That most sacred little place

Every spiritually-minded individual has one or more specific locations of which they naturally gravitate towards. It's likely that one such spot stands out above the rest. This is the one spot where everything just "makes sense." Everything positive---throughout relevant time and space---is coalesced in spirit at this place. This could change for a person over time, as they may move or find something even greater and more relevant; or that location could be artificially altered in some way, and then unfortunately avoided by the person. For some it could be a heavily populated place, although I can't imagine anything other than a quiet spot amid natural surroundings. For some it could be a special sanctuary of nature, possibly with a breathtaking view of or from a mountain or valley. For some it can be best enjoyed during the day, for others at night or twilight; or perhaps it's great at anytime.

This isn't necessarily to be confused with a great or interesting time period for an individual, which is tied to a certain general location; although it could be. Sometimes soft human settlement can almost magically produce wonderful places conflated between settlement and nature, with lights and familiarity on one side, and darkness and coyote howls on the other. A full or almost full moon on a dark clear night can open a natural portal to the other side... a door to timelessness... into the Ur. Mountains and water, I believe, can literally be vehicles of time, space, and other realms. The mountain as a metaphysical antenna; and/or the water as a metaphysical mirror. The trees, or even log telephone poles, around you can be spiritual conduits. From the moon (energized by the sun), to the natural portals of mountain or water, down to the trees or log poles (energized by electricity), and then down to you through your pineal gland, and/or through a crystal or smooth stone in your hand, through the tip of a hand-held staff, through your feet. or even through the conduit of our "60% water" organic bodies.

Even radio towers and tall power lines, especially if they are positioned on or wind over a mountain, can energize the spiritual connection of the environment. "Grounding," your bare feet literally touching the natural non-paved ground, will energetically connect you to the magnetic energy of the earth. All of this combines natural energies with metaphysical properties; solid matter with spirit, organic with electricity, science with magic. Additionally, a clear sky is a must. However, even if these conditions are not in place, the sacred place still is alive in you. "Casting a circle" should not be necessary, as this energetic connection is 100% natural. If the location is powerful enough, it's connected as part of your personal and genetic cosmotheological grid. Although we may not want to even think of it, unless you actually own the land that it's located upon, the place could possibly be destroyed by human civilization at some point; in which case you would be best to move on elsewhere.

I have had other sacred spots over the years. One such place was an uninhabited property; a very old home on a good sized plot of land along a creek amid groves of large trees. I happened to know that it was owned by a nearby Catholic High School, and very sparingly used as a stopover for traveling parties. The front of it was obscured by several shade trees and thick bushes, with only a simple gravel driveway visible. At the mouth of the driveway, a smallish structure with a car port could be seen. The gravel driveway, about 25 yards long, led to an fancy little, perhaps 2-bedroom early 20th century home. It had a small simple cobblestone patio in front of it, with a brick outdoor fire-pit structure--surrounded by tall thick hedges--which blocked the view from the smaller structure near the street. There was an additional 30 yards between the house and the large tree dotted creek, with sparse shade trees and bushes in between.

On occasion I took the liberty to have lunch there, walk the grounds, or sit in the patio or by the creek. I was certain that it was not in use. I was trespassing, although in my own mind I was a proponent of the property. It was a small slice of heaven, although I no longer visit as the area around it has built up and there are frequent guests. I enjoyed being able to utilize the spot when I could. It was something of a secret place for me I suppose you could say. Of course there were other special places as we all have, but that one stood out for me. One time years ago, at about midnight, I was in a nearby undeveloped field; and a small meteor about the size of a basketball raced by at probably about 100 mph. I could literally see and hear the flames; definitely a once-in-a-lifetime occurrence. It was moving from left to right, at a somewhat downward angle, towards this property. It landed somewhere by the creek, and I spent some time trying to actually find it. Obviously I would have waited until it cooled off, as it would have made a special souvenir. I couldn't locate it.

My current sacred place is off of a walking trail, where an industrial area, a residential area, and a mountainous canyon park all meet. From the location, on a clear night, one can see a starry sky directly above. One can look at the black mountains against the dark blue sky which is a bit illuminated by the suburban lights of nearby urban areas beyond the park. A full moon looks as spectacular as in any dark sky. There is something mysterious about looking into the blackness of the canyon and hearing the coyotes howling form time to time. There is a slight bustle from the sounds of the nearby industrial area, still active during the night. Every once in awhile, a large black object moves across the dark blue sky--an owl--barely visible by the dim beams of those suburban lights. An old town in the distance is quiet as it rests very comfortably against a mountainside; some homes and decks almost hidden by the larger trees located higher up on the mountain.

Recent high priced sparsely situated homes and short condominium buildings have sprung up on the lower side of this valley across from the park. Begrudgingly, at least this one time, I admit that the developers did a fortunately thoughtful job of placing them gently amid this beautiful open space area. In other words, they didn't spoil anything in particular. These homes and condos are dim and very quiet at night, and the ones visible from one section of the walking trails look tranquil. Small animals are often seen walking about. There is also a large body of water nearby, but not in view. Close to this spot, along the trail, is a structure which looks like a house; although it's a small office building. It's medium green with white trim, and reminds me of a mini grange hall. In a fantasy sense, I would get more out've living in that structure than in a typically urban mansion. I like to just look at it, as it appears magnificent amid the environment. A few days ago, while visiting my special spot, I pondered its significance to me in a more deeply spiritual manner; just as I did, I saw a shooting star.

Pondering the concept of electrical energy and metaphysics, there are even radio towers on top of--and one stream of large power lines moving across--the mountain range. These towers, although large, almost disappear amid the landscape. There are also log telephone poles along one part of the trail, and along the sacred spot, and they also mesh well amid the trees and hillside. In other words, within this area where man and nature conflate, there are all of the elements for a metaphysical experience from my perspective. An earlier great uncle of mine and his family had relocated from the far away Montreal River to this town, and my parents had moved to a location only several miles away at a later point in time; and with all of the time and inter-generational experiences and memories here, there is truly a powerful longtime psycho-spiritual energetic connection to this place. I feel it deep within; those mountains are like antennas beyond time and place; where otherwise obscure and unrelated towns across the world are bio-metaphysically connected through me the individual, and through my bloodline. I don't have to do anything, as this connection is already in place. All we need to do if find it.

I am not in anyway claiming to be unique in this way. This could be true for anyone. Every individual and clan is different. When we look for those types of individual, family, historical, and metaphysical connections--and the energetic grid that ties them all together--they are there. There is even more finite detail as far as connections to my sacred place, but I just wanted to cover the main points comparatively for others; and also largely though the idea of those who--in one way or another--could be relevant to this blog. For example, this could easily be applied to our various quickening folk and spiritual traditions. When rural, remote, or even primitive peoples, developed sacred places for their tribal collective; it meant something. They had something definite in mind. As we know, the mainstream apparatus of the more technological societies do not except the concept of locations and energies, and will build right on top of places with negative energy.

Especially for all of you Asutrar or folk-pagans out there, I believe that this is something to look into. Think about where you have lived, where the rest of your family and past generations have lived, and piece it all together from an individual, spiritual, geographical, and collective perspective. For many, such a place would be entirely a location in nature; a forest clearing, on top of a mountain, or along a shoreline. I guess for others, the whole thing could have a much more urban tie-in. If some of the other ingredients are in place, I suppose that there is that energetic potential. There are quaint locations in big cities, perhaps close to high hillsides and large bodies of water. The obvious question is... "Why?" On top of our traditions which are based on folk, earth, sun, moon, time, and spirit; there is an individual-DNA link to this. I believe that it's a part of the collective spiritual tradition and experience..... and ritual.

Like-folk, especially through marriage-kinship, can share in this concept; and you can share in theirs. You don't need to directly state "this is my sacred spot"; but it can be communicated through a short story... especially while at the spot or nearby.... and all the better if it's a spot where you can unfold a few chairs. Of course, this is if you're more-or-less on the same page. Sharing in this manner is also another way to foster a closer and cohesive clan group. I can think of many times that someone was just starting to tell me something very interesting about their family lineage; then, all of a sudden.... they stopped! Perhaps it's time to share more of those short stories with each other. It's not like you're focusing on the past, or living off of past glory; as hopefully we're looking at the past, present, and future... and looking to try to live up to things great from our collective past. The individual and the clan are part of the same concept. If a person is part of your larger clan or tradition--of course, in a slightly watered-down and collective sense--isn't their history, your history?

"While becoming, we discover, we already are."


*************************


1-15-18 ADDITION:

This has been a popular posting, with 1,588 views in just a month. I just wanted to add an applicable item to it.

More than just a stretch of land

This is a small excerpt from the pre-game speech in the film 'We Are Marshall'. It was in reference to the final resting place--a small stretch of grass--of six football players who had died in a plane crash. I think it's also very applicable to the concept of land, family history, and DNA energy-stamps discussed in the above piece. Although short, I think it really hits the mark. I omitted the word "gentlemen" due to it being applicable to any of a particular family/DNA/clan bloodline... "ladies, gentlemen, children, etc." Again, the emphasis was on a particular spot.

"This is our past... This is where we have been. This is how we got here. This is who we are, today."

Physical locations count. Even if we move on, our families have permanently placed their DNA energy stamp on the location. In this manner, it forms a type of metaphysical DNA-map. When a descendant comes back to it, even if it's generations later, there's a metaphysical connection.

.