Glastonbury Tor 360 Panorama from the BBC.

It really doesn’t relay the height of the Tor (or the steepness of the climb to the top), but the views are breathtaking.

And while we are at it, if you’d like to take a live peek at what’s going on in Glastonbury, check out these webcams:

This is from the Vestry Hall on the High Street.

And this is from the Town Hall, overlooking the market cross.

When we are there on pilgrimage next year, I’d love to arrange a time and date for the pilgrims to gather at the market cross to send love and greetings to those at home via the webcam!

Enjoy!

ETA: Many thanks to Jackie Hewitt for these links. Visit her lovely site That Funny Hill for some beautiful images of Glastonbury and the Somerset countryside.

It is a question I am often asked, and one upon which I often meditate. I am always awed by the many ways Avalon makes herself known to us – so varied and yet, like the facets of a beautiful crystal, still part of a unified whole. Some who are drawn to Avalon seek to know as many of these facets as they can; others are content to truly know perhaps one or two as fully and completely as possible. Indeed, for some, the vision of Avalon is but one aspect of a more universal seeking of the energies of the Divine, and it co-exists comfortably with other paths and traditions.

Yet how can this be? How can Avalon be so many different things to so many different people?

I believe the answer to what, on the surface, appears to be a paradox, lies in the very nature of Avalon herself.

In all of the myths, the legends, the poetry, Avalon stands at the gateway between worlds, a sacred threshold accessed through works of bravery, of faith, of spirit. It is a place of transition – from life into death into life again, from this world to the Otherworld, from old faiths to new ones. In the Celtic way of thinking, this type of liminal space exists in all Three Realms – Land, Sea and Sky – and as such, has manifestations in each of these Realms – thus informing the many ways Avalon is revealed, the many ways her Mysteries are kept.

The Realm of Land – Here, Avalon dwells in the Earthly Plane, the Middle World where we experience physical existence. Whether an ancient island temple of learning and worship, or a gathering of like-minded souls under the light of today’s moon, this Avalon is anchored in community and outward service. Her works are tangible, her shores attainable – albeit through the tests that must be met to open the gates to the Revolving Four Fold Fortress.

The Realm of Sea – This reflection of Avalon exists in the mirror-pool of the Soul, seen with the mystic’s eye in the waters of the Lower World. Here, the Holy Isle is found through the inner quest, with ancestors and totem spirits as our guides. This is Avalon as the Isle of Glass, the Otherword beckoning to us from across the maternal waters, revealing the truth of our soul. This is the Cauldron of Ceridwen, the place of dreams and symbols – of deep healing and integration.

The Realm of Sky – The revelation of Avalon as the highest ideal of perfection. This Sacred Island suspended in the light of the Upper World is the Dwelling place of the Modron – the Goddess in all of Her Guises. Here, Avalon is the Spiraled Tower, impelling us ever-higher in our quest for true Understanding and complete Connection with Source. Here we find Avalon as archetype, as paragon, as divine template for wholeness.

While there are myriad variations, I believe that we each hold Avalon differently because there are so many ways to seek her – so many aspects to reclaim.

Do we seek her as myth, or symbol, or allegory? Is she a powerful, chthonic Otherworldly Island – awaiting our souls until we are ready to return to the Realm of Land once more? Is she the energy that is built between co-celebrants, sharing a specific path that opens the way to her shores? Is she that place in the core of the soul that can only be known in the solitude of silence, heard only between the notes of the inner song?

Avalon calls for us to serve in many ways, and only we can know the form of our calling. Who can say what is real and true, for who can validate the experience of another? Who but we ourselves can know the heart of the essence of Avalon – the way she works through us and makes herself known in our lives? Is the legend more powerful than the symbol of what she has come to mean today? Are historical proofs more valid than the visions of the seer? Are you more Avalonian because you visit her in daily practice rather than hold her fondly in your heart as you conduct the business of your life?

For myself, I have specific beliefs about Avalon and walk a particular path – one that has informed my words here, and one that is constantly evolving and growing with each turn around the bend, each hill attained, each valley passed through. However, I also believe that the ability of Avalon to inspire, to transform, and to empower transcends my path and any path – and that we are the stronger for recognizing that our collective love for Avalon raises us ALL up. We may walk through different parts of the orchard – indeed, we may be content to stand as sentinels outside the gate without ever having entered – but it is in the essence of what Avalon is here and now and today that we nod to each other as we pass, that we welcome each other as siblings in the Holy Isle, embracing at times, walking together for a spell, and ultimately releasing as we are called to continue on our own way.

What is Avalon?

All that we need her to be.

And in return, let us be all that she needs us to be – in her service, and with her blessings.

With all of the archaeological activity at Stonehenge these days, it’s only fitting that we visit it next via Google Earth.

One of the things I like so much about Google Earth is that it gives us the Big Picture — especially from an archaeological perspective. I’ve read news articles about sites being discovered by people using Google Earth to look at their homes and land. It really is amazing what can be preserved over time — not to mention how perception shifts with perspective. An important lesson on many levels, no?

At any rate, the above image clearly shows the big picture of Stonehenge, and if you look hard enough both within the earthwork ditch around the stone circle and at 3:00 and 7:00 in the surrounding landscape, you can clearly see other, smaller earthworks — most likely the burial mounds of important persons. These are just a few of those associated with Stonehenge.

Someone rendered an interactive 3D model of a restored Stonehenge (so far as they understand it at the moment) which is superimposed upon the satellite imagery of Google Earth when you have the 3D Buildings option toggled. Having been in the middle of the stones in RL, this was an especially illuminating feature for me, and I do encourage you to check it out for yourself; it really does give you a nice sense of scope as well as insight into the spacial relationships of the stones.

Finally, here is the best resolution close-up available; it may be fuzzy, but just a year or two ago, you couldn’t even see this closely on Google Earth. All of the broken megaliths make me melancholy when you consider Stonehenge’s former grandeur, but it is comforting to know that English Heritage has been working hard to balance being protective of the site with allowing limited access for those who yearn to touch the stones and stand in their shadows. I hope that visitors remember to treat this incredible site with the respect and reverence it deserves — unlike the recent desecration of several stone circles in the UK, the graffiti on the tower of Glastonbury Tor, and the souvenir-seeker who defaced one of the Easter Island Moai.

Archaeologists carrying out an excavation at Stonehenge say they have broken through to a layer that may finally explain why the site was built.

The team has reached sockets that once held bluestones - smaller stones, most now missing or uprooted, which formed the site’s original structure.

The researchers believe that the bluestones could reveal that Stonehenge was once a place of healing.

The dig is the first to take place at Stonehenge for more than 40 years.

The team now needs to extract organic material from these holes to date when the stones first arrived.

Professor Tim Darvill, of Bournemouth University, who is leading the work with Professor Geoff Wainwright, president of the Society of Antiquaries, said: “The first week has gone really well. We have broken through to these key features.

“It is a slow process but at the moment everything is going exactly to plan.”

The two-week excavation is being funded by the BBC and filmed for a special Timewatch programme to be broadcast in the autumn.

Professors Darvill and Wainwright say that finding out more about the history of the bluestones could be key to solving the mystery of why the 4,500-year-old landmark was erected.

They believe that the bluestones, which were transported 250km (150 miles) from the Preseli Hills in Wales to the Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, were brought to the site because the ancient people believed they had healing properties.

Professor Geoffrey Wainwright said the site could have been a “Neolithic Lourdes”.

The giant sarsen “goal posts”, which came from about 20km (12 miles) away, were thought to have arrived much later.

As well as reaching the bluestone sockets, the archaeologists have also unearthed a whole host of other finds as they have peeled back the layers of the 2.5m-by-3.5m (8.2ft-by-11.5ft) trench.

These include a beaker pottery fragment, Roman ceramics and ancient stone hammers.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/science/nature/7337292.stm

Archaeologists start Stonehenge dig

LONDON - Some of England’s most sacred soil was disturbed Monday for the first time in more than four decades as archaeologists worked to solve the enduring riddle of Stonehenge: When and why was the prehistoric monument built?
The excavation project, set to last until April 11, is designed to unearth materials that can be used to establish a firm date for when the first mysterious set of bluestones was put in place at Stonehenge, one of Britain’s best known and least understood landmarks.

The World Heritage site, a favorite with visitors the world over, has become popular with Druids, neo-Pagans and New Agers who attach mystical significance to the strangely shaped circle of stones, but there remains great debate about the actual purpose of the structure.

The dig will be led by Timothy Darvill, a leading Stonehenge scholar from Bournemouth University, and Geoffrey Wainwright, president of the Society of Antiquaries. Both experts have worked to pinpoint the site in the Preseli Mountains in south Wales where the bluestones — the earliest of the large rocks erected at the site — came from. They will be able to compare the samples found in Wales to those at Stonehenge on the Salisbury Plain.

“The excavation will date the arrival of the bluestones following their 153-mile journey from Preseli to Salisbury Plain and contribute to our definition of the society which undertook such an ambitious project,” Wainright said. “We will be able to say not only why, but when the first stone monument was built.”

Scientists believe the bluestones were first put in place about 2600 B.C., but they concede the date is only an approximation at best. The original bluestones were removed about 200 years later and scientists hope to find bits of them embedded in the earth.

Darvill said the excavation marks the first opportunity to bring the power of modern scientific archaeology to bear on a problem that has taxed the minds of so many experts since medieval times: Why were the bluestones so important to have warranted bringing them from so far away?

The excavation goal is to find remnants of the original bluestones, or related materials, that can be subjected to modern radiocarbon dating techniques to establish a more precise timeline for the construction of Stonehenge, said Dave Batchelor, an archaeologist with English Heritage, which oversees the Stonehenge site.

“We have to find the material that will give us a good date,” he said. “That’s where the luck comes in. We could get an absolute blank or we could get something magnificent or we could get something in between.”

He said bluestones have an “inky, bluey, black” appearance and come from the Preseli Mountains in South Wales. About 6 feet tall, they are the smaller stones that make up part of the monument, alongside the larger sarsen stones, which are about twice as tall and were added later.

It is hoped that fixing the date of the start of construction with more precision will allow scientists to finally grasp how and why the monument was built. They also may learn more about how the stones were transported. Research shows the bluestones, weighing an estimated five tons apiece, may have been dragged from the mountains in south Wales to the sea, put on huge rafts and floated up the River Avon.

Archaeologists believe that before the bluestones were put in place, Stonehenge consisted of a circle of wooden posts and timbers built in approximately 3100 B.C.

The research that began Monday with the digging of a trench marks the first time ground inside the inner stone circle has been excavated since 1964. The area, revered as a powerful link to England’s pagan past, is so sensitive that Cabinet approval was needed before the work could begin.

Renee Fok, a spokeswoman with English Heritage, said the project was okayed only after experts were convinced of its potential value. She said the project represents “the logical next step” after the two professors located the source of the bluestones in Wales.

“It’s the culmination of their work, it makes sense to go back to the stone circle and get a date,” she said.

“We want to strike a balance. We want the best research, but we can’t just say go ahead and dig as you like, it’s a very fragile area. Even the Druids are happy with this project, we’ve spoken to them and they don’t object.”

She said tourists will be able to visit Stonehenge as usual and will also be able to watch live video coverage of the excavation in special tents at the site.

By GREGORY KATZ, Associated Press Writer

Google Earth is an amazing resource; I’ve literally spent hours using it for research (and for fun). I thought I’d share some of the places I frequent in my various Aerial Pilgrimages, and I’d like to begin with a few images of some of the sacred sites in Glastonbury, specifically those which have such a strong connection to the Avalonian Cycle of Healing.

Below is a close-up of of Chalice Well and Gardens. This is the Vesica Pool (off-center in the lower third of image), the clearest of the water features as visualized by Google Earth. Fittingly, the wellhead itself is hidden by trees in the upper right hand corner of the image.

And finally, here is an aerial image of the Tor — its yonic shape and labyrinthine pathway are so very striking from this vantage point.

Blessings All,

It’s hard to believe February is already winding down and spring beckons just around the corner! Although the year is still young, it has brought many changes with it and I look forward to the challenges these bring!

My schedule for the first half of the year is in place, and while we are still getting the second half ironed out, there are some potentially exciting locales that are a bit more far afield than I’ve been able to go these past few years. Between the new baby, some issues with my husband’s health, and our imminent move out of NYC to Upstate New York, I’ve had to be somewhat conservative in my travels. I am looking forward to resuming a more varied presentation schedule once again, and especially to the next SOA Pilgrimage to Wales and Britain in 2009.

Until then, I hope to be able to connect with some of you at the following events. As always, blessings of transformation to you all!

Jhenah’s Presentation Schedule - Spring 2008

Upstate New York
Presenting: Calling the Barge
Level One Avalonian Training Intensive
Sponsored by the Sisterhood of Avalon
April 17 - 20, 2008
Open to all women

Upstate New York
Presenting: Parting the Mists
Level Two Avalonian Training Intensive
Sponsored by the Sisterhood of Avalon
May 15 - 18, 2008
Open to members of the SOA who have attended Level One

Pennsylvania
Presenting: The Three Cauldrons
Womongathering - Festival of Womyn’s Spirituality
June 12 - 15, 2008
Open to all women

Please contact me if you would like more information on these events. Questions about Womongathering should be addressed to them directly via their website. Intensive registration materials can be obtained by emailing the SOA Intensives Coordinator (intensives at sisterhoodofavalon dot org).

It is always a blessing to connect with sisters in sacred space. Please do drop me a line if you are planning to attend Womongathering this year - I would love to meet you there!

Bendithion Afallon,
Jhenah

Blessings of Avalon to you! Welcome to my new Blog.

Why another blog?

I will probably still use my Livejournal blog now and again, and am looking into setting up an RSS feed there so I won’t lose contact with LJ users, but I’d like to start blogging more often and thought I’d start the new year with a clean slate. My LJ has become more of an announcement blog than anything else and I would like to present something with a bit more content… so here we are!

In addition to my own musings, news and Awen, I am hoping to post some ongoing features that will be of interest to the broader Goddess community — and I believe community is the key word here. In the Sisterhood of Avalon, we do a great deal of work surrounding the concept of creating conscious community and the responsibilities that each of us have to uphold our weave in the tapestry. Part of what I find so incredible about the internet is the way in which it brings people and ideas together, creating a powerful tapestry indeed.

In this spirit, therefore, I am looking to honor women who are making a difference in the world of Women’s Spirituality through their writing, art, music, leadership, and activism. If you would like to recommend a woman to be profiled in this blog, please email me and tell me a bit about them and their work.

I will also periodically spotlight some of the amazing creators and artisans I have the privilege of knowing, or whose work I especially admire. Supporting those who create is an important part of making community, especially through alternative means of energy exchanges, as in the gift economy and through bartering systems.

Of course, I will be posting about my own work and my service to the Avalonian Tradition, and will include news and information I think will be of interest to those connected to Ynys Afallon, Druidism, and Celtic cultures, especially the Celts of Britain and the modern Welsh.

I look forward to seeing where this journey will lead, and hope you will join me!