PYGMALION

Jean-Baptiste Regnault ~ Pygmalion (1786)

MORPHEUS AND IRIS

Pierre-Narcisse Guerin ~ Morpheus and Iris (1811)

THE DREAMING

The Knight’s Dream ~ Antonio de Pereda

THE DREAMING

The Dreaming, or timeless time, has different meanings for various Aboriginal groups, which are divided into more than 500 tribal groups. Dreamtime refers to the belief of Australian Aborigines that the world was created during the Dreamtime, and tribes people entered this imaginal realm through altered consciousness, dreams and death.

Dreamtime is considered the final destination before journeying to reincarnation. The rules and embodiment of Creation gives meaning to the collective.

IN THE BEGINNING WAS THE DREAMING

A Dreaming is a story owned by different tribes, explaining the Creation, and is passed on as it is owned when people live according to tribal law, and lore. The songs, dances, and stories are transmissions or lineages of the Songlines, Murals of Dreaming or Creation. These transmissions are not to be painted without the authorization of the Dreaming’s owner. Otherwise, it is considered stealing.

Four Aspects of Dreamtime

• The beginning of all things
• The life and influence of the ancestors
• The way of life and death
• The sources of power of life

The four aspects of Dreamtime include a condition, “all-at-once” instead of the “one-thing-after-another” time, which is beyond time and space other than everyday life. Dreamtime is experienced as the past, present and future co-existing in altered states of consciousness.

When tribal members live according to tribal rules, they are initiated through rituals, and hearing the mythology of the tribe. 

The experience of Dreamtime may sound mystical or mysterious to the Western mind. It is based on comprehension and observable facts of social and mental life, which are unfortunately held with little regard in Western society. The present is observable as a result of past actions or events. Present society is based on a foundation of past great men and women’s heroic deeds.

 In Aboriginal tribes, and many ancient races, the past heroic deeds of ancestors are remembered with great veneration.

The tribal members believed the present life, personal skills and character of all members, arose out of the deeds and life of the ancestors, and passed on to the tribe in the present, which are held in the Dreamtime, beyond shifting events happening “one-after-the-other.” The belief that each individual’s life is eternal, and pre-existed, until becoming a living being born to the mother.

 Entering the Dreamtime

 The individual who enters the Dreamtime feels no separation between themselves, and the strengths and resources of their ancestors. The limitations of time and space are overcome through Dreamtime.

 Death in Dreamtime

Death is considered a cycle of life, and one emerges from Dreamtime through birth, and returns to the timeless, only to emerge again. It is a common belief that a person temporarily enters the Dreamtime during sleep.

CONCLUSION

The Aboriginal tribes are deeply connected and dependent upon their beliefs, strength, and the identity of their inner landscape, perhaps more than any race of recent times, and the inner world is an externalization of the individual’s landscape.

Aborigines are vulnerable to anything which disrupts their beliefs, and have a great psychic sense of wholeness and identity with their tribe and environment than is common in Western individuals.

Lastly, how do you resonate with Dreamtime? Do you call, sing, chant, journal, or visualize it into your consciousness?

Further Reading

• Bruce Chatwin, The Songlines (Mr. Chatwin explores the Australian Aboriginal custom of “singing the world out of Dreamtime”)

• Philip K. Dick, VALIS

• David Gulpilil’s Stories of the Dreamtime.  Mr. Gulpilil is a tribal musician, dancer, writer, actor, of aboriginal descent, and appeared in the films,

  Crocodile Dundee I and II

• Neil Gaiman, graphic novels, The Sandman

• Alexia Wright, Carpentaria

THE CELTIC OAK

The Oak tree is a living legend, and King of the Tree realm.  It is a tree of strength and protection.

SYMBOLS OF THE OAK

Oaks are known for its size and longevity, and powerful life-affirming symbolic themes of fire, masculinity, durability, purity, constancy, crusader, robin, Stag, growth, doorway, call to adventure, security, pride, grace, primeval vigor, life, nurturing, wisdom, nobility, loyalty, power, longevity, honor, history, territoriality, ancestry, teacher, and knowledge.

FOLKLORE OF THE OAK

The Oak’s tower of strength has a regal presence and tendency to attract lightning.  It is associated with the Celtic god, Eochaidh Ollathair (Dagda).  The Dagda possesses superhuman strength, endurance, agility, magical powers to open portals, grant power to mortals, hurl energy, and perceive phenomenon on a cosmic scale.  He has power, mystical potential and more superhuman strength than any Celtic god, and may be equal to Zeus and Odin in power.

Ancient Celts recognized and honored the Oak as a clear sign of its noble presence, endurance, massive growth, impressive expanse, and as a spiritual doorway.  The ancient Europeans wore oak leaves as a sign of special status.  Known for its high tannin content, it is resistant to fungus, and used for making doors and boats.

There are accounts that trace the name “druid” to duir, the Celtic term for the Oak.  The actual translation of duir is “door” and lore indicates that witches can access the ethereal planes of higher thought by using the Oak as a door into magical places.  Druids met in oak groves and ate acorns to ingest the ancient knowledge contained in them.  Mistletoe grows best on the Oak, and is the most sacred herb of the Druids.

MIGUEL RIOS – A SONG OF JOY

CHERCHEZ LA FEMME!

DR. BUZZARD’S ORIGINAL SAVANNAH BAND ~ WHISPERING CHERCHEZ LA FEMME SE SI BON

MEMORIAL DAY: A DAY FOR TRUMPETS!

HONORING ALL WHO SERVED IN THE ARMED FORCES

SEMPER FIDELIS

Today, let us bow our heads, and close our eyes in remembrance of our heroes, who courageously fought and never returned, and those who continue to sacrifice for our country.

THE AGE OF SELFRIDGES!

 

THE POWER OF IMAGINEERING

THE MAGNIFICENT FACADE TOWERS ABOVE THE HISTORICAL SELFRIDGES DEPARTMENT STORE IN LONDON, ENGLAND.

STORM IN THE MOUNTAINS!

STORM IN THE MOUNTAINS (1870)

~ Albert Bierstadt

TEXAS: THE LONE STAR STATE!

It’s Friday, and I’m taking care of the last minute details before my computer is placed on a long, long trailer, along with 73 boxes, and very little furniture on Saturday, December 28th, for the journey to Texas. After living in Los Angeles for 27 years, I’m looking forward to returning to my home state, and starting a new life. I’m already missing California’s great weather.

May all of your wishes come true this holiday season, and Happy New Year!

ASHE’