system of ‘other worlds, of other dimensions, of other realities of has evolved from a core experience and recounting of these.
Their relating of journeys to otherworldly realms, the purpose of which was to find good hunting, good shelter, or more prosaically - an honourable victory over a Shaman from a rival tribe. From the birth of new members of the tribes, what their souls would bring to their people, what gifts would be brought by this new life, to the guidance of souls passing through the veils of shadow lands back into the void. The Shamen were the ones who knew how, and each one through ritual and wisdom passed down by elder Shamen to the chosen few, would have the responsibility of the lives and fortunes of all those within the tribe.
The similarities and the success of these rituals and ceremonials are testament not only to the wisdom and aptitude of the individual, but are an indication to a shared knowledge of something most of the Western world can only dream of. Thankfully, some of us still do dream of it and though even fewer of us act upon those dreams, the few are increasing in number as we as humans begin to realise that there is a finite amount of money, carbon based fuel and land.
This brings us to our main belief systems today, which have collected that which suited and rejected as evil that which did not, allowed the creation of Heaven and Hell, and who is to go to whichever the ’priest’ decreed through his knowledge of the new mysteries; 2,000 years young. The basis of which was made upon texts translated from Aramaic and Sanskrit into Greek and then Latin. No matter that the academic prowess, and therefore the competence of the priests was suspect as long as they were zealous, pure, pious, knew the fundamentals and were willing to implement the Gospel according to whomsoever was revising the “good book” at the time; any which way and with as much force as it would take to convert the poor daemon worshipping, simple minded souls they encountered on their way, who had the audacity to believe that they knew more about their spiritual needs than these new guys in frocks, who couldn’t speak their language, couldn’t cope with their weather and conditions and instead of being gracious guests became tyrannical overseers.
While doing this pushed most pure Shamanic traditions to past the point of extinction in places, it only succeeded to bestialise and ridicule its practise in others, though still chasing it underground and ensuring that only the most inaccessible places on this earth kept a pure tradition. Were it not for some of the more open of European minds the Native American Culture would have been totally lost to a Hebrew God whose testament has been bastardised and politically spun throughout the ages - not least by the first Pope who had converted from a Pagan background, and in his wisdom decided what the poor plebs could handle and what they could not; so it was the Gospel according to Constantine not God.
Still taking into consideration the pantheon of God/Goddess’ from various traditions, Greek, Roman, Celtic, Nordic/Heathen. Shamanic resonance can be seen in all of these, even unto the Bible. The bible
Teaches Druidic theology, the sacrificing of oneself for the good of the many, for the good of the land, this was taught by the Druid priests since there were people on this island. The King who was and will be again, risen from the dead to lead his people to freedom of suppression is not just the remit of the bible. Every child knows the Arthurian legends. Every mainstream religion is based upon the messiah concept. The de- possessing of spirit’s, the common sense that has been lost in translation, the trial on the mount the feeding of the 5,000, the vision quest in the desert 40 days and 40 nights. Go tell it to a Native American Brave, that is before the missionaries came to make him over in Gods own image, before they came to destroy and bully a people who were so connected to the land they lived and died for it. A people whose Medicine men treated not just the wounds of their people but the traumas of their souls, by connecting to the land that sustained them.
Shamen have power over fire, time and space, the weather, and particularly they have great power in healing arts and in psychopomping ; the assisting of souls crossing over to a new
Dimension, or state of being. These days our lives are full of arts and means to keep death at bay. Death is the ultimate change and we, although having a tendency to embrace change when we can see the outcome, have less and less intention to accept and embrace death. Somehow we have come to see it as an end to ourselves, in our human form we are so self obsessed. Western Society by and large does not take to spirituality unless there is a crisis in the offing. A Tsunami will do it for some, though less of praying for the dead and more of rifling the wallet takes place, there are a few people who put aside their everyday lives and trials and for some reason have an all encompassing urge to do something - something they would never normally think of.
People go on holiday every day to places like Thailand and India and the Maldives. They see the poverty, they see the potential for destruction and loss of life but they don’t own it, it is not their problem. They’re doing their bit by visiting the place and brining in much needed tourist money. Most of them go home having had a great time and not realising or even registering the fact that there are people who live on the edge every single day, that their tourist money is actually not doing much good, because the more they visit the more hotels have to be built therefore the more land is cleared. Natural breakwaters, natural barriers no longer exist. The government spends no money on early warning systems because it’s not as important as the next new resort for rich Westerners to come and spend their money.
And the indigenous peoples, they live with death every day. Their rights are taken from them by faceless foreigners who want their land and resources but these are finite resources. The real gold is in the fact that indigenous peoples have treatments for cancers that we don’t know about. They don’t get the kind of cancers and diseases that we have. That they have good health and longevity that we can only dream of. That they know a peace and contentment that we shall never see again, lest we go back to real basics remembering who we are and that we need each other, not another car, not a bigger house, not a pool; we need to connect.
It is known as a magico - religious practise, whose practitioners bring on an ecstatic trance state, through dance, chanting, journeying and meditation. Some practitioners use psychotropic drugs, these are not necessary for all.
Friday, 27 April 2007
Eyes to see in the Dark
The Tungus tribe of Northern Siberia coined
The word ‘Shaman’ to mean a healer, or one with
Eyes to see in the dark. It’s quite a talent, to see in
Dark for there are many different kinds of darkness.
There is the darkness of depression, low energy and
Low self esteem. The darkness of apathy, life is passing
By and all you can say is ‘so what’.
There are many different ways to be healed, there are no
Instant cures. Shamanic healing will take you to
find allies and give you resources to enable you to
find the passion that you once had; giving you a way to
Say goodbye to the past while still honouring it’s
part in your life’s journey, and your life is a journey, how you proceed with it will depend on you and the choices you make along the way.
Have you ever wondered what would have happened if…? There are many theories on this subject and it is now no longer in the realm of the impossible and not even in the improbable it now lies in the possible. Quantum physics is daily pushing the boundaries of what we suspect to the edge and beyond of what we know. For some, these have been revelations, for others merely justifications of long held beliefs now becoming fact.
Not just anecdotally but specifically and proven by eminent scientists, the quantum worlds are waiting for us to jump right in and find out how many ways there are to calculate the probabilities of what is in the box.
Otto Schroedinger could explain that one better than I.
More than 50,000 years ago, there were people who didn’t know what a box was, so they didn’t put themselves or situations in one. They saw everything as a new possibility, a new challenge and they went out to meet that challenge with a specific outcome in mind. How do I know this? Cave paintings and artefacts found at archaeological digs prove the posit that positive thinking is nothing new, it is in fact something we have had to learn all over again. We kind of lost it somewhere in the era of industrial enlightenment.
The day they switched on a light bulb something inside of us switched off.
The dark is a verdant and amazing thing, light casts only shadow which is such a flimsy facsimile of the dark that we seek to control.
The shadows are places of confusion and there lie the monsters. There are no real edges, no markers in shadow; everything is ephemeral and constantly shifting with every small change of light. So, really, depression and apathy are shadows. In the most part for some reason we are taught at an early age to fear the dark – the creatures of the night are weird and wonderful, but usually deadly… at least to the others in their nocturnal world.
Things that live in the light fear things that live in the dark; if light is so wonderful why is the womb, the safest place you will ever be, not illuminated somehow?
Or is the dark of the womb the light of creation?
©Sleepy Dragon December 2006
The Tungus tribe of Northern Siberia coined
The word ‘Shaman’ to mean a healer, or one with
Eyes to see in the dark. It’s quite a talent, to see in
Dark for there are many different kinds of darkness.
There is the darkness of depression, low energy and
Low self esteem. The darkness of apathy, life is passing
By and all you can say is ‘so what’.
There are many different ways to be healed, there are no
Instant cures. Shamanic healing will take you to
find allies and give you resources to enable you to
find the passion that you once had; giving you a way to
Say goodbye to the past while still honouring it’s
part in your life’s journey, and your life is a journey, how you proceed with it will depend on you and the choices you make along the way.
Have you ever wondered what would have happened if…? There are many theories on this subject and it is now no longer in the realm of the impossible and not even in the improbable it now lies in the possible. Quantum physics is daily pushing the boundaries of what we suspect to the edge and beyond of what we know. For some, these have been revelations, for others merely justifications of long held beliefs now becoming fact.
Not just anecdotally but specifically and proven by eminent scientists, the quantum worlds are waiting for us to jump right in and find out how many ways there are to calculate the probabilities of what is in the box.
Otto Schroedinger could explain that one better than I.
More than 50,000 years ago, there were people who didn’t know what a box was, so they didn’t put themselves or situations in one. They saw everything as a new possibility, a new challenge and they went out to meet that challenge with a specific outcome in mind. How do I know this? Cave paintings and artefacts found at archaeological digs prove the posit that positive thinking is nothing new, it is in fact something we have had to learn all over again. We kind of lost it somewhere in the era of industrial enlightenment.
The day they switched on a light bulb something inside of us switched off.
The dark is a verdant and amazing thing, light casts only shadow which is such a flimsy facsimile of the dark that we seek to control.
The shadows are places of confusion and there lie the monsters. There are no real edges, no markers in shadow; everything is ephemeral and constantly shifting with every small change of light. So, really, depression and apathy are shadows. In the most part for some reason we are taught at an early age to fear the dark – the creatures of the night are weird and wonderful, but usually deadly… at least to the others in their nocturnal world.
Things that live in the light fear things that live in the dark; if light is so wonderful why is the womb, the safest place you will ever be, not illuminated somehow?
Or is the dark of the womb the light of creation?
©Sleepy Dragon December 2006
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