norseman wrote:To "kick off", I have my own temple complete with altar. It's where I first performed a formal dedication to Gaia.
It has a waterfall, a deep pool below the fall, and a rock shelf beside the pool which is my altar where I place things that I find - pebbles, feathers, pine cones, things like that.
https://2img.net/h/i282.photobucket.com/albums/kk267/norseman_photo/northeast/800px-Kisdon_Force-1.jpg
But, I would like to tell the story about possibly the most "holy" place in Britain - a henge 5000 years-old that we still use.
Where is that waterfall situated,Norseman?
To tell this from the beginning, I have to go back in time, back to around 10000 BC when ice ruled the world and we of the tribes lived on the great open tundra. We hunted the herds that grazed the plains and competed with the predators for food. Life was not soft and easy but we survived. Our shaman became one with the animals and we hunted well. To sunward on the plain, some of our people built settlements in the marshes where the great rivers flowed to the sea. They built their houses on stilts and survived by fishing and collecting shellfish.
[ Presently, one of these villages is being excavated. It is called Star Carr and it was built around 8700 BC before Britain became an island. The marsh eventually drained and a peat bog formed which preserved the settlement and many artefacts]
[ Around 6000 BC, the tundra began to flood and by 5000 BC, Britain was an island.]
5000BC? Was just talking about this recently. That the UK was a small part of Norway,Holland etc on the east side. Joined at the west to Ireland.
We noticed that the sea was eating into our land from the north and south as the ice retreated. The herds that we depended upon were also in retreat and we were forced to follow them. We came to the sunward edge of our land to find high steep cliffs and, for a while, we settled there and lived from the sea. Eventually, the sea rose even further and we were forced to find a way through the cliffs through narrow valleys into the land behind, a land of dense forests with herds that were unfamiliar but also wolves, bear, and wild hogs. We struggled to survive as the new land was colder than the plain and we had to learn to forage to add to whatever meat we could hunt. We also found that we were not alone in this new land. There were spirits and wild magic in the forests. Our shaman made ritual dances to ask for aid and guidance of the spirits and, eventually they succeeded in learning the rituals of power to enter the world of these spirits to gain their advice.
[ This new land is what we know as the North York Moors which rise directly from the North Sea in steep cliffs, and run westward to the escarpment of the Hawarden Hills where the land falls off to the Vale of York. There are 12000 archeological sites on the moors including 700 ancient monuments. There are also 3000 Bronze Age burial sites known so far but that comes later in my tale.]
We pushed further and further towards the setting sun to the very edge of this high plateau to find more steep cliffs leading down to a flat fertile plain where we built settlements. At one special place, our shaman identified a place of power stronger than any they had come across before and declared the area to be a holy place. We began to build a spiritual centre where we could commune with the gods of this land and so began the great work of the tribes. Priests arrived to aid us from far-off Orkney and they taught us the rituals and dances. Later, they went on to the south to build another centre made of stone. [Stonehenge –Orcadian pottery found there]
[Around 2000 BC, the Beaker People arrived from Europe to settle and about 600 BC the second wave of Celts arrived with their tools and weapons of iron.]
Sacred LandscapeThornborough Henge is an Earth bank henge with three central rings aligned with the stars of Orion’s Belt. There were many smaller rings surrounding these main heneges. Connecting the three henges are processional ways. The henges were clad with gypsum, a brilliant white mineral, and, looking down from the edge of the Hawarden Hills escarpment, it must have seemed like a strange, other-worldly place.
We do not know what rituals and practices were undertaken there but it seems likely to have been a variation on the Cult of the Dead. It has been proposed that Thornborough, not Stonehenge, was the spiritual centre of England.
With the ascendancy of the Celts, the henge became the centre of their faith, dedicated to Brigantia, the patron goddess of Northern England and the large Celtic Confederation who took their name from the goddess, the Brigantes who were dominant in both England and Southern Ireland. So, Thornborough is probably the longest-active spiritual site in England and still used today.
That's new to me! The Patron goddess? Briganti.
The central ring of the three is a powerful portal which boils with energies and is very “noisy” in terms of ancestral spirits. I have never been tempted to open it as I would probably not return from it. We held the Beltane festival there, and the next festival is Mabon on September 22nd, the Autumn Equinox, and it promises to be a good one. If you are an eagle flying over the area, looking for a meal, you may see a possibly familiar figure stood in the centre of the central ring, arms outstretched, facing North, then South, then East, then West calling on the Lords of the Powers of the Elements.
This is Thornborough Henge from the air
https://2img.net/h/i282.photobucket.com/albums/kk267/norseman_photo/df706cf9.png
The third circle is inside the wood at the top. From end to end it is one and a half miles long which makes it the largest neolithic monument in Europe.
So, that was a man-made holy place. Finally, I would like to take you to a huge natural holy place in the North Pennines
First, the body of the cathedral
https://2img.net/h/i282.photobucket.com/albums/kk267/norseman_photo/northpennines/highcupnick-8620b.jpg
and then the altar at the head of the cathedral
https://2img.net/h/i282.photobucket.com/albums/kk267/norseman_photo/northpennines/ab30819j.jpg
This is High Cup Nick, named after the devil stamping his hoof and creating the bowl shape. [Actually it was carved out by a glacier but the devil is a better story.
I have heard of that,Norseman....
So, there you are. Some of the Holy North and I haven't even mentioned Lindisfarne yet - another time perhaps. [That is not just holy but is highly magical and spiritual - I have done overnight vigils there and seen/heard wonderful things in the dark.]
Lindesfarne? Wonderful place. The birds settle there,don't they?
That is a wonderful account,Norseman.
What made you so interested in the history of the North?
Now I shall look that photos. Revive so old memories.
Do you mind if I copy some of that? Would like to send your descriptions to a friend abroad. She originated from the North of England but migrated to Australia as a young child with her parents.
I really enjoyed reading that,friend......have you ever thought of writing a book on the history of the north?
Thank you!!!
Joan
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'Holy' places in the North
SpiritVoices- Member
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SpiritVoices- Member
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The Northern pennines. Never seen much of that area before,Norseman.
So beautiful......Thanks so much for putting those pictures in. Seen places up north,I had never seen before....
Joan x
So beautiful......Thanks so much for putting those pictures in. Seen places up north,I had never seen before....
Joan x
norseman- Member
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Hi Joan. To answer your Q's 
Copy all you want Joan, no problemo.
OK.
The waterfall is in Upper Swaledale where I have roamed since teenage times.
Brigantia aka Brigit aka Brighid aka ........ She was a pan-Celtic goddess going under various names
www.sacredbrigantia.com - look here.
Birds settling - I think that you have the Farne Islands in mind - just a hop-n-skip from Lindisfarne [now that really is worth googling !]
Britain becoming an island - go hunting through Channel 4 archives. Two programmes. The first one was called something like The Drowned Land of Doggerland, the second more recent was The North Sea Tsunami. Both were Time Team programmes with Tony Robinson.
I am fascinated by the history of the North because I live in it and I walk in it. I have past-life memories and every life was in the North. Only now.spreading my wings a little. January I was in Shetland and I plan a trip to Orkney soon to see all the archeology there.. Outer Hebrides also attract.
One day, perhaps, I would like to write about the Pagan North - so fascinating, so bloody- and it's all still there if you look hard.
Copy all you want Joan, no problemo.
OK.
The waterfall is in Upper Swaledale where I have roamed since teenage times.
Brigantia aka Brigit aka Brighid aka ........ She was a pan-Celtic goddess going under various names
www.sacredbrigantia.com - look here.
Birds settling - I think that you have the Farne Islands in mind - just a hop-n-skip from Lindisfarne [now that really is worth googling !]
Britain becoming an island - go hunting through Channel 4 archives. Two programmes. The first one was called something like The Drowned Land of Doggerland, the second more recent was The North Sea Tsunami. Both were Time Team programmes with Tony Robinson.
I am fascinated by the history of the North because I live in it and I walk in it. I have past-life memories and every life was in the North. Only now.spreading my wings a little. January I was in Shetland and I plan a trip to Orkney soon to see all the archeology there.. Outer Hebrides also attract.
One day, perhaps, I would like to write about the Pagan North - so fascinating, so bloody- and it's all still there if you look hard.
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norseman wrote:Hi Joan. To answer your Q's
Copy all you want Joan, no problemo.
OK.
The waterfall is in Upper Swaledale where I have roamed since teenage times.
Brigantia aka Brigit aka Brighid aka ........ She was a pan-Celtic goddess going under various names
www.sacredbrigantia.com - look here.
Birds settling - I think that you have the Farne Islands in mind - just a hop-n-skip from Lindisfarne [now that really is worth googling !]
Britain becoming an island - go hunting through Channel 4 archives. Two programmes. The first one was called something like The Drowned Land of Doggerland, the second more recent was The North Sea Tsunami. Both were Time Team programmes with Tony Robinson.
I am fascinated by the history of the North because I live in it and I walk in it. I have past-life memories and every life was in the North. Only now.spreading my wings a little. January I was in Shetland and I plan a trip to Orkney soon to see all the archeology there.. Outer Hebrides also attract.
One day, perhaps, I would like to write about the Pagan North - so fascinating, so bloody- and it's all still there if you look hard.
Farne Islands...of course! Forgetting my Northern roots...
Channel 4? I have BT,wonder if I can find it on,On Demand.
Must watch that....made a note of it.
My roots are actually in Scotland though born in the north. I received a full report of the family history from my brother. The Craiks (my maiden name) originated from Scotland. The Greenwoods,my mother's side, from Yorkshire and Lancashire. The Craik side (Scottish side) my brother tracked down to the year of 1411. It is fascinating.
So the northern side came into it actually from Carlisle where my father was born. North West.
Moved to the North East where he met my mother.....Mum was born in Salford but moved as a young girl to Gateshead where I was born. Fate is funny,isn't it?
Incidently,how did you find out about your 'past lives'?
Joan x
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Joan, I am triggered off by locations. It started when I was quite young in Durham City. There is a road leading up to the cathedral mount which was laid by the Romans and the original is still there under a layer of cobbles. As far back as i can remember, when I walked on that road, I "heard" the stamp of iron-studded sandals and the rustle of weapons harnesses and I was aware of being in a crowd. Since wandering far and wide, I was triggered in many "Roman" places - Hadrians Wall was like coming home. The lives crowded in when I began "striding the henge" and communed with ancestral spirits. I know my area intimately, even places I have never been before.
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Yes,I know Durham. Drove many a time down there for a Sunday drive. I remember a little bookshop which used to sell second hand books. Remember the road you're talking about.remember the cathedral as well. Beautiful cathedral,we walked in there one Sunday morning,it was quiet except for a few people.
Sat in the seats at the back. An Indian minister (if I can call him that) not sure exactly what religion he was but he took the Koran and read a few pieces out of it. Ken (my husband) was fascinated and went up to talk to this man. Remarked how much like the Koran was to the bible. They had quite a conversation so I wandered round the cathedral myself. I've never felt so much peace in all my life.
Unfortunately never had the opportunity to visit since then.
Is the Roman wall still open for all to walk along the top of it? I can well imagine you hearing voices or receiving memories of that long ago time. There was always an atmosphere of unrest around the Roman camps. Have you ever visited Pompei in Italy? I wonder what you pick up there? The atmosphere is very rich. Walking the cobbled roads,one can imagine the bustling of the people of that time. They even have a 'bar' there,a rough wall behind which stands the 'bar tender'. Old type jugs holding the ale or what ever they drank at that time....
Sat in the seats at the back. An Indian minister (if I can call him that) not sure exactly what religion he was but he took the Koran and read a few pieces out of it. Ken (my husband) was fascinated and went up to talk to this man. Remarked how much like the Koran was to the bible. They had quite a conversation so I wandered round the cathedral myself. I've never felt so much peace in all my life.
Unfortunately never had the opportunity to visit since then.
Is the Roman wall still open for all to walk along the top of it? I can well imagine you hearing voices or receiving memories of that long ago time. There was always an atmosphere of unrest around the Roman camps. Have you ever visited Pompei in Italy? I wonder what you pick up there? The atmosphere is very rich. Walking the cobbled roads,one can imagine the bustling of the people of that time. They even have a 'bar' there,a rough wall behind which stands the 'bar tender'. Old type jugs holding the ale or what ever they drank at that time....
norseman- Member
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I go into the cathedral quite often because it was built over a pagan holy site and I ask for the blessing of the Great Mother.
I do know that I was not Roman. I was a Celtic auxilliary [Brigantes] attached to the Legio XX Victoria Victrix and we served on Hadrians Wall. I have vague memories of Bronze Age Britain and some memories of fighting Saxons. The memories all stop about the 5th century AD. I also know that "old comrades" are waiting for me "across the hedge".
The wall is open at the various sites and well developed with visitors centres. There is also a footpath the full length. Last year, to celebrate Olympics year, beacons were lit the full length too - like old signal fires.
The bookshop is now a Waterstones and behind it is a courtyard cafe. That bookshop is my downfall - I cannot walk past it without buying at least one book, then having a cappocino [sp ?] and a slice of cake in the cafe where I read. I taught in one of the Durham colleges in my second career.
I do know that I was not Roman. I was a Celtic auxilliary [Brigantes] attached to the Legio XX Victoria Victrix and we served on Hadrians Wall. I have vague memories of Bronze Age Britain and some memories of fighting Saxons. The memories all stop about the 5th century AD. I also know that "old comrades" are waiting for me "across the hedge".
The wall is open at the various sites and well developed with visitors centres. There is also a footpath the full length. Last year, to celebrate Olympics year, beacons were lit the full length too - like old signal fires.
The bookshop is now a Waterstones and behind it is a courtyard cafe. That bookshop is my downfall - I cannot walk past it without buying at least one book, then having a cappocino [sp ?] and a slice of cake in the cafe where I read. I taught in one of the Durham colleges in my second career.
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I remember walking along it as a child on a school trip.
At that time,I was not aware of Psychic ability. But remember feeling an odd sensation that there were people in front of me and behind me. I remember looking back to see no one behind me. Weird sensation.
Thinking about the Roman feet tramping on the wall. Trying to imagine it in my mind.
Always had a great imagination then.
The wall is open at the various sites and well developed with visitors centres. There is also a footpath the full length. Last year, to celebrate Olympics year, beacons were lit the full length too - like old signal fires.
Footpaths now? All modern eh? Hope it hasn't lost it's sense of history,Norseman....
You taught at one of the colleges? About history? Always loved the history subject at school.
My favourite was about Queen Elizabeth the 1st.
She always fascinated me. I don't think there has been a queen like her since then.
At that time,I was not aware of Psychic ability. But remember feeling an odd sensation that there were people in front of me and behind me. I remember looking back to see no one behind me. Weird sensation.
Thinking about the Roman feet tramping on the wall. Trying to imagine it in my mind.
Always had a great imagination then.
The wall is open at the various sites and well developed with visitors centres. There is also a footpath the full length. Last year, to celebrate Olympics year, beacons were lit the full length too - like old signal fires.
Footpaths now? All modern eh? Hope it hasn't lost it's sense of history,Norseman....
You taught at one of the colleges? About history? Always loved the history subject at school.
My favourite was about Queen Elizabeth the 1st.
She always fascinated me. I don't think there has been a queen like her since then.
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No. Afraid I taught Business Management. Still, it was a change from Industrial Chemist.I think Hadrians Wall will never lose it's history, the landscape sees to that. I have stood on the wall and looked North as we did all those centuries ago, also looked South into Northumbria - very little has changed in 2000 years.
Was Keilder Forest/Lake National Park open last time you were there ? definitely a not-to-be-missed.
Something to look at with your morning coffee http://www.englandsnortheast.co.uk/
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norseman wrote:
I think Hadrians Wall will never lose it's history, the landscape sees to that. I have stood on the wall and looked North as we did all those centuries ago, also looked South into Northumbria - very little has changed in 2000 years.
Was Keilder Forest/Lake National Park open last time you were there ? definitely a not-to-be-missed.
Something to look at with your morning coffee http://www.englandsnortheast.co.uk/
A change is as good as a rest. I wanted to go into physics but ended up in computers....
Kielder Park,yes,I think it was. I seem to remember going through that. Where was the resevoir again?
Queen Elizabeth Park? Think it was... So many places ...and the Bluebell woods,I used to call it.
I could go on and on....
Coffee mug ready for tomorrow.....and some interesting reading.....
Joan x
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bump
Just when the caterpillar thought the world was over, it became a butterfly.
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Cheers Violet....meant to come back to this topic.
Hi Norseman.....been trying to find the two programs you give me, on television On Demand.
Still getting used to BT's new system of finding old programs....I'm utterly lost!
Tried Catch Up and I'm still trying....What category does these programs fall into?
Joan
Hi Norseman.....been trying to find the two programs you give me, on television On Demand.
Still getting used to BT's new system of finding old programs....I'm utterly lost!
Tried Catch Up and I'm still trying....What category does these programs fall into?
Joan
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Hi Joan.
Britain's Drowned World - Time Team www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P9wQj6qX2I [ a lot of links under that heading]
The drowning - www.geog.ucl.ac.uk/.../a-time-team-special-britains-stone-age-tsunami
something not right with this link. Try looking in 4OD
Both were Time Team programmes and both on Ch4 originally.
There is another worth tracking down
www.amazon.co.uk › Film & TV › Documentary › History
It was an extra onto a series by neil Oliver. The History of Ancient Britain. I have the series but no-one has released the extra programme yet. It has been on TV a couple of times.
Britain's Drowned World - Time Team www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P9wQj6qX2I [ a lot of links under that heading]
The drowning - www.geog.ucl.ac.uk/.../a-time-team-special-britains-stone-age-tsunami
something not right with this link. Try looking in 4OD
Both were Time Team programmes and both on Ch4 originally.
There is another worth tracking down
www.amazon.co.uk › Film & TV › Documentary › History
It was an extra onto a series by neil Oliver. The History of Ancient Britain. I have the series but no-one has released the extra programme yet. It has been on TV a couple of times.
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norseman wrote:Hi Joan.
Britain's Drowned World - Time Team www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P9wQj6qX2I [ a lot of links under that heading]
The drowning - www.geog.ucl.ac.uk/.../a-time-team-special-britains-stone-age-tsunami
something not right with this link. Try looking in 4OD
Both were Time Team programmes and both on Ch4 originally.
There is another worth tracking down
www.amazon.co.uk › Film & TV › Documentary › History
It was an extra onto a series by neil Oliver. The History of Ancient Britain. I have the series but no-one has released the extra programme yet. It has been on TV a couple of times.
Great Norseman,have the link.....Will check that tomorrow.
Much gratitude to you......
same for Amazon.....
Thanks so much....
joan
