The moment you make contact with the image, the energy it contains bursts through your mind in a torrent of scenes and visions. Take note of all you see, for this is important information that will help you actualize the image of the Sovereignty you have just received. At the very point of connection between the oak tree and the vision above, the growth of the branch accelerates, and a tiny acorn is formed. This capped seed grows, ripens and then falls into the pool of water at your feet.
You bend down to pick the acorn up and find you have stepped out of the tree. Reaching into the puddle, you take the acorn in your hand and sense the powerful energies with which it has been imbued. You turn to thank the oak tree, still pulsing with a vital and renewed essence. The symbol you placed on the bark is still there, and with intent, you use a cycle of nine breaths to remove it from the trunk. Refill the wooden cup with water and pour a libation of gratitude over the roots. The branches light up once again, swaying back and forth in the returning breeze.
You look down at your hands and find them changed as well—bright, strong, and brimming with power. The whole of all that you can become is contained in the essence of the acorn, and you know you have the ability to bring yourself to full harvest. Having touched the potential realized in the light of the waxing sun, hold the thought in mind, and take one last drink from the White Spring. Allow its waters to empower the path you have chosen and the higher-self goal you have set, born of old perspectives, transformed by insights deep within, made conscious. Bring the acorn back with you to be planted in the prepared soil of your soul.
Take some time to reflect on your experiences. When you are ready, your guide leads you back through the orchard and to the shores of the lake, where the Barge awaits you. Turn once more to face the island, and thank the Lady and all the guardians of this sacred space for supporting your work and allowing you to visit. Bid your guide farewell and climb aboard the Barge to complete your journey to the lake’s other side, bringing with you the memory of all that has come before.
Revisiting the Self
As you continue making your connection to the White Spring and participating in the process of recognizing the potential of the emerging self, go back and re-read the self-reflective questions above. How have your answers changed? What catalyzed these changes? How can you actively break free from outmoded patterns and lay down new pathways in your life? What choices now lie before you? How can you put your insights and connections to work in order to bring change into your life?
Tool for the Station: The Doorway
Doorway work is an incredibly empowering technique that will aid in uncovering the meaning of symbols—be they universal archetypes or holding personal significance. Upon mastering this tool, we will no longer be limited to the “accepted” meanings and general information found in symbol books. Looking to external sources for information can often leave one unfulfilled, especially when unraveling images received during Immrama, meditation, and dreams. When we receive information in our work, it filters through our energy field before becoming conscious, often in the form of a symbol. As such, the universe uses our personal energy to speak to us in a language we will understand. It is important, therefore, for us to learn to read our own code, rather than try to conform to someone else’s—or worse, to restrict ourselves to the limitations of other people’s knowledge.
Let us consider that there are two different types of symbols: universal archetypes and personal symbols. Universal archetypes will key into the same basic information for everyone; they represent wisdom encoded in the collective unconscious. Personal symbols will key into information meant specifically for an individual and directly addresses their work and personal process. There are times when universal symbols can also be personal symbols; working with them can yield two levels of information. It is therefore important to consider the context in which you received the symbol—was it as an answer to a specific question, or are you trying to undercover the hidden meaning of an object or magickal symbol? For example, the cauldron is a universal symbol, and doing doorway work to unlock the meaning of the cauldron can yield archetypal information. However, if you received the image of a cauldron in the course of your personal work or during an Immram, you may find that your doorway will yield information relating to you specifically and the situation about which you are seeking clarity.
The key to successful doorway work is not to edit, judge, or dismiss what you see when you walk through the gate. A huge part of the process of personal growth and inner empowerment is coming to a place where you trust the information you receive in your work. At the beginning, this trust may require you to suspend your disbelief long enough to develop new ways of seeing and to learn how to understand the language of the universe. This is not to say you should blindly accept everything as literal truth; at the beginning especially, much of what we see is allegorical and dealing with the personal.
Developed discernment accompanies our expanded sight with the clarity gained in working through the Stations of the Cycle of Healing; we can come closer to personal authenticity through issue resolution. Through this working, we will be able to perceive more of the greater pattern, for we will be able to separate our own stitches from the whole of the fabric; that is, we will know when we are looking at the world through the filter of our own issues or seeing things for what they truly are. Developing discernment and learning to trust in the self and our connection to the Divine is a difficult hurdle, but once conquered, an entirely new level of the work opens up before us.
When you are ready to begin, sit in your sacred space and start your Power Breathing until you find yourself centered, focused, and clear. Connect with the intention of your doorway and recall the circumstance in which you received this symbol. Was it in response to a question you asked? Was it a gift you received in one of the Landscape Immrama? Is it an element from a dream for which you are seeking clarity? This context is an important element of your doorway work and should frame every working.
Next, in your mind’s eye, visualize a doorway or portal. It can take the form of any kind of door that you wish—from a standard wooden door to a megalithic dolmen, to a marble-hewn portico. Choose a doorway that feels best to you; if you encounter any difficulty, consider asking your guide for assistance in finding the right form for you. At the beginning, it is helpful to work with the same door whenever you use this technique. In this way you begin to associate that particular door with unlocking the information you need and it becomes empowered with the intention of each use. After you have become adept with this tool, you can do some experimentation with other kinds of doors with which to set up your work. Some women use a different door when they want archetypal information than when they are doing personal process work. Others find that their door seems to change over time. Be open to the possibilities, but remain focused with your intention.
When you have chosen the form of your doorway, sit with it and breathe it into existence. Create a mental image of the door and fill it with your energy and intention until it feels solid and complete. You should be able to clearly see it in the mind’s eye. When it is as solid as it’s going to be—the more you practice this technique, the more solid the doorway will become—put the symbol you want to work with on the door and breathe it into existence there in much the same way you constructed the door itself. It is important to record the details of symbols you receive as accurately as possible—color, direction, composition, dimensionality, and context—so that you can reproduce them faithfully when it is time to do a doorway. These subtleties can make all the difference when uncovering meaning of symbols.
When you feel the symbol is strongly affixed onto the door, open it and step through. You can “step” in one of two ways. You can accomplish this in your mind’s eye, from either a first or third person perspective, or you can stand and trace your doorway and its symbol in front of you. Breathe it into existence with your will and intention, then ope
n and walk through the energetic construct with your physical body. Either way, entering the doorway will open your conscious mind to information encoded in the symbol. There are many different ways this information may become available to you: you may meet someone, view static images, experience moving scenes, hear voices, see colors, perceive energies, trigger memories—there are endless possibilities. Don’t be afraid to explore what lies beyond the door; look around and ask questions. You may find that each time you create a doorway, information presents itself in a different way—you are met by someone one time, but only hear voices the next. This is not uncommon. Accept the information in whatever form it is presented to you. Over time a pattern may emerge, so take note of differences as they occur.
Doorways can be a challenging technique to master; try not to become discouraged, because this is a tool well worth honing. As with any new skill, practice is the key to success. Oftentimes the more emotionally charged an issue is, the harder it is—and more important it is—to get the door open. Your guide is an excellent resource for this work and you can ask for her assistance in getting the door open and to obtain the information you need once you are on the other side.
When you feel you’ve received all the information you can in one session, return the way you came and step through the doorway once more, being certain to close it securely behind you. If you have drawn the doorway energetically in front of you, breathe it down into the earth to shut down its energy. As soon as possible, journal your experiences and draw all images and symbols found behind the door. Even if what you received does not make immediate sense, keeping a record of your encounters may provide greater insight later on your path of growth.
It is possible to work through doorways and see a symbol hundreds of times before you have fully unlocked all the information it bears, especially if it is a universal symbol. Don’t be content with one go at it. At the very least, do an entire week of doorways for each symbol you are working on, making sure to work with any additional symbols that may come to you. If you go before the Goddess at the moon, as described on p. 264, ask Her for a symbol that will guide you in your work for the coming cycle, and do that doorway every night. At the next moon, you can come before Her again with insights gained, and ask for the next step in your work.
Doorways provide structure for your meditation that aid in receiving the inner wisdoms the universe seeks to impart to you. This work is powerful, and can be used in many ways. You can create doorways your name and your signature, something representing a choice that lies before you, a haunting image, a number, herb, Goddess symbol, something received in a dream or while scrying—the possibilities are endless.
Learning to hear the voice of the universe and find answers to your own questions by turning the eye within is key to personal empowerment and inner evolution. It reinforces the notion that you have the power to change your life as well as the wisdom to bring yourself to wholeness. Remember the old axiom: “If you can ask the question … you already have the answer.”
8
The Station of Resolution
Three candles that illume every darkness: truth, nature, and knowledge.
Celtic Triad
Our priestess self is revealed in the full illumination found at the apex of the Avalonian Cycle of Healing. The orchards of our souls hang heavy with the fruits of our becoming. The Station of Resolution is the point at which we gauge our success in bringing the energy of the shadow into the light of consciousness, thereby transmuting the power our wounds have held over us into the vehicle that brings forth our wholeness. Resolution is the crowning glory of the Cycle, where we give birth to an aspect of the actualized self and celebrate the passage of our inner Sovereignty into the outside world. Looking into the mirror of Resolution, we see the reflection of a woman made in the image of the Goddess—in truth, the woman we were born to be.
The Station of Resolution in the Cycle of the Sun
Gwyl Awst (Lughnasadh) was a time of great celebration for the ancient Celts. Finally able to take time away from their crops just before the harvest, families traveled to their clan central places for weeks of ritual, games, and festivities. They engaged in trading, entered into marriage contracts for a year and a day, and displayed and sold their crafts and wares. This festival marked the beginning of the harvest season, and the land around them was bursting with abundance.
Gwyl Awst is the height of the Light Half of the Year, the time when all is in full fruit and all is revealed in the dazzling power of the bright summer sun. It is a time to take inventory of our lives in order to see what we have brought into fruition and where we have achieved wholeness. There is a lull in activity, for our inner gardens have been tended and have reached their greatest potential. It is not yet harvest time and nothing more can be done to assure the quality of our yield. The Station of Resolution is the peak of all Stations preceding. This Station brings into manifestation revealed aspects of our authentic self once held hostage in the depths of our shadows. We now see a full harvest where once there was only the void of potential; we have come into full fruit. It is important for us to celebrate our accomplishments and to take the time to honor ourselves for how far we have come in our quest for self-understanding.
Yet here, in the culmination, are found the seeds for the next round of Cycle. We must look to see where the harvest was thin and take note of what did not grow at all. These are the considerations to take with us back down into the Station of Descent. Our shadow is the measure of our light … our harvest, the measure of the sustenance that will carry us into the depths once more. We must remember the warmth of the sun—the glory of drawing closer to realizing the actualized self—and bring this light with us back down into the Dark Half in order to begin the Cycle anew.
This is a Station where we celebrate the joy of our achievements while also honoring the sacrifice that balances the abundance we have reaped. Resolution is aligned with the energies of solar Leo, vibrantly exhibiting the true essence of our core being, and lunar Aquarius, breaking free from old patterns and manifesting immense change.
The Station of Resolution in the Cycle of the Moon
The moon waxes completely full fourteen days after the dark moon. During this phase, the moon is completely illuminated by direct sunlight. A full moon rises as the sun goes down, or within half an hour of sunset. It is at its apex in the sky near midnight, and sets in the west within half an hour of sunrise. Although the moon appears to be full for three days, only the actual day of the full moon will see her rise at sunset and set at sunrise; the day before, she will rise an hour before the sun sets, while the day after the full, she will rise an hour after sunset. Energetically, the full moon is a time of revelation of the higher self, abundant manifestation, and unobstructed sight.
Self-reflective Questions for the Station of Resolution
Take some time to meditate upon these questions while in a clear and receptive space. Use your replies to help form a focus for the work of the Station of Resolution. Be sure to record your thoughts in a journal; this will help you chart your growth and change as you do the work of the Avalonian Cycle of Healing.
What keeps you connected to your personal vision of actualization? What can you do to reinforce this connection? How can you use this knowledge to aid in manifesting other not-yet-actualized aspects of the self?
What is your first response to a situation in which your gifts are acknowledged or appreciated? Are you able to gracefully accept your accomplishments, or do you fall into a pattern of self-depreciation and false humility?
When and why did you learn to devalue your abilities? Practice looking at yourself through the eyes of those who appreciate all that you are and can do. What do you think accounts for any differences in the way others perceive you and the way you perceive yourself? How can you change your opinion of yourself in order to see who and what you truly are more clearly?
/> What do you consider beautiful about yourself—physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually? When did you learn to appreciate these aspects of yourself? How would your life be different if you could fully birth the potential within you? In what ways have you already begun to become your authentic self?
Who are your greatest heroes and role models? With which goddess aspect or myth do you resonate most? Why? Knowing what you hold sacred and what you admire in others reflects what is within your soul. How can you birth the person you aspire to become?
What is the ultimate manifestation of your greatest dream? How would its full expression affect your life? What stands in the way of complete fulfillment? Do you have external support for this change? If not, how can you overcome this obstacle and gain complete Sovereignty over your life? What resources dwell within?
The Avalonian Landscape: Chalice Hill
alternative names: Modron’s Mound
cycle of healing: Station of Resolution
cauldron transformation: Grain/Hen
elemental alignment: Fire
energy center: Heart
Rising gently from the ground at a height of 240 feet, the softly sloping dome of Chalice Hill holds the landscape energy for the Station of Resolution. Slumbering serenely beside the Tor (with which it forms Avalon’s small Tor Valley), this rounded mound vibrates with the essence of the Great Mother, suggesting Her pregnant belly and the high point of the Cycle of Healing.
Avalon Within Page 14