Today's DailyOM Offerings...
December 15, 2011
Glastonbury Tor
Terry Oldfield
2010
Terry Oldfield taught himself flute as a teen on the Isle of Hydra, a traveler among the ancient monuments, the nature and ancient echoes speaking to him through his chosen instrument. This North London-born lad's choice of Glastonbury Tor as inspiration for his eponymous album then makes perfect sense. His mix of pipes, flutes, chant, guitars, and Celtic drones perfectly match Glastonbury Tor's long history, which stretches back to 300 BC or more. Before the water level dropped, it was an island that was thought to be the entrance to the Celtic underworld, and the burial site of King Arthur and Guinevere, maybe even the Holy Grail. Atop any ancient structures from that era lie ruins of ancient Roman architecture followed by several different churches.
Oldfield sings on the album, as do Geoffrey March, Terry Robinson, and Mike Hewitt. Classical guitarist David Pash helps out on the instrumental side of things. "Resurrection" reworks the melody of "Greensleeves" with Oldfield's pan pipes and flutes connecting Enya-style synthesizer notes and echo-drenched chants. "Eyes of the Goddess" opens on a windswept coastline with rushing waves and flutters of seagulls that twist into something alien and strange. It’s as if one is falling into a timeless past as a passionate concert piano comes rolling in. The waves crash and the mood of Celtic-Christian mournful splendor expands as the keyboards become electric and tribal drums come running up the coast. "Majesty" even gets in some world music yelps and wails, with Pash's brooding classical guitar racing around echoing sandy curves, harp, and rumbling thunderous drums.
Like Glastonbury Tor itself, Oldfield's album reveals layers of inspiration-from Christian to Pagan to ambient natural world and dreamtime mystic-the deeper you dig. On the surface it's a pulsing Celtic-world music-chant hybrid, but it also coheres along magical, magnetic ley lines, drawing us into a murky world where certain sacred spots connect us to ancient otherworldly beings. We may have trouble tracing the exact genealogy of Glastonbury Tor, but its mystic, magical presence is irrefutable. These ancients may not have known why the Tor was so enticing a place to build, but they were open to its power. We owe it to ourselves to let Terry Oldfield's Glastonbury Tor entice us the same way.
December 15, 2011
Easily Acquired Awareness
Sagittarius Daily Horoscope
A desire to discover your true purpose can ignite and inflame your curiosity today. You may feel quizzical and thus forthright about asking questions. At home, in your community, and at your workplace, you may discover that others can provide you with a wealth of information that introduces you to new concepts and has a broadening effect on your worldview. Simultaneously, your attention may wander into the depths of your soul where your past and present collide. You can make the most of this inquisitiveness by devoting the necessary time to looking within and then allowing yourself to freely ask others about their opinions, ideas, backgrounds, and areas of expertise. You may discover a true gem of wisdom today, simply by asking a loved one or colleague about their life or professional history.
The questions you ask represent a powerful means of drawing wisdom and knowledge into your life. Many people are hesitant to put their queries into words for fear that they will be labeled ignorant or inexperienced. However, questioning the people you encounter, particularly those whose experiences have differed significantly from your own, can help you easily learn about the world and the multifaceted people who inhabit it. When you speak your curiosity aloud, it gives others an opportunity to satisfy that curiosity through conversation. Most individuals who have spent time acquiring information are eager to share it with those who show polite interest. When you ask questions freely today, the knowledge you gain will stoke the flames of your fledgling curiosity.
December 15, 2011
Two Sides of the Same Moon
Ritual Moon
As our ancestors once did we can honor the cycles of the moon with rituals that help connect us to a more natural life.
The moon waxes and wanes in the night sky, always following the same cyclical pattern, lighting the darkness with its luminous glow. It has been this way as long as the earth has been here. The same moon grew from dark to full and back again, catching the eyes of our grandparents, our great grandparents, and those at the beginning of humanity. The moon guided our ancestors in the planting, sowing, and reaping of their crops, and we can be inspired to observe and honor these same cycles today with simple rituals that help connect us to the natural ebb and flow of life energy.
Dark moons and new moons represent polar moments of beginning and realization in the arc of the moon's phases. When the moon is dark, we might take time to meditate on emptiness, the fertile ground in which seeds take root. A simple ritual for acknowledging this potent phase of the moon would be to write down new plans and ideas that present themselves and keep them in a moon journal. Looking back over a year of dark moons, you may be amazed to see which seeds have blossomed. Full moons symbolize completion and fulfillment, the realization of the seed, and they are times of celebration. They are a great time to gather friends and family to partake in a communal feast acknowledging the apex of another monthly cycle. Your full moon journal might track the full moons of an entire year with a recounting of the gathering-the menu, the guest list, and any other observations you feel inspired to make.
Honoring the dark and full moons with these simple rituals brings our year into a new kind of focus. As we acknowledge the flow of the moon's cycles, we become more comfortable with the changing nature of our earthly lives, making our peace with each phase, and with the shifting from emptiness to fullness and back again. We strengthen our connection to the universe in which we live and find peace in both emptiness and fullness, each of which are natural and necessary-two sides of the same moon.
Glastonbury Tor
Terry Oldfield
2010
Terry Oldfield taught himself flute as a teen on the Isle of Hydra, a traveler among the ancient monuments, the nature and ancient echoes speaking to him through his chosen instrument. This North London-born lad's choice of Glastonbury Tor as inspiration for his eponymous album then makes perfect sense. His mix of pipes, flutes, chant, guitars, and Celtic drones perfectly match Glastonbury Tor's long history, which stretches back to 300 BC or more. Before the water level dropped, it was an island that was thought to be the entrance to the Celtic underworld, and the burial site of King Arthur and Guinevere, maybe even the Holy Grail. Atop any ancient structures from that era lie ruins of ancient Roman architecture followed by several different churches.
Oldfield sings on the album, as do Geoffrey March, Terry Robinson, and Mike Hewitt. Classical guitarist David Pash helps out on the instrumental side of things. "Resurrection" reworks the melody of "Greensleeves" with Oldfield's pan pipes and flutes connecting Enya-style synthesizer notes and echo-drenched chants. "Eyes of the Goddess" opens on a windswept coastline with rushing waves and flutters of seagulls that twist into something alien and strange. It’s as if one is falling into a timeless past as a passionate concert piano comes rolling in. The waves crash and the mood of Celtic-Christian mournful splendor expands as the keyboards become electric and tribal drums come running up the coast. "Majesty" even gets in some world music yelps and wails, with Pash's brooding classical guitar racing around echoing sandy curves, harp, and rumbling thunderous drums.
Like Glastonbury Tor itself, Oldfield's album reveals layers of inspiration-from Christian to Pagan to ambient natural world and dreamtime mystic-the deeper you dig. On the surface it's a pulsing Celtic-world music-chant hybrid, but it also coheres along magical, magnetic ley lines, drawing us into a murky world where certain sacred spots connect us to ancient otherworldly beings. We may have trouble tracing the exact genealogy of Glastonbury Tor, but its mystic, magical presence is irrefutable. These ancients may not have known why the Tor was so enticing a place to build, but they were open to its power. We owe it to ourselves to let Terry Oldfield's Glastonbury Tor entice us the same way.
December 15, 2011
Easily Acquired Awareness
Sagittarius Daily Horoscope
A desire to discover your true purpose can ignite and inflame your curiosity today. You may feel quizzical and thus forthright about asking questions. At home, in your community, and at your workplace, you may discover that others can provide you with a wealth of information that introduces you to new concepts and has a broadening effect on your worldview. Simultaneously, your attention may wander into the depths of your soul where your past and present collide. You can make the most of this inquisitiveness by devoting the necessary time to looking within and then allowing yourself to freely ask others about their opinions, ideas, backgrounds, and areas of expertise. You may discover a true gem of wisdom today, simply by asking a loved one or colleague about their life or professional history.
The questions you ask represent a powerful means of drawing wisdom and knowledge into your life. Many people are hesitant to put their queries into words for fear that they will be labeled ignorant or inexperienced. However, questioning the people you encounter, particularly those whose experiences have differed significantly from your own, can help you easily learn about the world and the multifaceted people who inhabit it. When you speak your curiosity aloud, it gives others an opportunity to satisfy that curiosity through conversation. Most individuals who have spent time acquiring information are eager to share it with those who show polite interest. When you ask questions freely today, the knowledge you gain will stoke the flames of your fledgling curiosity.
December 15, 2011
Two Sides of the Same Moon
Ritual Moon
As our ancestors once did we can honor the cycles of the moon with rituals that help connect us to a more natural life.
The moon waxes and wanes in the night sky, always following the same cyclical pattern, lighting the darkness with its luminous glow. It has been this way as long as the earth has been here. The same moon grew from dark to full and back again, catching the eyes of our grandparents, our great grandparents, and those at the beginning of humanity. The moon guided our ancestors in the planting, sowing, and reaping of their crops, and we can be inspired to observe and honor these same cycles today with simple rituals that help connect us to the natural ebb and flow of life energy.
Dark moons and new moons represent polar moments of beginning and realization in the arc of the moon's phases. When the moon is dark, we might take time to meditate on emptiness, the fertile ground in which seeds take root. A simple ritual for acknowledging this potent phase of the moon would be to write down new plans and ideas that present themselves and keep them in a moon journal. Looking back over a year of dark moons, you may be amazed to see which seeds have blossomed. Full moons symbolize completion and fulfillment, the realization of the seed, and they are times of celebration. They are a great time to gather friends and family to partake in a communal feast acknowledging the apex of another monthly cycle. Your full moon journal might track the full moons of an entire year with a recounting of the gathering-the menu, the guest list, and any other observations you feel inspired to make.
Honoring the dark and full moons with these simple rituals brings our year into a new kind of focus. As we acknowledge the flow of the moon's cycles, we become more comfortable with the changing nature of our earthly lives, making our peace with each phase, and with the shifting from emptiness to fullness and back again. We strengthen our connection to the universe in which we live and find peace in both emptiness and fullness, each of which are natural and necessary-two sides of the same moon.