Some might call this being lazy. I call it self preservation and recharging my batteries, so to speak. Sometimes I need to disconnect from the technological world of social networks and text, email and television. Or at the very least, limit them to the minimum.

Cancerian Woman I Am

I’m a very moody person by nature anyway. Blame that on being born in the first decanate  (decanate=ten days) of the Cancerian sun making the moon not only my ruler but subruler too.  Each astrological sign is divided into three ten day sections or decanates. Each having a different heaven or constellation that represent it that add further mystical and spiritual meaning that add to the unique characteristics of that particular decanate.

Each decanate also has a ruling planet often called a subruler because it doesn’t affect the overall astrological—in my case, Cancerian— traits but rather serves rather to enhance the distinct characteristics of that particular decanate. These subdivisions (like Cusps) help further define traits of particular individuals born in one of the three decanates a little more. In other words, its one more thing that helps explain why not all who share astrological signs are alike. These help define our subtle differences.

Watery

Flowing

Deep

Emotional

Intuitive

Add to that my Aries (fire) moon and viola! What most see is a most glorious, fantastic and moody me.  What they don’t see is the rest of the astrological and planetary influences in my personality and life because knowing me that intimately is reserved for those closest to me. And sometimes not even then.

They say no one really ever knows a person completely. But then, most people don’t even know themselves completely, now do they?  This is one of the most fundamental teachings in all mysteries schools, “Know Thy Self”.

This is my journey. I’m still working on that.

Astrologically Speaking

This is not a post on astrology.  If you are interested in learning about astrology, I encourage you to read more about it. There are books and websites galore out there. Certainly plenty enough to keep you pretty busy and occupied for awhile. If you consider yourself somewhat seasoned, as I know some of you do, then you already know what I’m talking about. Either way, I’m just making the point that my particular sun sign and being born in the first decanate is one more thing that attributes to my being such a moody kind of gal.

And being a moody kinda gal whose moods change with the tides, sometimes I need to retreat anyway deep into my shell. Sometimes I need to be alone and away from my friends, family and everything else. Or else I become unhappy, irritable and ready to reach out with my crab like pinchers and do what crabs do—pinch. And pinch hard.

Sometimes the darker aspect of my Aries fiery moon may begin to activate my watery nature and things tend to hit a boiling point and spill over, so to speak.  This is not good for anyone. Especially for those who get in the way.

Although, this isn’t really a lesson or post on specifically astrology, I do have to mention that the Pisces New Moon window begins today!

Spiritually Hydrated

After my weekend of doing absolutely nothing, save from answering calls from nature and showers, I have done pretty much nothing but lay on the couch nestled up under the blankets. Sometimes I read, sometimes I watched television and sometimes I surfed the net from time to time. But other than that I did nothing.

It was in doing nothing that I was able to get in touch with what I feel about where I’m going with my life and what I’m doing to get there. It was in doing nothing I could delve deeper into my own dream-scape and let the messages flow over me and bathe me in its wisdom.

My nature as a first decanate born Cancerian is that of feeling and receptivity on the deepest level. However, I do not allow myself to feel as I should. Intellectually speaking, I am often too focused on that which is rational, logical and makes sense. I tend to ignore those things that I feel and discount those things as irrational and nonsensical.

Yet, at the same time, I know that the deepest of all wisdom is not found in the rational, logical and what seems to make sense. Some of the most profound and deepest of all wisdom is something that can not be intellectualized or rationalized, written or spoken about but only remembered and felt.

When we close ourselves off from feeling, we essentially close ourselves off from receiving this wisdom from the Cosmic planes. This Wisdom is everywhere in every place and yet, it is not the kind of  wisdom that can be taught or shared. It is not found in books, classrooms, workshops, seminars, or conferences.It is found in the Temple of Nothing.

This is the place where like water, it simply flows.

Over the last few weeks, I realized that I had been cutting myself off from this free flowing source and sustenance of my spiritual being. I was no longer accessing this incredible, deep flowing Wisdom that guides my soul. I have been so busy with the techno world, the mommy thing as well as trying to create things I had absolutely no attachment to (no feeling for), facilitating our Sister Socials and taking on other projects and sharing teachings that I didn’t realize that my tap had run dry; I had become disconnected from my inner source.

The Temple of Nothing. 

I felt the shift happening. Instead of resisting it, I went with the flow that came with the shift. I jumped into that flow and descended down into the depth of where quiet and silence and Nothingness took me. Incidentally, my lunar moon cycle happened to be at this time as well so it was a perfect opportunity to nurture myself in my own Red Tent kind of way.

I sunk into my dreams and let them speak to me. Now I remembered them compared to as of late when I’ve not kept track of them as much as I used to.  Unless of course, they are tired of trying to get my attention and finally give me a nightmare which usually shakes me up and gets me to focus on the whatever it is that needs my attention.

What I learned from re-posting and re-reading a previous post on the Dreaming of the High Priestess is that Wisdom refuses to get louder than the external and internal noise we allow ourselves to be immersed in. Oddly enough, while I wrote that entry three years ago, I now realize that I really didn’t understand any of it until only recently. Not really. Not like I thought.  Every time I re-read it another layer is peeled back and new wisdom is revealed to me.

So I needed to journey into the depths of my own being. A friend of mine text me a message and said, “It must be nice to be able to do nothing and be lazy.”

I’m sure it was tongue-in-cheek and maybe a little jealousy there but definitely a lot of ignorance. He isn’t aware like I am. I didn’t reply and yes, it was nice. Very nice in fact. So much so that I will do it again before I feel myself slipping into spiritual and emotional dehydration.

Dwelling In The Temple of Nothing Nurtures Creativity

Doing a whole lot of nothing was not only good for me in the emotional and spiritual realms of my being but it was also good for my mental being and creative self as well.

I am happier now because of doing Nothing.  And my creative self has awakened more fully because of doing absolutely Nothing.

Red paint and glitter sound divine to me. Collage, glue and crayons and markers are calling me. Maybe some clay too. I feel very creative and so this week will be about creativity. Who knows what I will create but I do know that I want to play with colors and different mediums. I want to make a rainbow of all sorts of things. I want to make a mess and play in it.

I feel really good about that.

I like to paint and make a glorious mess. I like to just let the creativity flow all over my paper or into whatever creations I’m focused on at the time. Sometimes it looks so beautiful, other times it looks like a wild mess!

Sometimes the wild, creative, colorful messes are what I like best.

All Are Artists

Everyone can paint and create. It doesn’t have to be professional looking or like my own extremely talented daughter, Amaris who is dangerous with a pencil and sketch pad! I have friends who make beautiful and  fabulous art by trade; some drawing and/or painting for a living and some even do tattoos.

But I’m not talking about that.

Not everyone can be professional artists but everyone can create fabulous pieces of art.

If it comes from the soul, it is a fabulous piece of art, no matter what anyone says.

So the point of this post is that there really is not point at all. Not really. There doesn’t always have to be a point. Just random nothingness to share that might be a bit of a soothing balm to some soul out there.

My three days spent in the Temple of Nothing, wading in its deepest healing and nourishing waters have left me feeling uplifted, recharged, connected and ready to create.

So I leave you with this:

Dive deep into your own nothingness where Nothing dwells. Wade through your own hallways and puddles of dreamy and Divine Wisdom. Let it fill you up and quench your thirsty soul.

There isn’t much that is better than that.

What you see within me, is not really Me.
It is Divine Spirit flowing through me.
You and I are the same.
We are One.
Love.

With Love All Things Are Possible…

xoxoXo
Lotus X. Love

SEE LOVE.

EXPECT LOVE.

BE LOVE.

SERVE LOVE.

CLAIM LOVE.

this is only the beginning…

song: “Intro” by the Xx

or the *extended version here (have your pick):

]]> http://lisavproulx.wordpress.com/2012/02/17/lets-talk-about-witches-wiccasalem-witch-trailsbewitched/ Fri, 17 Feb 2012 14:49:00 +0000 Official Blog of Author Lisa V. Proulx http://lisavproulx.wordpress.com/2012/02/17/lets-talk-about-witches-wiccasalem-witch-trailsbewitched/

Happy Friday everyone!

Two glorious words aren’t they, Happy and Friday!

I hope everyone is looking forward to the weekend. They are calling for snow here in Maryland on Sunday and the word S*N*O*W chills me to the bone! I hate the cold and anything to do with it. If I think of Hell, I don’t see fiery pits of flame and ash, I see cold, desolate and snow!

Well, today is Friday which means  I am writing about a topic that you might find interesting.

LET’S TALK ABOUT WITCHES is the theme today. I love witches and love to read and learn the history of them. I always dressed up as a witch as a little girl for Halloween and probably kept the sterotype of a big hat and a boomstick alive but hey, I was only a kid! Give me a break!

This Sunday will be my AUTHOR OF THE WEEK segment where I am hosting author Joyce Strand, author of the Jillian Hilcrest Mystery Series. Stop by to meet her and hear about what it’s like to be a mystery writer.

Starting in March, I will be changing the day for my author segment and just moving them to Monday. I want to start my SIX SENTENCE SUNDAY and don’t want to distract from my guest authors. I like to devote the whole section to them on their special day!

Also starting in March, I will be hosting ROCK STAR WEDNESDAY where I will host a band or a solo artist once a week. I love rock stars but you don’t have to be a rock band to join in on the fun. I enjoy all genres of music so contact me and let me know if you are interested in some FREE PROMOTION!

So, I hope you enjoy this edition of Friday’s topic.

Thanks for stopping by to say hello and have a great day!

~LET’S TALK ABOUT WITCHES~

I love witches! I always have and always will. The very first story that I ever wrote was called LILY WAS A WITCH, I was about 8 years old. It was about a little girl living in a family of witches and she knew she was different from the other children and her family was not accepted in the “real” world.

As a kid, I grew up watching Bewitched and wanted to be Samantha and just wrinkle my nose and make things appear.

As I grew older, I came to realize that the show was not real but was based on the actual faith of witchcraft.

My mother was a psychic/medium so I grew up in the world of the occult. My father was a staunch but loving Frenchman who thought the whole idea of ghosts and goblins was pure and utter nonsense!

My mother was also a Cherokee Indian who felt that her native beliefs were very closely related to what many people call witchcraft today.

Mixing herbs and saying prayers and chants are not that much different than casting a spell. Isn’t a spell just a prayer?

I have seen her do many strange things to get the results she wanted without riding a broom and flying through the Halloween night. But she would ask the tree for permission to remove its branch.

She was a kindred spirit with our animal brothers and sisters and was a kind, loving and forgiving soul. Witch or Native American? Both?

Was she a witch or just an elder in her Cherokee tribe? Was she praying or casting a spell? Did she ever harm others? No, that was not her way.

What I believe and know from the Wicca faith is that it is a gentle and very misunderstood religion.

The people I have known to be Wiccan are kind, loving and very spiritual people who are healers in some form or the other. They want to make the world a better place and through their love and harmony for Mother Earth, they spread that love throughout their lifetime, hoping to make a difference in every one they meet.

It took me a long time to be able to come out of the broom closet! Remember what they did to us back in old Salem? No wonder people are afraid to admit that they prefer to follow the old religion or otherwise known as “the Craft.”

Questions for me about Wicca:

Do you believe in God?

Absolutely! Just as I believe that it takes a male and a female to create a life, so it takes a male God and female Goddess (Mother Nature) to create the Earth.

Do you worship the devil?

Of course not! Wiccans are not devil worshippers! I do believe that there is evil in the world. If you believe in God and his angels, why would you not believe in his adversary and his demons?

Do you cast spells?

I have in my lifetime but not for bad. Like my mother, I simply believe that a spell is just a prayer.

Do you harm animals?

Are you kidding me? I love animals and they are my passion. I feel an empathy with them and that love creates a bond between us like no other. I have raised Rottweilers for over 13 years and could not live my life with animals around me.

Do you harm other people?

No, I do not. I believe in the Wiccan belief that if you wish harm on another or try to harm someone, it will come back to you three fold. Who needs that kind of aggravation! J

Wiccan morality is ruled according to the

Wiccan Rede, which (in part) states “An it harm none, do what ye wilt.” (“An” is an archaic word meaning “if”.) Others follow the slightly adapted Rede of “An it harm none do what ye will; if harm it does, do what ye must”. Either way, the Rede is central to the understanding that personal responsibility, rather than a religious authority, is where moral structure resides

Do you belong to a coven?

No, I prefer to be a solitary and work on my own but I am open to trying new things and meeting like~minded people.

Do you celebrate Christmas?

Yes, I love Christmas!

The article below from http://www.mdpagans.com/wiccaisnot.html describes how Wicca draws from the Old Traditions of Witchcraft. While this is true, we would simply like to clarify that Witchcraft and Wicca, while simular in many respects, are not the same. One can be a Witch, without being a Wiccan, just as a person can be a Christian, without being a Baptist. Wicca is a recognized religion, while Witchcraft itself is not considered a religion. Thus, Wicca might best be described as a modern religion, based on ancient Witchcraft traditions.

What Is Wicca

“Contrary to what those who choose to persecute or lie about us wish to believe, Wicca is a very peaceful, harmonious and balanced way of life which promotes oneness with the divine and all which exists.

Wicca is a deep appreciation and awe in watching the sunrise or sunset, the forest in the light of a glowing moon, a meadow enchanted by the first light of day. It is the morning dew on the petals of a beautiful flower, the gentle caress of a warm summer breeze upon your skin, or the warmth of the summer sun on your face. Wicca is the fall of colorful autumn leaves, and the softness of winter snow. It is light, and shadow and all that lies in between. It is the song of the birds and other creatures of the wild. It is being in the presence of Mother Earths nature and being humbled in reverence. When we are in the temple of the Lord and Lady, we are not prone to the arrogance of human technology as they touch our souls. To be a Witch is to be a healer, a teacher, a seeker, a giver, and a protector of all things. If this path is yours, may you walk it with honor, light and integrity”

~COOL SITES TO CHECK OUT ABOUT WICCA~

The Celtic Connection

http://www.wicca.com/celtic/wicca/wicca.htm

Suggested reading for Wiccan knowledge and understanding

http://www.wicca.com/celtic/catalog/books/suggested.htm

Pagan Pride

http://www.paganpride.org/resources/whatiswicca.html

Sugar Bane

http://blessedbe.sugarbane.com/wicca.htm

 ~SALEM WITCH TRIALS 1692~

“Lest terror be forgotten…”

“From June through September of 1692, nineteen men and women, all having been convicted of witchcraft, were carted to Gallows Hill, a barren slope near Salem Village, Massachusetts for hanging. Another man of over eighty years of age was pressed to death under heavy stones for refusing to submit to a trial on witchcraft charges. Hundreds of others faced accusations of witchcraft. Dozens languished in jail for months without trials. Then, almost as soon as it had begun, the hysteria that swept through Puritan Massachusetts ended.”

~THE INNOCENT~

Bridget Bishop

Hanged June 10, 1692

“I am no witch.
I am innocent.
I know nothing of it.”

Elizabeth Howe

Hanged June 19, 1692

“If it was the last moment I was to live,
God knows I am innocent…”

Susannah Martin

Hanged June 19, 1692

”I have no hand in witchcraft.”

Rebecca Nurse

Hanged June 19, 1692

“Oh Lord, help me! It is false. I am clear. For my life now lies in your hands….”

~PERSONS HANGED AND EXECUTED FOR WITCHCRAFT IN 1692~

~Bridget Bishop, June 10th
~Sarah Good, June 19th
~Elizabeth Howe, June 19th
~Susannah Martin, June 19th
~Sarah Wildes, June 19th

-Rebecca Nurse, June 19th
~George Burroughs, August 19th
~Martha Carrier, August 19th
~George Jacobs, August 19th
~John Proctor, August 19th
~John Willard, August 19th
~Giles Cory(pressed to death) September 19th
~Martha Cory, September 22nd
~Mary Easty, September 22nd
~Alice Parker, September 22nd
~Mary Parker, September 22nd
~Ann Pudeator, September 22nd
~Margaret Scott, September 22nd
~Wilmont Redd, September 22nd
~Samuel Wardwell, September 22nd

*One dog was also hanged, as he was believed to be a transformed witch.

Persons Who Were Accused of Witchcraft and Died in Prison While Awaiting Trial:

~Sarah Obsorne, 5/10/1692
~Roger Toothaker, 6/16/1692
~Ann Foster, 12/3/1692
~Lydia Dustin, 3/10/1693

*Giles Corey was “pressed” to death. He refused to stand trial after initially pleading guilty. Because he refused to be tried, he could not legally be convicted. The procedure of “pressing” was used to elicit a plea, one way or the other. He was placed on the ground, laying on his back and large rocks were placed on top of him. Giles, however, still refused to make a plea and was eventually crushed and killed by the weight of the rocks on top of him. The pressing lasted for 2 days, before Giles Corey finally succumbed. So, instead of making a plea, Giles Corey ended up making a statement!

~COOL SITES ABOUT SALEM~

From The Witchcraft Trials of Salem

http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/salem/SAL_ACCT.HTM

The Salem Witch Museum

http://www.salemwitchmuseum.com/

Salem Massachusetts Web Site

http://www.salemweb.com/memorial/

~COOL QUOTES ABOUT WITCHES~

“Where shall we three meet again in thunder, lightning, or in rain? When the hurlyburly ‘s done, when the battle ‘s lost and won”
― William Shakespeare, Macbeth

 

“Never put your faith in a Prince. When you require a miracle, trust in a Witch.”
― Catherynne M. Valente, In The Night Garden

 

“Most books on witchcraft will tell you that witches work naked. This is because most books on witchcraft were written by men.”
― Neil Gaiman

 

“The first time I called myself a ‘Witch’ was the most magical moment of my life.”
― Margot Adler, Drawing Down the Moon: Witches, Druids, Goddess-Worshippers, and Other Pagans in America

 

“Keep the Magic Alive!”
― Debie Torkellson, The New Witches Club and the Power of Love, Magic and Friends

From http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/witches

 

 

~THE WITCHES OF EASTWICK~ 

 

 

Alexandra Medford: Who are you?
Daryl Van Horne: Just your average, horny little devil.

 

 

~CONTACT ME~

I love to hear from my readers, whether good, bad or anything in between!

If you are interested in reviewing my books, interviewing me or being a guest on my blog, please contact me at Magicforest@peoplepc.com

Let me know if you want to be added to my distro list for upcoming book info!

I’ll also let you know about new releases, contests and other fun stuff and you’ll find
out all the juicy stuff before anyone else does!

Twitter: @LisaVProulx

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And as always, thank you for your continued love and support!

*´¨)
¸.·*´¸.·*´¨)
(¸.·´ (¸.·’*Lisa¸.·*´¨)
(¸.·’*

“Witchcraft … is a spiritual path. You walk it for nourishment of the soul, to commune with the life force of the universe, and to thereby better know your own life.”

Vesica Pisces - Welcome to your Inner Temple

Vesica Pisces:  Symbol and Color interpretation.

The two equally overlapping spheres represent our masculine and feminine natures and duality.   When we choose to stand in the center we find inner balance and a neutral, unified perspective often referred to as Christ consciousness.

The Gold sphere is the fullness of our personal power, the power of the Sun and our masculine perspective.

The Violet sphere brings the fullness of our intuition, higher choices and our more feminine perspective.

In the center we are surrounded by the flow of Blue light which speaks of the truth and peace that come with being balanced.

The overlapping area is surrounded by an Orange outline showing us the vitality and creative energies that come with our Inner Temple experience.

The Green diamond, above, represents harmony while the Red diamond below symbolizes strength and our capacity for human love.

Finally we find the Green heart in the very center.  The heart itself is a symbol of human love, while it’s green color reinforces the balanced perspective of the Vesica Pisces itself.

When you want to embody the true frequency of acceptance, love and harmony, step inside this beautiful inner temple and experience UNITY for yourself, within yourself.  Now, doesn’t the world look better from here?

More color information is available here: http://theblessingchair.com/energy-tools/colors/

It takes a lot for me to leave the Surrey Hills these days!  Most commonly, it is for a flight to somewhere exotic, but today I left the comfort of my own home for another reason.   As George Meredith, famous novelist and poet, quoted at the turn of the 20th Century “Nowhere in England is richer foliage or wilder downs and fresher woodlands“.  I exchanged the ‘snowy’ woodlands for London, as today was a big day for my youngest daughter.  She has work experience this week prior to completing her GCSE’s in the Summer, and she is extremely fortunate to be spending the week in London, based in Inner Temple with my oldest school friend who is a Planning and Environmental Barrister.  What a beautiful place to work from, steeped in history, and set in a stunning location, with unrivaled views of London.

She has a unique agenda for a 15 year old budding Lawyer .. a day at the House of Commons, a day with a Criminal Law Firm, and a day with a City firm of Solicitors, not to mention spending time in Chambers with some Junior Barristers.  I managed to convince her that thigh high stretchy lycra skirts were possibly not quite appropriate this week.  I was so proud of her this morning, dressed in a tailored black suit, with knee length skirt and hair pulled into a bun.  She needed to show her passport to the man at the station, to convince him she was entitled to a child’s ticket!

So that’s my number three on the path of a career (hopefully), and I wonder if it was a coincidence that last night I dreamt that I wanted another baby (which incidentally I really don’t!).

Before I headed back to the Surrey Hills, I darted into W H Smiths at the station to find a copy of Fifty Shades of Grey, and sadly they don’t stock it either!  Am now contemplating buying a Kindle so I can download the Trilogy.

And now I am back home, away from the buzz of London, back with my snow bound chickens, and dogs wondering what to rustle up for dinner …  found an interesting packet of Sainsbury’s Porcini Mushroom Risotto Kit that I think I will do something with.. probably without the chickens though!

A cartoon of a woman wearing a large barrister's wig, before women were allowed to practise law

The most prestigious positions in law are still dominated by men even today, a QC I once worked for said ‘there are more women in law, but the men are still at the top’ those positions may only come available once the male elite has retired. Undoubtedly this will happen eventually, however women are still being prevented in gaining their fair share of the jobs at the top of the hierarchy. In an article in the Guardian, Lady Justice Hallett expressed her own disappointment at the failure of the judiciary to reflect the society they serve:

“A number of women may have made it to the very top of the profession but, as in other sections of society, there is still a long way to go. For reasons I cannot fathom, I remain the only woman to have been elected chairman of the bar (back in 1998).”

I am not trying to blame the unemployment rate among law students on old fashioned misogyny of course, but when you look at the number of female law graduates for the last few decades and compare it to the sex of judges and high profile lawyers in England and Wales, there are huge inconsistencies. This indicates that the close knit boys club that houses the wealthy white male barrister still exists, at the top at least.

Dr Ivy Williams

One of the first true pioneers of women at the bar is Dr Ivy Williams. She had taken all her law exams by 1903, but university regulations at the time prevented her receiving her qualifications. However, when the regulations in the UK on female students were changed in 1920, she was finally able to graduate along with many other women.

Dr Ivy Williams: The first woman to be called to the bar

She was determined to join the bar now that the laws had changed and she ultimately sought to provide free legal advice to the poor. In 1921 she wrote an article for Woman’s World magazine, stating that she would petition parliament if she was prevented from joining the bar.

However, luckily she secured the support of some influential members of the Inner Temple – the Inn where she was a member and she was called to the bar in 1922. Although she never actually practised as a barrister she paved the way for women to take up the legal profession which was inaccessible and one of the last professions to accept women. She was the first woman to be awarded a Doctorate of Civil Laws and the first woman to teach law at an English university, by teaching law she also inspired other women to go to the bar.

Rose Heilbron

Before writing this article I spoke to my grandma about women in law, she told me about her legal idol Rose Heilbron, who had attended the same primary school in the years preceding my grandmother. I later realised what an important figure she had been in law, especially regarding her law report on the reform of rape laws. Heilbron recommended anonymity was to be given to complainants to encourage them to come forward. In the 1975 law report she also urged for the defence to be limited in their capacity to cross examine the complainant about their sexual history to intimidate them and paint them in bad character.

First female QCs: Helena Normanton left and Rose Heilbron on the right

She was of Jewish descent, from Liverpool and was the prominent leader of the Northern circuit. She was called to the bar in 1939 and she was one of the two first female QCs (then still King’s Counsel) along with Helena Normanton. A calm and collected advocate, she charmed juries and was hugely admired in court for her thoroughness and her style.

Dame Elizabeth Kathleen Lane

Being a member of the Inner Temple myself, I was quite excited to find so many impressive women have been members of that Inn. Like Dr Ivy Williams, Dame Elizabeth Lane, the first female judge and the first woman to sit in the High Court, was also a member. In her biography she writes about finding her way to the bar ‘by accident’, while helping her husband with his legal studies. Her stories of her childhood and her dislike for schoolwork remind me of my own schooldays. Cramming late at night with a torch under the bedclothes, training her memory for the quick absorption of facts, ideal for reading a barrister’s brief that will soon be forgotten again after the case.

Dame Elizabeth Kathleen Lane: First female judge in the UK

Although she only started her pupillage later in life in 1941 at the age of 36 and she soon began a fast paced and successful career in the late 1940s. After obtaining Silk, she was appointed as the first woman commissioner of Manchester Crown Court, where she was addressed as ‘My Lord’, and referred to in the official calendar as ‘Mr Commissioner, Elizabeth Kathleen Lane QC’ in defiance of rationality and common sense. She became the first appointed female county court judge in 1962 and the first woman to be appointed to the High Court in 1965. She was an intelligent, compassionate and hardworking woman who is credited with finally introducing ‘Your Ladyship’ to the legal vocabulary.

Women who entered the legal profession were undoubtedly faced with a huge number of obstacles and hostility during a time when law was such a male dominated area. They must have been remarkable people of exceptionally strong character. Their determination paved the way for great women that followed in their footsteps to pursue a successful career in law.  It’s funny to think that over half a century later, it is women who dominate law studies at university. If the judiciary is to truly reflect the society it regulates women should also gain more respect and status in the legal profession.

When I arrived it was everything you’d expect. The dull sound of boring conversations, the occasional laugh at a joke which is probably about the misuse of a word, or some kind of lawyer joke like: “I don’t know Mark, that’s a bit of a leading question?!” I looked around for some food but got caught by my mother. “Darling! Darling!” I smiled and walked over and said hello to the man with a full head of white hair and his wife, who I apparently knew.

“Darling, Nick and Tom Jenkins are going to be here in a bit, I want you to mingle with them.”

“I don’t even remember who they are. Please do not introduce me to them.”

Twenty minutes later:

“Nick, this is my son, Harry, Harry you remember Nick, don’t you?”

“Yes of course. Nick, how are you?”

To my surprise we had a good chat and he was pretty interesting. He told me how lawyers traditionally don’t shake hands because in the old days if you are a barrister you don’t carry a sword so you don’t need top reveal that you’re not holding one. He told me that’s why when you see lawyers meeting up you see this awkward kind of half bow as they try to work out or remember if you’re a solicitor or a barrister. I always wondered why my father so awkwardly bows at people when he meets them, no I know.

After an hour chatting we then made our excuses, that we were going to leave, and I left, got back to the flat and realized I hadn’t eaten any of the free food (well free in as far as the ticket to the party was fifty five pounds) so I decided I would at least go claim some of the pea soup and duck pate on bread.  I came back to get some food and I saw that Nick was still there, he saw me too, but we both pretended not to see each other.

I got myself a glass of pea soup which by my calculations cost about fifty two pounds. My father saw me and waved. I nodded back and walked on.

“HARRY!?”

“Yeah, hi.”

I tried to walk on.

“NO HARRY! HARRY!”

“Yeah I’m okay.”

“No! come here! There’s a really important person for you to meet!”

All I could see was a little old man with very red cheeks and furry yellow teeth and a pair of trousers pulled up to his ribs standing awkwardly smiling, not knowing what the hell was going on.

I reluctantly walked over, annoyed that I had decided to come back for the pea soup.

“Hi.”

“There’s someone you’ve got to meet!”

My father then stepped over to a group of four middle aged people who were happily minding their own business and clearly didn’t care to be interrupted. My father, with a belly full of cheap red wine, adopted his more (albeit affected) confident tone:

“Everyone stop!”

God, did he really need to halt their conversation like that just for me? How am I going to live up to that, halting their conversation to introduce me with my pea soup?

“This is the famous Harry!”

Just as you think it can’t get worse he does that.

“Everyone, this is Harry I’ve been talking about!”

I nodded politely and sipped some of my pea soup.

“Harry, this man is a script writer!”

The way he said it kind of reminded me of being taught the professionals of people when your five from one of those picture  books: “Look he’s in a white coat, he’s a…. DOCTOR… and he’s a… PRIEST.. and he’s a FIREMAN!”

I looked at the SCRIPT WRITER! He was dressed in a shiny silver suit and looked like he was proud to be a media type and different to all the other lawyers – the fucker had stolen my card – the card that made me feel confident and different, and he had a shiny silver suit, all I had was an old blue shirt with pea soup spilled on the front. The SCRIPT WRITER! didn’t take one look at me.

My father patted me on the back and said:

“You do your script writing thing”

And then went back to the conversation a few meters away with the man with the furry teeth.

I smiled politely, expecting to have to explain how I’m trying to get into the film industry, how I work part time as a wedding video man and as a waiter, and how hard it is to get into the industry and all that mindless bullshit about your life circumstance; but none of them looked at me. They all went back to their conversations. But I couldn’t walk away, I had just been introduced as the famous Harry, and told to do my script writing thing. I waited for three minutes as they chatted and then finally stepped away, with that horrible feeling you have like someone’s about to throw an apple at the back of your head – you just keep on walking hoping not to get hit.

I went back to my father.

“Sorry, that was really awkward, I’m sorry I’m going.”

My father was visibly disappointed and took out the inner temple garden party ticket where he’d written the guys details on the back.

“He’s called Nick. He’s a writer! He does scripts and things!”

“That’s great, I’ll e mail him. I’m sorry, that was really awkward.”

I walked out of the party feeling I had let me father down. But I didn’t feel too bad, I know he was probably stuck talking to the man, had nothing to say and then used me to palm him off and then when I arrived he could use me to look polite and affable. Or he thinks himself as some kind of a networker and given I still live in his flat he wants to help me with my career; and although knowing nothing about the film industry will do anything he can to help – even if it’s introducing me as the ‘famous Harry’ to some media man in a silver suit at the inner temple garden party.

I began with a shower – a ritual cleansing that I often forgo.  I cleansed the space with a blend of sage, lavender, and kava – not my usual mix, but it was what I had on hand.  I called up an elemental circle, asking the powers, creatures, and beings of the quarters to guard my space so long as I abide there.  I charged a bottle of Dark Moon water to mix with my flying potion, and for whatever other uses I can find in the next month.  I made sacrifices to my household gods and spirits – mead for Dionysos and for the Nameless Ones; absinthe for the Nameless Ones, my journey-mask, and Tsu. 

Drawing on the theories of Frater Barrabbas, I opened a vortex within my initial circle and raised a cone of power as well.  With that power I turned to my oldest, but in some ways best, tricks: my Pentagram Ward, a structure upon which I will build more sophisticated wards and protection spells.  My power raised and protections in place, I could do what I’ve been putting off to long.  Doning my mask and downing my flying potion, I returned to the Underworld.

The world tree took me down to my Inner Temple, where Tsu, one of the spirits I work, with was waiting.  She pointed me toward a portal, and I followed.  Interestingly, the portal led first to campus, where I found another portal that led me into a void where I found the Leopard of Dionysos.  I was relieved to see her – I’ve been lax in my practice for a while, and I was afraid my allies had deserted me – but she reassured me that he was unconcerned by my absence; Rhea, on the other hand, was waiting for me.

I descended to a grassy plain I’d seen before, and went deeper into the Underworld via the Temple of Rhea I had seen before, during my initiation.  Dionysos appeared briefly – a translucent image, but still a presence – and I descended further.  I found the Magna Mater in a vast cavern, gargantuan and reclining as before.  I abased myself and apologized for not delivering Pasiphae to her before I left Kansas City.  A realization came to me suddenly: “This is all for my benefit, isn’t it?”

“Yes,” she conceded, and pointed me to a tunnel leading down.

That tunnel, in turn, led to oceanic depths I had encountered before, most recently while exploring the Elemental Realm of Water.  It occurred to me that perhaps the Power I had encountered here had not been knocking me around for her own amusement, but that perhaps there had been a purpose.  I swam in the direction she had thrown me and discovered a passage leading up.

That passage led me to more familiar territories, the caverns beneath a ziggurat I had “discovered” in my earliest spirit-journeys.  Reaching light at the top of the zigurat, I encountered a spirit I had almost forgotten – a winged stone serpent placed atop that temple, whose nature I have never determined.  After a brief, silent communion with him, I was returned to the heart of my Inner Temple.

I concluded my journey with a brief but fruitful conversation with Tsu, and returned to my body to put a lid on the vortex and close the circles.

It’s been some time since I started a new “book” in my Tower of Memory.  As I think on it, though, I’ve had this problem before.  I’m better at visualization now than I’ve ever been, but there are still times when my mind refuses to cooperate with me. 

I know that my visualization needs work.  I have had enough experiences where my body and the mortal world were simply gone to know that I am capable of full, six-senses visionary work.  (Though I also know that this is simply not going to happen every time no matter how good I get.)  But I also know that the mind and the Otherworlds have rules (largely unwritten, which is part of why I keep this blog: in the hopes that someone else will be aided by my fumbling experiences) different from those of the mortal world.  Which, of course, beg question: is this a failing on my part, or something about the nature of this particular visionary technique that I don’t know?

* In his Temple of High Witchcraft, Christopher Penczak talks about using a portion of the Inner Temple as a “Tower of Memory”. This, of course, is not a new idea by any stretch of the imagination. It’s not even new to me: I’ve been using both techniques for as long as I’ve practiced magic. I couldn’t even begin to cite my original sources, cribbed as they were from message boards and FTP sites back in the Cretaceous Period of the Internet, when HTTP was shiny and new, everyone’s homepage was on lysator, and geocities hadn’t happened yet. (I mention these things first, so that if you haven’t heard of the technique you can go look it up; and second, to re-establish that Penczak is not my first or only source by any stretch of the imagination, just one I’ve been drawing on recently.)

If I can’t find a good link on the subject in the next few days, I’ll post an instructional write-up of my own.  It’s strange that, though I’ve been working with these techniques since I was sixteen years old, I still don’t feel confident to impart them to others.

ETA:

A basic instruction for creating the Inner Temple in the first place: http://www.plotinus.com/exercise_temple_of_light_copy%281%29.htm

A non-occult conceptualization of the Palace of Memory: http://litemind.com/memory-palace/

These are adequate, but I think, however, that I will still refine my decade-plus-old write-up of the Inner Temple and House of Memory. 

It’s been some time since I started a new “book” in my Tower of Memory.  As I think on it, though, I’ve had this problem before.  I’m better at visualization now than I’ve ever been, but there are still times when my mind refuses to cooperate with me. 

I know that my visualization needs work.  I have had enough experiences where my body and the mortal world were simply gone to know that I am capable of full, six-senses visionary work.  (Though I also know that this is simply not going to happen every time no matter how good I get.)  But I also know that the mind and the Otherworlds have rules (largely unwritten, which is part of why I keep this blog: in the hopes that someone else will be aided by my fumbling experiences) different from those of the mortal world.  Which, of course, beg question: is this a failing on my part, or something about the nature of this particular visionary technique that I don’t know?

* In his Temple of High Witchcraft, Christopher Penczak talks about using a portion of the Inner Temple as a “Tower of Memory”. This, of course, is not a new idea by any stretch of the imagination. It’s not even new to me: I’ve been using both techniques for as long as I’ve practiced magic. I couldn’t even begin to cite my original sources, cribbed as they were from message boards and FTP sites back in the Cretaceous Period of the Internet, when HTTP was shiny and new, everyone’s homepage was on lysator, and geocities hadn’t happened yet. (I mention these things first, so that if you haven’t heard of the technique you can go look it up; and second, to re-establish that Penczak is not my first or only source by any stretch of the imagination, just one I’ve been drawing on recently.)

If I can’t find a good link on the subject in the next few days, I’ll post an instructional write-up of my own.  It’s strange that, though I’ve been working with these techniques since I was sixteen years old, I still don’t feel confident to impart them to others.

ETA:

A basic instruction for creating the Inner Temple in the first place: http://www.plotinus.com/exercise_temple_of_light_copy%281%29.htm

A non-occult conceptualization of the Palace of Memory: http://litemind.com/memory-palace/

These are adequate, but I think, however, that I will still refine my decade-plus-old write-up of the Inner Temple and House of Memory. 

Students can take part in  number of lectures and workshops including sessions on: how to structure a legal CV, interview tips & tricks, training for the Bar and life as a pupil/barrister. The day ends with a drinks reception.

Attendance is free but you need to register in advance on the Inner Temple Website.

Poosalar was his name. He hailed from a town called Ninravur. He was a great devotee of Lord Siva. He longed to build a temple for his Lord, though he was a very poor man. He roamed far and wide to get the required funds. His efforts were not fruitful. He was desperate. He was distressed beyond words.

Suddenly a thought struck him. “Why do I not attempt to build a temple for my Lord in my heart? Why should I beg these worthless persons who have no devotion for my Lord?” He determined to do so. He studied the Agama Sastras. He consulted knowledgeable Sivacaryas. The thought got shape in his mind and gathered further strength and determination – this thought of building a grand temple for his Lord.

He gathered requisite materials in his mind. He approached rich donors and collected huge amounts from them – all in the mind again. Expert architects were approached. They formulated designs, plans and drawings. He collected artisans, renowned sculptors, labourers, tools and even tools? He did not leave the minutest details, however trivial it might appear on first sight! His thoughts were occupied only with the construction of a grand temple for the Lord, unrivalled it would stand when completed! He slaved and slogged for it.

On an auspicious day, the corner (foundation) stone was laid. The king laid it according to rituals. With infinite love and meticulous care he had the temple built brick by brick, stone by stone, pillar by pillar, sculpture by sculpture, day and night, unseen by anyone.

Layer by layer, from the base to the top, the temple was nearing completion. He planned the huge Rajagopuram, other four towers, one each for the four directions, North, East, West and South. He supervised the construction scrupulously, devotedly. The rounded dome, the ancillary pillars, pavilions, shrines and the sacred kalasams were all made ready, worked in ? on the wall sides and niches. Shrines for the Divine Mother, the Lord’s Consort, Vinayaka, Muruga, main deity, Durga were completed. Walls and prakarams were laid. The temple tank was dug and filled with clean water fit for abihsekham (anointing).

At last, the temple was fully completed. It was grand, mighty and a rare sight to behold! He consulted the priests, discussed with them in great detail and fixed an auspicious date for the Mahakumbhabhishekam (consecration) of the temple. Problem arises – no problem! There arose a problem. He had no knowledge of it of course, this devotee Poosalar. It was on this most auspicious date that the Kaadava ruler of Kanchi, who had built a magnificent temple of granite, marble, red and black stones for the Lord Siva, had decided to perform the Kalsabhishekam. The Lord was to be installed therein on the same date!

The Lord appeared in the king’s dream the night before the sacred consecration date. The king was thrilled. But, the Lord asked him, commandingly, so it appeared to the king, to postpone the consecration date. The Lord explained that He had to be present at the installation and consecration ceremony fixed by His dear devotee Poosalar of Ninravur on that same date! That was far more important!

The King moved on to Ninravur in search of the temple. He could’nt find any. He came to know about poosalar through some sources. The King spotted Poosalar in the town and inquired him about the temple. He also told him about the words of the Lord in his dream.

Poosalar was in tears. He was deeply touched by the grace of the Lord. He told the king that the consecration was happening that day in his mind, for the temple he was building in his mind.

The King later on built a temple in Ninravur and made the dream of Poosalar come true. Even today, the temple stands in that place (Tiruninravur near Chennai, India) as a testimony to the ‘power of human belief.’

- Source.

Also See: A Visit to Dhyanalingam.

When in 1307 the Knights Templar were suppressed throughout Europe by the French Avignon Pope Clement V, egged on by King Louis IV, all their property passed on to the Hospitallers. In England, these in turn passed to the Crown when Henry VIII suppressed the monasteries. In 1608, James I handed the area over to lawyers of the Inner and Middle Temples with the proviso that they take responsibility for the Temple Church, a situation which remains to this day. One would imagine this is the reason that it is the Authorised Version which sits on every pew, but one would like to think that good taste came into it too.

The lawyers have done a great job of keeping this church in impeccable condition. On the floor of the old nave we have eight stone monuments of medieval knights. On the north side of the Chancel is a wonderful modern pipe organ (the original 17C organ was destroyed in the Blitz) on which yesterday the organist was practising, belting out a rousing rendition of “Holy, holy, holy…”, among other old favourites. It may have dislodged tiles off a lesser church.

The old Nave, facing West.

The Chancel, facing East.

The Temple Church is based right in the middle of the Inner and Middle Temple district, immediately south of Temple Bar where Westminster and the City of London meet. It is open to the public for a few hours three or four times a week, but at irregular times, which can make planning a visit difficult (this was my third attempt). Entry is free for just another two days, for on 1 March a £3 entrance charge is being introduced. A sign of the times, but still worth it.

From the outside: the circular 12th Century Nave

Outside. Two knights sharing a horse, a common Templar emblem.

There’s also a kind of theme within a theme in this posting.  Running all the way through, you will find water.  Here, for instance, is Babylon.  The Israelites, during their 50 years of exile in the 6th century BC,  sang of their longing for Zion ‘by the rivers of Babylon’.

From the 12th century London itself had been referred to, in part or whole, as ‘Babylon’.  In medieval London it was used to describe a small – and I am imagining quite unsavoury – area near the London wall.

By the 18th and 19th centuries all London was referred to as both Babylon and Babel – a centre of empire and a city of diverse tongues.  Immigrants, foreign merchants, overseas sailors and refugees would certainly have confounded through their many languages.

By the turn of the 20th century it was merely the East End, ‘the city of dreadful night’, that was most often referred to as a ‘modern Babylon’.  However, we begin this posting properly with two wise women.

Deborah

The Israelite Judge Deborah (12th century BC) was represented as the new Queen Elizabeth during her coronation pageant on 14th January 1559. Deborah herself was from the tribe of Ephraim, a real Judge (in the biblical context) and an advocate of Israelite independence within Canaan.

Queen Elizabeth I. Image courtesy of NPG

Tradition says  Deborah judged wisely for 40 years and as both a Judge, and a saviour of Israel (England’s enemy Spain was represented by Canaan) the coronation pageant embodied the virtues of Deborah within the young Elizabeth.  At the time this may have been more in hope and anticipation than concrete evidence but Queen Elizabeth went on to reign for 44 years, rather successfully.  The London link is clear, but the water?  In 1533 Princess Elizabeth was born to Queen Anne Boleyn within Greenwich Palace, built on the banks of the River Thames.

Jacob’s Island

If you took a boat from Greenwich Palace, and steered it towards central London, just before Tower Bridge on the Surrey side of the River Thames you come to Bermondsey. It’s here, on a stretch of river known as the Upper Pool that the River Neckinger once flowed freely into the Thames.At the mouth of the (now culverted) Neckinger stood St Saviours Dock, used in pre-Dissolution times by the monks of Bermondsey Abbey. By the early nineteenth century the area to it’s immediate east was known as Jacob’s Island.

Jacob's Island, circa 1840. Shown here is Folly Ditch near Mill Street.

Jacob’s Island was a nastier than usual slum, most infamous both for carrying cholera and being a refuge for criminals. The biblical Jacob was father to the twelve Tribes of Israel. Who Jacob was in this London context, no record seems to show. But why was it especially an ‘island’?

At high tide the waters flowed into a ditch – Folly’s Ditch – isolating this tiny Venice of vice from the rest of London, and its forces of law and order. In ‘Oliver Twist’ Charles Dickens placed Bill Sykes’s home and death scene in this squalid bog.

During the latter half of the 19th century the slum was cleared (and drained) and wharves, mills and warehousing rose above the newer residences. Nowadays, these former hives of industry have been converted into homes for the wealthy. But older, local residential streets still remain, one of which goes by the name of Jacob Street.

Noah’s Ark

From the Neckinger, on the south bank of the Thames, to the City and the Walbrook on the north bank would have been no distance at all up until the late 1500′s. By this time the Walbrook had become no more than an unnavigable, polluted ditch and this small river, which originally flowed through Roman Londinium, had more or less ceased to exist.

The Walbrook’s source lay no higher than Shoreditch, before flowing through a hole in London Wall at Moorfields (the wall brook). It found the Thames between today’s Southwark and London Bridge.

Mansion House today - Minus Noahs Ark

Present day street Walbrook lies a few yards east of the Walbrook’s original course, next to Mansion House, official residence of the Lord Mayor of London.  Built by George Dance the Elder between 1739-52 on the site of the old open air Stocks Market, Mansion House was a grand palladian, erm, mansion house in the popular style.

On its roof Dance built, what can only be described as, protuberances; extensions if you like, which were nicknamed ‘The Mayor’s Nest’ and ‘Noah’s Ark’. Dance added them to raise the height of the various public rooms within.

George Dance’s son, George Dance the Younger, removed Noah’s Ark in 1794, when he in turn roofed over the courtyard, creating integral high ceilinged rooms. The ‘Mayor’s Nest’ also eventually went, in 1842.

Temple

Old Temple Church

Half a mile to the west of Walbrook lies Temple. Along Temple’s southern perimeter runs Victoria Embankment.

Until this mid-19th century construct, Temple ran down to the bank of the Thames from its northern boundary at Fleet Street.

The name Temple derives from the lands’ original owners, a French crusade era holy order of knights called ‘Poor Fellow Soldiers of Christ and of The Temple of Solomon’ or more commonly ‘Knights of the Temple of Solomon of Jerusalem’; conveniently shortened to Knights Templar.

Within this compound they built the New Temple Church in 1162 (still standing) and the Great House in 1185.  Answerable only to the Pope they developed great wealth and power by protecting pilgrims en route to The Holy Land and less piously, through banking and property.

The Knights Templar were dissolved in 1312, having been accused of blasphemy, heresy and sodomy.  Temple was given by King Edward II to the Knights Hospitaller (Order of St John of Jerusalem) who in turn leased the land to lawyers.

Henry VIII

Henry VIII seized the land for himself during the Dissolution. James I however returned the land to lawyers creating the Middle Temple and Inner Temple.  Today, lawyers or law students living in Temple are still known as Templars.

Jerusalem Tavern

Running slightly to the east of Temple lay the mouth of the River Fleet (some of it even having been reclaimed for land by the Knights Templar).  Rising in Hampstead Heath the river flowed through Kentish Town, Camden Town, Clerkenwell and Farringdon until it met the north bank of the Thames near today’s Blackfriars Bridge.

Although the river’s source can still (just) be traced, it is now almost fully culverted and out of sight up to its modern day outlet, which also functions as a storm drain.

The Jerusalem Tavern today

One street to the east of where Farringdon Road crosses Clerkenwell Road is Turnmill Street, the name itself a testament to the pre-industrial working methods practiced along this lower stretch of the river. One street further to the east lies Britton Street, and it is in Britton Street that we find the Jerusalem Tavern.  There had been Jerusalem Taverns in Clerkenwell for centuries, due to the presence and influence of the nearby Priory of St John (of Jerusalem).  Britton Street now houses the last remaining Jerusalem Tavern, occupying a building that dates from the streets foundation in the 1720′s. The tavern had previously been a merchants house and a clockmakers.

John Britton

Until 1936 the street was formerly known as Red Lion Street. To distinguish it from other streets of the same name it was re-named after John Britton (1771-1857), the noted antiquarian and geographical writer who had originally been apprenticed to his wine merchant uncle in the street. Britton later recorded his memories of the ‘damp, murky cellars’, presumably the consequences of bad drainage and the seeping waters of the Fleet.

River Jordan

St. Pancras station

Our sixth and final ‘degree’ leads us to where the Fleet now flows under Kings Cross, and meets the eastern end of the Euston Road.  As the Euston Road heads west past St Pancras Station it forms the southern boundary of Somers Town.

Named after the Somers family who had owned the land from the late 1600′s Somers Town is bordered in the north by Crowndale Road and in the west by Euston Station. The construction of London’s northern relief road, the New Road (now the Euston Road) in 1757, created a defined border separating Somers Town from Bloomsbury.

From the late 1700′s Somers Town developed as an urban expansion of the metropolis, attracting the labouring classes, sizable numbers of French escapees from revolutionary France and later Spanish emigres.

The communities of Somers Town acknowledging the wide, roaring demarcation separating them from the more established areas to the south called Euston Road ‘the River Jordan’.

As Somers Town’s inhabitants would have known, the River Jordan of the Hebrew Bible was a boundary crossed by Jacob from Canaan to Haran, a border between Israelite tribes and a crossing for the Israelite armies of Gideon and King David.

The Bible also regarded the River Jordan as something sacred and holy.  For those stuck in the traffic jams of today’s Euston Road, perhaps it’s only profane and blasphemous thoughts that occupy the minds of the trapped motorist.

I hope you have enjoyed traveling around biblical London with me. Please leave any comments or feedback you have regarding this, or any of the other ’6 Degrees of London Separation’ posts.

The story of Mahatma Gandhi is inter-woven with the story of London. His three years as a law student at the Inner Temple (1888-1891) were pivotal in shaping his philosophy.  During this time he also learnt to ballroom dance, became an advocate of vegetarianism, immersed himself in key spiritual texts and developed a passion for Equity Law.

TARA evokes Gandhi’s life in London in the spectacular rotunda of the Temple Church with a company of actors, musicians and dancers. The performance on 2 October, Gandhi’s Birthday, marks the launch of the Gandhi Inner Temple Association.

TARA produces global theatre for local audiences. Positioned between East and West, TARA has pioneered cross-cultural theatre for over three decades. In 2009 the company co-produced Hanif Kureishi’s The Black Album with the National Theatre.

Performances of Gandhi in London, October 2010:
2 Oct 6:15pm (Gandhi’s birthday)
5 Oct 6:45pm
Tickets £10
The Temple Church
London, EC4Y 7HL

Book tickets:
020 8333 4457 / tara-arts.com

Thanks to Addison’s help The Tatler was an undoubted success, although it had met with criticism because of Steele’s attacks on the new Tory government.  By the end of 1710 Steele had enough material for a collected edition of The Tatler; thereupon, he and Addison decided to make a fresh start with a new periodical.  The Spectator, appearing six days a week, from March 1, 1711, to December 6, 1712, offered a wide range of material to its renders, from discussion of the latest fashions to serious disquisitions on criticism and morality, including Addison’s weekly papers on Paradise Lost and the series on the “pleasures of the imagination.” 

The members of the Spectator Club, whose speculations the new paper professed to publish, were (beside Mr. Spectator himself) Sir Roger de Coverley, an eccentric and old-fashioned country squire;  Captain Sentry, a retired army officer; Sir Andrew Freeport, a merchant “of great eminence in the City”; a member of the Inner Temple and frequenter of playhouses;  Will Honeycomb, an elderly beau who fancied himself knowledgeable in the ways of women; and finally, a grave and learned clergyman.  In bringing learning “out of closets and libraries, schools and colleges, to dwell in clubs and assemblies, at tea-tables, and in coffee-houses,”  The Spectator was eminently successful—as shown by the great variety of letters from readers and the steadily increasing number of advertisements printed.  -(D.F.B)

It is with great interest to me personally to find out about the proposed merger of Middle and Inner Temple libraries. It was only last week that I was looking into which inn to join. My motivation to do it early was the use of the inn libraries as I continue my studies, well that and the fact I will have to go in front of various committees to explain my dubious past. As luck would have it I was looking to join Inner Temple, I’d heard particularly good things about their library. Now I am not so sure and will be looking at Lincoln and Gray’s inn instead.

Like many students studying law in London I find that there is often a run on books if there is a deadline on a particular subject. The fact I could go into a specialist library, with a good selection of books and knowledgeable librarians holds great appeal to me and, I imagine, many in my situation. And it is that many where the trouble for me lies. By effectively halving the amount of inns of court libraries those making these proposals are doubling the amount of people, practitioner and student, perusing the shelves. They are also halving the amount of highly trained personnel available to answer queries from people like me who frequently get lost among the shelves of books and if they are looking to cram two libraries into one, I imagine those shelves would be fairly cosy.

And there is another point. Both libraries hold collections of unspeakable value to the English legal community. What is to be done with them? Will they be crammed into the one building? Or will they be held in storage and have to be requested, thus adding delays to the accessibility of texts? How will this work if you have a particularly tight deadline and are due in court?

What about the distinct personalities of the two libraries? It was only last week when I was listening to two barrister friends arguing about whose inn library was the better. This made me think of the merging of British army infantry regiments and the detrimental effect it has had on morale. The bar is a profession with an uncertain future at the moment. Cuts to the legal aid budget and the introduction of solicitors with higher rights, coupled with the astronomical price of education have dented the morale of those thinking of entering the wacky world of advocacy. Will these proposals do anything to encourage us that we have a future? Probably not. My most learned friends Charon QC and Geeklawyer have blogged on this already and it would be worthwhile for my four readers to check out their opinions. I however will be looking elsewhere for an inn.

The Winter Solstice is the end of the year. It is when the Sun ‘dies’ and we experience it as the shortest day and longest night of the year.

Traditionally, for those who live according to the Laws of Nature, the death of the Sun is mourned, for it is the Source of Life. As the dark night passes, we can reflect on our inner nature, to seek those parts of us that need to die.

Old thoughts that no longer create good things in our lives, and the negative emotions that go with them, can slip away, having served their purpose. Old habits and negative behaviour can be discarded. The ‘rubbish’ of the inner self can be put out for re-cycling.

It is time to clean up the inner temple.

Imagine your inner temple as a vast sacred hall, lined with mirrors, reflecting the colours and light of your true nature. Imagine cleaning those mirrors, polishing them so that they shine in pristine beauty. Imagine sweeping the floors of your temple of all the dust and litter that may have collected there, to leave a clean open space in which to let your spirit dance. Imagine cleaning the chandeliers of light cascading from the heavenly blue ceiling of your temple, using the finest feather duster, to allow the colours of light to shine down on you while you dance.

Now imagine the music of your soul, vibrating through your inner temple, and see your spirit sway and move and be uplifted to its rhythms.

Now you are ready for the birth of the New Sun, the start of your New Year, the beginning of the next part of your journey. The New Sun arises from the horizon and you can rejoice, sing out loud, laugh and dance in the New Dawn.

The death of the Natural World has always been followed by the birth of the New World. As surely as day follows night, Spring follows Winter, Life follows Death. Look for the first flower of Spring – the snowdrop.

I wish you all Great Blessings for the New Year, and much happiness through the Christmas holiday.

Wendy Salter.

[original writing]

]]> http://activeprocrastination.wordpress.com/2008/01/25/temple-and-the-inns-of-court/ Fri, 25 Jan 2008 01:17:38 +0000 activeprocrastination http://activeprocrastination.wordpress.com/2008/01/25/temple-and-the-inns-of-court/