Tag: odhrain

Ionian Equinox 7 – The Giant, the Glaistig and the Omphalos

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Ancient Sites, Dowsing, Wheel of the Year

At the end of the preceding post I had been tainted by a dark energy whilst attempting to dissipate it from a ring of granite stones placed on a promontory of the western shores of Iona. Now I was acting intuitively, allowing myself to be guided towards the steps I needed to take to cure myself of this dark energy ‘poison’.

Kal had taken immediate action. He had protected himself from being similarly affected, and then had begun a process of feeding energy into my area so that I could use it to heal. The first action I took was to staff to assist with making an energetic shield that I could use to shelter from the imposing “gaze” of the forces that I had alerted and whose attentions I had attracted by messing with the dark circle. I felt a searching, a scouring, malevolent stare that was scanning the area around the stones from high above. I felt like a giant face was in the clouds looking down trying to find out who had triggered an alarm on the ground below. The shield went up but I wasn’t sure how long it would last. More action was needed and quickly, or I would be either located or pass out with this nauseating sickness I felt!

The neutralising waters of the sea around Iona

A voice came into my head offering me advice…

“Get the staff to the shore“, and then “You will be alright when you reach The Stone.”

It was in my voice, of course, which always raises the question of the source of such information, yet in these circumstances, and with my recent encounters with helpful force, I wasn’t questioning the sagacity of the advice so long as it sounded reasonable. I half-stumbled, half-ran in a dizzy fuzzy state towards the nearby sound of the waves lapping on the shoreline. I knew which stone was being referred to – my next intended destination for the day – Clach na Glaistig. For now, my priority was to rescue the staff.

As I reached the shore I walked the edges where the water touched the sand. With each gentle wave touching my shoes and surrounding the ash staff things began to alleviate – the dizziness began to wear off a little so that my vision cleared up. I could also feel the staff “neutralise”. This is a difficult thing to explain. Holding the staff I can often feel it get energised when working at sacred sites. At this moment I felt whatever charge it held was being drained away – as thought it was a battery being discharged by the salt water. As I reached the end of the cove’s shoreline the staff felt balanced again – neutral. A long sigh emerged from me. It was safe. Now there was only me to worry about.

Kal still kept his distance, recognising that I was still tainted with dark energy, yet with each step across the island towards the stone I felt better, clearer, and more in control again. I re-doubled my protection from being discovered, and then we began to walk over the short-cropped wind-swept grassy chalkland towards the distant hills that led to the southern end of the island. On the way I kept seeing white feathers in my path. Being still in an “angelic” mindset I picked them up. They only seemed to be in my path, not Kal’s, and they often blew towards me as I picked them up. Soon I was carrying about five small white feathers which I then put into my bag. They would come in useful at the stone, I felt.

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Ionian Equinox 3 – The Abbey of Iona

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Ancient Sites, Dowsing, Wheel of the Year

Considering that we’d only landed on the island a matter of an hour prior to this point a lot had gone on already. This was fixing up to be a worthwhile visit already. Whatever next? As though in a form of light relief I switched my attention away from the ancient mound of the giant towards the 12th Century buildings that were the focal point for the rest of the day’s tourists. They almost seemed like light relief at this point.

With the whiff of lit incense still fleetingly scented in the environs I went into the abbey grounds to trace the other end of the ‘corpse road’ that led up to St Ronan’s Chapel. I went in search of any energetic hotspots in the abbey. Dowsing rods at the ready, and now completely uninhibited about doing dowsing in public, I made my way to the ticket booth – paid my way (five pounds sterling or so) – and entered the well-coiffured lawns of the abbey.

Hotspots in the Abbey Grounds

I find it fascinating that most of the major energetic sacred sites that have had churches built upon them (i.e. Christianized pagan sites) have a story that tells how the church had to be rebuilt several times either because it fell down or was de-constructed by spirits. The Abbey of Iona has the same tale. Unaware of this at the time the focus of my investigations was wherever the rods decided was the most energetic point. They dutifully swayed in a sinewing path towards the round stone-walled well that stood before the main entrance to the larger part of the abbey building. A well, I mused? No – the rods were playing a little game as they sometimes do. They swung towards the well’s wall, skirting it closely, and then deviated away from there to point towards a small opening alongside the main building. I peered into the opening – a small archway of stone without a door. Inside the room seemed very small – big enough perhaps to hold my tall frame and not much more.

Outside the entrance was a small stone block about a foot square. On it someone had placed a few stones. In my pocket I had a couple of stones that I had picked up from Ronan’s Church. One was red and the other indigo coloured. Seemed kind of fitting at the time, so I deposited them on the stone here, almost like I was “paying” to enter the shrine, or that they were something that I couldn’t take in. One of the two. No-one else was inside so I ventured inside with my staff. This was St Columba’s Shrine.

Inside St Columba’s Shrine, Iona Abbey

The small room was light enough to make out the scant decorations – Christian crosses with rather Celtic looking ‘holy’ symbols on them. A book of prayer. A wooden kneeling stool. An altar with a candle flanked by simple ornaments. The wooden kneeling stool invited me to prostrate myself in devotion. Pah! Not likely! I asked the rods to define exactly which point inside the shrine was the most energetic. Right in front of the altar they crossed. Above the kneeling stool. I turned around and sat on the stool instead, preferring to face the light and greenery of the outside space than to lose myself to the dead space of the wall and to mimic the many people who had been in that shrine before me. I would do this my way.

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Ionian Equinox 2 – A Giant Grave

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Ancient Sites, Dowsing, Hedge Druidry, Spirits, Wheel of the Year

As you approach the Abbey of Iona – with its church dedicated to Mary – the first sight you encounter is the mound of Odran (or Oran). It lies before the abbey like a pregnant belly, partially obscuring the visible entrances to the abbey buildings. It immediately drew my attention, and I became mesmerised by it. It engendered in me an immediate sense of respect, and I entered the site of the mound slowly and reverentially for a reason that I cannot fully explain.

Odran was an interesting fellow – part mythology, part reconstructed Christian history. He is said to have been a druid, and also a companion of St Columba.

The ancient burial ground, called the Rèilig Odhrain (Eng: Oran’s “burial place” or “cemetery”), contains the 12th century chapel of St Odhrán (said to be Columba‘s uncle), restored at the same time as the Abbey itself. It contains a number of medieval grave monuments. The abbey graveyard contains the graves of many early Scottish Kings, as well as kings from Ireland, Norway and France. Iona became the burial site for the kings of Dál Riata and their successors. (source: Wikipedia)

Of Entrances and Exits

Right, that’s enough of the background. Let’s get into the account. I approached the mound respectfully, and stopped at what I felt was the ‘entrance’ – the point in the mound’s energy aura that was a point of entry for those who were energetically-aware. I gave my credentials and then asked if I could enter. A firm and stomach-churning push in the gut told me in no uncertain terms that I could NOT enter. OK – what was wrong? Time/place/me/my energy? I ran through some reasons and set about trying to right them. I gave a lengthier introduction to who I was, and stated why I was here. I asked to be shown the correct entry point via the dowsing rods – and thus was moved along the mound by several feet from where I had initially tried to enter. I tried again – this time I got a pass and was able to walk onto the mound in the shade of the nearby trees.

Odrain’s Mound – a giant’s resting place?

SYMPATHETIC VIBRATION: Of course you can walk into and onto most sacred sites as a tourist without any restrictions. When I talk of being “denied entry” I am talking about being able to feel for an entry point in the energetic shell of a place. If you don’t recognise that boundary then of course you can enter freely, but you won’t be in a state of awareness, a state of sympathetic vibration with the place. This is the state that I am seeking to enter when I look for an entry point because it leads to a state of mind in which revelation and acquisition of information is much easier.

It is also sympathetic and respectful to any spirit energy that is present at the site, which is why I spend time introducing myself and stating my purpose for the visit.

In addition, entering via the correct point, and leaving by one too, preserves your energetic condition. In other words, if you have accumulated/brought with you/acquired some subtle energy at a sacred site, and you are in the ‘correct vibration’ then you can preserve this state by following the correct path in and out of a place of power. To not do so can strip you very quickly of this sought-after resonance and subtle energy aura.

This is why we place great importance on coming into the correct entrance, following the right path to the power centre, and then leaving by the correct exit point.

Of Giants and Graves

Now things begin to get a little odd. I have come across the idea that many ancient mounds have been named “Giant’s Grave” or similar, and that lots of them are associated with giants in their mythology. Of course, the simple explanation we are given is that those stupid country folk (the superstitious fools) could only explain the presence of these large mounds by associating them with giants. After all, they are pretty long. Must be a tall person buried in there, right?

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